are the surest Pillars of our Commonwealth but woe to and will be to that Common-wealth that is builded on such Pillars And if Scotland or any party in it joyn with them on these terms our woe is but coming He is a jealous God chiefly in the matter of his Service as is clear from the Second Command The Third use is If this be an Ordinance of God to put Power in the Magistrates hand to punish Error it should make you scar at Error and labour to be grounded in the Truth For we see Error is a sin that God hates and it is a sin that God will have the Magistrate to punish and so a sin that he himself will punish if the Magistrate do neglect it It is natural to men to think If they can live a good Life it is the less matter what be their Opinion but the Lord Judges not so for as he will have other sins punished by the Magistrate so he will have these punished also And such as he usually punisheth himself by fearful Plagues when the Magistrate neglecteth his Duty in punishing other sins so doth he in those We might speak much from History of fearful Judgements sent immediatly by God upon Hereticks but we shall here close SECT III. A BRIEF REFUTATION OF THE DOCTRINE OF Erastianism Head I. That there is a Church Government held forth in Scripture HAving thus show'n that the Doctrine of Tolleration is not of God I proceed to Demonstrate this also in some other of the most Dangerous Errors of the Times We shall begin first with these Errors which are about the Government of the Church and that because the Government of the Church is the hedge of the Doctrine for if once the Government be brangled or shaken the wild Boar of the Wilderness cometh in easily and corrupteth the Doctrine therefore it is that the Devils main design hath been against the Government of the Church to blast and storm this Wall on all Hands The summe of what we have to say in this is to make out these four points First That there is a Government appointed by Christ in his Church distinct from the Civil Government Secondly We shall show that this Government is not in the hands of the Civil Magistrate but in the hands of Christs own officers which he hath appointed for Governing his house By inflicting of Church Censures enacting of Church canons so as they are not to act by derived power from the Magistrate and Appeals are not to be made from them to the Magistrate Thirdly we shall endeavour to prove That this power of Church Government is not in the hands of private Christians or the community of the Faithful but in the hand of Christs own Officers Ministers and Elders And Lastly We shall endeavour to prove that this Authority and Government is not in the hand of particular Congregations or particular Elderships Independently from other Judicatories above them but that this power is given to them so as they must be subject to Superior Judicatories In which propositions we will meet with these Errors that are most dangerously opposite to Church Government at this time The First two propositions are contrary to the Doctrine of Erastians and the last two are contrary to the Doctrine of Independents as they are commonly designed First we shall engage with Erastianism and our Scope in this shall be as in the former to show that however it pretend to the Spirit yet when it is brought to the tryal it will be found not to be of God This Doctrine or Error hath its name from the prime Author of it called Erastus a Doctor of Medicine who upon some discontent did first vent it to wit That Ministers should only meddle with Preaching but should have no power to meet in Church Judicatories Sessions Presbyteries or such like nor should they punish Scandalous sins with Church Censures Such as Suspension or Excommunication But that all power whatsoever in a Nation both in Church and State should be in the hand of the Civil Magistrate This Doctrine so soon as it was vented did get and does yet get many followers chiefly among state Divines and Christians that know more of wordly policy than Christian simplicity so that in a short time if God prevent it not it is like to swallow up all other Controversies about Church Government so plausible and pleasing it is to the powers of the World who cannot well endure to have Christ Reigning besides them Psalm 2. 3. Let us break their bands assunder and cast away their cords from us Both Sectaries and Malignants do aggree in this Error to take the power of Discipline out of the Churches hand 's The spiritual power of Church Censures in the hands of Christs officers is an eye sore to both of them But to come nearer to the point There are two heads of this Erastian Doctrine which we shall labour to refute The First is most gross whereby they affirm That there is no particular Church Government set down in Scripture In a word that there is no Government in the Church by divine right but that this Government is left in the hands of the Civil Magistrate whether to erect any Government at all in the Church or not or if he please to erect one That he may establish That Government which suits best the well-being of the Civil state So that according to this Doctrine the Civil Magistrate may establish Episcopacy this year the next year he may establish Presbytry and the third year he may cast both and establish Independency And if he like He may find out a Government different from any of these and establish it The Second Erastian Error is this whereby they affirm whatever Government be in the Church whether grounded in Scripture or not that according to Scripture it is in the hands of the Civil Magistrate and that he is the chief fountain of Church Government In opposition to the first Error we lay down this Conclusion which God willing we shall make good That Jesus Christ the King and head of his Church hath established a particular form of Church Government in his word which to alter is not in the power of any State whatsoever He hath set down a way for punishing Scandals for inflicting Church Censures Enacting Church canons And hath not left this in the Arbitriment of Kings or Parliaments to set down any Government they please In prosecuting which point we shall follow that Method we keeped in refuting the Doctrine of Tolleration We shall First clear the State of the Question Secondly We shall bring Arguments to confirm the Truth Thirdly We shall Answer these Arguments the Adversary brings against the Truth And so we shall apply all to Use. I. And First for clearing the State of the Question take thir two assertions First we do not affirm that all the Circumstantials of Church Government is set down expresly in the word But only first That all the
suppress sin as well as then Is not Christ perfect in all his House as well as Moses Yea in a word there can nothing be alleadged for a necessity to have a Church Government under the Old Testament but the same may be brought to prove the necessity of it under the New The Second Argument we bring to prove this point is taken from the native end of Church Government which is spiritual to wit For the edifying of the Body of Christ Ephes 4. 12. To gain the Soul of our offended Brother to Repentence Matth 18. 15. It is that the Spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus 1 Corinth 5 5. So the end of the Church Government is a spiritual end and therefore it must have a Divine Original Church Government whose end is spiritual can be no humane Ordinance for such produceth no supernatural effects therefore it must have a higher warrand for it than that of the Magistrate Our Third Argument is taken from this that all the substantials of Church Government are set down expresly in Scripture from which we make this Argument That Government whose substantial parts are all set down expresly in Scripture the Magistrate hath no power to alter it or put an other in its place but so it is that all the substantial parts of Church Government are set down expresly in Scripture Therefore the Magistrate hath no power to alter it The thing we have to make out in this Argument is this That all the substantials of Church Government are set down in Scripture And to clear this we shall reckon up five things First That Church officers have their warrand from Scripture Thess 5 12. 1 Tim 5. 17. Let the Elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour especially they who labour in the word and Doctrine There is a Ruler or an officer with power to rule established in Gods house What they say That by Ruling there is meaned Preaching because Ministers guide People by Preaching is a frivolous Exception and that because of what is in the end of the Verse especially they who labour in the word and Doctrine So labouring in the word and Doctrine is one thing and Ruling is another thing and not one and the same as their Exception affirmeth But we shall find a more clear place for it in Heb. 13. 17. Obey them that have the Rule over you and submit your selves There are Officers established with power to Rule and the People are commanded to submit and give Obedience to them and so there are Rulers Officers established in Gods Church Secondly The Courts and Judicatories of the Church have a warrand in Gods word and for this see Matth 18. 17 18. And if he shall neglect to hear them tell it unto the Church Verily I say unto you whatsoever ye shall bind on Earth shall be bound in Heaven The Adversaries are so shamless that they say by the Church is here meaned the Civil Magistrate and that the complaint should be made to them But it is sure the Civil Magistrate is not here meaned And to prove it The Judicatory here meaned is that whereof the Apostles should be Members and therefore in v 16. It is said whatever ye to wit the Apostles shall bind on earth c. Now sure it is Jesus Christ gives no power to his Ministers to sit in Civil Courts and to judge of Civil business The third substantial of Church Government that hath warrand in the word is the subordination of lesser Judicatories to greater and this is warranted in Act 15 2. Where Paul and Barnabas come up from Antioch to a General Council at Jerusalem because the controversie in hand could not be ended at Antioch where there is a Court with power They determine the Question Censure the Schismaticks giving them the name of Lyars v. 24. The Fourth substantial of this Government set down in Scripture is the order of proceeding in relation to Censure 1. By private Admonition Then more pubâ—ick Matth 18. 15. The fifth thing is The nature and kind of thir Censures which are not bodily as takingâ— way the life but spiritual to wit Admonitions reproofs Casting out of the Church Matth 18 17 Let him he unto thee as an Heathen and a Publican Now from all this It evidently appears that Christ hath set down all the Substantials of Church Government in his word And seeing he hath done so what man dare alter it taking any prudential way for the good of the Church at his pleasure Yea there is a charge given to preserve all these inviolable till Christs coming 1 Tim 5. 21. I charge thee before God and the Lord Jesus Christ and the elect Angels that thou observe these things without preferring one before another doing nothing by partiality So that which Christ hath set down concerning the Government of his house is unalterable by any person whatsomever till the coming of Jesus Christ. So much for the third Argument There is a Fourth and it shall be our last which is this If so be that Christ hath left his House without any particular Government only referring it to the Civil State to appoint what Government they please it would reflect much on the wisdome of Jesus Christ For the Church visible is his Kingdom his House his Vinyard his Garden And shall we say that he hath appointed no Laws to Govern no Courts to guide this Kingdom but left it to the Civil Magistrate to appoint by whom and how it pleaseth him best A King of Clay would not do so with his Kingdom much less he who is the King of Glory This for the Arguments to confirm the Truth we shall in the next place Answer their Objections III. The First is say they from 2 Tim 3 16. The word of God is able to make a man perfect and therefore there is no need of Government We Answer This same Argument may as well strick against Magistracy But Secondly We say which we made already appear That the Government of the Church is grounded on the Word Hence their Argument proveth not because the Government of the Church is a part of the Word and is commanded by it and so it is not an adding to it But if they say the bare Preaching of the word is enough We Answer Not to detract any thing from the word Preached which is the mean appointed by God to save Souls yet the Exercise of Dicipline is necessary also It is necessary we say for Three Reasons 1. To keep the Ordinances of God from being polluted by the rushing foreward of Dogs and Scandalous Persons All the Preaching that can be to bid Scandalous men keep back will not do Then 2. It is necessary for keeping the Church from being infected by the contagion of Scandalous men Hence sayeth the Apostle Paul a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump Therefore put the incestous man from among you 3. It is necessary for the good of the Soul
transferred it to the Civil Magistrate which they cannot do Our fifth Argument is to obviate that which they say That Ministers are but the Magistrates deputes From which we argue thus If Church Officers in inflicting Censures be the Magistrates deputs then whatever the Church Judicatory does the Magistrate may do it also for none can delegate more right to ther than what he hath himself And so by this it should follow that the Magistrate might ordain Misters himself by imposition of hands he might Excommunicate And if he may do this by consequence he might also Preach Administrate the Sacraments c. For what right can be pretended to the one which may not be extended to the other and so there should be no need of Pastors and Teachers but the Magistrate might do all Our last Argument is taken from the distinction which the Scripture holdeth out betwixt Ecclesiastick and Civil power Scripture condemneth Church-mens usurping the Civil power and States-mens usurping the Church power Church men are forbidden to judge or meddle with Civil things by Christ himself Luk 12. 13 14. 22 25. And so the Civil Magistrate may not meddle with Church power either There are two Kings we read of to be heavily punished for their Transgression in this kind Saul for offering a Burnt-offering 1 Sam 13. 13. And Vzziah for burning Incense 2 Chorn. 26. 19. He would go in and burn Incense And therefore the Lord smites him with leprosie And surely Reason would say if it be a sin for Church Officers to Exercise the Civil Government then it is a sin for the Civil Magistrate to take to himself the only supream power of Church Government and ingross it wholy to himself III. We come to the Third thing we promised to speak to And that was the answering of the Opposites Arguments The first Argument they bring against this Truth is That Godly Magistrates under the Old Testament had the power of Church Government And therefore so should Christian Magistrates have it under the New Wee Answer That their Argument proves nothing except they also prove that what power of Church Government Magistrates had then they had it as Magistrates For we grant indeed what did belong to Magistrates as Magistrates under the Old Testament does belong to Magistrates under the New But it may not be granted that that which belonged to Magistrates then under other respects doth belong to Magistrates yet For clearing of this It is to be observed that there were many Magistrates extraordinary men under the Old Testament So Moses gives out Laws and Ordinances for ordering the Church But we find in Deut 18. 15. Moses was a great Prophet and a Type of Christ. The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a prophet from the midst of thee of thy Brethren like unto me unto him ye shall hearken So David appointed the office of the Levites that divided their courses But David was a Prophet 2. Chron 8 14. And he appointed according to the order of David his father the courses of the Priests to their service Thus in another place it is shown how David did this at the direction of other Prophets 2 Chron. 29. 25. And he set the Levites in the House of the Lord with Cymbals with Psalters and with Harps according to the Commandment of David and of Gad the Kings seer and Nathan the Prophet For so was the Commandment of the Lord by his Prophets And so from these and such like practices they can no more infer the Power of the Magistrate now in Church matters than we may infer the Power of Church-men in Civil-matters from the example of Church-men under the Old-Testament For Church-men did meddle with Civil-Matters in extraordinary Cases As Eli the Priest He governed the State And Samuel in cutting Agag in pieces Elisha in Anointing Jehu to be King And Jehoâ—ada the Priest in causing kill Attaliah the Usurper and making Joash King All which we grant were extraordinary Acts and so cannot be an ordinary rule for Church-men to have such Power in Civil things now And so must they grant concerning these extraordinary practices of Civil Judges in medling sometimes with Church matters The Second Argument they use is this If so be that Magistrates were set over Church Officers to receive Appeals from them it would make them afraid to go beyond their Duty But if they have none above them there is danger of their Ambition and abusing of Discipline To which we answer First Ministers are Men indeed and as other men are ready to abuse their Power But if the danger of abusing Power be a good Argument to take Power from them then there should be no Power in the Hands of any For what kind of Men are there to be found who are not in danger to abuse their Power and so all must be left in Confusion We give a second answer That the same Argument may be used against the abuse of Preaching the Word and administrating the Sacraments For the danger is as great and yet the Erasitans the most part of them at least will not say that the Magistrate for preventing of this abuse may step into the Pulpit himself and Preach better and Administer the Sacraments better There is another way to curb that abuse and so is it in the matter of Governing the Church there is danger indeed of abusing that Power but we say in like manner that for that the Magistrate may not sit down and take the Power of Church Government himself There are other means left to prevent this danger Which shall be our Third Answer Wherein we shall show some of these means appointed by God for preventing the abuse of Power in the hands of the Church-Officers First There are some Remedies in the Church Power it self to wit The Subordination of Judicatories So that although a Congregational Eldership should wrest Justice yet there are above them Presbyteries and above them Synods and above them General Assemblies Now it may be conceived that an Act of Injustice will hardly get through all those before it be branded with some deserved mark But Secondly Though all Church Officers should connive one at another and so the Faults of Ministers go through unpunished yet there is some remedy left even in the Civil Power For although for the reasons foresaid he may not take upon him the Power of the Church Judicatory under pretence of Righting their Abuses no more than he may take upon him to Preach for preventing their abuse of Preaching Yet he may do several things 1. If Church Officers commit a civil Crime he may curb them by his own Authority 2. If Church Judicatories meddle to judge in Civil things which concern a mans Life or Estate the Magistrate may make null what they conclude and punish them for abuse of Power for therein they medled with what belonged not unto them 3. Grant the matter be meerly Ecclesiastick wherein they abuse their Power yet the
infer any Church power which we clear in both First The Peoples power in Electing their Minister doth not infer any power of Church Government in them and that because it is not the Peoples Election or their choise that makes the Minister to be a Minister or gives him Authority to Exercise the Ministerial calling but it is the Act of Ordination by imposition of the hands of those who are Church Officers that makes the man the Minister and gives him Authority We shall find this Acts 6 3. where the Peoples Election and Ordination by Church Officers is clearly distinguished Wherefore Brethren say the Apostles look ye out among you seven men of honest report full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom there is the Peoples Election whom we may appoint over this busines There is the Church Officers part Though the People look them out and choise them that gives them not the power of their calling untill the Church Officers appoint and ordain them Secondly The power of trying the Spirits doth not infer any such power or Authority of Government in the People otherwise it should follow that the People of Berea who did try Pauls Doctrine Act. 17. 11. And compared it with the word whetber those things were so had Authority over Paul which none will affirm A Second distinction to clear the state of the Question is this There is a great difference betwixt those to whom the Authority of Governing the Church is given and those for whom or for whose good it is given although we deny that the power of Governing the Church is given to private Believers yet we grant it is given for them So all Ordinances are given for the good of Believers As it is Ephes 4. 11. And he gave some Apostles and some Prophets aud some Evangilists and some Pastors and Teachers For the perfecting of the Saints c. and in this respect 1 Cor 3. 21 22. all is said to be theirs For all things are yours whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the World or Life or Death or things present or things to come all are yours i. e. given for their good But hence it will not follow that because Church Discipline is given for them that therefore they have the power of it for in this respect Paul is given to every particular believing Woman and yet it does not follow that Women have Pauls Authority And so the Body of the particular Church hath not this power in their hands although the power be given for their good A Third thing for understanding the State of the Question We do willingly grant to private Christians power to admonish exhort in the Lord out of Charity and this they may extend even to Ministers say to Archippus take heed to thy Ministry But this Liberty to admonish by way of Charity doth not import any Church power in them over those whom they rebuke no more than Pauls rebuking of Peter Gal 2. 14. doth infer a power in Paul above Peter So ye see what we do grant to private Christians and what we deny The sum whereof is this That Jesus Christ hath not given them any power of Church Government or the Exercise of it either in whole or in part but has intrusted it wholly to his own Officers Ministers and Elders This for clearing the state of the Question II. We come now to Arguments for clearing the Truth And the First is this That Jesus Christ hath given no warrand to private Christians for Governing his House or for the Exercise of this Government and therefore they have no right to it The consequence must be clear For none has right to play the part of a Governour in Christs Church except those who have a warrand in his word for it Now that private Christians have no warrand in his word for Governing the Church either expresly or by good consequence either by precept or promise or any thing else it is clear from this that in several places of the Word this power is denyed unto them So Rom 10. they must not exercise the Power of Preaching for how shall they Preach except they â—e sent v. 15. Now the whole communiâ—y of Believers cannot be sent besides they have no ability to discharge this Office there is but one of a Thousand that can convince gainsayers Is apt to teach that is able to cut and divide the word aright and so they have no power to Preach And Secondly From this it will follow that they have no power to Administrate the Sacraments for Christ Jesus hath joyned both these powers in one Commission He gives no power to any to Aministrate the Sacraments but those to whom he gives power also to Preach Matth 28 19. Go ye therefore and teach all nations Baptizing them- c Power of Preaching and Administrating the Sacraments go together And so seeing the one power is denyed to them the other must be denyed also Thirdly They have no power to ordain Ministers or to execute any other act of Church Jurisdiction for they have no ability to try Ministers gifts there is no precept commanding them to do it there is no practice in the New Testament proving that ever they did it as shall be more fully cleared in answering the Arguments they bring for it And so they have no right to Govern the Church The Second Argument for the Truth is this That this Doctrine of theirs whereby they give the power of Governing the Church to private Christians doth overturn the order established by Jesus Christ in his House And therefore they have no right to it The consequence none may doubt of For nothing appointed by God doth evert the order established by himself Now that this Doctrine of theirs whereby they put the power of Governing the Church in the hands of the People doth evert the order appointed by Christ is clear Because his order is That some be watchmen some watched over some Rulers some to submit some Governours some to be Governed some Sheepherds some the flock But if so be that all the Members of the Church had the power of Governing in their hand then all should be overseers watchmen Rulers Governours and none more than another If so be that power to Govern should flow from this That they are Church Members For all are so alike The Third Argument we bring for the Truth is this That to whomsoever Christ Jesus hath given warrand for Governing the Church to those he gives promises of sutable abilities for discharging of that great Trust But so it is that Jesus Christ hath not gifted neither promise to gift every Christian nor yet requireth He answerable gifts for Government from them And therefore he hath given them no warrand for Governing the Church For the first part of the Argument that those to whom he gives the power of Church Government he doth also promise them sufficient abilities for their Trust is clear For how could it stand with the wisdom
Church-member then every Church-member is bound in Conscience to attend all Church Judicatories to wait on the deciding of all Ecclesiastical questions But what inevitable confusion would follow on this How long time would it take to inform People about the Circumstances of things How tedious would it be to hear every mans judgment to the point And what distractions would it be to Peoples Callings This certainly would bring great confusion And so such a Power as this cannot be from God who is the God of Order These are now the Arguments for the Truth III. In the next place we shall answer their Arguments brought against the Truth The first they use is grounded on Coloss. 4. 17. A command There is given to the Body of Believers in reference to the Minister Say to Archippus Take heed to the Ministry which thou hast received in the Lord. From this they infer That People have Power to Censure their Minister And so have Church Authority We answer They make much of this Argument and yet it is little worth For they build their Power to Censure upon this that they have Power to Say A poor reason So Matth. 18. 17. Say to the Church or tell the Church It is the same word that is here used But to infer from this that one man had Authority over the Church were very ridiculous Surely if he had commanded a judicial act of Authority he would have said Command and Charge Archippus with all Authority as in the like case he speaks to Timothy But as we shew in the state of the question private Christians have Power to exhort and admonish one another yea their Pastors But this doth not import any Power of Church-Government over others else women who are not permitted to speak in the Church should have Power of Church-Government to make Church Canons Censure and Ordain their Ministers For they are bound to exhort and admonish as occasion offers Obj. 2. A second Argument they bring from Act. 11. 1. When Peter comes up to Jerusalem verse 3. the people Challenge him saying Thou wentest in to men uncircumcised and didst eat with them and verse 4 He begins to clear himself to them and rehearsed the matter from the beginning c. And from this they reason thus That the Church hath Power to call Peter to an account And therefore they have Power to Censure for Scandals It s answered first Besides the People there were Apostles and Brethren There verse 1. Secondly We answer It doth not follow because Peter purgeth himself of a Scandal unjustly laid upon him That therefore they had Power to Censure him For every Christian is bound to clear himself to another Christian of that which he is stumbled within his carriage yet one private Christian hath not Church Power over another to Censure So Peter was bound to clear himself before any one of them and if he had done wrong to take with it but that That one could not be a Church Judicatory having Power to inflict Censure on Peter our Opposits themselves will grant Obj. 3. A Third Argument they bring against the Truth is from Revel 2. 14. I have a few things against thee because thou hast there them that hold the Doctrine of Balaam The Spirit of God here is wriâ—ing to the Church of Pergamus And after he hath commended them for their Doctrine he reproves them for not exercising Discipline against these Hereticks to wit Balaam Iesabel and the Nicolattans Now from this they argue The whole Church is reproved here for not executing Discipline against these Hereticks and therefore they had power to do it Otherwise they would not have been reproved for the neglect of it But that all were reproved they prove from vers 13. and its connection with the 14. say they these who are commended in the 13. are rebuked in the 14 verse I know thy Works and where thou dwellest even where Sathan's seat is c. But so it is that not only the Ministers and Elders but all the People dwelt where Sathan's Seat was Therefore they all are reproved Answer It followeth well that they are all reproved for one fault But not that they were accessory to it after one and the same way It was the Rulers part judicially to cast out these vile Hereticks It was the Peoples part to have stirred up the Rulers to it Now because these were neglected on both hands both have their own guilt and so both reproved for their respective guilt The People are reproved for not Mourning to God for the tollerating such like abominations and their not stirring up the Rulers to take course with them But it will not follow that they were reproved for not sitting down in the Judicatory and inflicting Censures themselves That was the Rulers fault And therefore we deny that they are all rebuked for their accession to that guilt in the same way And we clear it thus Doubtless the Teachers did not teach against these vile Hereticks Now there were Women there and yet surely they are not rebuked for not Preaching against them for They ought to be silent in the Church So their fault as of all other Church Members was of another kind to wit Their not Mourning nor stirring up the Officers And so it followes that it was their Duty to Mourn stir others up to their Duty which we grant But not to exercise the Power themselves for that is not the thing they are reproved for Obj. 4. The Fourth Objection is grounded on Mat 18 17 If he shall neglect to hear them tell it unto the Church but if he neglect to hear the Church let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a Publican Whence say they the power of Church Censure is in the hand of the Church but so it is Church Officers are never called the Church Neither can they be so called without the Body of the People Therefore the power of the Church Censures is in the hand of the Body of the People Wee Answer This Argument will make more against them than us and that because they grant that neither Women nor Children have hand in Church Government but only professing Men Now they shall get no place in Scripture wherein the name of the Church is given to the Body of the Men Assembled without Women and Children Secondly We grant that the name of the Church is very sparingly given to Officers without the People Yet we say 1. 't is given them in some places As for Example Acts 18. 22. It is said of Paul When he had landed at Caesarea and gone up and saluted the Church c. Now by the Church here certainly cannot be meaned the body of professâ—rs which did amount to many thousands of People as shall appear from Acts 21. 20. In its own time So by the Church must be meaned the Chief men and Rulers of the Church For Paul having so short time to stay he seeing them but at the by could
find in Act 15. 4. and Act 21. 15 18. And when they were come to Jerusalem they were received of the Church and of the Apostles and Elders c. Now they are not called the Elders of a particular flock at Jerusalem but the Elders of the Church and therefore did meet in one Common Judicatory The force of this Argument cannot be spoken against by our Opposits who prove their particular Elderships from the same ground as in Act 20. 28. mentioning of the Elders of the Church of Ephesus From whence they Reason thus Ephesus was a particular Congregation we read there were Elders in this Church therefore there was an Eldership who met together for Governing that Church in common They must give us liberty to Reason that same way thus We find at Jerusalem was a Church made up of many particular Churches we find Elders in this Church Therefore there was an Eldership who met together for Governing of this Church or these Churches in common But Thirdly to make this Argument yet stronger not only there are Elders in this Church but we find they meet together for Acts of Jurisdiction belonging to the whole Church in Common For proof of this see Act 11 30. The contribution that is gathered for supply of the Saints is sent to the Elders Now what the Elders should do with it may be gathered from a place like it Act 4. 35. 37. where it is said They sold their possessions and laid down the price at the Apostles feet And distribution was made unto every man according as he had need So doubtless the contribution was given to the Elders for this end that they might have distributed the same to the poor in the whole Church And so it was an Act of Government tending to the good of the Church Further we find this more clear Act 21. 18. They meet together and Judicially set down a way to Paul for removing of a Church Scandal by satisfying the offended and purifying himself after the manner of the Jews In v 23. Do therefore this c. So we see their Elderships meeting together for removing a Scandal We find a Third place to confirm this Act. 15. 2. 4 We shall afterward make use of the whole Chapter to prove the power of Synods only this much at present to the purpose in hand We find the Elders met and make binding Acts to the Churches under them So we have made out the first point That there is a Government of many Congregations under one Presbytry holden out in the Word The main thing our Opposits flee to at the last is this That granting it to be true That there were many Congregations in Jerusalem before the Persecution in Act 8. And that they had one Government above them yet that doth not infer a Government by Presbytry For they were Governed by the Apostles We read not of any Elders in that Church before the Dispersion at which time they were brought to so few a number that they might all meet in one place So that though there was one common Government then by Elders It inferrs not a Presbytry but a Congregational Eldership only This is the sum of all that is said to this For Answer They grant to us That after the Persecution there was a common Eldership over the Church of Jerusalem And Secondly We have proved that there were moe Congregations than One there even after the Dispersion And we have also proved that they had Elders over them in common so that whatever was before the Dispersion yet even from their own concession it followeth That there was a Presbyterial Government in Jerusalem after the Dispersion Secondly we answer They can hardly prove that there were no Elders in Jerusalem before the Dispersion It s true we read not of Elders until Act. 11. But when they were first instituted we read not Thirdly We answer That though there were not Elders to govern them in common yet it is enough for us that the Apostles did govern them in common for they were also Elders So they call themselves 2 John ver 1. 1 Peter 5. 1. But Secondly As they were Elders so what they did in these Acts of Government they did it as Elders For what they did as Apostles is not imitable now but what they did in Governing the Church is imitable such as Ordaining of Officers Distributing of Alms. Again What they did as Apostles one of them might do it alone But here they do it in Collegio Act. 6. And reserve the Peoples part of Election to them Now they never met together to write Scripture nor sought the Peoples concurrence for any Act meerly Apostolick so it is clear the Church was governed by them as Elders And so the Churches even then were under one common Eldership And this now for the first thing we promised to make out to wit That the Scripture holdeth out a pattern of the Government of many Congregations by one common Presbytery ¶ II. There is a Plat-form of Government by Synods over many particular Presbyteries holden forth in Scripture THe Second thing we promised to make out is this That as the Scripture holdeth forth the Power of Presbyteries so also the Power of a Synod by which we mean Church Judicatories above Presbyteries as they are above Sessions or Congregational Elderships I. For understanding the Question These Synods or greater Meetings of Church Officers are of three sorts Some made up of several Presbyteries and these are Provincial Synods such as commonly we have twice a year Or they are made up of several Synods within a Nation and these are General Assemblies Or Thirdly They are made up of several Churches of several Nations or Commissioners from them and these are called Universal Councils or General Synods of the Christian World Now all these differ from Presbyteries not only in this That they are more ample but also in this That the Government by Presbyteries is the common ordinary way of Government held out in Scripture But Synods for the most part are more rare and upon particular emergent as Act. 15. That Synod was called upon an occasion of Division in the Church of Antioch which troubled other Churches about Secondly All these kinds of greater Synods The Provincial Synod and the Synod of a Nation and the Universal Councils do not differ in Nature and kind but only in less and more Wherefore it is not needful that we hold out every one of them from Scripture It is sufficient that we hold out the Power of Synods in the general which is to be applyed to every kind in particular For so we find it in Scripture in other things Particulars are infinite and therefore in things of one and the same kind General Rules are sufficient Or a Rule for one particular which keeping the just proportion is to be applyed to other particulars of the same kind As Matth 18. Christ sets down the way of walking in private Scandals speaking
the difference which they like best and hence arise contests Janglings and matter of renting the Church Now there is no way in Independency left for preventing of this Fifthly The way of Independency leaves no remedy to a Congregation wanting a Minister for Tryal of the next that comes Whose tryal is left wholly to the People by this way of Theirs How slight that tryal would be any may judge How few Parishes can try a Minister in his Abilities If he be apt to Preach convince gainsayers watch against ravening wolves c. Now this is remeeded in the way of Presbytery according to Pauls Rule 1 Tim 4. 14. That Ministers be ordained with the laying on of the hands of the Presbytery This for the first Argument from Five great defects in the Independent way Other defects also might be instanced but these may suffice Our Second Argument is taken from Matth. 18. 16. 17. 18. where Jesus Christ layes down a way for the removing of private Scandals or dealing with an offending brother From whence we argue thus If Christ hath laid down a way for gaining an offending brother how much more for gaining an offending Church It s above all doubt that a Church may offend walk inoderly wrest Justice Now surely Gods care must be no less of the whole Church than of One Member So that our consequence holds but we assume There is no way to heal the Scandal of an offending Congregation or particular Church but by compleaning to a Presbyterial Church above them This is evident For 1. our Opposites themselves will not censure them-themselves They cannot be both judge and party 2. It appears from the rule of proportion For by that same rule that private Christians are to be compleaned of to that Eldership whereof they are parts so the Eldership is to be compleaned of to that Presbytry whereof it is a part and if the Christian liberty of the private Christian be not taken away by the one so neither is the just power of the Eldership taken away by the other Our Third Argument is from that which we handled before That in Scripture is holden forth Government by Presbytries over single Congregations and by Synods over Presbytries From whence we argue thus That the way of Governing the Church in the Apostles times was by Presbyteries and Synods And therefore the Church should still be so Governed For the first part of our Argument That the way Then of Governing the Church was by Presbytries and Synods it was proved before So we have only to speak to the Second part of our Argument that therefore the Church should be Governed so now And to clear this consequence consider these things 1. That whatever is recorded of the practice of the Churches in the matter of Government in the Apostles times can be for no other end but to be a Pattern for imitation to the Churches in after times For whatsoever things were written afore times was for our learning and instruction Rom 15. 4. 2. Those primitive Churches were planted by the Apostles Now who can imagine but what the Apostles did of that kind was according to the directions given them by Christ A promise of whose presence they had with them in their Ministry and if so then their practice must be a Rule to Generations following 1 Cor 11. 1. Be ye followers of me c. 3. We make the practice of the Apostles then to be a Rule for us in other things As from their practice in giving the People liberty in choising their own Deacons Act. 7. We argue That the People may choise their own officers yet And from their practice in having Ruling Elders in the Church 1 Tim 5. 15. We argue That we should have Ruling Elders yet So from their practice in having the office of Deacons we argue That we should have them yet And from their practice in Celebrating the Lords Supper on the Lord's day Act 27. We argue Therefore we should celebrate it on that day yet Now if so be that Their practice should be a Rule to us in other things why not also in Church Government by Presbytries and Synods especially seeing that we have made out that Their practice is as clear in this as in other matters A Fourth consideration to strengthen this Argument is this That the Churches now have these same Reasons to move them to submit to that Government which the Church in the Apostles times had and a Law or Practice is still binding so long as the Reason of the Law remains Now the Reasons that moved the Church in the Apostles time to submit to Presbyterial Government was first Because there were many things of common concernment to all the Congregations in Jerusalem and therefore they were Governed by one Presbytry as said is so there are many businesses of common concernment to many particular Congregations now and therefore it should be so yet Secondly In Act 15. There ariseth a controversie in Antioch and because the controversie cannot be composed in the Presbyterial Church of Antioch therefore it is referred unto a Synod made up of many Presbytries all concerned in it So there are businesses of common concernment to many Presbytries yet and some that cannot be ended in one Presbytry and therefore there should be Synods for composing of these things yet And seeing the Apostles extraordinarly assisted one whereof might have composed the Controversie would nevertheless have a Synodical Convention for ending Controversies Much more ought we to do it whose Gifts are far Inferior to Theirs By all which it remains clear that the practice of the Church then in that point is binding to us now Argument Fourth There is no Pattern of such an Independent Congregation by precept or Practice in the whole Scripture where one particular Congregation with one Pastor and Their Eldership did Exercise or may Exercise all Church Government in all its Acts and that Independently therefore c. The Antecedent is true First An instance cannot be given of Ordination of Ministers by One Congregation Secondly By precept and Practice Ordination is to be by moe Pastors than one as Act 1. 13. Act. 6. 2. Act 13. 13. 1 Tim 4. 14. So it is clear That it is by Pastors and many Pastors and so cannot be by a single Congregation where there is required and should be say they but one Pastor As to what they say of the Church of Corinths Excommunicating the Incestous man We Answer Corinth was a Presbyterial Church And Secondly It proves not that they might Excommunicate Independently For if a Controversie had arisen about it which they could not have ended among themselves they were to have their recourse to a Synod By the same Reason for which the Church of Antioch had Acts 15. Argument Fifth If so be that Congregations be Independent And no benefit of Appeals allowed to the party grieved Then the state of the Christian Churches were in greater Slavery than the Jewish But
alone Because they cannot be sure enough that any others have Grace but only themselves There is a Sixth Argument taken from the similitudes and comparisons under which the Church Visible is holden forth in Scripture which similitudes do shew there is not That strictness required in admitting Members to the Visible Church as the Separatists judge It 's compared to a Draught net cast into the Sea that gathereth fishes good and bad Matth 13. Secondly To a Field wherein is Wheat and Tares ibid. Thirdly It is compared Matth 22. to a Table of Guests where there are some with and some without a Wedding Garment Fourthly It is compared to a House wherein are Vessels of Honour and Dishonour and to a Fold of Sheep and Goats And in every Church there are many Called but few Chosen Now how shall Tares chaff Goats c. give convincing signes of that which they have not Certainly these Similitudes seem to speak That there needs not so much Waling or Picking out in admitting Members to the Visible Church providing they be free of Scandals Once take them in and and then let the Word work on them This great Waleing and Separation will be when the Net comes to the shoar when the great Harvest comes when the Sheep and Goats are severed This much for Arguments for the Truth III. We shall in the next answer Their Objections whereby they labor to prove that the Church Visible should only be made up of such Church members as can give satisfactory Signs of Grace to each other Obj. 1. Their first Objection which is the most specious is taken from these Glorious sâ—â—ies given to the Church in Scripture They are called Saints a chaste â—â—rgine spoused to Christ Sons and Daughters of the Lord Almighty and Christs mystical Body whose Members are all Gracious Now say they seing the Church hath these Stiles in Scripture Should any be joyned to the Church but such who to the uttermost of our discerning have Grace For answer If this Argument conclude any thing it will conclude that none should be Members of the Visible Church but those who have Real Grace for none is a partaker of Christsâ— Mystical Body the Lambs Wife c. But such only Now this our Opposites themselves will not affirm They grant there may be painted Hypocrites in the Church and the Scripture saith the same for Ananias and Saphira Judas and Simon Magus were such and so these places of Scripture if they prove any thing will prove more than They will grant But to answer directly ye would know that in the Church Visible there is a Company of Good and Bad sincere Christians and painted Hypocrites Now the Scripture speaks of them sometimes according to the Better Part and sometimes according to the Worse Part where it speaks of them according to the Better Part it speaks so of them as if there were not One Evil Man among them all hence are these Stiles The Lambs Wise Sons and Daughters of the Almighty Called to be Saints c. They are so according to the Better Part. Again when it speaks of the Visible Church according to the Worse Part it gives such names as if there were not One Good Man among them all it calls them Stif-necked a Rebelious house Children that are Corrupters Now As it were ill Argued to conclude from these places where such stiles are given to the Church that every one within the Church were Corrupters Stif-necked c. and not one seeking God For there he gives them those Stiles from the Evil Part among them So it is also ill argued from these places where the Scripture calls them the Lambs Wife Sons and Daughters of the Almighty c. That they were All of them so And we shall clear it more fully from the Church of Corinth 2 Cor 6 18. They get many Glorious stiles They are called The Sons and Daughters of the Almighty they are called A chast Virgin c. 2 Cor 11 2. Now there were many Schismaticks among them some denying the Resurrection some Vilifying Pauls Doctrine Many who were Contentious Drunkards Fornicators so that these Stiles cannot be Verified of the Members of the whole Church but only of the Better Part that was among them even as men speaking of an Heap of Chaff and Corn will call it An Heap of Corn Not that there is nothing but Corn in it but because the Corn is the Best Part And so the Church Visible wherein is a mixed Company is denominated from the Better Part sometimes in Scripture and called Sons and Daughters of the Lord Almighty and sometimes from the Worse Part and called Stiff-necked c. Obj. II Their second Objection is taken from Act 2. 47. Where it is said And the Lord added unto the Church daily such as should be saved Say they God added no other to the Church but such as would be saved therefore we should adde no others For Answer If any thing follow from this it would follow that none should be added to the Church but these who are Believers really for no other will be saved But this is against themselves And therefore our second Answer is this That the meaning of the words must be That He had a chief care of adding those to the Church who were to be Saved But it is not said that He added no other for the same Chapter sayes He added moe v 41 whole three Thousand were added and yet all those were not to be saved For there were Ananias and Saphira and doubtless many other Hypocrites among them Obj. III. The third Objection is taken from Matth 22. 12. In the Parable concerning the Kings Banquet where he bids his Servants go and invite to the Marriage and finding One wanting the Wedding Garment says he Friend how camest thou in hither not having a Wedding Garment Now say They this is a reproof to those who admitted him to this Priviledge We Answer This is quite contrair to the scope of the Parable if we look to the command v 9 Goe ye therefore into the high-ways c. They are commanded to invite all and to hold out none for want of the Wedding-Garment For that being Inward is only discernable by God Indeed this Parable will shew this much That Ministers may admit People to Communions and yet Christ will come with an after search and find many there whom he will cast that Ministers have admitted Ye ought not to think that every man that comes through a Ministers Tryal is in a good state The place says That Christ found One wanting the Wedding Garment But it sayes not That Ministers should let none come but those that had the Wedding Garment And to shew that this is the scope of the Parable see v 14. There it is said For many are called but few are chosen Ob. IV Their fourth Objection is taken from Rev. 2. 4 5. The Lord speaking there to the Church of Ephesus sayeth Nevertheless I have
somewhat against thee because thou hast left thy first love Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen and repent and and do the first works or else I will come vnto thee quickly and will remove thy Candelstick out of his place c. From whence They argue thus None are to be admitted to the Church who will ruin the Church But all those who cannot convincingly prove their Regeneration will ruin the Church Therefore they ought not to be admitted We Answer That the last part of their Argument is false For there are many Gracious Persons keeping their first love who yet can neither satisfy themselves nor others in the Truth of their Regeneration and that will not ruin the Church Secondly We Answer To the first part of their Argument where they say that every one who hath not real Grace will ruin the Church It is not universally true for then there should be no Hypocrites in the Church at all neither known nor unknown for Hypocrites can do no other thing but that which is tending to the ruin of the Church Now themselves will not say That all Hypocrites are debarred For they admit some such and Scripture saith the contrair in the admission of Annanias and Saphira And so some must be admitted who If God look not more to his own mercy than to their meâ—â—t and more to the respect he hath to others than to them can do nothing but ruin the Church Obj. V. Their last Objection is taken from 2 Tim 3. 5. Having a forme of Goâ—liness but denying the power thereof from such turn away Therefore none are to be admitted but those who can give satisfactory signes of their Regeneration For Answer It is a gross mistake For if we look to the place Those who have only a forme of Godliness he tells what they are High-minded c. v 4. And in the 6 v Subtile Hereticks who lead away the simple Now we say none such ought to be admitted for those are Scandalous But what they say doth not follow For many cannot give satisfactory Signes of their Regeneration who yet are not Gross Livers nor Scandalous nor seduceing Hereticks And so not of the number of those from whom Paul bids Turn away And thus we have Answered the strongest of their Objections IV. Use. I. This Doctrine being thus cleared ye ought not to look on what our Opposites hold in this Point as a matter of small moment neither ought ye to suffer your selves to be deceived with the pretence of strictness with which they cover it It is a Doctrine that hath fearful Consequences For by this the third part of the best Churches that ever were shall be put in no better case than Pagans themselves to live without all ordinances their Children without Baptism And this will hold off many who have true Grace for how many are there even of those who cannot give convincing signs of Grace either to themselves or others By this Rule mens Consciences shall still be held in an Uncertainty whether they may stay members of such a Church or not because they can hardly be satisfied whether all in it have convincing signs of Grace or not Now the Judgment of our Opposits is that if the Rule be not keeped Conscientiously Christians ought to Separate By this Rule an insupportable Burthen is put on Christians not only to examine themselves but also the inward state of others By this Rule all the Churches that ever were in the dayes of the Prophets Christs Apostles or in the Primitive Times have been in the mist all living and dying without the Visible Church and so without Baptism and so as Pagans As also this shew of strictness beyond whatever God hath commanded doth ever end in looseness as appears by the Separatists present practise for what ever they speak against the looseness of other Churches that we are but a mixture of Drunkards and loose prophane Livers yet there is as great looseness in their own Churches as in any other for they make no scruple to admit Hereticks Covetous Vain Proud Boasters almost of all sorts if so be they agree with them in Principles against Presbyterians This Rule puts men in an overweening conceit of themselves others are nothing to them all are unclean or at best but civil natural moral Men but they are the Godly Saints and what not Now that Doctrine which in its natural Consequence puts People to overvalue themseves and undervalue others is certainly not of God This rule of theirs makes way for infinite Janglings and carrying on of self interests under pretence of Holiness for when the Rule is That which every particular man thinks Signs of Grace Such is the Corruption of the best that it will not be applyed to all alike To some they will be too strict to others more lax as affection caries Untill at last they think all good enough who are for Their Way And all others but Natural Worldly and Carnal who are not so I may say that this hath been one of the most unhappy Doctrines that ever the Devil hatched For it is that whereby Sathan hath carried on his design mainly these years by past Many such Deceivers crying up strictness whereby they have made themselves to be respected by some and terrible to others while under this pretence they have born down Christ Truth and Holiness I speak not this to countenance Looseness nor to give a dash to holy Strictness It is our sin and we are plagued for it that we have not walked according to our Rule Yet I love no further Strictness than what Christ Commands Let us stretch out our Arms to invite sinners to give Outward Obedience and then when they are in let us Hew them with the Word and Discipline This was Christs way And his Apostles way as we have proved So when Separatists say to you That there are such sinful mixtures in your Churches that an honest man is polluted to come among them And so it is better to stay in your Chambers with a few of a gracious temper and let the rest run to the Devil Tell them Christ and his Apostles made no such separation And ye desire to be no stricter than They were Only this is not to plead for our coming short of Christs Rule in our practise That Scandals are too easily past That so many Ignorants are admitted to the Lords Table is our sin and so not to be pleaded for This for the first Head of Separation Head II. No Separation from a True Church or Gods worship in the Church because of the sins of Fellow-worshipers WE are now to speak of the Second Head Concerning Separation from true Churches and the true worship of God in them because of the sins of Fellow-worshipers I. That which our Adversaries hold concerning this is That the presence of wicked men at Ordinances do defile the Ordinances to the Godly Therefore say they where ever there is any corruption in a Church
to the word do that and for Their wicked life follow them not in it Arg II. Our Second Argument is taken from the Church in the Old Testament We find for the most part many Corrupters and Graceless men that were Members of that Church Both of the Preachers and People And yet we never find that the Godly did loath the Lawful Worship or keep back from it because of that Yea we find The Lord commands them to joyn in the lawful Worship And when they would Separate He reproves them for it We shall make this appear from Three or Four Times of the Church of the Old Testament The First is Moses Time There was a great mixture of prophane men in the Church at that Time As ye will find Deut 32. only remember this all along that the Point we are speaking to is not to plead for keeping prophane men in the Church We shew those should be removed But the Question is when they are keeped in what the Godly should do in that Case If they should turn back and leave that Church I say we find Deut 32. the Church at that time for the most part was not very sound They corrupted themselves Their spots were not the spots of Children yet we never read that Moses and the Godly did withdraw from the Commanded Worship because such were at it yea on the contrair we find them joyning with them Deut 29. Moses enters into a Covenant with them Preaches to them Prayes for them Yea Deut 1â— 6. 7. 8. The Lord commands the People to come up to the Publick Worship in the place where he should choose to place his name and go about the lawful Commanded Duties Tho doubtles there would be many wicked men among them The Second Time of the Church in the Old Testament which we take to prove the Point is in Joshua's time there were then great mixtures of wicked men among them As appears from Joshua 24. 14. 23. He bids them put away the Strange Gods So there were numbers of them corrupt in the way of Worship and yet we find in the same Chapter v 23. That Joshua conveens them altogether to a Solemn piece of Worship and enters into a Covenant with God and Preaches to them on that Subject Now surely Joshua would not have done this if so be the presence of wicked men did defile the Worship to the Godly And if it had been a sin in the Godly to stay with the wicked when about Worship The Third Time is in Elijah's time 1 Kings 18. We find at that time there were some Godly Seven Thousand that had not bowed their Knee to Baal We find also an Atheistical Multitude in verse 29. The Body of the People Halting betwixt God and Baal They would neither say that God was their God nor that Baal was their God and yet Elijah called All together to a solemn Worship a solemn Sacrifice That is gone about verse 36. And there was Preaching and Praying to that purpose Now surely If so be the presence of that Godless Multitude which Elijah could not get reformed in a hast had prophaned the Worship to the seven thousand Godly Elijah would never have been accessory to that sin A Fourth Time is from Solomons time to Hezekiah's There was great Corruption tollerated in the Church then As Worshipping God in the High-places as is clear through the whole Tract of the History of that time And there was much Prophanity of Life in that time which also appears from the frequent Sermons of the Prophets to that purpose And yet we never read that the Prophets did separate from the lawful Worship because of that mixture in the Church Yea on the contrary we read they did joyn with them in every Lawful Duty 2 Chron. 15. Asa gathers all together and enters into a Covenant with them Isaias Jeremiah and the rest Preaches to them Prayes with them Now if the presence of Wicked Men had polluted the Service to them then Isaias his Preaching and Praying and joyning with the People in Worship should have been defiled to Him A Fifth Instance is taken from 1 Samuel 2. 16. Eli's Sons the Priests were Prophane men whereupon the Godly began to abhor the Worship And so it is said in verse 17. Wherefore the sin of the young Men was very great before the Lord for Men abhorred the Offering of the Lord. And to speak the Truth It was little wonder they did so For in verse 22. We find the Priests were so Godless that they did ly with Women that Assembled at the doors of the Tabernacle of the Congregation Little wonder then that the Godly did loath and withdraw But does the Lord approve of Their withdrawing notwithstanding of that reason No We see in verse 24. Where Eli the Prophet speaks to his Sons sayes he Nay my Sons For it is no good report that I hear ye make the Lords People to transgress Their abhoring the offering of the Lord because of wicked men that had their hands at it is called a transgressing ye make the Lords people to transgress From all which it is clear That the presence of wicked men doth not defile the Worship to the Godly providing they come honestly themselves And that therefore the wickeds presence should not keep them away There is an Exception which our Opposits have against this Argument And it is taken from the State of the Church in the Old Testament They say That to separate from the Church in the Old Testament was impossible there being no other Church to joyn with The Service was then annexed to the Temple And so the Case of the Church under the Old Testament was far different from the Case under the New We might answer several things unto this As First If so be that the presence of wicked men doth defile the Worship to the Godly then the Godly had been bound to withdraw from the Church even under the Old Testament although there had been no other Church to joyn with Better to be out of the Church Visible than to be in it if we must sin by abiding in it But to answer more briefly we shall find Instances in the New Testament that make Separation unlawful as well as in the Old which Instances shall make up our Third Argument Arg III. Our Third Argument In the Church of Corinth there was a Prophane Multitude 1 Cor 3 4. We find there were Schismaticks in it Chap v. v 1. We find Incests were Tollerated Chap. 6 v 1. We find there were men of Contentious Spirits going to Law before Infidels Yea in that Chapter We find there were some pleading the Lawfulness of Fornicatioâ— And Chap 11. We find there were Drunkards among them And such Drunkenness as was most abominable For some came Drunk to the Lords Table v 21. And Chap 15. We find there were some infected with a dangerous Heresy The denying of the Resurrection And so a number of very offensive things were
that is censured So in the 2 Thess 3. 14 note that man and have no company with him that he may be ashamed And 1 Cor 5. 5. Excommunication serveth for the Destruction of the Flesh that is To tame and mortify its Lusts And so although the word be only the necessary mean for the converting of Souls yet it doth not follow that the Government of the Church should not be exercised to wit that the word may work the better The Second Objection is this That all the Arguments we have to establish a Church Government by Divine right are taken from the Churches practice in the Apostles time and commands given them but it does not follow that what was then should be a rule now and they give this as the Reason of the difference because the Magistrate was then a Pagan and so would not meddle with these things but the case is now otherwise when the Magistrate is turned Christian. We Answer First By this it is granted that Church Government was an institution of Christ at least in the primitive times Now sure it is that every thing instituted by Christ layeth on a perpetual obligation except Christ in his word hath set a period that it should be only so long So if this Argument of theirs have any force they must show from Scripture that Christ hath appointed this period for Church Government so as it should be only in force under an Idolatrous Pagan Magistrate And that the Power of it should cease under the Christian Magistrate But no place of Gods word can be given for the proof of tâ—is But on the contrary a Command is given That which Christ delivered to the Apostles 1 Timoth. 6. 14 Should be keeped to his second coming And therefore it remains a perpetual Ordinance Secondly We Answer That if this were true then the Case of the Church should be worse under the Christian than the Pagan Magistrate If so be that under the one they have an Intrinsecal Power to purge and keep his Church free from Scandals but not under the other would not this be hard Thirdly We Answer That the reasons for which the Church did exercise Government in the primitive times were taken from common Equity and so are binding to the Church at all times We find this 1 Cor. 5. 5. Where a command is given to exercise Discipline by Excommunicating of the Incestuous person The reasons given are First The good of the Mans Soul verse 5. Secondly The good of the Church to be keeped from Infection vers 6. Now the Church is bound to see to these at all times We come to the Fourth thing which is a word of Vse And it serves 1. To reprove those who think debates about the Government of the Church useless and of no value To what purpose is it say they what be the Government and who governs if sin be punished and the Word Preached I answer ' it is of much moment For from what is said it appears that Church Government is an Ordinance of God a part of his word and they who evert it or gives way to the everting of it give way to evert a part of the Word of God yea to the bringing down of the Government of Christs own House It is a point of Truth that concerns no less than the Royal Diadem of Christ and all who have got good of Truth are bound to stand for it yea it is more than an ordinary Truth The question is concerning Châ—ists Kingdom if he have a Kingdom of his own distinct from the Kingdoms of the World If he shall have â—is own Laws Office-bearers Courts Censures according to his will in his Word or if all he hath left to that purpose be to scraâ—ched out and the Civil Magistrate to appoint what Laws Rules Courts he pleaseth in Christs House So it is a point relating to his Kingdom a Doctrine to be avowed and a point of Truth worth the Sustering for and which some have suffered for and boasted in it yea it is a point of Truth that hath this advantage beyond other Truths That Christ hath suffered for it himself in his own person for it 's clear that this was the only point he was accused on by Pâ—late and he avowed it Luke 23. 3. That he had a Kingdom though not of the World yet in the World We shall find that this point was chiefly laid to Christs charge in John 18. 33. 34 35 36 37. And this was the pâ—int that was driven home by the Jews 〈◊〉 Christ John 19. It was his 〈◊〉 on the Cross Jesus Christ of Nazareth King of the Iews And this was the point that straitned Pilate most and put him to it to make Christ suffer Joh. 19. So this point hath this advantage that in a special manner Christ sâ—ffered as a Martyr for it Should any then think it a little thing to suffer for God forbid Yea we may think it an Honour The Second Use If so be that Church Government is an Ordinance of God then those intrusted with it such as Ministers and Elders would discharge it as Service to God so as to be countable to him tâ—ere should be an other frame of Spirit when Men are in Church Judicatories than when they are in Civil Judicatories These are Ordinances of Men thir of God and require more than a common frame of Spirit Alas we may say for the Unministerial like Carriage of Ministers and Elders may justly provoke God to thro us out altogâ—ther A Third Vse of this point is That seeing Church Government is an Ordinance of Jesus Christ then ye that are people should obey and submit to those that are over you in the Lord otherwise if it be not tâ—us looked on it may provoke the Lord to remove the Hedge from us and if this were God knoweth what we would be we are evil now but if people got leave to do every thing that seemeth good in their own eyes we could not but be much worse Ye see what ye are with it but know not what ye will be without it And so much for the first Head of Erastian Doctrine Head II. The Power of Church Government belongeth not to the Civil Magistrate THe Second Head of Erastian Doctrine which we are to prove not to be of God is That whereby they affirm That all the Power of Church Government is in the Hands of the Civil Magistrate And here there are some differences among themselves some giving him all Power to dispence all Church Ordinances and this as a Magistrate without a Call from the Church and so to Preach and to Administrate the Sacraments Others again content themselves to ascribe to him only a Power of Jurisdiction to make Church Laws to inflict Church Censures And herein they also differ some puting this Power wholly in the Hand of the Magistrate Others conjunctly with the Ministers a third placeth it in him as the fountain and in Church-men but as
The Magistrate hath much power about Church matters but he hath no Church-power properly so called that belongeth only to Christs own officers Secondly For clearing of the question take this Assertion what we deny to the Christian Magistrate in the power of Governing the Church we deny it to him only as a Magistrate for so we laid it down in the conclusion to be proved A Magistrate as a Magistrate hath no power in Governing the Church otherwise if a Christian Magistrate be chosen an Elder he hath power of Church Government being joyned with the rest Only we say as a Magistrate he hath no power to Govern the Church II. We come to the Second thing which is our Arguments to confirm the Truth And the first Argument is this That Jesus Christ hath given no warrand to the Civil Magistrate for the Government of his Church and therefore he hath no right to it 1 We say that Christ in his word hath given no warrand to the Magistrate for Governing his Church And this will appear from all these places where mention is made of any warrand given to any of Church Government There is no word of the Christian Magistrate in any of them only mention is made of Apostles Ministers and Elders so in Matth 16. 19. The power of Governing the Church to bind and loose is given to Peter in the name of the rest of the Apostles but no word of the Civil Magistrate And Matth 18. 17. the power of Excommunication is given to the Church and if he shall neglect to hear them 〈…〉 be c. The Church of Ministers and Elders hath the power but no word of the Civil Magistrate And so in Timoth and Titus the scope of which Epistles is to instruct Ministers concerning the right way of Governing the Church what is spoken there is spoken to them and to Ministers succeeding to them but there is no mention of the Civil Magistrate And therefore we may conclude he hath no right from Jesus Christ for Governing the Church And what he would challenge of that kind is but an usurpation and intruding unto that to which he hath no right Our second Argument is If the power of the Church Government belong to a Magistrate as a Magistrate then it belongeth to every Magistrate but this were absurd We say if the power of Governing the Church did belong to a Magistrate as a Magistrate then it should belong to every Magistrate for whatever belongs to one as such belongs to all such Now this hath many absurdities following on it For by this Rule Heathen Magistrates might have power of Church Government and be Church Governours which were absurd For they are not Church Members Then Secondly Women might be Church Governours for they may be Magistrates in some cases and yet they may not speak in the Church Yea Thirdly By this it should follow that Children not come to age might have the power of Church Government for they may be Magistrates when Magistracy goeth by succession Now Children cannot have the power of Church Government for that power is not to be Exercised by deputies but by the persons themselves who are intrusted with it A Third Argument to confirm the Truth is this That Magistrates as Magistrates are not Church Officers And therefore they have no power to Govern the Church The consequence is clear for if Magistrates have power to Govern the Church then they must be Church Officers if any thing make a man a Church Officer then power to Govern the Church will do it for State Government and State Officers are Relata and have a mutual Relation one to another and so must Church Government and Church Officers have a mutual Relation one to another But in the next place it is evident That a Magistrate as a Magistrate is no Church Officer and that because among all that roll set down in the word of God wherein Christ reckons up his Officers there is no mention made of the Civil Magistrate Ephes 4. There is a roll verse 11. And he gave some Apostles and some Prophets and some Evangelists and some Pastors and teachers But no word of the Civil Magistrate and in Rom 12 6 7. There is an other roll of Church officers but no word of of the Civil Magistrate whether prophecy let us prophecy according to the proportion of Faith Or Ministery let us wait on our Ministering or he that teacheth on teaching c. But neither in this place or any other is there any mention of the Civil Magistrate Only some of our Adversaries mutter somewhat of 1 Cor 12. 28. That by Governments there mentioned is meaned the Christian Magistrate but it is easily refuted for the text speaketh evidently of such Governours as the Church had at that time And God hath set some in the Church c. Now the Church at that time had no Christian Magistrate nor for above 200 years after So by Governments cannot be meaned the Christian Magistrate but the Ruling Elder who is often spoken of in other places Our Fourth Argument to prove this point is That the Church did enjoy full power of Government within her self and accordingly did exercise it near 300 years before any Magistrate was a Christian and so the Church hath this power within her self yet For the first part of the Argument it is evident if we consider First That which is not controverted to wit that in the space of 300 years after Christ there was not a Magistrate a Christian If we consider Secondly That all this time the Church had full power of Church Government within her self and therefore Paul sayes to Timothy 1 Tim 4. 14. Neglect not the gift that is in thee which was given thee by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the Presbytery So they had power of Ordination Power also to dispence Censures as Excommunication 1 Cor 5. 4 5 When ye are gathered together To deliver such a one unto Satan for the destruction of the Flesh c. And they had power to relax from Excommunication So 2 Cor 2 6. Where Paul commands to relax the Excommunicate man from that Sentence Sufficient to such a man is this punishment which was inflicted of many v. 7. So that contrariwise ye ought rather to forgive him c. Fourthly They had Synods meeting together making binding Canons to guide the Church Act 15. The Synod of Apostles Elders and Brethren meet together determine a controversie and Censure those who had troubled the Church Thus the first part of the Argument is made out to wit That the Church did enjoy full power of Discipline within her self long before any Magistrate became Christian And therefore it followes that this power is yet in the Churches hand and not in the Magistrates And that because if the Church at that time had right to dispence this power as undoubtedly she had then they must make it appear how Christ took this right from her and
of God to commit the great affairs of his House to those whom he hath not qualified to that purpose Besides no instance can be given that ever he trusted any with those things but he promised them furniture and in some measure enabled them accordingly So when he sendeth forth Moses Jeremiah Isay c. he giveth them furniture and when he sendeth out the Apostles he furnishes them for that End So John 20. 21 Then said Jesus to them again peace be unto you as my Father sent me even so send I you There is the commission given them and upon the back of this in v. 22. And when he had said this he breathed on them c. There is the Furniture And so does he to Ministers whom he entrusts with this power He promises them Furniture Matth 28 20 and lo I am with you alway even unto the end of the World There a promise made to the Apostles and in them to the Ministers as appears from these following words even unto the end of the World And so these promises could not be fully verified in the Apostles who were to die within a little but in Ministers their successors to the Worlds end Now it is very evident he hath neither made such promises to every particular believer for Governing the Church neither doth he perform them unto them What Is every believer furnished with that measure of knowledge prudence and wisdom that is required for the right managing of the affaires of Church Government Yea God doth not require it of them And so certainly it stands not with his wisdom to have committed the power of Church Government to all and every one of believers This for ouâ— third Argument Our Fourth Argument for the Truth is If so be that the power of Governing the Church belongeth to Church Members Then it belongeth to them either as they are gifted for it and chosen out for that purpose And if so then we have our intent For then all are not Church Governours but only those who are gifted and chosen And so Church Officers Or it belongs to them as believers or Church Members and if so then it Belongs to all for every one is a Church Member as well as another and every one that hath Faith is a believer as well as another and whatever priviledge floweth from Faith belongs to every believer the meanest as well as the greatest So if the right of Church Government be grounded on Faith and Grace then every believer and none but believers should have the right of it from whence shall follow many absurdities as that Children as well as Parents the simple as well as the wise Women as well as Men may Preach Administrate the Sacraments lay on hands in Ordaining the Ministers sit in Sessions inflict Censures Excommunicate and what not Secondly Then none but believers should have right to Church Government So none hath power to Baptise Censure c. But they that have Grace And upon this People should have Reason to doubt whether they be rightly Baptised or not because they know not if the Minister who Baptised them had Grace or not and if he wanted Grace he had no power of Church Government by this Doctrine And so no power to Baptise We bring a Fifth Argument for the Truth and it is this private Christians are in no place of Scripture acknowledged to be Church Governours There are no names nor titles given to them importing this power to be in them as is given to Church Officers 1 Tim 5. 17. Let the Elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour And 1 Corinth 12. 28. And God hath set some in the Church first Apostles secondly Prophets thirdly Teachers c. But no title of that kind is given to private Christians Yea they are set down plainly under names in opposition to Governours As the flock to Overseers Acts 20. 28. Take heed tberefore unto your selves and to all the flock over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers c. Yea and are commanded to honour obey submit to their Governours set over them and distinct from them Hebr 13. 17. Obey them that have the rule over you and submit your selves c. Now it is strange to imagine That Christ should have intrusted them with highest power of Government And yet in all the stiles he gives them there is nothing imported of that power but much of their Subjection Surely he hath not done so with Officers as we have shown And let any discover the Reason of the difference A Sixth Argument for the Truth is this If so be that the power of Governing the Church be given but only to some then it does not belong to all but so it is that the power of Governing the Church is only given to some therefore not to all Church Members The first part of the Argument cannot be denyed For the second That it is only given to some see those proofs that limit this power only to some as Ephes 4. 11. And he gave some Apostles and some Prophets c. Some and therefore not all 1 Cor 12. 28. which we cited before and God hath set some in the Church first Apostles secondly Prophets thirdly teachers There are but some that he hath set for Governing his house and therefore not all and Heb 13 17. Obey them that have the rule over you and submit your selves c. Tim 5. 17. as is likewise before cited There are some then that rule to whom the rest ought to submit And so all are not Rulers There is a Seventh Argument for clearing the Truth And it is this That power which Jesus Christ hath not set down rules and limits to order it by in his word is not of God but he hath set down no Rules how to direct the managing of Church Power in the hand of Church-Members therefore it is not of God The first part of our Argument That whatever Power is appointed of God he hath set down Rules how to order it is very clear As we may prove by the Enumeration of lawful Powers He hath set down Rules how to Regulate the Power of a King that he play not the Tyrant He hath set down Rules to Regulate the Power of Masters Parents by So the Power in the Hand of the Church Officers is regulated that they Rule with Diligence Rom. 12. 8. And so through the Epistles to Timothy and Titus But so it is that he hath set down no Rules to order Church Government by in the Hands particular Believers For in no place of the word will such Rules be found Ye that are the flock govern the Pastors and feed them watch over the People of God lay hands suddenly on no man I say there are no such directions given to private Christians and therefore this pretended Power is not of God Our last Argument for the Truth is If so be the Power of governing the Church doth belong to every
not have saluted every one man by man and therefore certainly it must be the prime men of the Church But Secondly The name of the Church is very usualy given to Rulers and Judges whether Ecclesiastick or Civil without the People in the Old Testament So Psalm 82 1. God standeth in the congation of the mighty The same word rendred there Congregation is rendred the Church elsewhere And by the Congregation there is meaned the Judges and not the People so we find it taken for the Rulers by comparing Exod 20. 18. 19. with Deut 5. 23. 2 Chron 1. 3. Where Solomon takes up the whole Congregation with him And yet that Congregation is exponed v. 2. to have been Chief-men and Rulers so that usualy in the Old Testament the word Church is taken from Rulers And Thirdly it must be so taken in this place also for in the verse following he telleth what a Church he meaned by v 18 Verily I say unto you whatsoever yee shall bind on earth shall be bound in Heaven c. Speaking to the Apostles So it must be the Church of Rulers who are so called because they represent the Church doing her business wherein she is concerned Objection Fifth This were say they to establish a yoke of Tyranny over Church Members if power be put in the hands of Officers to make Acts binding to them and they to have no hand in making these Acts themselves We Answer it is no yoke of Tyranny to instruct Officers with power to be over the People in the Lord To Rule them according to his will to make use of their power not for destruction but for edification And this is all we do teach It s true Church Officers may abuse their power but there is no power were it never so good but coming in mans hand may be wrongly used But secondly There is as great danger of Tyranny in the Independent way and more also than in this For if the major part of the Congregation should enact what is wrong and press it on the fewer and better part would not that be Tyranny And surely there is as great liklyhood of this as of what they say that the Eldership may press unjust Acts upon the Congregation And as it is as likly so it is more remeedless for though a Congregation or any in it be wronged by the Elerdership they have a Superior Judicatory to complean to according to our Doctrine But if the lesser part of the Congregation be wronged and Tyrannized over by the greater according to their Doctrine there is no power under Heaven to right the wrong to call the oppressing party to an account So of all Governments under Heaven Independency is the most Tyrannical Obj. VI. The Sixth Objection they bring against the Truth is from Matth 16. 19. Where Christ sayes I will give unto thee the keyes of the Kingdom of Heaven and whatsoever shall be bound on earth c. It is agreed on by both sides that by the Keys there is meaned the power of Governing the Church Now from this place they would infer that the Keys are given to the Body of the People we shall propone and Answer Three of their Objections whereby they labour to prove this consequence The first is this The Keys are given to the Church built on the Rock whereof Christ spake in the preceeding 18 v. But sure it is all that are believers are built on this Rock Therefore the power of the Keys are given unto them We Answer What they say that the power of the Keyes are given to the Church built on the Rock Is said without a ground For he doth not say Vnto this Church built on a rock do I give the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven But I give it to thee Peter Sure none needs to learn our Lord to speak and this change of Person is not without a Reason in the preceeding verse he says upon this rock I will build my Church Now if Christ had meaned to have established the Government in the hands of the body of the Church he might have as easily said unto this Church will I give the keys c. But he says not so but changes the person unto thee to wit Peter will I give the keyes Besides this also every believing woman is a part of this Church built on the rock And yet according to their own grant the power of the Keys is not given unto them The Second Argument they bring from this place is this The power of the Keys is given to those whom Peter did represent But Peter did represent all believers the body of the Church therefore the power of the Keys is given unto them For answer to this we deny what is affirmed that Peter in this place doth represent all believers he doth but represent the rest of the Apostles and those who were to succeed to the Apostes in Preaching the word and Administrating the Sacraments And this we shall make good from other places of Scripture wherein the grant of this power is renewed and confirmed The first place is John 20. 21. Then said Iesus to them again Peace be unto you as my father hath sent me even so send I you and v 23 Whosoevers sins ye remit they are remitted unto them c. Where it is clear the above mentioned grant is renewed and renewed to the Apostles Secondly He did not only represent the Apostles but all Ministers who succeed to the Apostles in Preaching the word and Administrating the Sacraments As in plain also from Matth 28. 19 20. Where ye will find these things clear 1. That there is a grant of power by Jesus Christ unto the Apostles 2 That this grant is made there not only to the Apostles but to these who should succeed to them in Preaching and Baptizing to the end of the World For it is said lo I am with you alway even unto the end of the World And so from this we retort the Argument on themselves That the power of the Keys is given to these whom Peter did represent But so it is Peter did represent the Apostles and Ministers who were to succeed to them in Preaching the word c. And therefore the power of the Keys is given unto them They argue Thirdly from this place that the grant of the Keys is of as large extent as Peters confession v. 16 Thou art Christ the son of the living God Now this Confession belongs to all believers and so also must the power of the Keys We Answer 1. That the grant of the power of the Keys doth belong to all who hold out Peters Confession hath no ground but their own Assertion And 2. We say it is false For this Confession belongs to all faithful Women and Children as well as men who yet by our Opposits own concession have not the Power of the Keys Their last Objection is taken from 1 Cor 5. 5. Where the Apostle commands the Church of Corinth to
Excommunicate the Incestous Person To deliver such a one unto Sathan for the destruction of the flesh that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus Now say they this command is given unto all the Church because there is no exception and therefore not to Elders only As also the command is as large as the reproof in v. 2. And ye are puffed up and have not rather mourned c. Now sure it is there were moe reproved than the Church Officers And therefore the command belongs to others than these In Answering this Argument we shall first retort it on themselves For if so be the Argument hold good it would follow that Women and Children had power of Excommunication for if the command be to all without exception then they are not excepted and if the command be given to all to whom the reproof is given then it is to them for doubtless Women and Children mourned no more than the men And so they should have power to Excommunicate also Now this were absurd and against themselves And so the two main pillars whereon they build their Argument fall to the ground to wit That the command is given to all without exception And that it is of a like latitude with the reproof But Secondly We Answer to the point That all who are acquaint with Scripture know that God useth to give commands indefinitly to the whole Church which he will not have applyed to every one in the Church but only to those persons to whom according to their respective callings interest or relations the command doth belong We shall make this clear from 1 Cor 14. 31. Where Paul speaketh generally to the Saints at Corinth ye may all Prophecy one by one c. The command is given indefinitly to all and yet sure it is not the Apostles mind that all to whom he writs should do this but only they who had abilities and a Call to it and therefore he sayes in the preceeding 12 chap. 29. Are all Apostles are all Prophets are all Teachers c. So in 1 Thess 5. 13. And to esteem them very highly in love for their works sake c. Now if this be a duty lying on all to whom the Epistle is directed then the Ministers had been to esteem highly to themselves for their own works sake For the Epistle is written to them among the rest now this were absurd and so it must be intended for the People So is it here the command is given indefinitly to all yet the matter is not to be done by all but only by some to wit the Church officers and this appeareth evidently from 2 Cor. 2. 6. He was speaking to them concerning the same case in hand to wit the relaxing of the incestous man from Excommunication and sayes he Sufficient to such a man is this punishment which was inflicted of many Now he doth not say Inflicted of all as they would make the words bear but inflicted of many Yea as the learned observe the word many signifieth The chief ones It is the same word that is Matth 12. 41 a greater than Jonas So Paul explaines himself That it was not all but the chief Ones to wit the Rulers by whom the Censure was to be inflicted And this now for Answering their Objections IV. In the nixt place we shall come and apply the whole purpose to a threefold Use. And the first is Seeing this Error as we have now made evident it is not of God I would have you suspecting fair pretences that a Doctrine may be coloured over with There is no Error that hath a fairer pretence than This hath it is the liberty of the Saints say they should not they judge others A fair pretence And yet it is but the same that Korah Dathan and Abiram had and so we need to stumble the less at it Ye take too much upon you said they seing all the Congregation are Holy every one of them c. Numb-16 3. The Second Vse is to private Christians that ye would do your duty And Secondly Content your selves with your duty And first do your duty whereof many come short Doubtless many at the hearing of this Doctrine will cast off all care seeing the care of the Church is laid on the Officers thereof Ministers and Elders Nay but as we shew in the clearing of the State of the Question although power of Governing the Church be not in the hands of all believers yet there is a duty lying on them to admonish and exhort even their Ministers say to Archippus take heed to thy Ministry Yea it is a duty lying on private Christians that when your private Admonition doth not the business ye are bound to delate it to the Church We see this Matth 16. Where Christs institutes this order v 16. 1. To tell thy Brother privatly and if that will not do bring two or three moe Witnesses with thee then if that do it not tell it to the Church so it is a duty lying on every Church member to admonish and rebuke even their Ministers and Elders to stir them up when slack and when that will not do to tell it to others And we would charge you to make more conscience of this duty than usually ye do A second part of your duty we told you was to try the spirits in reference to your practice ye are not bound to take a Doctrine on trust from Ministers tho Apostles Nay not from Angels Though we or an Angel from Heaven Preach any other Gospel unto you than that which we have Preached unto you let him be accursed Galat. 1. 8. And private Christians come short of this part of their duty also many seeking no other Reason of their Faith than what Ministers Preach it is a loose ground For ye are commanded to Try the Spirits But Secondly As ye would make Conscience of your duty so ye would content your selves with your duty ye would look on Church Officers and reverence them ye are not to say what is more in them than in our selves may we not be as fit as they they may erre as well as we Grant it be so yet they are Gods Ordinance appointed by the God of order and he who reproacheth them reproacheth his ordinance and breaketh down the hedge appointed by God The Third Vse is directed to Church Officers Those whom the Lord hath instructed with this power Ye would make use of it for Edification and not for destruction ye should so carry your selves in your places as not to tempt the People of God to despise your Office When the Lords People hear of an Elder to be a Tipler or a Swearer it is a temptation to them to despise both that Elder and his Office Many surely in this are stumbling blocks to People As Eli's Sons made the People abhorr the offering of the Lord. The Truth is it is no great wonder that the Government of the Church be losing weight
the Communion and not only so but to quite That Church and set up a new Church of Their own We shall begin first with that Doctrine that concerns the Constitution of Visible Churches And therein we shall follow our usual Order First Clear the Question Secondly Bring Arguments for the Truth Thirdly Answer those they bring against the Truth And Fourthly Apply the whole to some Use. I. First For clearing of the Question ye would know what Church it is concerning which the Controversy is First It is not that place where Gods people meet to go about Gods publick Worship such as this House we now are in which is called the Church by a Figure improperly But it is the People gathered together in it which People are really and properly the Church although the House be so called because it contains them by an usual Figure The Church that we are to dispute of is made up of Men and Women And not that which is built of Timber and Stone Secondly The Controversy betwixt Us and Them is not concerning the Invisible Church that is called the Church of the First-born Those who by vertue of their Effectual Calling are united to Jesus Christ the Head are living Members of His Mystical Body and draw Spiritual Influence from him Concerning the Church taken in this Sense There is no Controversy betwixt Us and the Separatists but that the Members of this Church are only made up of Believers are all gracious because this Church is Christs Mystical Body a Royal Priest-hood the Lambs Wife all fair undefiled c. Thirdly The Question Then is concerning the Church Visible which is a Company of Men and Women who have according to the Tenor of Gods Covenant with the Visible Church an Outward Ecclesiastical which is in its kind a real Right to enjoy the Outward Priviledges of the Children of God This being the Church about which the Controversy betwixt Us and the Separatists is We shall speak a litle to clear what is meaned by it And First The Church is called Visible not because the Members of it may be seen For in that respect the Church Invisible the Church of Believers may be called Visible For the Members of it being believing Men and Women may be seen also But the difference betwixt the Churches in those two Senses is taken from that which makes one to be a Member of the one Church as it differs from that which makes one a Member of the other That which makes One man a Member of the Invisible Church is True Grace sincere Faith inward Marks thereof Now Grace is a thing that cannot be seen by another certainly It s true there are outward effects of it but they are such that a Hypocrite may have the counterfeit of them so as the one cannot be discerned from the other by a Beholder The nature of Grace is only known Infallibly and certainly to God And therefore This Church is called Invisible Again that which makes a Man or Woman a Member of the Visible Church is something that may be seen something that may be judged of by those who have Power to receive Members into the Church and cast them out from it Secondly We said that this Visible Church is a Company or Society of Men and Women that have an Ecclesiastical Right to enjoy the Outward Priviledges of the Sons of God For understanding what is meaned by enjoying of Outward Priviledges we shall show you That there are Outward Priviledges and Inward Priviledges of those who are the Sons of God Inward Priviledges are Jesus Christ himself a Right to him a saving Right to the Covenant of Grace and Life Eternal These are the Inward Priviledges of the Sons of God And only Believers have right to those Painted Hypocrites have no right to them But Secondly There are Outward Priviledges of the Sons of God such as these To be ordinary Hearers of the Word Preached To be taken a care of by Jesus Christ his Servants To have liberty to come to the Sacraments These are Outward Priviledges And these are Priviledges that a Member of the Visible Church hath a right to We said they had an Ecclesiastical Right or a Church Right to them That is such a Right as gives Warrand to the Church for receiving them to enjoy these Priviledges and yet possibly they have not a Right to them before God As for Example when there is a painted Hypocrite in a Congregation who makes Conscience seemingly to use the Means That man hath an Ecclesiastical Right to come to a Communion such a Right as may Warrand the Minister for admitting of him although he have not a Right to come before God God will challenge the Hypocrite for coming and not the Minister for suffering him to come Yet we are still to consider that tho' this Ecclesiestical Right be not Saving yet it is Real in its kind being founded upon Gods Covenant with the Visible Church and his Ordinance of admitting such therein Now ye may know somewhat by this what we mean by an Ecclesiastical Right it 's That which gives warrand to Church Officers to admit a man to enjoy these Outward Priviledges And so ye may know what we mean by the Visible Church whereof we Dispute There are several differences betwixt Us and the Separatists Concerning the Visible Church First They affirm That there is no Visible Church on Earth But a single Congregation As many as may meet in one place This we refuted in the former Controversie by shewing That in the Church of Jerusalem there were far moe than could meet in one single Congregation yea many particular Congregations And yet are called but One Church Secondly They differ much from us as also from the Truth concerning the power They give to this Visible Church They give them the full power of Church Government and that Independently from any Chuch power on earth This difference also we spoke of in the preceeding Debate And so we shall stand now no longer upon it Thirdly We differ concerning That which gives a Being to the Church Visible They say To make a Society of People a Visible Church so as to have right to partake of the Priviledges there of It is requisite that all the Members of that Society Swear a Covenant one to another wherein they bind themselves to submit one to another in the Lord to walk in all the Ordinances of God and not to leave that Society till liberty be given them by the rest So that tho a man should be never so truely Godly and Gracious yet if he take not such a Covenant and if he Swear not such an Oath He is without the Visible Church He is in the state of a â—agan to live and to die without any Church Ordinance The Judgement of our Church and that of Truth herein is this That wherever a man comes out of one Particular Congregation which we call a Paroch to another By his so doing he comes
right of Membership in the Church Visible We find this from the Apostles Practice Act 2. 41. Where the Way is how they received men to be Church Members it is said They were Baptized c. And those who were Baptized are said to be added to them and added to the Church v last So in Act. 8 38. The Eunuch was received by Baptism to be a Member of the Visible Church So Saul Act 9. 18. And Lydia Act. 16 15. Secondly Circumcision was a seal of the Jews right of Membership in the Visible Church under the Old Testament And therefore Baptism is a seal of our right to be Members of the Visible Church under the New For Baptism in the New Testament is come in the same place with Circumcision in the Old Testament This is for our first Argument The second Argument is taken from the practice of the Apostles And it is this The Apostles went not by that method of our Opposits in admitting Members of the Visible Church This was not the Rule They followed Therefore it is not the right one We clear this was not the Rule which they followed from Act. 2. 41. Where in one day there are three thousand added to the Church Now surely none can imagine that it was possible that every one of these Three thousand could be perswaded in conscience of the regeneration of one another It is true Peter binds on them to Repent But it is as true that on their desire to be admitted to be Members of the Visible Church and some evidence of their conviction he receives them Although there were many of them did not even this much in sincerity For Anamas and Saphira were but Hypocrits So no more is required of Simon Magus Act. 8. 13. And so of Demas who afterwards forsook Paul Yea if we look to the Rule which Christ walked by He sought no more but a profession to follow him and He sought no more of Judas to make him not only a Member of His Society but an Apostle and Minister Christ knew him well enough to be a Hypocrite And yet upon his professed desire to follow him admits him to his Company yea makes him a Minister So that this Rule which Separatists so much cry up was neither followed by Jesus Christ nor his Apostles The Third Argument we bring is this There was never a Church before or since Christs dayes whose Members All of them could give evident signes of Grace to each other And therefore it cannot be a Rule of Gods appointing That the Church Visible must be made up of only such We prove the Antecedent Sure the Church of Israel in Moses time was not such every Member was not such a Visible Saint so as he was known to be Gracious For sayeth Moses Deut. 29. 4. Yet the Lord hath not given you an heart to perceive c. and oftimes they are upbraided as stiff-necked Secondly We must suppose the purest Churches comming nearest the Rule to have been in the Apostles dayes and yet the Members of those Churches were not of this kind So the Church of Corinth was a Church that the Apostles themselves planted and Preached to and yet we shall find many in this Church who were so far from giving evident signes of Grace one to another That there were many there Scismaticks 1 Cor 6. Many there Fornicators that Paul writes against There were many there Drunkards yea and drunk about the time of the Lords Supper And those he reproves 1 Cor 11. Yea there were some there who denyed some of the fundamental Points of the Christian Religion as the Resurrection As appears from Chap 15. So this Church of Corinth was not such Secondly The seven Churches of Asia spoken of Revel 2. 3. were Churches that had the Candlestick among them Churches that were in Christs hand that he took a care of and yet they were not such as every Member of those Churches had real signes of Grace otherwise the Spirit of God would not have said so often If any man have ears to hear c. If he had not supposed that there had been in them blind obdurate carnal hearers Thirdly The same may be said of the Churches of Rome Galatia Thessalonica and of all the Churches that ever we hear or read of since Christs days never one of them was such And therefore we may safely conclude that this Rule of Theirs cannot be Right seing neither Christ nor his Apostles nor the Church in any Age did follow it We bring a Fourth Argument and it is this That cannot be a right Rule of gathering Churches that would hold out a number of Gracious Souls from being Members But this Rule of Theirs would do so Therefore it cannot be the right Rule For the first part of our Argument none will doubt of it And Secondly That this Rule of Theirs would hold out many truly Gracious we prove it For first there are many that have Grace that for want of parts they cannot express the thing they have they are so far from giving evidences of Grace to others that they cannot satisfy themselves Some so Proud some so Passionate so Worldly so Talkative so Imprudent that it will be hard for any to satisfy themselves that there is Grace in them Thirdly The way of some is so hid or rather Gods way in them so hid that for any thing People can see in them they are nothing different from Natural Civilians and yet many of such will make clear and satisfying discoverys of Gods Grace in them at their death The work of Grace then appearing that was long under ground And now according to this Rule of Theirs these are all to be holden out of the Visible Church and put in the place of Pagans And so That cannot be Christs Rule Our fifth Argument to prove the point is this That cannot be a Rule of admitting Members to the Church Visible which puts the Church in perpetual danger of Renting But this Rule of Theirs puts the Church in a perpetual danger of being Rent Therefore it cannot be the right Rule We shall clear that this Rule of Theirs puts the Church in a perpetual hazard of being Rent For there are some more easy to be satisfied of the signes of Grace than others so That which will be a lawful Church to one will not be so to others Secondly There are some that in progress of time will grow more strick in searching Hence that which was a true Church to him the last year will be no Church to him this And so this Rule of Theirs keeps the Church in a continual hazard of being Rent of Separating after Separating while they cast off all This hath made the most part of all Their Churches rent and one part to Excommunicate another Yea hence many of that Way cast off all Churches at last and turn Seekers Cast off all Serving God with others all use of publick means only serving God apart and by themselves
among them But after all the Apostle Tho he reproves them very sharply yet he no where sayes Ye that are Godly stay away from joyning in Worship because of such mens joyning But on the contrair he approves their coming together to go about the Ordinances Only reproving the wrong way they came in So Chap 11. v 18. First of all when ye come together in the Church I hear there be divisions among you And v 20. When you come together therefore unto one place c. He doth not reprove their coming together but suppones it as a thing Lawful only he reproves them for their Divisions So in the Church of Galatia There was much corruption among them they were Bewitched with Heretical Doctrine O Foolish Galatians who hath Bewitched you c. Cap 3. v 1 They had begun in the Spirit but were like to end in the Flesh v 3. In the Church of Ephesus were many who had fallen away from their first Love Revel 2 1. The Church of Sardis Revel 3 1. Did Tollerate prophane persons such as defiled their Garments And yet we never read the Spirit of God commanding to Separat from worship because of them Indeed he reproves them sharply for their Corruption For their falling away from their first love For Their Tollerating Prophane wicked men But he sayes not All ye that are Godly turn your backs upon that Church Make up a new Church of your Own But directly approves their joyning together in what was right So it is clear that Separation from the Ordinances is no more to be Tollerated under the New Testament than it was under the Old Arg IV. Our Fourth Argument to prove the point is this The Sins of wicked Men only defile the Worship to themselves Therefore not to others We shall find for this two places of Scripture Matth. 22. In the Parable of the Guests coming into the Kings Supper there is one that wants a Wedding Garmant verse 12. The Master of the Feast finds him out and sayes Friend How comest Thou hither And he was found Speechless The Master of the Feast sayes not All ye Guests are defiled because this man sits with you As should have been said If his presence had defiled the Worship to them But only he reproves the Man himself The sin is thine and thou shall bear the blame of it The Second place is 1 Cor. 11. 29. He that eateth and drinketh unworthily eateth and drinketh damnation to himself He sayes not He eateth and drinketh Damnation to all but to himself It would necessarily follow according to this Doctrine that he did eat Judgment to all If so be the presence of the wicked Man did defile the Ordinance or make it sinful to the rest that Communicate with him And therefore in the preceeeding words it is said Let a man examine himself c. He sayes not when ye are coming to the Table Let everyone of you examine your Neighbour Which would necessarily follow If the presence of the Wicked Man did defile the Ordinance to the rest but all he sayes is Let every one examine himself c. It 's true the permitting of a wicked person to come to the Communion is the sin of the Church Guides but it is not the sin of Fellow Communicants seeing he is admitted to Communicate with them For He only defiles the Worship to Himself Arg. V. Our last Argument to prove this Point is That from this Doctrine of our Opposits it would follow That the Dignity and Worth of Ordinances did depend on Instruments or upon those that are partakers of the Ordinance If so be that the sins of the Instruments or of Fellow-Worshipers did defile the Worship Now this is most absurd The Dignity of Ordinances depends on him whose they are The Word of God however Preached Is His Word It s true we are ready to cast at the Word because of Instruments But whoever he be that Preaches The Word is the Word of God and worthy to be received And so the Sacraments Whoever they be that joyn with Me in them lose not their worth and efficacy to Me who am seeking Christ in them though worthless men have their hand at them And the reason is I do not Communicate with them in what they do wrong Let God and Them reckon for that The root of my Communion is Christ In so far as They lay hold on Christ I Communicate with them In so far as they do otherwise I do not The wicked man professes Communion with Christ and Seals up an Outward Fellowship with the Visible Church I Communicate with him in That But in so far as he doth this Hypocritically I do in as far separate from him And this much for the Arguments Confirming the Truth That the presence of Wicked men doth desile the Ordinances to none but to Themselves III. In the next place we come to bring to the touch-stone the Arguments they use against the Truth we shall shortly propound the most plausible of them and take them off Obj 1 The First Objection is grounded on the 2 Cor. 6 17. Wherefore come out from among them and be ye separate c. This is the stongest of their Arguments The Lord commands the Corinthians to come from among them and Separate And therefore say they when there are wicked men coming together with the Godly the Godly ought to separate from them But to shew you the vanity of the Argument we shall Answer it by reading out the rest of the verse For it is clear what the Apostle aims at Be ye separate saith the Lord and touch not the unclean thing c. He bids them only Separate from Sinful Actions and not from Lawful Duties That ye may see yet further the vanity of this Reason Know It was the custom in the Church of Corinth 1 Cor. 10. When Idolaters would invite some of their Christian neighbours they would go with them and eat with them at their Idol Feasts and they thought they might lawfully do it because they knew their Idols were not true Gods and so by their eating they intended no worship to the Idol as these Idolaters did who did eat with them but did it only to satisfy their hunger and keep up common Friendship Now Paul discharges them from this kind of Communion and this is it he points at here Be separate Do not meddle with their Idol Feasts because it was indeed Communion with them in their Idolatry And so it doth not follow because Paul bids the Corinthians be separate from Heathens in doing a thing sinful That therefore he forbids Christians to joyn in a lawful Worship with the Church of Christ. Obj. II. Their Second Objection is taken from Rev 18 4. And I heard another voice from heaven saying come out of her my People that ye be not partakers of her sins and that ye receive not of her Plagues But this place is pitifully misapplyed to the purpose For its evident
consulted with for knowing what was Heresy what not Isâ— 8. 20. To the Law and to the Testimony c. And for the application of the rule to persons that they might know who were the Hereticks we never read that they consulted Vrim and Thummim but used a judicial Process against the person challenged and proved the Fact by Witnesses So Deut. 17. 4. There must be a scandal of Idolatry upon the man challenged And if it be told thee and thou hast heard of it and enquired diligently c. And it must be proved on him by Witnesses verse 6. As the mouth of two Witnesses or three Witnesses shall he that is worthy of Death he put to death They except Fourthly That in the Infancy and Nonage of the Church God Typed out things Spiritual by things Earthly and so those Punishments were Types of Spiritual Censures Excommunication and Hell and therefore are not now to be put in practice We answer First Excommunication and Damnation were things present to the Jewish Church and so they had no Types of them Secondly This is to turn Scripture to Allegories and by this same reason we may cast at punishments of Sins against the Second Table as being Types of Spiritual Censures Hell and Damnation and there is as much ground for affirming the one as the other This much for Arguments from the Old Testament We shall next hint at some Arguments from the New Testament First If so be that it were unusual for Magistrates to meddle with men in matters of Religion then certainly Jesus Christ and his Apostles should have used this legal Defence when the Magistrate called them before him to answer about their Doctrine They would have said ye have no place to challenge us for our profession for matters of Opinion are free but we do not hear that they declined the Judge or used any such Defence for sure Christ and his Apostles would have left no lawful mean unessayed There is a second Argument taken from Rom. 13. 4. Where speaking of the Civil Magistrate the Apostle sayeth For he is the Minister of God to thee far good but if thou do that which is evil be afraid There is set down the object of the Magistrates Power and the extent of it and it is set down indefinitly upon him that doth evil And therefore if Hereticks Maintainers of falle Worship be doers of evil they fall under the Magistrates Power Now that spreaders of Heresie are doers of evil we did prove in the second Doctrine raised from this Verse where we shew that Heresy and Error was as much to be eschewed as Adultery and other Sins against the Second Table and the Magistrate as Magistrate should put forth his zeal against them as much and all the places commanding zeal against Error which are not few in the New Testament proves this for they bind every one according to his place the Minister according to his place and the Magistrate according to his There is one Exception they make much of against this Argument and it is this say they By doers of evil cannot be meaned these that are taken with Error and Heresy and other Sins against the First Table And that because the evil that is here spoken of is the evil that is mentioned in the beginning of the Verse But if thou do that which is evil be afraid It is an evil say they that any that were guilty of it had need to be afraid of the Magistrate because of it and so it is not meaned the evil of Error and Heresy against Christian Truths For the Magistrate here spoken of is the Roman Emperor and Senate who themselves were Enemies to Christian Religion and so none needed to be afraid of them for spreading Errors but rather for mantaining Truths and therefore the doers of evil here meaned must be the controveeners of the Emperors Civil Laws and not Hereticks and such like For Answer This exception is grounded on a wrong supposition for by the Magistrate is here meaned not only the Roman Magistrate but all Magistrates in general doing their Duty as they ought Paul indeed takes occasion from the Roman Magistrate to speak here what is the Duty of all Magistrates and it is clear from several Circumstances of the Text We shall mark one of them from the first words of the Text For he is the Minister of God to thee Now sure it is this must be meaned of Magistrates in general and not astricted only to the Roman Magistrate he not being the Minister of God unto every one who was to make use of this Scripture There is another Circumstance of the Text proving this in the 3 Vâ—rse For Rulers are not a Terror to good Works Now sure this must be expounded of the Office of Magistracy in general and of that which Magistrates should be and not of the Roman Magistrate who then was well known to be a Terror unto many good Works not only unto Christian but also unto Moral Vertues We shall give you only another Argument shortly taken from that Prophecy Revel 17. 16. A Prophecy tâ—at the Civil Magistrate shall bring down the Antichrist and that Error of the Roman Religion as a most acceptable work to God And so the Magistrates Hand is not bound up from punishing Error and Heresy against the First Table no more than from punishing other Sins done against the Second Table And this much for our Arguments brought in defence of the Truth In the Third place we promised to bring forth some of their Arguments and solve them Herein we need not spend much time for this being Truth there can be nothing said against it which is Truth Yet there being some nimble Spirits to propone Arguments which every one cannot answer we shall stay a little on this Third point also The First thing they object is this If so be that it were the Magistrates Duty to punish Error and Heresy then Jesus Christ would have reproved the Jews for Tollerating the Pharisees and Saduces But so it is he never reproves the Jews for so doing Nothing of that kind is recorded by any of the Evangelists To this we Answer First That it does not follow that Christ did not reprove the Jews because it is not written For John sayes Chap. 20. 30. He did speak many things which are not written so it follows not But Secondly we say although it be granted that Christ did not reprove them yet it follows not that their neglect was not a Sin For First by that reason we might say that the Mgistrate should not punish Theft because Christ speaks nothing of the punishment of it in the New Testament Neither Secondly reproveth he the Church for not Censuring them and yet it followeth not but that they ought to be Censured that way And Thirdly God had revealed his Will before And Fourthly It would have been for no purpose to have stired up the Magistrate to this Duty then for the Sectarieâ—
themselves had the Power that was of it And Lastly the Jews at this time had not the Power of Civil Punishment in their Hands but the Romans and so it was not in their Power to punish There is a Second Objection which they bring from the Apostle Paul's words in the Epistle to the Philipp 3. 15. where speaking of Differences among Christians he sayes Let us therefore as many as be perfect â—e thus minded and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded God shall reveal even this unto you Say they we see what was Paul's Judgement That notwithstanding of Differences there should be Heart Waling or Uniting and therefore the Magistrate should not be stired up to Censure those who Err. To this we Answer Paul speaks nothing there of State Tollâ—ration for then the Civil Powers were not for Christ but of Church Tollâ—ration in respect of that meekness and tenderness which Christs Servants should have in inflicting of Church Censures for fear of breaking Love Secondly He commandeth not all Errors to be thus Tollerated for so he should contradict himself in another place where he sayes An Heretick after the first and second admonition reject And Thirdly Paul limits that Tolleration that he would have here and that in two things First As to the time how long God shall reveal even this unto you And Secondly He supposes the persons differing from them should walk with them in things wherein they differ not according to the same rule and so make no separation Now it does not follow that those who remained Obstinate in their Error should be still Tollerated and that the Censure of the Church should not strick on them at all chiefly if it be such an Error as causes Rents and Schisms for he sayes Take heed to those that cause Divisions and Offences and avoid them Rom. 16. 17. Their Third Objection is That this is contrary to the way the Apostles took with those that Erred their way was to watch against them that Erred Acts 20. 29. For I know this that after my departing shall grievous Wolves enter in among you not sparing the Flock Verse 31. Therefore watch That which the Apostle commands is to watch against them And in Rom. 16. 17. Now I beseech you Brethren mark them which cause Divisions and Offences and avoid them And in the 2 Timoth 2. 24. it is said And the Servant of the Lord must not strive but be gentle unto all men apt to teach patient Now say they this is a far other way than to stir up the Civil Magistrate against those who differ from us This Savors not of the meek Spirit of Christ. I answer It is the Duty of Ministers to watch against Error and that is one mean for suppressing of Error and Heresy but one mean destroyes not another it does not follow that this which is in controversy is not another mean also neither is it contrary to that meekness commanded to wait on them more than to deliver to Satan or to Curse and Excommunicate Apostates with that great Curse called Anathema Maranatha 1 Cor. 16. 22. They may as well say It is contrary to Christs meek Spirit to establish the Sword in the Hands of the Christian Magistrate according to Rom 13. 4. For punishing Sins against the Second Table and so under this pretence Adulteters Murderers Seducers Thieves and all should go free unpunished But they do far mistake the Meekness of Jesus Christ Christs Meekness is not to let people live in their Sin to let vile Hereticks trample on Truth destroying Souls And in the mean time binding up the Hand of the Magistrate that he dare not hinder it this were a disrespect to Truth and cruelty to poor Souls in danger to be carried away which our Lord was very tender of There is a Fourth Objection from Matth. 13. 24. Taken from the Parable of the Tares where the Kingdom of Heaven is compared to a man that sowed Wheat and the wicked one comes and sowes his Tares among it and both is bidden let grow till the Harvest Now say they by these Tares is meaned Hereticks therefore they should not be plucked up by the Sword of the Civil Magistrate We Answer If they astrict the Word Tares to Hereticks in this sense That the Sword of the Civil Magistrate should not be used against them by the same reason they may say that they should not be disputed against for that is a plucking up of them also Secondly We answer That by the Tares that are commanded here to be suffered let grow up to the Harvest is no more meaned Hereticks than other Scandalous Livers And this we shall make out from Christs exponding the Parable Verse 41 And they shall gather out of his Kingdom all things that offend Now Hereticks are not all things that offend other scandalous Livers offend also Thirdly By the Tares is meaned Them that do Iniquity vers 41. Now others besides Hereticks are such And Fourthly If by the Tares were here meaned Hereticks then by the Wheat are meaned only the Orthodox and so every man that is Orthodox should Shine forth as the Sun in the Kingdom of Heaven vers 43 But there are many who are Orthodox who yet are evil Livers and so will never go to Heaven And therefore by the Wheat must only be meaned the truly Regenerate and so by the Tares must not only be meaned Hereticks but all other Evil-doers And further By this it would follow that Hereticks should not be Excommunicate for that is a rooting out But what can be meaned by the Tares then for whatever be meaned by them it will follow that by this Parable Verse 30 they should be tollerated and to say that all vile scandalous Persons should be tollerated is more absurd than that only Hereticks should be tollerated Answer If we narrowly observe Christs exposition of the Parable we will find that part where he bids Let both grow together until the Harvest is not exponed although he expone the rest which doubtless he would not have omitted if it had been his mind that we should have built any Doctrine of this kind on it therefore we say this is not Christs meaning that he would have all men how Godless and Scandalous soever let alone for that were contrary to other places of Scripture But that Christ is to show that when all pains are taken by Christs Officers for purging the Church yet there will be alwayes some Hypocrites in it and it is Christs mind though he hath given order to Censure scandalous Offenders yet that his Servants should not press after such a separation of the precious from the vile as to have all the Weeds and wicked in heart to be cast out lest when they gather out the Graceless Tares they should root out also the Gracious Wheat with them Object 5. There is a Fifth Objection from Luk 9. 54 Where Christ reproves James and John for seeking fire to come down from
substantial parts of Church Government have a warrand in the word and are therein so fixed and established as they are unalterable by any State whatsoever And Secondly As to the Circumstantials that relate to this Government we say they are set down under general Rules sufficient for the ordering of them such as let all things be done in order and to edification Our Second Assertion is we are not to enter here to show what is the particular kind of Government that is appointed in the word and what things falls under the power of Church Governours and in what relation they are to handle them what are the nature of these Censures and how in all these things they differ from the Civil power It would take long time to clear these The thing we aim at is only this general That Jesus Christ the King of his Church and Lord of his House hath set down in his word a particular way for Governing of his house distinct from the Civil which is not in the power of any State to alter We proceed now to Arguments for comfirming this Truth II. The first Argument is this If so be that under the Old Testament there was a particular form of Church Government different from the Civil set down in the word then there must be also the like set down under the New but so it is that there was a particular way set down under the Old Testament for Governing the Church Therefore there must be the like set down under the new For making out this Argument there are two things we have to clear The First is That there was such a Government as this under the Old Testament warranted by the word The Second thing to be cleared is that therefore and upon the same Reason there must be also the like under the New For proving of the First that there was a particular Government of the Church different from the Gvernment of the state under the Old Testament We shall clear two things First That they had Church Judicatories different from the Civil Judicatories And to prove this we shall cite two places of Scripture The First is in 2 Chron 19. 8 9 10. Ye may read the place at leasure but there are these things in it proving that there was a Church Judicatory distinct from the Civil First We see that there is a Judicatory made up of the Church-men of the Levits and Priests in verse 8. Secondly We see that the things they judged of were spiritual matters distinguished from Civil things by calling the the first sort The matters of the Lord And the Second Matters of the King v. 11. Thirdly We see that in this Judicatory a Church-man was Moderator in the 11 verse And behold Amariah the chief Priest is over you And Fourthly We see that the sentence of the Court was Execute by Church-men in the end of the 11 vers Also the Levits shall be officers before you All which being laid together makes out clearly that under the Old Testament â—â—â—re was a Church Judicatory different from the Civil The Second place is in Jeremiah 26. 8. 9. 10 Where we have these things to make out the present point First We see that there were two Judicatories in the 8 v. There is a Judicatory of the Priests and Prophets condemning Jeremiah as a false Prophet again in the 10. and 1â— v. We see there is a Civil Judicatory made up of States-men When the Princes of Judah hard these things then they came up from the Kings house c. So it is plain they had a Church Judicatory for Church matters as well as a Civil Judicatory for Civil matters The Second thing that we are to speak to in order to the proving of the first point to wit That there was a Government of the Church different from that of the State among the Jews is this that as they had Church Judicatories different from the Civil so they had also Church Censures different from Civil punishments as we have amongst us And First publick confession of Scandalous sins was in use among them we shall clear it from one place of Scripture Ezra 10. 10. 11. And Ezra the Priest stood up and said unto them Ye have transgressed Now therefore make confession unto the Lord God of your Fathers c. There is confession of sin appointed for a fault that was Scandalous to wit their Marrying with strange Wives Now this confession was not only private to God nor on a Fast day but a personal publick acknowledgment after particular Examination of all one by one And we gather this from the 13. v. where it is said Neither is this a work of one day or two c. And in the 16. v. Three moneths was spent on the business so that this was a personal acknowledgment given by every one of them after the Examination of their guilt as we do in our Church Judicatories Secondly Besides this publick Confession they had the Censure of suspending Scandalous men from the Ordinances as we do suspend from the Sacrament of the Lords Supper we will find this in David his appointing of the offices of the Priests Among the rest it is recorded of Jehoiadah 2 Chron. 23. v 19. And he set the porters at the gates of the house of the Lord that none which was unclean in any thing should enter in They were suspended from the Ordinances because of their uncleaness And for the neglect of this the Priest's are reproved in Ezek. 22 v 26. Her Priests have violated my Law and have prophaned my Holy things they have put no difference between the unclean and clean neither between the Holy and prophane They let all come rushing together to the Ordinances And for this they are reproved Thirdly They had among them the sentence of Excommunication which is set down under the name of Cutting off from among the People And in the new Testament it is expressed by the name of casting out of the Synagogue which certainly was Excommunication It is a Ridiculous alledgence that they say by cutting off was meaned the inflicting of Temporal death by the sword of the Magistrate for the uncircumcised Man-child he that had touched a dead Body and did not wash after it were to be cut off now who would think that such were to be put to death The Second thing to be made out is That therefore there must be a Church Government under the New Testament seing it was so under the Old and the Reason is because no necessity can be alleadged for a â—hurch Government then but the same necessity is now Is not the Church a mixed multitude now as well as then is there not as great need to separate betwixt the precious and the vile now as then Is not the Church now a feild of Wheat and Tares as well as then Is there not need to keep the Ordinances pure now as then by the fence of Government Is there not need now to
Magistrate may do somewhat here also He may command them to resume the matter he may compear in person and reason the matter and bid them see to it in the Name of the Lord and stir them up to judge it better and he may go from one Judicatory to another till he get this done As for example If it be a censure wrongously inflicted But yet it is still the Church Judicatory that must ranverse their own Censure The Third Argument they use against this Truth is If the Power were put in the Hands of the Civil Magistrate it would be a mean to decide all the whole Controversies about Church Government which are managed with so much Animosity on all hands Prelates plead that They should have the Power of it Independents That particular Congregations Presbyterians That Sessions Presbyteries Synods General Assemblies should have the Power of it the former being Subordinate to the latter Sessions to Presbyteries c. Hence ariseth all our Debates Now were not this good to take it from all and give it to the Magistrate We answer It is a way to end the Difference such as Solomon did to the two Women striving about the living Child It shall be none of yours A way that relished not with the kindly Mother of the Child 1 Kings 3. 25. Secondly We answer This Argument may take with natural Hearts who would buy Peace at any rate but not with those who are taught of God To buy the Truth and not to sell it For it holdeth out a way to end Controversies which is not God's His way is to establish what is right and to quite what is wrong But this way tends to suppress both right and wrong such Peace-makers will not be Blessed Thirdly The Presbyterians may borrow this Argument against Prelates Independents Erastians and have better right to it and so it will run thus If Church Government were put in the hands of the Presbytery It would establish and settle all Differences in the matter of Church Government betwixt Prelates Independents and Erastians Now if this Arment be good when they use it for them it must be also good when it is used for us But I doubt if they will admit of such like reasoning and so neither can we There is a Fourth Argument they use say they Jeremiah appealed to the Civil Magistrate Jerem 26. and so Paul Act 25. He appeals to Caesar. We answer let that place of Jeremiah cap. 26. be read and nothing will be found to prove that Jeremiah makes any appeal to the Civil Judicatories But Secondly Though he had appealed yet it does not prove that it is Lawful to appeal to the Magistrate in a Church business for the Sentence which the Priests had past on Jeremiah was Civil Thou shalt surely die v. 8. Now it was the Princes Duty to see to it That Innocent Jeremiah should not be put to Death especially by those who had no Powet to inflict such a punishment As for that instance Acts 25. 10 11. about Paul's appealing to Caesar it makes nothing to these purposes He appeals only from Festus an Inferior Civil Magistrate to the Superior And this we are not against But Secondly Though Paul had appealed from a Church Judicatory yet this makes nothing to confirm their Doctrine For the cause here whereabout Paul was to be judged was a Civil cause to wit Treason against Caesar And a thing worthy of Death Now we do Teach that a Church-man may appeal to a Civil Magistrate when he is questioned about his Life and for a Civil crime But hence it followeth not That we may appeal from a Church Judicatory when the cause is Ecclesiastick and no wayes civil Their last Objection is taken from 1 King 2. 27. Whereof they make much The words are So Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being Priest unto the Lord From which they argue thus Here is a civil Magistrate inflicting a Church Censure to wit Deposition of a Church-man to wit of Abiathar the Priest Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being Priest unto the Lord Therefore Christian Magistrates have Power to Dispence Church Censures Yet we answer Solomon did nothing here but what we yeild to any Magistrate for a civil Magistrate may inflict a civil Punishment on any person whatsomever for a civil Crime and so was the present case Abiathar's Fault was Treason in assisting Adonijah to the Crown against Solomon appointed by God to it Secondly The Censure inflicted by Solomon was not a Church Censure but civil to wit Banishment to Anathoth as appears from verse 26. And therefore what is mentioned in verse 27. He thrust out Abiathar from being Priest unto the Lord Is not the Censure directly intended by Solomon but that which followed upon his Banishment from Jerusalem ipso facto because the Office of the Priests could not be exercised but at Jerusalem IV. In the last place it follows That we give a word of use from all we have said The First use If so be that Jesus Christ hath appointed a Government in his House as is proven to be exercised by his own Officers Then know that those Magistrates that would ingross this Power to themselves so as to have his Courts and Censures depending on them or rather taken away and others put in their place do highly incroach on the Regal Power of our King Jesus Christ. And this seemeth to be the great sin of the Times Atheists prophane Men plead for it as looking for more forbearance to their Lusts from civil Powers than from Christs own Courts Civil Powers plead for it They are not content that Christ let Them reign and that they let Christ reign besides them But they must have him thrust out of his Throne and made to plead at their bar And so no wonder Christ overturn Kingdoms and Governments It was the Parliament of England's fault They feared lest Christs Courts should have wronged their Priviledges Hence they would not allow him his Priviledges They set up indeed a Government in Christ's House but it was a Lame one They durst not give Christs Courts their full Power but so as to be their Deputes And therefore they have dashed themselves against that corner-stone Christ Jesus until they are struck in pieces Their Fear is come upon them What they feared from Christs Courts they have met with at the Hands of their own Servants Our Kings have still been afraid of this and Malignants also going under the Name of Royalists They thought they could not get Their Throne secure if so be Christ got leave to reign besides them And this among many others hath made their Throne shake O that Kings would be wise and kiss the Son It would be their Wisdom to be faithful in what is committed unto them But for the Government of his House it is not in their Charter and so a thing that will not thrive in their hands their prudential Laws and Rules will do no good Secondly Yee would
ground your self in this Truth It may cost you much and though it should stand you never so much it is worth the avowing Christ himself suffered on this account as we have already shown and others of his servants have thought it their Glory to be called unto suffering for it Who am I saith Master Welsh That he hath not only called me to be a Preacher of glad things but also to be a sufferer for his cause and Kingdom To wittness that good confession That Jesus Christ is the King of Saints and that his Church is a most free Kingdom Yea as free as any Kingdom under Heaven That she is free in her Government from all other Jurisdiction on Earth except only Christs We are waiting saith he with joyfulness to leave the last Testimony of our blood for the confirmation of this Truth If it would please our God to be so favourable as to honour us with that dignity Thus He. And who knowes how soon he may honour some of us with that dignity A dignity indeed to suffer for the Royal Crown and Diadem of Our Lord Jesus SECT IV. A BRIEF REFUTATION OF THE DOCTRINE OF Independency Head I. The Power of Church Government is in the Church Officers and not in the Body of Church-Members THE dayes by-past we spake against the Doctrine of Erastianism And shew you that however it had many fair pretences yet it is to be reckoned among those Doctrines which are not of God We are now with the Lords assistance to speak against the Doctrine of Independency Ye Remember when we entered on these controversies about Church Government We shew you there were Four points of Truth which we should Labour to make good The first was That Jesus Christ the head of his Church had appointed in his word a way for the Governing and Ruling of his Church and that he had not left it to the power of the Civil Magistrate King or Parliament To establish what way of Government they please The second point was That this Government of the Church which Christ established in his word was not in the hands of the Civil Magistrate to be Executed by him Thir two points we have made good in our former Disputs against Erastianism The third point of Truth is this That Jesus Christ the head of the Church hath not committed the power of Governing his Church unto the Body of Believers To the community of Church Members but hath established it in the hands of his own officers Ministers and Elders The Fourth point of Truth which we promised to prove was this That Jesus Christ the head of the Church hath not given particular Elderships and Church Sessions the Supream power of Church Government in their hands so as that there should be none above them to call them to an account But that they are subject in the Lord to Superior Church Judicatories such as Presbytries Synods and General Assemblies These two last points we are to make out in Refuting this Doctrine of Independency This Error of Independency above all other we may call a fountain Error It is the Sluce whereby an entrance is made to all other Errors of what sort soever This is the Error whereby the most part of those that hath fallen from the way of Truth these years by past have been first hooked They first turned Independents yet rested not long there but proceeded from evil to worse Our scope shall be in this as in the former points to show That however it hath many fair pretences yet when it is brought to the Tryal it will be found not to be of God There are two main heads of this Error of Independency opposit to the two last points of Truth which we promised to make out The first is That whereby they affirm That Jesus Christ has given the power of Governing the Church unto all those that are Members of the Church Although they be not Ministers or Elders To the community of believers as they call it The second Head of their Error is this They do affirm that Jesus Christ hath intrusted particular Congregations Elderships or Church Sessions with the highest power of Church Government on earth so that there is no Judicatory above them to call them to an account As for the first Head of their Error which we are to speak against at this time Therein they have different Opinions among themselves some affirming that the power of Governing the Church is given to the Body of Church Members the community of Believers without the Minister and Elders yea a power over them to ordain them Censure depose them and inflict all other Church Censures Others give them this power conjunctly with the Church Officers Ministers and Elders Secondly Some give only the power and Authority to Govern to the Church Members But for the Exercise of that power they allow it to the Elders Yet so as to the Peoples deputs to whom they must give an account Others give the People not only the power and Authority but also the Exercise of this Government So that the People may sit down in Church Judicatories themselves enact Church Canons inflict Church Censures c. Thirdly Some give them the Exercise of this power only in some things as the Excercise of the power of Jurisdiction to make Church Canons and inflict Church Censures But not to Preach Others give them a full Exercise of Authority to do all We in opposition to all these lay down this conclusion which we shall Labour to make good from the word of God and solid Reason to wit That Jesus Christ hath not given to the Body of Church Members or to private Christians either the power or Exercise of Church Government neither in whole nor in part but hath intrusted it wholly to his own Officers Ministers and Elders I prosecuting this point we shall follow forth the former Method First We shall clear the State of the Question Secondly Bring Arguments for the Truth And Thirdly We shall propone and answer their Arguments brought against the Truth And Fourthly We shall shall apply the whole to some use I. For clearing the state of the Question Thâ—a it may be known what we do grant to private Christians and what we deny several distinctions would be given First There is difference betwixt Church power or Authority and Christian priviledges We do grant several Christian priviledges to private Christians but these do not infer any Church power or Authority of Governing the Church As for Example We do grant to the People a Power of Electing their own Officers Ministers or Elders we grant to them a power to try the Spirits whether they be of God i e They are not to believe blindly what Ministers say but have a power to Try what they say in Relation to their practice To pass a Judgment of discretion upon it whether it be according to the word or not We grant these priviledges to the People but none of them doth
spoken of For the last part of the verse must be exponed according to the first part Howbeit many of them which heard the word believed Now certainly that is meaned of others besides those that were before added and so this five thousand must be a new number Fiftly In Acts 5. 14. Besides all these it is said And believers were the more added to the Lord multitudes both of men and Women And Sixtly In Act. 6. 7. And the word of the Lord increased and the number of the Disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly and a great company of the Priests were obedient to the Faith They multiplied and multiplyed greatly And these were not only the common People but the leaders and Priests also who doubtless would bring multitudes with them by their example Now all these being considered any understanding man may easily conceive that so many thousands as these would amount to behooved to be cast in moe Congregations than one and could not be one single Congregation Before we proceed to the Second ground of our proof we shall shew you first what they say against this There are three things mainly they object And the first is That the most part of those who were converted by the Apostles were strangers who had not their dwelling at Jerusalem and so did not remain Members of that Church And for this they cite Act 2. 8 9. Where it is reckoned that among the number of the hearers there were Parthians and Medes and Elamits and the dwellers in Mesopotamia c. To this we Answer that though those men came out of those far Countries being Godly men who come in Expectation of the Messias his coming who was then expected yet they were dwellers in Jerusalem for that time and for this see Act 2. 5. And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews devout men out of every nation under Heaven So they had taken up house and were dwelling there And in v 14. Where Peter began his Preaching he sayes Ye men of Judea and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem be this known unto you c. Secondly We answer dwell where they please They were Members of this Church at Jerusalem And this appears from several things that are ascribed to them by the Holy Ghost which cannot be spoken of any but Members of that Church So in verse 47. it is said And the Lord added them unto the Church daily Secondly In verse 46. They continued daily with one accord in the Temple and breaking Bread from house to house c. Thirdly In verse 45. They sold their possessions and gave their Goods into the Church Treasury for the help of the poor And Fourthly We find in Act. 6. 5. That they all joyned in choosing the Deacons and Officers of the Church Now sure these are Actions that belong to none but Church-Members This for their First Objection Their second Objection is this say they The Holy Ghost sayeth expresly that they did meet all at one place as if it were on purpose to evince our Argument and that the whole multitude did come together As for instance Act. 2. 1. it is said They were all with one accord in one place and in the same Chapter verse 46. They continuing daily with one accord in the Temple c. And it is also said Act. 6. 2. Then the twelve called the multitude of the Disciples unto them c. And verse 5. And the saying pleased the whole multitude Now to take off this exception which seems to be the most plausible of their Objections First Consider what we spoke from the Scripture of their number and what thousands were in this Church And let any reasonable man conceive how it could be possible that all those should meet in one place And therefore that meeting in one place must be taken in another sense It 's observed by the Learned That the word here turned meeting together in one place 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 doth not always signify a meeting together in one room but the agreeing of the Affection and Judgement in one thing And for the clearing of this they cite Act. 4. 25 26 Why did the Heathen rage and the People imagine vain things The Kings of the earth stood up and the Rulers were gathered together against the Lord c. Now it is the same word that is there turned in one place which is here turned gathered together and certainly no place of Scripture will prove that Herod Pontius Pilate Jew and Gentile did all meet in one place to consult about the Death of Christ But only they agreed in one Judgement and hearty Affection about it And so the meaning may well be taken thus in tâ—is other place But yet to speak to these places further For Act. 2. 1. That they were all with one accord in one place It makes nothing against our Argument For the number was not then so great as we shew it grew afterwards and so they might well meet in one place The same answer we give to that in verse 46. They continuing daily with one accord in the Temple They were not then come to the full number that afterward they came to So that although they might all have continued in the Temple at that time yet afterwards they could not And Secondly We answer It doth not prove the point they bring it for It is only mentioned They came to the Temple to hear the Word but not that they were all of one Congregation partaking of all Ordinances in one place For it is said afterwards They brake Bread from House to House meaning the Sacrament of the Lords Supper which they did partake of from House to House in their particular Congregations So that place makes more against our Opposits than against us For the other place in Act. 6. 5. When the Apostles and Believers were come to a greater extent yet the Apostles call the whole multitude to them and it is said The saying pleased the whole multitude To this we answer by the whole multitude cannot be meaned all before spoken of And therefore we say by the whole Multitude is meaned a great Multitude as in that of Luke 8. 37. Where it is said That the whole multitude of the Countrey of the Gadarens round about c. It is not to be imagined that Man and Mother-Son or every Individual Person came out to meet Christ but only a great Multitude or otherwise the whole multitude may be taken for the whole multitude of those that were present as Luke 1. 10. And the whole multitude of the people were praying without when Zacharias was offering Incense Now this must not be understood that all the multitude of the People of Jerusalem was there but only of the whole multitude that was present This for their second Objection Their third Objection is this Though it be granted that the number of Believers was such before the persecution that fell out Act. 8 1. Yet when that Persecution came there
were no more left than might meet in a single Congregation for the Text faith They were all scattered abroad throughout the region of Judea and Samaria except the Apostles To this we answer That if it be granted that there were moe Congregations before this Persecution then it makes out the point we are to prove But Secondly Neither do we yeild that which they affirm That by the persecution mentioned Act. 8. 1. The multitude was brought to such a few number as they could make up but one Congregation It is said indeed They were all scattered except the Apostles But by this all is not meaned all the Professors but all the Preachers and there are several reasons to prove it For it is said Saul made havock of the Church verse 3. Now if he had meaned that all the Professors were scattered where should Saul have gotten Men and Women to hail to Prison and that this was done in Jerusalem Paul himself acknowledges Act. 26. 10. A second thing to prove that this all that was scattered was the all of the Preachers and not of the Professors is that in verse 4. where it is said They were scatered abroad every where Preaching the Word So that it astricts the scattering mainly to those who were Preachers For certainly the whole multitude could not have gone to Preach the Word And Thirdly The Apostles remain still at Jerusalem as appears from the first verse Now to what end and purpose should the Apostles have stayed there behind the rest except there had been several Flocks there with whom they stayed with the hazard of their Lives to confort them against the Persecution which had driven their Preachers from them But a second answer is That however they had been so scattered in the beginning of the Persecution that there was no more of them than made up a single Congregation yet in process of time they so multiplyed that they behooved to make up many Congregations And for this ye may find out several places as Act. 9. 31. They were multiplied and Act. 12. 24. speaking of Jerusalem The word of God grew and multiplied But we shall take one place for all In Act. 21. 20. where the Elders relate to Paul the exception that the People had taken at him for his going to the Gentiles Thou seest Brother how many thousands of Jews there are which believe c. Now the word rendered thousands in the Greek is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies Ten Thousands so there were not only Thousands but Ten Thousands yea and many ten thousands there And so moe than could be Edified in one single Congregation And that these were of Jerusalem is clear from verse 21. They are informed of thee c. And from verse 22. the multitude must needs come together c. Now this is from the first ground of our Proof 2. The second ground from whence we are to prove That there were moe Congregations in the Church of Jerusalem than one is taken from the multitude of Christs Officers That there were so many that it had been a shame for them all to wait upon one flock We find the Apostles were there as in Act. 6. 15. about the choosing of the Deacons We find they were also there in Acts 15. v. 6. Now besides the Apostles we find there were other Church-Officers in Jerusalem as in Acts 11. verse last There were Elders there where he is speaking of Jerusalem as it appears in verse 27. Besides there were Prophets in it as in verse 27. of the same Chapter And in these aayes came Prophets from Jerusalem unto Antioch And it is the Judgement of several Interpreters that the seventy Disciples whom Christ sent out to Preach were still at Jerusalem And that they were of the number of these hundred and twenty mentioned Act. 1. 15. Now let any man consider if it was likely especially when the Harvest was so great That so many of the Apostles should be ordinary Hearers of the Word and only one but to speak especially when we consider That when Christ sent out the twelve Disciples only he sent them not out all together but two by two and so certainly a wise man may well conclude That there behooved to be moe Congregations there than one yea many Congregations This is for the second ground of our proof The third ground is taken from the multitude of Languages that were in Jerusalem Act. 2. 5 8 9. 10. 11. and Act. 6. Which diversity did necessitate them to enjoy the Ordinances in divers distinct Congregations in their own Language And that it might be so the Spirit furnished the Apostles with diversity of Languages The fourth ground to prove this point is taken from the way of their Meeting which was not in void capacious Rooms built for the purpose as we now have for they had not then the Civil Magistrate for them to allow places of meeting for the purpose but only in private Houses upper Chambers Houses allowed to them by private Christians as Act 2. 46. And surely it cannot be conceived that their Houses could contain so many thousands and therefore of necessity they could not meet all in one Congregation Thus we have made out the first point That there were moe Congregations than one in Jerusalem We might prove the like in the other Churches of Ephesus Antioch Corinth Rome Thessalonica that there were moe Congregations than one there also And that from the multitude of Believers the Scripture speaks of the multitude of Preachers diversities of Languages But for brevities cause we pass to the other point which is the second thing we have to make out and it is this II. That all these Congregations in Jerusalem were under one Government there was one common Judicatory that Ruled them all in common As our Presbytry is over all the Congregations within its bounds And for clearing of this we lay down three things The First is that although there were many particular Congregations at Jerusalem yet they are called but one Church so in several places they are called the Church Act 8. 1. 15. 4. c. And by the way this refutes one of the Independent tenets whereby they affirm That the name of Church is never given under the New Testament but to those who meet ordinarly in one place for the discharging of all parts of Gods Worship But to the Argument For what reason could they be called one Church Not because they met together in one place for the Ministration of the word Sacraments and Prayer For those were dispensed to them in their singular Congregations severally and so certainly they are called one Church because they were under one Government one Eldership above them to Govern them As the Church of Scotland is called one Church because all her Congregations are Governed by one General Assembly Secondly We add to the former In this one Church made up of many Churches we find there are Ruling Elders so we
this is absurd For Christians are in an estate of greater liberty As appears from Galat. 4. 1. Therefore c. For clearing the first proposition We lay down these things First There was a Subordination of Judicatories in the Jewish Church As might be made out from several places We take one 2 Chron 19. 8. where there is a Supream Ecclesiastical Judicatory v 10. The matters they handle come to them from other Judicatories And Deut 17. 8. Sheweth the matters to be handled by the supream Judicatory are such as had been before the Inferior Court but found too hard to be judged there So that here was a Refuge for the party wronged by the Inferiour Court Now if there be no such Refuge left to Christians we may certainly say The state of Christiansis most hard being left under the Tyrannical sentence of the unjust Eldership And no power to right them When the oppressed Jew might appeal to the Superior Judicatory We might further argue from this Whatever was in the Jewish Government that was neither Ceremonial nor Judicial but Moral That is binding to us For the Moral Law bindeth all alike and is not abrogate But this That there was subordination of Judicatories for the relief of the grieved party among the Jews was Moral not Ceremonial nor Judicial It is true that all things were determined by an high Priest among the Jews who was typical of Christ and of his supremacy in Judgment So the Papists argue ill from the high Priest to the Pope But it is as true That the Subordination of Judicatories for things of harder knowledge and relief of the oppressed party was Typical of nothing But Moral and of the Law of Nature which forbids party to be judge which will naturally follow if there be not Subordination of Courts Yea further we shall not find that this Law is given to Moses in the pattern upon the mount but was taught by the light of nature to Jethro and by him given to Moses Exod. 18. 22. It shall be that every great matter they shall bring unto thee c III. We come now to Answer Their Objections many whereof we have taken off in the first two Heads As for the rest we shall not trouble you with those that are frivolous as indeed the most part are we shall only pitch on these that â—eem to carry some shew of Reason and whereof they boast most Their first Objection is from Matth 18. 17. This Church say they is a Parochial Church and Christs mind is that the business should be here ended without any Appeal from it Answer Christ means not only a particular singular Congregation but also if not mainly A Presbyterial Church For first The particular Church cannot sometimes heal the distemper as when it is divided or when the Church it self is Scandalous as oft may fall out by giving a wrong sentence So that if Christ had meaned only a particular Church should be compleaned to and in no case a Judicatory above them then his Remedy should have come short in curing the desease for which he intends it which to say were no small imputation to Jesus Christ. Secondly Christ here alludes to the Government of the Jewish Church as appears from the Censure of the Obstinate to be reputed as an Heathen the same which was among the Jews And from the plainness of the speach Tell the Church Which could not be otherwise understood if he had not alluded to the Jewish Judicatory besides which They knew no Judicatory for such offences as Christ spoke of to them There being as yet no particular Church which had given its name to Christ. Now as we cleared before the Judicatories among the Jews which were to be complained to for Scandals were not only these who were in their single Synagogues or Congregations But also Superior Courts to which it was Lawful to Appeal from the lesser Courts Thirdly Christ meaneth here of such a Church as were the Churches of Jerusalem Antioch c. But these as we have already cleared were Presbyterial Churches or Judicatories having the oversight of many Congregations Now sure these being the first Churches instituted by the Apostles must not be excluded from the power of Government given by Christ to his Church in that place Their Second Objection is this That the Dependency of Churches upon Presbytries layeth on a yoke of Tyranny and Subjection upon particular Congregations equal to the Tyranny of Bishops And if the Church must be in bondage it is better to be subject to one Lord Bishop than under a number of Ministers and Elders in Presbytry or Synod For Answer We make no other Subjection here than what the Independents themselves make For they make Ten in a Congregation subject to Five hundred and the Lawes of the Five hundred to be binding to the Ten So make we many Churches to be subject in the Lord to all their own Pastors and Elders conveened in a Presbytry What more Subjection is there in the one than in the other Secondly It is an unjust comparison to compare Bishops Tyranny with Presbytries For 1. The Government by Bishops was Humane This is Divine 2. The Bishop being but One Man did by himself alone Govern and that ad Arbitratum Nor had he Any to Answer to But here moe Pastors and Elders are joyned together who are by mutual advice to Rule Gods People according to the Word of God 3. The Government by the Bishop was altogether extrinsecal to or without the Particular Churches For the Bishop was none of their Members nor yet chosen by them But Presbyteries and Synods are not so They are wholly made up of Members and Commissioners from those same very Churches where They govern and so it is wholly intrinsecal 4. We say Government by Presbyteries is so far from being in its own nature Tyrannical as that it is the greatest remedy against Church Tyranny because it is a City of Refuge for all these who are oppressed in their particular Congregations For if in the Independent Government one be wronged he must sit with it till Christ come and right him Neighbour Churches may advise and request but the Congâ—egation advised is not bound to follow it But hâ—â—e when the Eldership doth wrong there is a refuge to a Presbytery and above them to a Synod c. Object 3. Government by Presbytery layeth upon Ministers and Elders the Charge of other Flocks than these of whom the Lord made them Overseâ—rs to wit The Charge of all the Churches in the bounds of the Presbytery They are Elders to all these Churches because they govern them Answer It followeth not that they have the Charge of all these Congregations in particular and in every thing that concerns the Duty of an Elder so that they are bound particularly to Catechize to Visit c. Only They are Elders to them in things common to all And as they are joyned in the Court with others And this is
under a duty and Obligation which he is bound to before God and the Congregation also to discharge himself in Namely all the Duties pertaining to a Member of that Particular Congregation or Paroch to which he comes Although he Swear not such an Oath We say Secondly he may also Swear to do these Duties But Thirdly To bind this on all the Consciences of the Members of the Church to take such an Oath so as if they take it not They are not Church Members We say It is Will Worship not commanded by God either by Practice or Precept in Old or New Testament We might easily prove that Jesus Christ never took This way to gather a Visible Church But the main difference is the Fourth and that is Concerning those who are to be kept or received Members of the Church Visible Or who they are that have right to these Outward Priviledges we spoke of That which they hold in this Point is That they would have all Visible Churches disolved and then Churches gathered out of these wherein none are to be received or admitted to partake of Church Priviledges so as to be under the care of Ministers Admitted to the Sacraments c. but those who have evident positive signes of Grace and these not only evident to the Minister and a few moe but to all the Members of the Congregation so that every one in the Congregation must be convinced so far as men can attain unto that he hath Grace or else he is no Member of the Visible Church by which Rule they model Congregations But there was never a Congregation since Christ was on the earth so constitute except Their Own For according to this Rule they will cast out the Two Part and of some Congregations leave Ten Parts and take but the Eleventh leaving all the rest as Pagans without Baptising their Children or admitting themselves to any Church Priviledge This is what They hold As for the Judgment of our Church and that which is according to the Word take those Assertions First We hold that every man indeed that is a Member of the Visible Church ought to have Grace so that he sins against God and his own Soul if he have it not And all the priviledges he enjoyes will do him no good without it We say in this respect all the Members of the Church ought to have Grace But to say That they so ought to have Grace that none of them must be admitted to be a Member of the Church Visible without it This we deny It is ill reasoning from unanswerableness to an obligation to a forfaulture of Priviledges For every man that is a Magistrate ought to have Grace so as he sins against God if he have it not yet a man may be a lawful Magistrate and have the Priviledges of a Magistrate although he have not Grace Secondly We do willingly grant that in the Constitution of our Church and admitting of People to the Lords Table Our Practice comes far short of the Rule There is not that care taken to purge out scandalous persons as should be Our practice is indeed short of the Rule But Our Rule which we shall hold out as we shall prove is Good To know then what is the Rule according to which we should admit men to be Members of the Church First There are some who are admitted to some Priviledges only and not to all as to Baptism And these are Members of the Church Incompleatly They are Members but not so fully And those are Infants that are born within the Church Visible They are Members although not to be admitted to the Lords Supper Now betwixt Us and the Separatists herein to wit whether Infants should be Baptized there is no difference Secondly There are some who are admitted to all Priviledges of the Visible Church And those are Members Compleatly and fully And concerning those the dispute is Who are those that ought to be admitted to all the common Priviledges of the Visible Church They mantain as we heard that none should be admitted but those that can give evident Signs of Grace to the satisfaction of the Consciences of all within the Church We hold First that if it be known that Men be Baptized And Secondly If they be free of Scandal And Thirdly If they submit themselves to the Doctrine of the Gospel and have some competent knowledge of the Grounds of the Christian Religion If these things I say be in a man We hold that he is to be received although he cannot give evident signes of the reality of the Grace of God in him to All. And this is the Controversie II. Now we come to prove that which we hold by Arguments The first is John the Baptist did not follow this Rule of Theirs in receiving Members to the Church and therefore it is not the right Rule That John the Baptist did not follow this Rule will appear if we consider Luke 3. Wherein consider Who it was whom John Baptized v 21. Now when all the People were Baptized c. It was all the People Consider Secondly What he requires of this People before he Baptize them We shall find in the preceeding words that he seeks no more than that they would be convinced that they were wrong before And Secondly Profess an earnest desire to amend So we find in v 10. And the People asked him saying what shall we do And the publicans in the 12. v do the same who yet were but Course Men. And in the 14 v The souldiers likewise demanded of him saying what shall we do Now these Questions import this much That they were convinced they were wrong and professed at least a desire to become better And accordingly John instructs them thus and thus ye shall do And without more ado in v 21. He Baptizes them Now it is not possible that John could have got positive signes from every one of them to convince him that they had real Grace Far less That every one of the multitude could have been perswaded in Conscience of the reality of Grace in each other And therefore the Rule of admiting men to be Members of the Visible Church cannot be this That every one to be admitted should have evident signes of Grace satisfactory to the Consciences of all John sought not this of those whom he received It 's true he fals very sharply on the Scribes Matth. 3 v 7 O generations of vipers who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come But it is as true when he hath rebuked them as ill as they were before seing now they professed a desire to amend he Baptizes them in v 11. I indeed Baptise you with water c The same You whom he spoke to in v. 7. As is clear from the Connexion of every Verse If it be Objected that they were not received to be Members of the Church although they were Baptized We shall once for all clear that Baptism sealeth up a mans
that the Apostle John is there speaking of whoorish Rome and is commanding all Gods People to Separate from the Antichristian Church Now let any judge if that be not loose Reasoning We are commanded to Separate from Rome who hath overturned the foundation of Religion Worships the Creature instead of the Creator therefore we are to Separate from Christs true and Purest Churches and Gods Worship in them If so be prophane men be keeped in them It is a senseless Consequence Obj. III. Their Third Objection against the Truth is taken from 1 Cor â— 11. But now I have written unto you not to keep company c. Say they We are forbidden to eat our ordinary meat with wicked men and far more we are forbidden to eat at the Lords Table with them To this we Answer That indeed it is the shame of Christian Churches and our sin that Scandalous and Ignorant Persons are admitted to the Lords Table But when they are admitted partly through the neglect of Ministers and partly through abounding corruptions It doth not follow that every private Christian is to cast himself out of the Church because wicked men are admitted As to this place here spoken of It s true every tender Christian is forbidden to use Familiar Society with Fornicators But it is not simply forbidden as if it were unlawful at all times to eat with them For even Paul himself eats with Heathens Act 27. 35. So the thing here forbidden is That the Lords People should not use intimat Society with wicked men yet so as when they cannot get it eschewed It is lawful both to eat and drink with them As put the case we could not get it otherwise it were lawfuâ— for us to eat with them following Pauls practice And so it follows in the matter of the Lords Table If it be in Ministers power to hold them back if they do it it is well If not it doth not follow that private Christians who have no power to debarr them and so cannot get eating with them eschewed without neglecting of a duty are bound to Separate Obj. IV. Their Fourth Objection is from 1 Cor 5. 6 Know ye not that a litle leaven leaveneth the whole lump Scandalous men infect the Church And the Church being infected infects the Worship and so if I come to the Worship it is infected to me and I do sin Now this is a Consequence far from Pauls words a litle leaven sayes he leaveneth c. Therefore cast out the Incestous man But he doth not say If he be not put out cast out your selves As for that they say that prophane men infect the Worship It is without ground It s true prophane men oftimes infect these among whom they live But they do not infect the worship For the way that prophane men infect these among whom they live is not Physical As the Pest infects every thing it toucheth but they infect by their evil example And so a prophane man may infect another man but by his evil example cannot infect the Worship because the Worship is not carried away with evil example as a man is And so if I can keep my self from following their example the worship is pure and clean to me Obj. V. Their last Objection is say they My coming to the Table with them is a countenancing of them in their profanation of the holy things So I partake with them in their sins say Amen to what they do And therefore better for me to withdraw We Answer this is a plausible Argument to deter People that are tender but when tryed it will be found weak For if so be this Argument do hold for Separating from the Lords Table it will conclude also that we should not hear Preaching with them for our hearing Preaching with them is a countenancing of them as well as our coming to the Sacrament with them And the wicked man profaneth the holy things in the one as well as in the other And by this it should follow that Jesus Christ should have been polluted which were Blasphemy to speak by His Preaching to Prophane multitudes For in That He countenanced them Therefore Secondly For a more full Answer we say Worshipping with them is not a consenting to their sin except it were in our power to hold them out but not otherwise Thou doest say Amen to what they do profess that They are serving God doing the commanded Duty But not to Their Hypocritical Way in doing of It Did Christ say Amen to the Pharisees way of Hearing although He Preached to Them So neither doest thou But as is already said Thou approves of Them in so far as They do the Commanded Duty But that it is done Impenitently Thou by Thy joyning in the Worship approves it not This for their Objections IV. For Use Our first is this To regrate that there is so much occasion given to this Error in the Churches of Christ We may regrate that there are so many of the Members of the Church Prophane and Wicked And that People walk not like Their Holy Calling We may regrate that the Officers of the Church Ministers and Elders do not Purge out Scandalous Persons Do not Labour to find Them and Censure Them and debarr Them from Communions But most of all it is to be regrated That many of those who should Purge out others Their Life is such that They deserve to be Purged out as Scandalous Themselves For this cause it is that the Lord threatens to Rent the Church And if He should let men arise among our selves under pretence of Pious strictness to cast at Our Worship We behoved to say Just is the Lord Although on the other hand it is no excuse but a fearful sin to Them who by Their carriage Rent and undoe the Church because of some Corruptions that are in it Use II. The Second Use is That ye would not think all alike Guilty that may encline to this Error of Separating from Lawful Worship because of wicked Men's being admitted to it It 's true there may be some Piously strict that upon the one hand loath at that which is Good when they cannot get it but in wicked Mens company And upon the other hand because they cannot live without the Ordinances therefore They encline to make up a Litle Church of Good Men of Their Own choise By which means the Devil takes advantage of Their zeal to make them dishonour God by runing to the other extreme Now although the Humour of such should not be given way to yet those who encline this way from a desire of strictness are much to be Pitied But on the other hand we are not to think so of the Ring-leaders of this Error It hath been found by experience that such have been more carried on by a conceit of their Own Holiness than any true Love to Holiness it self It hath been usually found in Heady men who had a mind to make a Rupture in tâ—e Church that
There is an Union in Judgement when there is no considerable Difference among the Members of the Church in the matter of Opinion When all Think the same thing And this is here pressed Be prefectly joined in one Judgement 2. There is an Union in Heart and Affections spoken of Act. 4. 32. The multitude of them that believed were of one Heart and of one Soul And this Union is also here pressed Be perfectly join'd together in the same Mind or in Love and Affection as we shew'd in the opening up of the Words 3. There is an Union in Practice and that is when whatever Difference there is in Judgement yet it 's not openly proclaim'd Publick Contradictions and Eristick Debates are eschewed and an unanimous joint practice in these things wherein there is Agreement is followed And this Union is also pressed in the Text I beseech you that ye all speak the same thing So it 's clear the Text means all these three sorts of Union the Doctrine intends them All and as might be made evident other Scriptures press them All. Only this we would know the Order wherein they are pressed to wit So as every Breach in the Former is not to make a Breach in the Latter Every Difference in Judgement is not to make a Rent in Heart or Affection Nor tho a Rent be in both doth it infer necessarly a Divided Practice at least in these things wherein there is Agreement And for that the Scripture is clear especially Philipp 3. 15 16 where v. 15 the Apostle supposeth difference of Judgement among the Philippians as to the point he is there speaking of and subjoineth for matter of Practice v. 16. Nevertheless whereunto we have already attained let us walk by the same Rule That is to say Tho we cannot agree in all things yet let us eschew the prolaiming of Our Differences by Our contrary Practices This much for the first thing to wit What Union the Doctrine presseth It is an Union necessary to the Well-being of the Visible Church particularly an Union in Judgement an Union in Affection an Union in Practice An Union all these wayes is to be sought for and laboured after yet so as if we cannot attain to Union in the Former we are yet still to endeavour it in the Latter For Confirmation of this Truth we might cite several Scriptures 1. These wherein this Union is promised to the Church and that as a rich Covenant Blessing such as Jer. 32. 39. I will give them one Heart and one way that they may fear Me for ever The like is in Ezek. 37. 22. 2. These Scriptures wherein this Vnion is highly commended Especially Ps. 133. 1. Behold how good and how pleasant it is for Brethren to dwell together in Vnity and so through the whole 3. These Scriptures which hold out the Mediator's Prayer to the Father for this Union Joh. 17. 21. That they all may be one as Thou Father art in Me and I in Thee that they also may be one in Vs and so v. 23. 4. Those Scriptures where this Union is expresly enjoyned and pressed whereof there are many Such as Philipp 2. 1 2 3. If there be any consolation in Christ if any comfort of Love if any fellowship of the Spirit if any Bowels and Mercies Fulfil ye My Joy that ye be like minded having the same Love being of one accord of one mind And 2 Cor. 13. 11. Finally Brethren farewel be of one mind live in peace And lastly these Scriptures where Division contrary to Unity is condemned as Rom. 16. 17. I beseech you Brethren mark them which cause Divisions and Offences and avoid them But for further Confirmation of this Truth we shall in the next place bring foreward some Reasons concluding the equity and necessity of seeking after and entertaining of Unity in the Church which shall also serve as motives to the Duty Reason 1. Union furthers Edification So Eph. 4. 3. Union is pressed And One Fruit among many to be reaped hereby is v. 12. the edifying of the Body of Christ. And as Unity furthers Edification so Division marreth it Divisions in a Church tho about small things yet if stiffly mantain'd prove a great stumbling Block to the Weak they are put to doubt all Truths because Men gracious and learned doubt of some So Division not only marreth progress in the building but striketh at the very foundation of what is already built Reas. 2. Divisions in a Church make the Ministers contemptible Of all Men Ministers suffer most this way because usually they are most active in beginning and upholding the Division and usually even these who have Truth for them suffer much if not most this way Paul tho an Apostle and a Man for Truth yet he lost much of the former esteem he had amongst the Corinthians though once they would have pluck'd out their Eyes for him yet through the Division their Distemper grew to such an hight that he was look'd on as Contemptible rude in speech yea A Fool and what not as appears from 2 Cor 10. 10. Ch. 11. 6 16. Reas. 3. The Essential Unity of the Church and the many things wherein a Church agreeth that way should enforce this Union The Apostle Paul Eph. 4. draweth a strong Argument for Unity and Peace in the Church from this Ground The Duty is propounded v. 3. Endeavouring to keep the Vnity of the Spirit in the Bond of Peace And v. 4 5 6. it is pressed by this Argument There is on Body and one Spirit One Lord one Faith one Baptism One God and Father of all Here are many Ones together in two or three lines as if he had said What a shame is it for you who are so many wayes One to rent in pieces for a thing of so small moment Reas. 4. Divisions in a Church turn away every Man's Eye from his main Task I mean from the joint opposing of Satan's main Design to be wrangling one with another It 's Satans Policy when he intends to bear down Truth in a Church to set those who should oppose him most by the Ears about smaller things that so he may carry his point with less difficulty herein making use of Matchiavils or rather his own Principle divide impera Divide and Carry It 's often seen that the nearer those who differ come to one another they drive on their point against others with the greater Animosity and Eagerness the Jews and Samaritans were at greater variance than Jews and Heathens And the Reason is this The less the Difference is they have the more hopes to bring others to their mind hence their mutual On-setts are more furious and their Disappointments the more bitter the higher they were in their hopes and in the mean time while they mind nothing so much as to bear down one another Satan cometh good speed in bearing down of Truth and Them and All. Reas. 5. Union when once lost in a Church is hardly ever
cast themselves head-long upon the Errors of the time I do not love that any thing should be done of purpose to make People as we say kyth or appear in their colours I mean to bring out these Practices the Seed whereof thou conceives to be already within which at the best is to cast a stumbling Block before the Blind I might reckon several Practices which are not only Irritating but also in themselves Sinful such as Promiscuous admissions of Clean and Unclean to the Lord's Table Little pains taking by Ministers to Instruct People with Knowledge Shewing much of Passion but little of Reason against Errors There be many whose Zeal is honestly fervent against Error and Confusion who yet by these and such as these are not a little indirectly instrumental to the furtherance of it Our Second Direction how to manage our Differences so as not to further Satan's main design is That all especially Ministers would beware of such things as of their own Nature do prove and by constant observation have proven Fore-runners of Error and Confusion Of which I shall reckon Three The First thing to be eschewed is Unscriptural Expressions while speaking of things Religious as Cases of Conscience Exercises of Mind and Scripture Truths An affected way of bringing forth old Truths in new and uncouth Phrases high soaring Notions serving more to astonish than inform the Hearers Paul 2 Tim. 1. 13. bids Hold fast the form of sound words and not only of sound Doctrine It was Calvin's Observation in his time and severalls since that those who coin new Words and strange Expressions tending only to amuse the Hearers are in hazard to be carried away themselves and to carry others with them unto some New and Dangerous Opinions 2. Ye must beware lest a disgust of old Truths spread amongst the People together with an itching after new Things new Opinions new Cases new Fellowships new Teachers Ye'll find 2 Tim. 4. 3 4. That itching Ears in People go before the turning the Ear from the Truth For preventing whereof Ministers should be much in the inculcating of old Soul-saving and Soul-humbling Truths And for keeping these still fresh and savory much of the need of Christ should be pressed to a Soul-hungring for Christ every bitter thing is sweet but a Soul full of Conceit loatheth the Hony-comb A Third Thing predisposing to Error and so to be guarded against is The undervaluing of the Ministry It hath been Satan's method in drawing on People towards Error at all times and in no time more than these of late First To make them despise their Faithful Ministers that once getting the Ear stopped by prejudice against thesâ— he might get the more ready access for his Emissaries to infect them with Damnable Errors It is the Observation of a Reverend Writer of late speaking to the same purpose That the Galatians were easily seduced so soon as they were made to disgust Paul their Faithful Teacher This much for the Second Direction for managing of our Differences so as not to come short in defence of these Truths which Satan is labouring most to deface Our Third Direction is To be watchful over the first Buddings of Error That way There are some lesser Errors whereby Satan scoureth the Field and maketh way for these great Ones which he mainly intends Whereof as to the present case I shall mention some Concerning which whatever we might speak from our own knowledge of the propensity of severals towards some of them yet I shall rather choise to speak of them in the abstract as such That if People should be taken with them will make way for that Confusion which Satan mainly aimeth at Error 1. The first whereof is That no Man truly Godly ought to be Censured for Opinion or Practice which we conceive he owneth or practiseth from grounds of Conscience tho his Opinion or Practice tend never so evidently to the Renting of the Church Error 2. Secondly That the presence of Scandalous Persons at the Lords Table defileth the Ordinance unto all who Communicate knowing such to be there Error 3. Thirdly That a Minister Scandalous tho not Judicially proved such ceaseth to be a Minister so that it is unlawful to receive either Word or Sacrament at his hand or to join in Discipline with him Error 4. Fourthly That there is no special tye upon People to countenance the Ordinance in that Congregation whereof they are Members But a liberty left to go constantly where they may be most edified tho with the discouragement of those whose hands they are bound to strengthen I have only mentioned these Tenets without Refutation being confident that none of Christs Ministers to whom herein I mainly speak will own them Only I shall point at three things Ministers should make conscience of as their Duty in relation to these or such like First As it is our Duty to watch against prophanity and Scandal upon the one hand so to be learning where any thing of this kind vents it self either in Practice or Contentious Reasoning Secondly We should not think lightly of such when they do appear and that Because 1. They do evidently make way for Satans great design in these times which is to cover the Church of Christ with Confusion 2. Because that however possibly such do not reflect so much upon our own Ministry as upon others who we may conceive have justly procured their own grief yet a year or two may lay them down at the door of him who thinks himself for the time at greatest distance from them and that with so much the more weight as that he did not resent these evils sooner 3. Such would not be thought of lightly Because Experience sheweth That the simple overseeing of such is not the way to root them out but rather to make them take strength And therefore the Third thing that Ministers should make Conscience of in relation to such is To set about the Curing of them wherein ye are to eye two Caveats 1. As ye would thrive so set about the Cure of One evil as not to neglect Another They are not to be approven if any such be who in their Reproofs bend themselves wholly against Error but little against Prophanity and Vice neither are they to be approven if there be any such who pass over the reproof of Error wholly because the Person to be reproved will hardly take with it or that prophane men will take occasion to mock at Piety because of it These things require indeed that the Duty be wisely and tenderly done but not that it be left altogether undone A second Caveat to be eyed is your Cure should be more in Convincing Arguments than in Bitter Reproofs Else it will be taken but for the venting of Passion and that ye have nothing to say in Reason which will make the Disease worse This much for the second branch of our last Use. The Third shall be some Considerations to the People especially for
Yet it follows not that the Man who is perswaded of Truth to be Truth is deceived likewise There is a Man who in his Dream thinks certainly he is awake and speaking that Man certainly is deceived But it were a strange thing to conclude from that that the Man who is really awake cannot know if he is so but must alwayes suspect he may be deceived and in a Dream This much then for things out of Doubt and wherein a Man upon good grounds hath attained to a full perswasion of the Truth that is in them But the greatest Question of all is concerning Points of the Truth whereof we are not absolutely perswaded without some scruple and ground of Doubt to the contrary how we may know what is God's Way in those And for this I shall give you some Marks 1st The Light of Nature will teach us in things Doubtful to encline to the surest and safest side and that against which least can be said As for Example in that Controversy concerning the adding of Sacred significant Ceremonies invented by Man to God's Worship As Bowing to Altars Kneeling at the Communion Signing with the Cross at Baptism c. Those who plead such Additions to be superstitious and unlawful do bring Deutr. 12. 32. What things soever I command you observe to do it thou shalt not add thereto nor diminish from it And such like Scriptures for a Proof The Patrons of Ceremonies answer That God forbiddeth such Additions only which are contrary to the Word but not such as are besides the Word neither forbidden nor commanded by it Now that is the very Answer which Papists give to Our Protestant Divines while we use the same Scripture for an Argument against all their superstitious Ceremonies invented by Men And indeed if that Door be once opened a Door is opened not only for one or two but all the Ceremonies of the Church of Rome for on that ground only do they plead for them When we ask what Warrand have they from Scripture for their frequent Crossings their use of Salt Spitle Exorcisms in Baptism their use of Holy Water Baptising of Bells Pilgrimages and Pennances They Answer it is enough of Warrand for the Church to Command them that they are not expresly condemned in Scripture Now seing the way that is pleaded for such Ceremonies casts up so wide a gap It 's sure that to abstain from them altogether is the safest 2. That Way in things Doubtful is most like to be Christ's the Chief Promoters whereof are not carried on with by-ends self designs to acquire Worldly Honours or Riches or Faâ— Benifices to themselves but on the contrary the very thing they plead for and that part of the Contradiction which they mantain is That nothing of that kind further than honest Compitency and Ministerial respect should be bestowed on Christ's Ministers And upon the other hand it is a shrewd Presumption at least that such a Way is not Christ's wherein the Chief Promoters do palpably seek themselves and their own Worldly Interests The Apostle Paul useth to lay great weight on this Mark especially Rom. 16. 18. Such serve not our Lord Iesus Christ but their own belly So that if they seek their own Bellies they serve not our Lord Jesus Christ. And Philipp 3. 18 19 Many walk that are the enemies of the Cross of Christ whose God is their belly who mind earthly things If it be evidently seen they mind earthly things They are but Enemies to the Cross of Christ. 3. When People doubt about several Wayes which of them is Christ's Way they are to stick by that unto which they are most engaged and by more solemn tyes obliged until at least they be clearly convinced it is wrong for very common understanding will judge That to be the surest 4. That way which by the grant of its Adversaries hath ground in Scripture for it tho they also say men may change it must certainly look more like Christ's Way than the contrary which is confessed by its prime Maintainers to have no ground in Scripture but that the great Warrand which is given for it dothâ—ly in the Authority of men Even an heathen King Artaxerxes did know so much that every thing in the House of God behooved to be done according to the revealed will of God whence he issueth forth a Decree Ezra 7 23. Whatsoever is commaded by the God of Heaven let it be diligently done for the house of the the God of heaven for why should their be wrath against the realm of the King and his Sons Lastly That which tends most to the promoting of Piety and is attended most with the Fruits of a Godly life and tender conversation in it's most eminent mantainers and followers and this not for a little short flash only at it's first beginning and when it is as it were upon it's Tryals but at all times when ever there was any Controversie about it That Way I say looketh most like to Christs Way For all His Way and every Piece of it tendeth unto That to make People lead a Godly and Holy life Titus 2. 11 The Grace of God that bringeth Salvation hath appeared to all men Teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts we should live soberly righteously and Godly in this present World And upon the contrary That way whereof the most zealous mantainers and and followers as to their generality have been still plagued with prophanity and looseness That way I say looks not like the way of Christ. Wee 'l find Christ himself doth lean no small weight on this Mark Matth. 7. 15 16 Where he gives a general rule whereby to try false Prophets and teachers to wit The Fruits and Effects which their Doctrine hath upon their own Lives and Conversations Ye shall know them saith he by their fruits Do men gather grapes of thorns or figs of thistles And verse 20. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them Now all these things are such undoubted Truths as none will get them deny'd in the general and yet such as through Gods Blessing being rightly improven may give People light in the former Question To know which is Christ's Way among the many wayeâ— on foot in the Church of God so as we need not any further application but exhort you with the Apostle Paul 2 Tim 2. 7. Consider what I say and the Lord give thee understanding in all things A SERMON PREACHED AT KILWINNING Upon the Munday immediatly after the giving of the Communion The Fourth SERMON ACTS 11. 23. Who when he came and had seen the Grace of God was glad and exhorted them all that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. THE Scope of my Sermon yesterday from Jeremiah 3. 22. was to bring you to God The Text in hand holds out a main Duty ye should make conscience of when ye are brought to him and have closed with him as all of you by your approaching to
endeavour is That Controversies be clearly stated And with great perspicuity and solidity doth he confirm the Truth by Scripture and Reason and confute the contrary Error and all this without bitterness or wrath but with such calmness and moderation of Spirit wherein he did excell So that as I am informed divers of the English Army though of a contrary Judgement did resort to hear him I know not what effects his Teaching of these Truths had on Them but by the Blessing of God these of his own Flock were so established in the Truth that not one of them was seduced from it And I cannot but record it to the praise of God and commendation of that Congregation and for the encouragement of any who may be invited to be their Pastor when I to their and my grief am to be separated from them to a more difficult Post I say I cannot but record it that as that Congregation of Kilwinning hath since the Reformation been blest with eminent learned and pious Men Mr Glasford Mr Bailie Mr Fergusson and Mr Rogirs So they have by the Blessing of God on their labours been kept not only Sound in the Faith but United among themselves when others have been wofully Divided And they have alwayes shewed a great love to the Gospel and all the Ordinances of the Lord Jesus and the Ministers thereof And I pray That their fruit may abound more and more If some Expressions Concerning the Opinion of Independents or Congregational Men seem severe It would be remembred that the Author doth not speak against Persons but against Things And in a time when many Errors followed that Division about Church Government and the Debate was hot about it and fear that it should have taken place in Scotland But considering the Zeal these of New-England have discovered against Error and their United way of acting in Association and Synods when they think there is need and the love that hath been in time of Common Tryal and the Late Essay which hath been made for an Accomodation betwixt Presbyterians and Them in England I suppose if our Reverend Author had lived until this time he would have concluded the Difference may be so lessened that it need not hinder their walking together in that wherein they are agreed nor their Endeavours to keep the Vnity of the Spirit in the bond of Peace I do not know of any particular design of publishing these Discourses now when they have been kept hid for fourty years but that the Author's Son having long delay'd and declin'd to Publish them though frequently and seriously advis'd to do it by many he was advertised that some would publish the Imperfect Notes received from His mouth in the time of Hearing which being incorrect might not only prejudge the Authors name but the Truth and others Edification If these as is hoped they will be acceptable and useful what yet remains unprinted of these Discourses may see the Light in due time There are here subjoyned Four Sermons of the Reverend Author which the Publisher and others hope may be found of good use and may make way for the communicating more of his Pious and Judicious Sermons which are longed for by them who knew Him or his other Works It had surely been of great advantage to the Church had it pleased God to have spared this judicious and pious Author till now and that he had published more of his Works in his own time But seing our infinitely wise and good God hath disposed otherwise it becometh us to submit But if by this or any other of his Works God get Glory and the Church be edified The Publisher will rejoice and bless God as having attained his end And if the Reader peruse his Works with the same Spirit wherewith they seem to be spoken and written I am confident he will not fail of profit Now that the Spirit of Truth and Holiness would lead Thee and all His people into all Truth and help them to edify one another in love and that He would bless His Churches with Truth and Peace and send out many Faithful Labourers into His Harvest with a double measure of the Spirit that was in Mr. Fergusson and other eminently holy Men who then lived shall be the Prayer of Christian Reader Thy Souls cordial Well-wisher George Meldrum Edinburgh June 1692. The Contents SECT I. OF Doctrine in general and the Tryal thereof Being some Doctrines raised from the Text Introductorie to the main purpose Pag. 1 ad 26. Doctr. I. Error is to be Eschewed pag. 3. Doctr. II. Orthodoxy or a Right opinion in the matters of Truth is as much to be stuâ—â—ed as Holiness of Life pag. 5. Doctr. III. As at all times so chiefly when there is danger of spreading of Error there is most need that Love should be intertain'd betwixt Pastor and People Where are some directions for a Ministers carriage in order to the keeping of the affections of his People while he is Refuting their Errors pag. 12. Doctr. IV. The Spirit of Error began very early to trouble the Church Where are some Reasons for which the Lord suffers Errors to spread pag. 16. Doctr. V. The foulest Errors go out oftentimes under fairest Names and are backed with most specious Pretences pag. 19. Doctr. VI. When foul Error is holden out under fair names and backed with fair pretences there is a danger lest People drink them in and believe them Where are 5 things that speak this hazard pag. 23. Doctr. VII Ministers the Servants of God are not to clap Peoples heads or to indulge them in this inclination of Theirs to Error but on all hazards they are to testify against it Where are 3 Reasons for which People ought to reverence much what warnings of this kind are given by Ministers pag. 28. Doct. VIII It is not Gods Way That People because there are differences about Religion should therefore believe no Religion Where are 5 Directions for the unlearned to walk by in order to difference of opinions among the Learned pag. 31. Doctr. IX How fair soever the pretence is that a Doctrine is colloured with It should not be taken upon Trust but must be brought to a Tryal Where are some Directions how to walk betwixt Popish Tyranny and Sectarian Confusion pag. 34. Doctr. X. The right Tryal to be taken of Doctrines preached or any otherwise vented is To try whether they be of God or not Where is shown what is requisite to a Doctrines that it may be said to be Of God pag. 38. Doct. XI There are many Doctrines pretending to the Spirit which yet being brought to the Touchstone will be found Not to be of God p. 44 SECT II. The Doctrine of Toleration Try'd and foundnot to be Of God Wherein as in all the Errors following First The Question is stated 2. Arguments are brought for Confirming the Truth and vindicated from the Opposites Exceptions 3. The Opposites Objections are Answered and Refuted from Scripture
and Reason 4. The Truth being vindicated is applyed to a Practical Vse pag. 47. SECT III. The Doctrine of Errastianism Try'd and found not to be Of God pag. 86. Head l. There is a Church Government 〈◊〉 forth in Scripture ibid. Head II. The power of Church Government belongeth not to the Civil Magistrate pag. 103 SECT IV. The Doctrine of Independency Try'd and found not to be Of God pag. 123. Head I. The power of Church Government is in the Church Officers and not in the Body of Church Members ibid. Head II. The highest power of Church Government is not in Church Sessions or Congregational Elderships pag. 150. Paragr I. There is a Plate-form of the Government of many Congregations by One Common Presbytry holden out in Scripture pag. 152. Paragr II. There is a Plate-form of Government by Synods over many particular Presbytries held forth in Scripture pag. 167. Paragr III. Infertor Church Judicatories are subject Superior pag. 173 SECT V. The Doctrine of Separation Try'd and sound Not to be of God pag. 191 Head I. Shewing what is required for making one a Member of the Visible Church ibid Head II. No Separation from a true Church or Gods Worship in the Church because of the Sins of Fellow-worshipers pag. 214 A Sermon Preach'd before the Synod at Glasgow April 5. 1653. From 1 Cor 1. 10. pag. 235. Sermon Second Preach'd at Irving foom Psalm 51 6. Immediatly before the Giving of the Communion Being a Preparation Sermon in order thereto pag. 287 Sermon Third Preach'd at Kilwinning 11 May 1663 From Luke 7. 23. Vpon the Munday Immediatly after the Giving of the Communion pag. 313. Sermon Fourth Preach'd at Kilwinning From Acts 11 23. Vpon the Munday Immediatly after the Giving of the Communion pag. 340. A BRIEF REFUTATION OF THE ERRORS OF Tolleration c. SECT I. Of Doctrine in General and the Tryal thereof 1 John ch 4. ver 1. Beloved believe not every Spirit but try the Spirits whether they are of God THE Body of this Epistle as we shew'd when first we entred upon the handling of it runs upon three Heads The first is upon Marks whereby to discern real Grace to wit who had it and who not The second runs upon Exhortations to several Duties of Sanctification chiefly Love to the Brethren that Christians would Love them that Love God Love Grace wherever they saw it The third Head whereon it runs is Exhortations to Constancy in avowing Truth against Error In this fourth Chapter there are two of these Heads according to which we may take up the Chapter in two parts In the First There is an Exhortation to stand by Truth and to beware of those who would seduce People from it And that to ver 7. In the second part There is a renewing of the former Exhortations To Love the Brethren And a Confirmation of it by a number of new Arguments to the end Both which have been handled already and yet the Apostle returns again to them because Exhortations against Error cannot be enough inculcate and therefore he reiterats them again and again In the first part of this Chapter There is 1. An Exhortation 2. There are Arguments to enforce the Exhortation The Exhortation is set down in the former part of the first verse Believe not every Spirit that is lend not an Ear to every point of Doctrine covered over with a fair Name but bring every Doctrine to the Touch-stone There are two Things considerable in this Exhortation First There is the compellation he gives them a warm and kindly Stile Beloved And then Secondly There is the Exhortation it self And in it there are two Things 1. What they should not do And 2. What they should do For the First What they should not do Believe not every Spirit Some take the Spirit here for Preacher Believe not every Preacher And some for Doctrine Believe not every Doctrine But both may well be joyned together thus Believe not every Preacher who pretends the Spirit for his Doctrine For the second What they should do It is to Try the Spirits whether they are of God He bids them not cast at all Doctrines because there are some Errors vented for Truths as the natural Heart is ready to do But he Exhorts that they would bring every Spirit to the right Touch stone Thus much for opening up the words We intend if the Lord give us liberty to speak somewhat largely on this Verse of those Doctrines or Errors which are most like to trouble our Church therefore we shall raise some Doctrines before hand which may make way for what we intend Doct. I. The First is from the Apostles dehorting Believers from false Doctrine by many Arguments Hence observe That Christians would by all means eschew any thing that may tend to seduce them from the pure Truths of Jesus Christ Particularly that they would beware of Error Heresy and any thing of that sort Hence there are so many Exhortations in Scripture to stand by the Truth to be rooted in the Faith and to eschew contrary Error So it is a Duty lying on Christians to be guarding and watching against Error or what is contrary to Truth Reas The Reason is because Errour is a Sin and a very dangerous one We shall shew the danger of it in three Things I. It is dangerous because of the desert of it It is Damnable 2 Peter 2. 1. False Prophets are spoken of there as those who bring in damnable Heresies that is highly condemnable We shall afterwads show in what respect Heresies are Damnable 2. Errours are dangerous Sins because they steal subtily in upon People and people do too readily relish them So there are many whose nature abhorres gross Sins against the second Table as Fornication and such like and yet the Devil gets them hooked by this sin of Error Nature is born with a cry against gross Sins committed against the second Table and so naturally there is some kind of loathing in People at them but it is not so in the sins of Error Sathan can transform himself into an Angel of Light and plead Conscience whereas he intends to bear down Truth So the sins of Error are dangerous because subtile 3. They are dangerous in this respect that as they creep easily in So when once they are in it 's hard to get them shut to the door again And that because deluded Conscience pleads for them People tainted with Error think themselves right and therefore whatever is brought against them Conscience casts at all as wrong Now in other Sins to wit such as are against the Second Table altho Affection plead for them yet usually Peoples Light does witness against them And so in this respect it is more hard to get a sin of Error thrust out where it is once rooted than the sin of Prophanity it self Vse This Doctrine may serve to fit you for receiving the following Doctrines which if the Lord will we are to speak of