Selected quad for the lemma: church_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
church_n	apostle_n	bishop_n	govern_v	4,982	5	8.2923	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A26203	Englands common-wealth shewing the liberties of the people, the priviledges of Parliament, and the rights of souldiery : with epistles to the persons mentioned ... / written by John Audley ...	Audley, John, Preacher of the Gospel.	1652 (1652)	Wing A4202; ESTC R1402	34,551	48

over Bishops when it was said The Lord added to the Church such as should be saved Acts 2. 41 47. Where the Church consisted of them that beleeved having heard the word and were to be saved No mention of Bishops nor of Officers under them Then afterwards we read of Deacons Acts 6. And of Elders Act. 14. and of a Church at Corinth 1 Cor. 1. 1. yea seven times mentioned in 1 Cor. chap. 14. when in the Church every one spake according to his gift as any thing was revealed to him that sat by ver. 30. The Saints made a Church at Corinth though yee read not of any Bishops there then Indeed Paul 1 Tim. 3. 5. doth speake of Bishops Ruling their owne house and taking care of the Church of God and 1 Tim. 5. 17. counts them worthy of double honour who labour in the word and doctrine and Tit. 3. 9. he commands that they be able by sound doctrine to exhort and convince the gain-sayers But Peter bids them Feed the flock of God as much as in you is and be not Lords over or over rule not that heritage 1 Pet. 5. 2 3. {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} Where note that there ought to be no Lords Bishops over the flock of God And that the people called the flock of God because purchased with the blood of Christ are Gods Clergy as much as Bishops That Elders are to feed the flock of God and by feeding them to exercise rule over them And the highest person in the Church that hath highest place among the people hath but the power {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} which signifieth to feed and Matth. 2. 7. to rule and expresse a kind of simple rule and authority such as by feeding the sheep shepheards have over them Here it appears that when the Church of God had Elders to feed them no men might be Lords therein nor over-rule them but feed them rather And yee may observe that when Paul 1 Cor. 12. 28. mentions helps in Government he names Apostles Prophets Teachers Workers of Miracles But he names not either Bishops Elders or Deacons Shewing that they are not that unum necessarium mainly necessary in the Church And however they are by some numbred among helps in Church Government yet if they be not mainly necessary they are not greatly to be contended for for helps in Government are but of the benè esse not of the esse of the Church for there was a Church and a Church governed before Bishops were in being or once so much as named in the Church of God And although these pretended helps in Government be taken away from amongst us yet here is a Church in England stil without Bishops For generally the Bishops did but pretend to help in the Government of the Church the most of them found occasion against both Ministers People concerning the law of our God Dan. 6. 5. who proving a snare instead of an helpe were justly taken away the Church of England stil abiding a Church without Bishops And if your meaning be That we have no Church i. e. No calling to the Ministry in the Church because there bee no Bishops to give ordination I Answer we must soberly distinguish as before between the Essentialls and the Circumstantialls of a Church so here between the Essentialls and the Circumstantialls of a Ministers Call The Essentialls of a mans Call to the Ministry consists in Christs gifting men for the office or in Christs putting into mens hearts the word of reconciliation to minister thereof to men 2 Cor. 5. 20. 2. In his giving such men willing hearts to preach it 1 Cor. 9. 16. Ordination it self is but an act of conveniency in respect of order not of necessity to give men power to preach the Gospell And for ordination by Bishops that is a circumstance lesse necessary to the Ministers Call It had its time to become expedient for such as would enter in by the door which is Christ but ordination by Bishops was never absolutely necessary to a Ministers Call The Circumstances convenient to the Call of a Minister be divers 1. Some be primo necessariae and precedaneous to ordination in this Call As 1. Nomination from among beleevers such as have gone in and out with us this Justus and Matthias also had Act. 1. 2. Imposition of hands with prayer which came instead of casting of lots 3. Examination of men unknowne 1 Tim. 3. 9 10. 4. Separation to the worke of the Ministry which Barnabas and Saul had Act. 13. Which also is called of some by the name of Ordination and indeed hath been in use as here we see before there were Bishops to use the same 2. Some Circumstances be succedaneous to this Ordination of Ministers As 1. Recommendation from knowne Ministers which Titus had 1 Cor. 16. 10. 2. Election to some place which Paul had to Macedonia Act. 16. 4. 3. Approbation of the people in that place Who gave up themselves first to God and then also to us by the will of God 2 Cor. 8. 5. All these Circumstances doe respect the Bene esse or the good constitution of the calling to the Ministry but the esse of their Call requires them not ordination is no part of the Ministers Call from God for Christ is the doore Christs gifting men for it and his inclining gifted men to minister of that they have received is that unum necessarium to a Ministers Call Such an one glorifies not himselfe to be called a Minister of Christ but hee that is called of God Heb. 5. 5. For this cause the Bishops at the ordination of Ministers had in use to move this Question Are you perswaded yee are truly called to this Ministration Vide Book of making Bishops Priests and Deacons Other men have sent forth Ministers to the work as well as Bishops and other people have called Ministers to the places of their ministration As hath been already proved From all which premises it is plaine that the people of England have a Church and have Ministers lawfully called even now though there be no ordination of Bishops to make them such 3. Here is a State though without a King as Israel of old had before there was any King in Israel And when that Common-wealth after Joshua ruled by Elders for three hundred seventy nine years together See the book of Judges and those Elders obtained a good report through faith Heb. 11. Al this was don before yet God gave them a King in his wrath and before King Saul plaid the Tyrant over that people as an executioner of Gods wrath which was spoken of him 1 Sam. 8. 11 18. True Kings Bishops and their Laws were set up by men for helps in Government of this State Church and Commonwealth but the people lacking help of them and being snared by them they have been rooted out by the Trustees of this Common-wealth yet in want of a King here is a

State still In the want of Bishops here is a Church still And in the want of the Statutes of Omri the Bishops Lawes I mean their lacks not Lawes to Rule and Governe the people by even now though lawlesse persons grudge and acknowledge them not for even the Souldiers or some of them have by law suffered for their own evill doing Wherefore if men doe onely that is right in their own eyes it is not for want of Rulers nor with the toleration of the Magistrate let not our State beare blame for that But why may not he meaning the King of Scots desire his owne objection 5 his owne inheritance No man can be right Heire to any earthly Kingdome since Christ the Heire of all things was deprived and Crucified Duke William got his power over this Kingdome not by inheritance but by Conquest and the Heire was in this Family put besides the Crowne and many more since that as Eleutherus Philodemus largely sheweth Now the King of Scots for whom you plead must either plead Conquest from the Conquerour or succession from his Father because you say this Common-wealth is his owne whereas indeed neither Victory nor Succession gives any man right to reigne over a people only Reddit idoneos it makes men fit Vti Rex Jac. Moreover the Kings of England were formerly such as the people did chuse as Mr. Cooke in his Appeale hath observed from the forme of their Oath for when King of England were Crowned they bound themselves by Oath to rule the people according to the Lawes of this Nation also the people either chose or accepted them for their Kings hereupon engaging their Allegiance to them The old King Charles by his Hostile Breaches of his Oath dissolved the people from their Bond and from their Obedience too he forfeited his Kingdome and ceased to be King As for the King of Scots he had neither election nor approbation from this Common-wealth nor from the Representative thereof the Commons in Parliament and his claime without the peoples consent gives him no more title to reigne here then Absalom had to rule Israel who designed to be King while David was King there and ruled well also for so the People of England have chosen or accepted other Governours according to their Liberty their Liberty being as theirs was in the Common-wealth of Israel who desired Elders Judg. 8. 22. Chap. 11. 6 11. Ah objection 6 they have taken away the life of the former King a vertuous King a Divine King and they will have none of his Race to reigne after him If his life be taken away it was not for his vertue nor for his Divinity neither Where were his vertues seen in his latest governing he proclaimed and waged warre against his best Subjects the Parliament and his good People was this a vertue in a King set up to fight for the People for this the Commons of England in Parliament have declared him a Tyrant now Tyranny is no vertue and when in the face of Death he used a forme of Prayer taken out of Sir Philip Sidny's Arcadia he proved himselfe neither Vertuous nor Divine and if his Sonne walking in his Fathers steps be also cast off from reigning in England it is according to Gods Law If he beget a Sonne that is a shedder of bloud shall he then live he shall not live he hath done all these abominations he shall surely dye his bloud shall be upon him Ezek. 18. 9 13. by which Law he is cast out of this Kingdom and out of the Land of the living too Thus Jehu rooted out murderous Ahab and all his race so Jehu slew all that remained of the house of Ahab in Iezreel and all his great men and his Kins-folke and his Priests untill he left none remaining 2 King 10. 11. True it is Kings were of old Divine being promised of God to Abraham Kings shall come out of thee Gen. 17. 6. And some were by Gods appointment anoynted Kings as Saul and David but of all Kings since Christs death it may be questioned Whose are all these For after the Scepter departed from Shiloh what man after Christs death was ever Anoynted King by Gods Command After the Jewes had killed the Heire they said So the inheritance shall be ours Mat. 21. 38. It became indeed theirs by force of violence because they seized on it not by course of Nature nor by inheritance nor gift but Conquest made Kings Kings indeed were supreame Vt caeteris hominibus praeirent praelucerent To use King James his phrase that they may excell others in doing service to the people as wel as being in place above the people not to magnifie their Name but to minde Kings of their duty But even Kings with all their supremacie were all but Kings of this World after Christ their Kingdomes Kingdomes of men Dan. 4. 17. being chosen by men as the Kings of the Nations at first Kings of the earth 2 Chron. 9. 22 23 26. Kingdomes of this world Revel. 11. 15. They were {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} an Ordinance of man 1. Pet. 2. 13. So changeable they are as the people see just reason and cause for it E. Philodem p. 56. altering the forme of Government for the substance sake and preferring the greater before the lesse even Religion towards God and the Liberties of the people afore the Person of the King therein not breaking but keeping the Covenant according to the equity thereof Vide the Declaration of the Army marching into Scotland wherefore The Kingdomes of this world are become the Kingdomes of our Lord and of his Christ and if the Powers that be doe not {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} feed the people by ruling over them their power shall be likewise broken as this of England hath been be the Nations never so angry Revel. 11. 15 17 18. then no marvell if his servants serve him The Brazen Serpent in the Wildernesse was ordained by God but Hezekiah seeing it abus'd to Idolatry beate it to powder threw it into the river and cald it Nehushtan 2 King 18. 4. and if this State have for his pride and tyrany brought this man downe into the dust of death and rooted out all Kingship after him Righteous art thou O Lord and upright are thy Judgements Psal. 119. 137. when King Amaziah turned from following the Lord they conspired against him pursued him to Lachish and slew him there 2 Chron. 25. 27. 28. no man ever was questioned for it Thus that English King lived like Rehoboam following the young mens counsell spake roughly and armed himselfe against his owne people 2 Chron. 10. 13 14. 11. 1. and he dyed like Jehoram who reigned wickedly and dyed without being desired of the people 2 Chro. 21. 19 20. But he hath received that recompence of his errour which was meet and loath should I have been to have raked up the dead-mans bones againe but in defence of