Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	christian_a	church_n	religion_n	1,340	5	5.5492	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A88947	A modest & brotherly ansvver to Mr. Charles Herle his book, against the independency of churches. Wherein his foure arguments for the government of synods over particular congregations, are friendly examined, and clearly answered. Together, with Christian and loving animadversions upon sundry other observable passages in the said booke. All tending to declare the true use of synods, and the power of congregationall churches in the points of electing and ordaining their owne officers, and censuring their offendors. By Richard Mather teacher of the Church at Dorchester; and William Tompson pastor of the Church at Braintree in New-England. Sent from thence after the assembly of elders were dissolved that last met at Cambridg to debate matters about church-government.	Mather, Richard, 1596-1669.; Tompson, William, d. 1666.	1644 (1644)	Wing M1274; Thomason E37_19; ESTC R16954	50,642	62

their sores but so many sinners must be left lawlesse and their offences remedilesse God forbid The Lord hath provided good store of help for all these but every salve is not for every sore Such persons as are in the Church all they are subject to the discipline of the Church and to the power of Christ administred therein so that if need so require they may be excommunicated and cast out Whole Churches are subject to the wholsome advice and counsell of other Churches and so farre as the same shall be according to God they ought to hearken thereunto And if they doe not they may lawfully be renounced by other Churches from all Church-communion with them And as for Indians or others that are no Churches nor members of Churches though our Saviours Rule of Telling the Church was not intended for them yet both they and Christian Churches likewise and the members of them are all of them to be subject to the Magistrates and the authority of the higher Powers whose duty it is to be keepers of both Tables of the Law of God and to do their endeavour that all the Subjects may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godlinesse and honestie Rom. 13. 1. 1 Tim. 2. 2. But say you an offence may be so generall as to defile and make guilty a whole Land and why not then the remedie as large as it Tell the Church pag. 11. Ans. In such case of generall and nationall defilements the remedie is generall and Nationall repentance whereto all the people must be provoked and exhorted by the Ministers of the Word in their severall Congregations And when the higher powers do give example thereof in their own persons and by some act of their Authoritie do call upon all the people for the same this is a notable remedie through the mercy of God against the defilement of Nationall sins and the danger that may come thereby Which as it was the practise of Asa Hezekiah Josiah and the States of Judah in their times so we have cause with all humble thankfulnesse to blesse the Lord that put the like care into the hearts of the Lords and Commons assembled in Parliament in our deare native Countrey who by an Ordinance of both Houses thought it meet to exhort all the Subjects of England and Wales to the duty of Repentance both for personall and Nationall sins But suppose the Magistrate be an Enemy to Religion and the Land or whole Church therein have occasion to make a solemne renewall of their Covenant with God shall not this whole Church or number in their collective body have power to enjoyn it Ans. If the supreame Magistrate be an enemie to Religion it is not like but most or many of the people will be of the same mind Regis ad exemplum totus as it is at this day in France and Spaine and was in England in the dayes of Queen Mary and other Popish Princes and then the beleevers in the Land will not be so many as to bear the name of the Land or Nation but of a small part thereof and so at that time it will not be required of them to make any Nationall Covenant or to enjoyn the same Nor can it well be conceived how they should assemble in a Nationall Synod for that or any other purpose when the Magistrate is a professed enemie to their Religion At such times it is more like their meetings in small congregations will be full of danger rather then that they should have libertie safely and freely to meet in such great Assemblies as Nationall Synods And though for lack of such a Nationall Covenant the remedie be not equall to the offence or need yet at such time that remedie being not in the power of such beleevers as are in the Land it is not required at their hands If a whole Congregation great or small play the Foxes and spoil the vineyard why may it not be taken and restrained pa. 11. Ans. No doubt but it may but ever in the way and by the means which Christ hath appointed If those Foxes be particular members of the Church they may be restrained by doctrine by discipline and by the Magistrates Authoritie If they be whole Churches they may be restrained by Doctrine and by the advise and counsell of other Churches and also by the Magistrates But if they be not members of the Church they can not be restrained by Church discipline but onely by the Authoritie of the Magistrate and by the preaching of the Word To this Argument the Independent party reply or rather labour to obtain out of the Text three things First that our Saviour speaks here of a single Church or Congregation Secondly to this single Church and to all this Church entirely not distinguishing between Elders and Members he gives the keyes of Excommunication and Absolution Thirdly over this Church to assume a Church power of Judicature is a Lording it over Christs heritage To the first of these exceptions we answer that it no way appears that our Saviour in this place or that the Scripture elsewhere usually means a single congregation by the word Church but that the contrary rather is easily evincible First that he here spake in reference to the Jewish Church which way no single congregation hath above sufficiently appeared pag. 11. Ans. But how in reference If you mean in this sence that what ever was used in that Church must be used in the Christian or that as that Church was Nationall so Christian Churches must be the like then we may say no such things hath appeared at all nor hath been so much as undertaken to be proved If you mean onely thus that there were such graduall proceedings in that Church as Christ in this place requireth or that the word Church may signifie the Elders or Rulers then we may say neither of these have sufficiently appeared by any proof that you have brought and if they were both granted they are nothing to the matter now in question viz. that the word Church doth not signifie one single Congregation for both these particulars may be found and made use of in such a Church as is of no larger extent Next that he hath reference herein to that of Deut. 19. 15. appears by his citation of the very words of that text that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established Now there the witnesses and offenders were by way of further Appeal to stand before the Lord before the Priests for judgement vers. 17. pag. 12. Answ. The words are not as you cite them before the Priests for judgement but before the Priests and Judges which shall be in those dayes And it appeareth by the punishment which these Judges must inflict upon the guiltie person there spoken of life for life eye for eye tooth for tooth c. v. 21. that if our Saviour refer his Church to do like unto that Judicatory which you say he hath

argues not any want at all of authority or right In which respect they might be independent notwithstanding their imperfection in the other regard Suppose a father of children or master of a family through want of wisdome or courage be not able to rule his own children and houshold as Eli or suppose a King that is a child as Salomon speaks Eccles. 10. or Princes that are babes as the Prophet termeth them Isai. 3. be not able to govern their own subjects as Rehoboam 2 King 12. would you think this want of sufficient ability a sufficient argument to prove that such a Father or Master had no authority or right to rule his own children or houshold nor such a Prince any right to rule his subjects but that the families of the one must depend upon other families and the common-wealth of the other upon other common-wealths We suppose you would not say so And yet you may as well say it as say as here you doe that if Churches had been independent Antioch had been able her selfe sufficiently to have ended the cause Antioch finding her selfe not able may send to Jerulem for help and yet this sending neither proves right of jurisdiction in them of Jerusalem who are sent unto nor want of jurisdiction in them of Antioch who so doe send Yes say you An obliging the Churches by decrees laid on them as a burden is a use of the keyes in which use of them Ephesus is commended Pergamus and Thyatyra reproved pag. 25. Answ. But if this be a use of the Keyes may it not be of the Key of Doctrine as well as the Key of Discipline sith the burdens laid on them were not burdens of penalty but burdens of duty not punishments to be suffered for offence given but rules of practice to be observed lest offence should be taken as is plaine if the particulars be considered pag. 29. And therefore it seems the imposing these burdens was not so properly an act of jurisdiction and discipline as an act of Doctrine As for Ephesus the use of the Keyes for which they are commended is not as you affirme for imposing decrees as burdens upon one another nor is Pergamus or Thyatyra reproved for neglect of so doing but trying and detecting counterfeit Apostles which was a matter of doctrine and not bearing with them that were evil which was matter of discipline are the things for which Ephesus is commended and suffring them which were evill which was a neglect of Discipline is that for which the other are reproved Rev. 2. 2. 14. 20. But neither is the one commended for imposing decrees nor the other reproved for neglecting so to doe But you will prove that the Synod had jurisdiction and power of the Keyes of discipline because say you This Decree is it self a Rule given wherein and whereby to use the keyes upon such as shall prove stubborn in defending the contrary of what is here decreed and that authority which can give the rule can a fortiori back and punish its breach p. 25. Ans. But is this certain and clear that whoever hath authority by way of doctrine to impose a rule hath also authoritie by way of discipline to punish its breach we propose to consideration these instances for the contrarie First of all the Prophets in Israel Isaiah Joel Amos and the rest had authoritie by way of doctrine as being sent of God for that purpose to deliver the wil of God as a rule to be observed not onely by all the Princes and people but even by the Priests and Levits also for so we read they many times did and yet not being Priests themselves nor Levites they had not authority to punish by way of Discipline such as disobeyed their doctrine and those holy rules which they delivered from the Lord Nextly any one Minister who is truely sent of God may in his doctrine deliver the rules of Gods word to the people he is sent unto and impose those rules as burthens and necessary things to be observed and yet one Minister alone cannot punish the breach of those rules in a way of discipline because Church-discipline is to be dispenced by a Church Matth. 18. 17. and one man alone we are perswaded you will not say can be a Church Further any Minister or Ministers of one Church be it Congregationall or Nationall may upon occasion being desired thereto preach the word of God in another the like Church and so impose burdens of Christian duties to be observed by them that they thus occasionally preach unto yet it would not follow they might by discipline punish such as should walke contrary to those rules because the power of jurisdiction which they have when they are at home in their owne Church doth not reach so farre as unto that other Church where now they are called to preach the doctrine of the word Lastly there is no doubt but any Minister or Ministers of the Gospel if occasion served thereunto might by way of Doctrine deliver rules of faith and obedience unto Pagans and such as are no members of any Christian Church at all and might command them in the name of the Lord to observe those rules and yet it would not therefore follow that they might punish those Pagans in a way of discipline for the breach of those rules because the Apostle saith plainly What have I to doe to judge them that are without 1 Cor. 5. 12. Yea there are sundry good Writers in reformed Churches who do hold that Doctors in the Church have authority by their office to deliver sound wholsome doctrine from the Scriptures and yet may not meddle with dispensation of Sacraments nor Discipline See among others for this Calvines Instit. lib. 4. Ch. 3. Sect. 4. And if this be so this may be another instance for the same purpose as the rest and by all this we suppose it is clear that some men may have authoritie by way of doctrine to impose rules that must be observed as necessary things and yet not have authoritie by way of discipline to punish those that shall disobey those rules And therefore though the first of these were granted to be within the power of a Synod yet that they have power to do the other also is not proved thereby CHAP. V. Containing an Answer to your fourth Argument taken from 1 Tim. 4. 14. laying on of the hands of the Presbytery HEnce I argue thus Such as are for independency admit of no other rule in Church-government but the Scripture practise or institution but where in all the Scripture read we of any ordination of Pastors but by Presbyters Timothy was ordained by the laying on of the hands of the Presbytery Titus was for this very cause left at Creet that he should ordain Elders in every City pag. 26 27. Answ. All that is here said is onely about ordination of Officers which at the most is but one part of the Ecclesiasticall government or jurisdiction And