Church but if he neglect to hear the Church let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a Pubican That is Excommunicate him Now for what faults he is to be Excommunicate they are set down v. 15. Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee c. So it is a scandalous Trespass wherein the offender does persist and remain obstinate on which according to Christ's Rule Excommunication should strick Now sure it is there are many Errors not contrary to fundamental Truths such as many points of Arminianism Antinomianism c. which yet persisted in are Scandalous both to particular Christians and the Church and therefore according to Christs Rule Excommunication should strick upon other Errors than those contrary to the fundamental Points of Religion which is contrary to their assertion Thirdly Neither can we assent that Excommunication should strick on no other Errors but those contrary to the light of Nature and that not only because of what is presently said that Excommunication should strick against every scandalous Sin done against a Brother or the Church wherein the offender does persist and remain obstinate but also according to that Rule whereby they maintain that Excommunication should strick on no other Error but these that are contrary to the very Light of Nature it would follow that the publisher of these Errors following or the like against fundamental Truths should not be censured to wit That the Scriptures are not the word of God That Jesus Christ was an Impostor a Deceiver That we are not justified by free Grace say according to that rule such Hereticks should not be censured no not Ecclesiastically because these Errors are not against Natures Light but Scripture Light only for Natures Light teacheth not the Truths which are contrary to these Errors This much for Church Tolleration but as said is concerning this is not the present Contraversy The main question then is concerning State Tolleration Concerning which some do affirm That whatever the Church may do in Inflicting Church Censures on Hereticks Maintainers of Heterodox Opinions Yet say they no civil Punishment such as Death Imprisonment Mulcts or Fines should be inflicted on any Error or Blasphem whatsoever providing the Maintainers of them carry themselves peaceably do not trouble the State or do evil against the Commonwealth in civil Things We again on the contrary do hold That it is the Duty of the Civil Magistrate to suppress Error Heresie and every sin against the First Table as well as it is his Duty to suppress Adultery Fornication Sedition and other sins against the second Table And that he is not only bound to suppress Errors and Blasphemies that are contrary to fundamental Truths or the Light of Nature but all Error contrary to other points of Truth Now for clearing the State of this Question and freeing it from some odious Imputations that may be cast upon it Before we come to Arguments we shall lay down these Assertions First We do not say that the Magistrate is bound to punish Hereticks at the first step Pains should first be taken to inform them the Judgement of the Church is Antecedent and their Labour is to convince Gainsayers So this must go before the Magistrates Duty they must be found Obstinate before the Magistrate medle with them or punish them Civilly Especially if their Errors be not horrid Blasphemies against God and Natures Light in such the Magistrate is not bound to give so much Forbearance Secondly We do not say that all Errors and Heresies are to get alike punishment but according to the degrees of the guilt that is in them even as it is in sins committed against the Second Table Murder is a more hainous Fault than Fornication and therefore the Magistrate is bound to punish it more highly Even so is it in Sins done against the First Table Blasphemies done against God or a denying of the true God is a higher Sin than Worshiping of the true God after a false manner and therefore the Magistrate is bound to punish it more severely Thirdly As we do not say that every Error and Heresie is to receive the like punishment so neither do we say that every one that maintains the same Error is to be alike punished for there are some that are Seducers or Drawers on of others to Error Disturbers of the Peace of the Church Ring-leaders there are others again that are only seduced and drawn away to Error and these last although they should not be Tollerate yet the power of the Magistrate is to be exercised more sparingly towards them So Secondly There are some rooted in Error confirmed in it who will not hear Instruction There are others that are but weak and are seeking Light whose way evidenceth them to be Conscientious only for the time they are Ignorant and in Humility seeking after Light and these last the Magistrate as all other Christians is to bear much with according to Rom. 15. 1. We then that are strong ought to bear the Infirmities of the weak c. Now this being said to clear the question we come to Arguments to make out this Truth to wit That the Magistrate is bound to suppress and punish Error Heresie and other sins against the First Table as well as he is bound to punish Adultery Theft and other sins against the Second Table The First Argument we bring is from the approven practice of Kings and Magistrates under the Old Testament from which we form an Argument thus If it was the approven practice of Kings and and Magistrates under the Old Testament to suppress Error Heresie and Blasphemy then Magistrates under the New Testament are bound to do the like But so it is that it was the approven practice of Kings and Magistrates under the Old Testament to suppress Error Heresie and Blasphemy and other sins against the first Table Therefore Magistrates under the New Testament are bound to do the like For confirming of this Argument there are two things to be made out First That it was the practice of the Magistrate under the Old Testament to suppress Error and Heresie Secondly As it was their practice so their practice herein is approven of God otherwise it were not binding unto others for Kings and Magistrates did several things wherein they were not approven and so not binding unto us now The first thing then we are to clear is that this was the practice of Magistrates under the Old Testament And we shall begin First with Abraham's practice Genes 18. 19. For I know him that he will command his Children and his Houshold after him and they shall keep the way of the Lord to do Iustice and Iudgement c. Secondly with Jacob who was a Magistrate in his own Family And we shall see him employing his Power to suppress false Religion In the 35 of Gen. vers 2. Then Jacob said unto his Houshold and to all that were with him put away the strange Gods that are among you
his Deputes so that they are to act by vertue of a Commission from him and meddle only with these things that he gives them Warrand for and so to meddle with them as to be lyable to an Appeal to him as the supream Judge in all Church matters We contrary to all these shall make out this following Assertion To wit That the Civil Magistrate as a Magistrate hath no Power either to Preach or Administrate the Sacraments nor yet to make Church Laws or inflict Church Censures either by himself or others as his Deputes but all this power doth belong wholly to Church Officers Ministers and Elders Which power they are to execute without Dependency on the Civil Magistrate so that they are not lyable to Appeals to his Court neither hath he Power to rescind the Sentence pronounced by them In following out of this point we shall go on as in the former we shall First clear the state of the question Secondly We shall bring Arguments for the Truth Thirdly We shall bring their Arguments against the Truth and refute them Fourthly We shall apply the whole to some use 1. First For clearing the State of the Question take this assertion that however we do not give the Civil Magistrate Power of Church Discipline or the power of governing the Church yet we give him much Power about Church matters Our Divines following the word of God give the Christian Magistrate a threefold Power about Church matters 1. A defensive protecting Power 2 A ruling Power And 3. a Punishing Power First They give him a Defending Power and that is grounded on that Promise made to the Church in Isa. 49. 23. And Kings shall be thy Nursing Fathers c. By this Power the Christian Magistrate is to do three things 1. By his Power he is to encourage countenance and advance by his Authority and example the publick exercise of all Gods Ordinances and so defend the Church in her Liberties that are given to her by Christ This was the practice of those Godly Kings under the Old Testament So did Asa 2 Chron. 15. to verse â—8 and Jehoshaphat 2 Chron. 1. 8 9. 10 11. And other Godly Kings They encouraged others in the Service of God they countenanced them and by their Authority and example allured others to the practice of Godliness which I ower Christian Magistrates have yet 2. By this Power they are to provide the Church with all external Necessaries as publick convenient Pâ—aces of meeting for Gods Worship and publick Mantainance for the Church Officers c This we see was Hezekiah's practice 2 Chron. 31. 4. Moreover he commanded the People that dwelt in Jerusalem to give the portion of the Priests and the Levites that they might be encouraged in the Law of the Lord. And it was Joâ—â—ah's practice 2 Chron. 34. He repaired the House of the Lord The publick place of Gods Worship 3. By this defending Power of the Christian Magistrate he is to remove all outward Impediments lying in the way of God's Worship such as Prophanity Idolatry Heresy and Blaspemy as we did prove at length in the former Controversy Secondly We give to the Christian Magistrate a Ruling Power about Church matters By this Power 1. He may convocate Church Judicatories command them to meet and to enact Canons and to make rules for Governing the Church although he cannot make Church Laws himself So pious Magistrates under the Old Testament did call Synods as David 1 Chron. 23 2. And he gathered together all the Princes of Israel with the Priests and Levites 2. By this Power the Christian Magistrate is to confirm the acts of the Church Judicatories and to give the force of a Civil Law Only herein we differ from the Papists They say the Magistrate should do this blindly he is only say they the Churches Echo to â—ay Amen to what they conclude But we say the Magistrate is not to do this blindly we allow to him a judgement of Discretion to try whether what they conclude be right or not and accordingly he is to add his Authority or not and yet this makes him not a Judge in Church matters but only a Judge of his own Actions 3. By this Power the Magistrate is to take Inspection of the Carriage of Church Judicatories so that all things be rightly managed by them so as if they should conclude a point of Injustice though he may not rescind their Act himself yet he may command them to resume the the matter take it to their second Thoughts give Reasons to the contrair exhort them to their Duties from time to time until the matter be rightly concluded Only it is still the Church Judicatory that must rescind their own Act. By this ruling Power the Magistrate may do much When the Church is corrupt he may reform it That is when Church Judicatories are all wrong that they will do nothing for his upstirring In this case the Magistrate may lay the Church Judicatory aside and do that himself which they should do His Power in this case is extraordinary he may reform by his own Power as Godly Josiah did 2 King 23. And as Asa and Jehoshaphat At such a time Magistrates may do much this way But extraordinary Cases are not to be made ordinary Rules Thirdly We give to the Magistrate a Coactive punishing power about Church-matters and by this power we affirm that all the persons of Church-men and their goods are lyable to the Civil Magistrate in things Civil According to that Let every soul be subject to the higher powers contrary to what the Papists teach so that if a Church-man should commit a Civil crime the Magistrate by his own power may punish him as Solomon did Abiathar 2. By this coactive punishing power he may see to the Observation of Divine and Church Laws and punish those that are contemners of them by Civil punishments There are several examples of this as that of Josiah He made all the People stand to the Covenant Now by all that is said ye may easily perceive that We give to Caesar that which is Caesars although we give him not what is Gods We give him much power about the Church but not the power of Governing the Church We shall clear this by a simile how the Magistrate may have much power about Church-matters although not power of Governing the Church Ye know the Civil Magistrate or Church Sessions have much power about matters belonging to husband and wife Parents and Children so as to censure and punish them for their unnatural carriage towards each other and to see every one do duty to another and yet neither the Civil Magistrate nor Church Session hath Marital or Husbandly power over the Wife or Parental power over the Children so as they might challenge the same duties from them to be done to themselves which the Wife oweth to her Husband or the Children to the Parents the Husband and Parents only have that power So it is here
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
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
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—
trust Act 17. 11. These were more noble than those in Thessalonica in that they received the word with all readiness of mind and searched the Scriptures dayly whither those things were so They would not take the Apostles Doctrine on trust and this is a command given by Paul writing to the Thess 1 Epistle ch 5. v. 21. Prove all things after he had said despise not Prophecyings So that Doctrines should be brought to a Tryal whatever be their fair pretences Reas The Reasons are first because foulest Errors may be coloured over with fairest pretences And Secondly the Scripture sayes all men are Lyars that is to say all men may Err and therefore words cannot be the Ground of Divine Faith for Faith must have an infallible ground as Ephes 2. 20. And are built upon the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets c. i. e. the word Preached by them and dictated by the Spirit of God Vse This Doctrine reproves first the Papists that will have nothing Tryed that comes from the Church but all taken upon trust hence is it that many swallow such Monsters of Absurdities as the Errors of Transubstantiation Purgatory Merite Mals and such like for which they have no other ground but because their Church sayes so But this Doctrine holdeth out another duty that who ever heareth any Doctrine proponed by one or other they are bound to pass their Judgment on it Try the Spirits Now that we may walk betwixt extreams the Papists on the one hand who set up Tyranny and these Sectaries on the other hand who set up Confusion we would know there is a twofold Judgement to be passed on Doctrine Publick Judgement and Private Judgement Publick Judgement again is either peremptorily absolute or limited A publick peremptory Judgement is That which binds the Conscience to obey simply that which is spoken and none have this Judgement but God himself Secondly There is a publick Judgement which is limited and this is a publick declaring and holding out that which is found to be God's mind in his word which does not bind absolutely but in so far as it agrees with the Word and this Judgement belongs to publick Church Judicatories met together in Christs Name They are like the Lyon-Herauld set forth to proclaim the Royal Acts if he proclaim that which is contained in the principal Acts it binds but if he add any thing of his own it binds not Next there is a private Judgement of Discretion and this belongs to every Christian every man in relation to his own practice is bound to pass Sentence on what is held out to him by others that if it be right he may embrace it but if wrong he may reject it but his private Judgement is not binding to others Now this private Judgement or this Judgement of Discretion is necessary because all men may Err Councils may Err Synods c. And Secondly Their Error will not excuse private Christians to follow them in their Error sayes Christ When the Blind leads the Blind both falls into the Ditch And therefore there must be a Judgement of Discretion in private persons to try what they hear And this much for guarding against the Popish Tyranny but least this Doctrine be abused to cast at all publick Church Judicatories we shall next speak somewhat to guard against Sectarian Confusion First Although publick Church Judicatories have not Power to bind Consciences yet when men are in a doubt concerning a point of Truth their Judgement ought to have more weight than the Judgement of private Men And that not only because there are more Gifts exercised together but mainly because there is a promise annexed to the Commission given by Christ to publick Church Judicatories Matth. 18. 20. Where two or three are gathered together in my Name there am I in the midst of them And Secondly From this it followes that there would be a kind of loathness to differ from publick Church Judicatories a man's grounds would be well examined lâ—st if differing from these Judicatories they also differ from Truth And Thirdly when they differ they are to bear them at Reverence although in such a point they should Err yet for their Authority they are to be Reverenced This much is granted by us to Church Judicatories but no further They are not to be made the Rule of our Faith Vse 2. It reproves those who are Lazie and cannot endure the trouble of trying what they hear but take things on trust and have no more but such a mans Authority he is of that Way and Opinion and therefore they are Fire and Flint Tooth and Nail for it as much as if they had the Word of God for it We have seen much of this in the unhappy Differences that have fallen out in our time which I have no pleasure to speak much of and therefore we proceed to another Doctrine Doct. X. The next thing then that we observe is from what he sayes Try c. whether they be of God that is the Tryal The Doctrine is this That the right tryal of Doctrine is To try whether they be of God or not and this point puts us to give Marks whereby it shall be known what Doctrine is of God and what Doctrine is not of God and here we shall speak to two things First We shall show what are the marks that necessarly infer a Doctrine to be of God And secondly we shall speak of other things that do not infer necessarly a Doctrine to be of God but for the most part follow upon such a Doctrine For the First That which makes Doctrine necessarily to be of God is if it be according to the rule of the Word So when the Bereans are commended Acts 17. The rule they went by in the tryal of Paul's Doctrine is the Scripture And this is Isaâ—a's rule chap. 8. ver 20. To the Law and to the Testimony c. He would have all Doctrines tryed by the Word of God So the Word is the rule and that Doctrine which has the Word for it is of God and whatever Doctrine has not the Word for it is not of God All Spirits even the Spirit of God himself must be tryed that way And that because the Word is a perfect rule I give only two places of Scripture to clear the perfection of this rule First The heavy Plagues pronounced against those who add to this rule The Word is so perfect that if an Angel should come and pretend a purer Rule Let him be sayes Paul Anathema Gal. 1. 8. There is another place which proves the perfection of this rule according to this point in hand 2 Timoth. 3. 16 17. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for Doctrine for reproof for correction for Instruction in righteousness That the Man of God may be perfect c. So there is as much in the word of God as may make the man of God perfect And this in relation
worshiped a false God that therefore Magistrates are bound to punish Hereticks worshipping the true God though in a false way This is the strength of their exception to which we reply First That though it were true which they say that the practice of the Kings of Israel did extend but to Idolaters and those that seduced and drew away others to serve false Gods yet it does not follow but it may be binding to Magistrates now to punish Hereticks worshipping a true God in a false way and that because of this rule necessarly to be admitted in expounding of Scripture that when the command of God does strick against any one sin most usual in the time by rule of proportion it stricks against all sins of that kind As in the second Command there is nothing expresly forbidden but the Worshipping of God by graven Images and that because the worshipping of God by Images was the sin most in use at that time yet under graven is forbidden all wayes of worshipping of God invented by men and so although it were true that the practice of Godly Kings did strick but against Idolatry yet by rule of proportion all sins of that kind should be suppressed To which add that when the high degree of any sins by divine Law is to be punished by death common equity will infer that lesser degrees of sin are to be punished by a lesser punishment at least Secondly to what they say that the Magistrate did only punish Idolatry under the Old Testament We Answer that it is false they did punish other Errors also and such as would be thought light of now and this we shall instance in several particulars First They punished will worship in serving the true God and this we see by comparing two places of Scripture The first is the 2 Kings 23 8 9. Speaking of Josiah And he brought all the Priests out of the Cities of Judah and defiled the high places where the Priests had burnt incense So he employes his Power against the high places for the removal of their way of worship The other place of Scripture to be compared with is the 2 Chrov 33. 17. Which tells us the nature of their high places Nevertheless the People did sacrifice still in the high places yet unto the Lord their God only So that this worshipping on the high places was not that kind of Idolatry whereby a false God was worshipped but a way of their own whereby they worshipped the true God and yet Josiah suppresseth even this kind of false worship Secondly we find that Magistrates did employ their power for suppressing of the breakers of the Sabbath day and and punishing those that Married strange wives which yet were not Idolaters and Apostats from the true God a noble example whereof is in Nehemiah 13. from verse 15 to 21. There is a large History what pains he took to reform the People to keep the Sabbath day therefore in the 21. v. Then I testified against them and said unto them why lodged ye about the wall If ye do so again I will lay hands on you He threatens to employ the Civil power for suppressing of that Error and this is not Idolatry And Secondly we find that the Magistrates employed their power generally for suppressing any Error that was contrary to any Article of the Covenant So where we read in the 2 Chron 34. 31 32. And the King stood in his place and made a covenant before the Lord c. And he caused all that were present in Jerusalem and Benjamin to stand to it And the heads of the Covenant are not only against those who were Seducers but also against those that were seduced So we find it in Exodus 32 v. 20. In that Idolatry of worshipping the Golden Calf when Moses came down from the mount in his zeal to the Glory of God he not only punished Aaron but also the People and more than this he Armes the Levits as the avengers of God's Justice and proclaims that every man should avenge the Lord upon his very Brother Thus we have made out in the first Argument taken from the practice of the Kings of Israel and Judah and have vindicated it by Scripture from their exceptions brought against it The Second Argument shall yet be grounded on the Old Testament and it is taken from the many commands and precepts that are given in Scripture to Godly Kings and Magistrates and others to punish Blasphemers False Prophets and Idolaters Hereticks Sabbath Breakers and Seducers from whence we form this Argument That whatever was commanded to be done by Magistrates under the Old Testament as a part of their duty this Magistrates under the New Testament are oblidged to as a part of their duty also But Magistrates were commanded under the Old Testament to suppress Idolatry Blasphemy and Heresy and that they were to do as a part of their duty as Magistrates And therefore it is a duty lying on Magistrates under the New The thing we have to prove is that this was a command given to Magistrates under the Old Testament and that as a part of their duty as Magistrates And for this look over these places of Scripture Exod. 22. 20. He that sacrificeth unto any God save unto the Lord only he shall be utterly destroyed There is a command given to the Magistrates And so in Levit 24 15. And thou shalt speak unto the Children of Israel saying Whosoever curseth his God shall bear his sin v. 16. And he that Blasphemeth the name of the Lord he shall surely be put to death So in the 13. of Deut 1. If there arise among you a Prophet or dreamer of dreams and giveth thee a sign or a wonder c. Through the whole Chapter there are Commands given to the Magistrate to punish false worship We shall only add another and that is taken from the fourth Command where a charge is laid on the Magistrate as well as the Master of a Family to make use of his power for keeping of the Sabbath and to see to the keeping of it by others also Thou shalt do no manner of work thou nor they son nor they daughter This Command is given to the Magistrate as well as to the Master of the Family as appears from those things First By vertue of this Command Nehemiah the Magistrate of God's People did make use of his power to punish Sabbath Breakers in that place we cited in Nehemiah 13. 21. Secondly It appears from this that the Gates spoken of their Nor any thing that is within thy Gates is a term which aggreeth not to a single Family but a whole City even to the circuit of a whole Kingdom of the word Gates is taken in Scripture Geneâ— 22. 17 and thy seed shall possess the Gate of his enemies It followeth as in that respect therefore he speaks to the Magistrate no Master of a Family having such large power And Thirdly The power there spoken of is
to be extended to Strangers now the chief care of Stangers did belong to the Magistrate and not to the Master of a Family therefore Nehemiah the Magistrate extends this power of his to the Strangers that came to buy and sell on the Sabbath day Nehem 13 20 The Adversary brings several exceptions against this Argument which we shall propone and take off The First Exception is say they Those were Judicial Laws and so now are expired with their Common-wealth Answer This is a common refuge to Sectaries where any practice is brought from the Old Testament against them presently they cast at it upon this account as not binding to us under the New Therefore we shall speak so much the more unto this point By a judicial Law is meaned a Civil Law so the force of their Argument is this The Civil Law of one Kingdom is not binding to another but these were Civil Lawes belonging to that Kingdom Therefore they are not binding to us To this we Answer First That they cannot say this of all the Laws instanced particularly of that Law of the fourth Command It is a Moral Law binding to all Secondly we Answer the rest of these Laws are Moral and binding to all Magistrates yea and that for these Reasons Because First Abraham and Jacob and other Magistrates that were among the Jews did practice these Laws even before the Judicial Law was given out by Moses and so they behooved to be Moral Yea Heathen Kings that were not under the Judicial Law of Moses as not being Members of their Commonwealth when they came to the knowledge of God they made use of their Power to suppress Idolatry which certainly was through vertue of the Moral Law commanding them so to do Not the Judicial Law that they were not under A Third Answer we give that though what is said were true viz. That these Laws were Judicial Yet it does not follow that they are not now binding to Magistrates To understand this there were two things in their Judicial Laws as in our Civil Laws Yet there was somewhat that concerned the Kingdom in particular as that Law that Servants should be freed from their service at the seven years end And the Law of inheritance to be keept within the Tribe and this part of the Law did fall with their Common-wealth But their was another thing in their Judicial Laws and that is somewhat of Common Equity belonging unto all such as Laws for punishing sins done against the Moral Law and in this far the Judicial Law is binding to us because there is not a syllable in the New Testament for abrogating of it and so must bind being given by God And Jesus Christ and his Apostles Reason from this Judicial Law as in 1 Corinth 9. 9. It is written in the Law of Moses Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the Ox that treade thout the corn And in several other places so is it in the Civil Laws in other Kingdoms as for example That Witches should be punished by death and burnt to Ashes is a Civil Law in Scotland Now there is somewhat there of Common Equity to wit that they should be punished by death but the particular way of putting them to death to wit whither by strangling drowning c. or the burning of their Bodies to Ashes is not of Common Equity Other Kingdoms may use another way of Execution as pleaseth them best There is a Second Exception they bring against this Argument say they If their Laws were binding to us then they would be binding according to all their circumstances and if so then all persons whole Cities yea beasts behoved to be stoned to death For so is the Command Deutro 13. Now say they what Massacring would this be To take off this exception we Answer There are two things in a Law there is first The substance of the Law Secondly The Circumstances of it Now a Law may hold according to the main substance and yet not according to these circumstances We shall clear it in an Example The Law of Hospitality binds all nations as to the substance of the things commanded by it but there were some circumstances joyned with this Law according to the nature of the people to whom it was given such as the washing of feet and kisses of Charity and according to these it is not binding And so that command That false worship should be punished is substantial and binding unto all but that it should so be punished as to put Children Women Beasts young and old to death was suited according unto the temper of that People unto whom it was given being so naturally prone to Idolatry and therefore were by more fearful punishments to be scarred from it and so in that respect is not binding unto others We may add where this Law is repeated as Exod 22. 18. Deutr 17. 2. 5. and Cap 18. 20. It is only repeated in the substance of it and the way and manner is not mentioned Secondly we find that Jacob and other Magistrates who were before the Law did not Execute it according to thir Circumstances Yea and the Jewish Magistrates as Moses and Josiah Ezod 31. and 2 King 23 Did not tye themselves precisely to Execute the Law according to all these Circumstances And so it remaines that though these Circumstances do not bind the Magistrate yet the Law according to its substance is yet binding There is a Third Exception they bring say they the Magistrate under the Old Testament had an infallible Rule whereby he might know what was Heresy and what not to wit his consulting the Lord by Vrim and Thummim But the Magistrates under the New Testament have not this infallible Rule and so it does not follow from the duty of Magistrates under the Old Testament that the same should be done by the Magistrates under the New To which we Answer This exception suppones First That Magistrates under the New Testament may punish those whom they know certainly to be Hereticks and surely there are sundry Hereticks of this kind which he may know as well as if he had consulted with Vrim and Thummim Secondly this exception of theirs doth suppone that the Magistrate under the New Testament hath no way left him how to come to know infallibly what is Heresy what not which is false he hath the word of God his Spirit speaking by it which is more infallible than that of the Priests getting their Answer from Vrim and Tummim For it might be doubted whither the Priest had taken up the Answer right or not or if he was Faithful in giving it according as he had received it Yea Peter sayes the word is more sure than any voice from Heaven 2 Peter 1. Thirdly This exception does suppone that the Magistrate under the Old Testament took this course of consulting with Vrim and Thummim for knowing who was Hereticks Idolaters and who not But this is false it was only the written Word which they
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
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
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
not absurd for in our Parliament Commissioners from Shires are Judges to the whole Kingdom But how It is as they are joyned in Parliament not by themselves alone It is in matters common to the Shire not in other petty particular Affairs And so it is here They are Elders to all the Congregations indeed as they are joyned together in the Presbytery But not by themselves alone In things of common concernment to the whole particular Congregation not in these Duties belonging to every Congregation in particular Object 4. If this Subordination and Judicatory above Judicatory were of Divine Institution It s like Scripture would have spoken more plainly of it not leaving it to be drawn out by so many far fetch'd Consequences Answer We have already given sufficient Warrand for this Government by clear Consequences from Scripture And Consequences from Scripture are Scripture else we must cast at many points of Divine Truth which have no other ground but Scripture Consequence As the Trinity and Change of the Sabbath yea we see Christ himself grounding a material point to wit The Resurrection upon Scripture Consequence Mark 12. 26. 2. We must not teach God how to set down his mind in Scripture We perchance think It had been a plainer way to have cast matters of Religion to so many Heads By which means many Controversies should have been shunned But He hath thought otherwise The Lord in Wisdom hath scattered the parcels of every Truth through his Book intermixing it with other Subjects as the Gold is in the Mine and this to exercise his people in searching out his mind from Scripture IV. In the last place We come to make some Vse of what is said And the first Vse is this If it be so that this Government by Presbytery is grounded on the word of God Then ye would know it is not a thing of nought we are contesting for It 's a part of that Truth once delivered to the Saints and a Truth of no small concernment What would become think ye of Particular Congregations If they had none above them to call them to an account What Divisions Strifes Heresies Schisms would ensue if people were informed of these Contests that have fallen out among our Opposits themselves where this way of Independency was followed The one half renting from the other Excommunicating one another It might make moderate Men scar at it But we need seâ—k no other evidence of this than by looking on Scotland and England these years by past In the Church of England Presbytery could not be set up Independency was pleaded for and practised And what is become of it Sathan hath vomited out a floud of Errors that there were never more nor more gross in any time of the Christian World Yea all the rotten Graves of old Heresie are digged up and now avowed Socinianism In denying Christs Righteousness in the matter of Justification Anabaptism In denying the Baptizing of Infants Arianism In denying the Trinity And many other such like Yea there are some Errors there that were never before heard of Some affirming There is no Church they can joyn with And therefore They turn Seekers Some are above all Preaching Prayer and all Ordinances And all these are the Fruits of Independency Again look on the Fruits of the Presbyterial Government in Scotland where it hath been in Vigour God hath made it an Hammer for battering down the beginnings of Error So that these twelve years bypast not any one Error hath come to any Strength And this all under God from Presbyterial Government being His Institution Our Judicatories were indeed terrible as an Army with Banners though indeed we are now like to turn contemptible God himself heal our Breaches Secondly Guard against the Errors that would draw you from this Truth If ye cannot carry the grounds we have been speaking of with you yet ye may remember ye once heard this Truth confirmed from Scripture and Reason That so when ye meet with temptations to quite it ye may advise well before ye yeild I would press this so much the more As that this Doctrine of Presbyterial Government is the Butt of Sathan's Envy the thing he would have most gladly overthrown As that which stands most in his way For so long as it stood in its integrity We might in the Lords strength have defied the Devil to have brought Error into Scotland And indeed it is the thing he sets himself to brangle To get the hedge once plukt up that so the wild Boar of the wilderness may come in And believe me there is nothing makes me more affraid than that through Gods permission the Devil shall get a deludge of Error brought in on Scotland Because those who have been intrusted with this Government have weakned the power of it by Divisions among our selves A copy is casten How that Erronious Spirits need not stand much on the Authority of Assemblies when they would cross their Designs We are affraid yea we may be past â—ear and conclude That Presbyteries Synods c. have lost much of the weight They had lately in mens consciences Only let me intreat you in the bowels of Christ That ye would put a difference betwixt the Government it self and the Persons who are intrusted with it Doe not charge the faults of the one upon the other The best things that are may be abused And it is Peoples Tryal to put difference between the good of a thing and the Abuse of it The Government is good and of God and the abuse of it is evil and of men What is of God cleave to it and stick fast by it what is from mens corruptions mourn for it Pray themselves may get a sight of it And thus ye shall walk in an eaven way Ye had need to deal with God to ground you in the knowledge of these things For we know not how soon we may be put to it to quite them Only remember They are Truths ye have sworn to maintain with your hands lifted up on high SECT V. A SHORT REFUTATION OF THE ERROR OF Separation Head I. Shewing what is required for making one a Member of the Visible Church WE have gone through these Controversies which are about the Government of the Church We are now to refute some dangerous Errors of Doctrine And first We shall begin with the Error of Separation The Errors of Separatists are many but we shall only engage with two Heads of them which are the main The first is That which they teach concerning the Constitution of the Visible Church Or who it is that should be received Members of Christs visible Body The second is That which they hold to be the duty of every sincere Christian viz. That when they spy any corruption in a Church wherein they are Members as if Persons Scandalous be admitted to the Lords Supper seeing they ought all to be Gracious who come there Then say they It is their duty to keep back from
or where prophane or wicked men are suffered to be in it The Godly are bound to abstain from the Lords Table and not to communicate with the mixed multitude And because they hold it is not Lawful for any to live in any Church where they cannot enjoy the whole Ordinances of God Therefore they maintain that the Godly are bound to Separate from That Church and to make up a Church of their Own by gathering out so many of the Godly that are in it as they can get and make a little Congregation of their own choosing any of them to be a Minister and some one or two to be Elders And so they set up a Church against a Church a Church in the Bosome of a Church This is not a new Error It troubled the Church of Christ long since in the Fourth Century or somthing more than Three hundred years after Christ The Donatists a kind of Hereticks arose and troubled the Church for a long time and did teach the same very thing Against whom the Godly Fathers of the Church in that time did write Yet because this Error was carried on with a shew of Holiness and Strictness more than ordinary It took such deep rooting in the mindes of some well minding People some of them at least that it could not be driven out by force of Argument till the Lord did leave the mantainers of this Error to fall into other vile abominations for all their pretence of Strictness Which made all others to loath them And before it could be gotten rooted out of the minds of men It troubled the Church almost 100. years together The same is the Errour which we have now to Refute That ye may know what is the Doctrine of Our Church that we are sworn to And which is grounded on the Word in this particular Take it up thus First We hold that the Church should be reformed from all corruptions And that wicked Scandalous men should be casten out of the Church at least debarred from the Lords Table This we hold and herein there is no difference betwixt Us and the Separatists But the Question is When the Church Officers do not their duty as often it falls out what through negligence and what through other corruptions and what through a base want of courage so that sometimes the Rule is not put in practice By which means all wicked men are not kept back from the Ordinance of the Lords Table And some corruptions are tollerated The Question I say is what the Godly should do in that Case And concerning this we hold First That in such a Case it is lawful for a Godly Person to remove his dwelling and go dwell in another Congregation where he may have the Ordinances more purely Administrated There is no tye laid on him for binding him to remain constantly where he is if he may conveniently remove Secondly We hold that if he cannot conveniently remove from that Congregation he may remain a Member of it without sin although he know there be several things which God is angry with in it providing he keep his own hands clean of these Thirdly We hold that as long as the Godly man stayeth in that Congregation where there are abuses of that kind tollerated he is bound according to his place to endeavour the remedy of them he is bound according to Christs Rule to admonish these who are Wicked and Scandalous and if his admonition do no good he is bound to delate them to the Eldership that they may be Censured If they be Censured It is well he hath gained his point But if they be not Censured Or not so fully as he would he is to regrate the matter to God and mourn for it But Fourthly We hold that so long as he stayes in that Congregation he is not bound to keep back from Gods Worship As from the Lords Table or from any part of service in it self lawful because there are wicked men joyning with him in it Far less is he to make a Rent in the Congregation or to draw away a number with him to set up a little Church for themselves And this is now the Question we are to debate about The Separatists say He is bound to keep back from the Communion If any be admitted to it who is prophane or wicked And that lest he be defiled with them We say if the Worship and service be lawful and pure in it self He sins in keeping back from it notwithstanding that others joyn with him in it whom the Church Officers should keep back We grant indeed when the service is not pure and lawful in its self As for example when Communion cannot be had except the People Kneel And so worship the Bread In that case every man is bound to keep back that would keep himself free of sin Not because there are wicked men going to the Table But because the Ordinance is gone about in a sinful way But our Question is Concerning Worship in it self lawful That is to say when a Communion is Administrated by a Minister Lawfully Called When that Table Gesture which Christ himself used is keeped at it When in all other things done according to his command What Godly Persons should do in that case when Scandalous Persons one or moe are suffered to come to the Table We hold That notwithstanding of their being there he is bound to come foreward And the wicked man's being there defiles only the Worship to himself and not to those who come in honesty This much for the state of the Question II. Having cleared the Question we come to Our Arguments for the Truth viz. That the presence of wicked men does not defile the Worship of those that are Godly And that the Godly should not keep back from lawful Commanded Duties because wicked men have their hands at them Arg I. Our First Argument is taken from the Church of the Jews in Christs time Any who know the History of the Gospel know that it was a very corrupt Church in Christ time in Doctrine and manners Their Preachers the Scribes and Pharisees were debauched Persons They perverted the Law the blind led the blind And when the Preachers were such ye may judge what the People were And yet we find that Christ and his Apostles did joyn with them in the lawful Worship For First Christ himself came yearly up to the Feast at Jerusalem Secondly He is so far from commanding his Apostles and those who believed in him to keep back from the Ordinary Worship because of wicked men among them That upon the contrair he forbids them to stumble at any thing of that kind And commands them to come to the lawful Worship as Matth 23. 1. 2. Then spake Jesus to the multitude and to his disciples Saying The scribes c. Which is as if he had said do not keep back from the lawful Worship because they are but Godless men that go about it What they Preach according
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
this has been the Method they used to walke in To cry up Holiness in themselves and to cry down all who differed from them as untender That so they might carry all with them at last At least to Rent and divide the Church To such we will say nothing but Christs Curse and the Churches for Renting her bowels will fall on Them But unto the other we will speak something that is To those who are piously Strict and really loath at the good Service of God because such Persons are at it who should not be there To those I shall say First Know what it your Duty And Secondly What is not your Duty in reference to Prophane Men Oft-times we mistake our Duty and leap over it to what is not our Duty Now your Duty in reference to prophane Men Is not to take your hands from the Ordinance because Their hands are at it To turn your backs on your Duty because Prophane Men join with you in it It will be but a small excuse to pretend when God reckons with you when the Lord will say What made you neglect such a Duty to say Lord I grant it was my Duty but I could not because such Men were at it Therefore ye should know your Duty in reference to those and it is this In the place where ye live when ye see a fault committed ye should tell the guilty persons of it If the Fault be open and a Fault ye can get proven ye ought to delate it to those who have power to Censure them If so be they may be gained by this mean Or if not ye have done your Duty Or if the Church do their Duty in casting out the Obstinate then ye have your intent But if so be that notwithstanding ye have done your Duty yet the Church do not Theirs in purging the House of God In this case ye are to regrate the matter to God to mourn for it ye are to testify that ye do not approve their way and in so doing ye have done your Duty and may have peace For the presence of the wicked Man makes not the work sinful in it self to you He eats and drinks Damnation to himself And not to you His presence doth not make the Worship sinful to thee And so it looses thee not from they obligation to join in the Worship For if that were true That the presence of wicked Men did defile the Worship to Thee then Christians would be in a very hard condition For there was never a Church so pure but there were some admitted to it whom a Man truly tender would think should not be there There was never a Church so pure but a tender Man zealously strict would find some to challenge And so according to that Doctrine there should be no Church that a tender Christian could joyn with And so he should be forced to serve God apart and by himself alone And this hath been the Separatists way They have Separated from one Church to another till at last they could get none to join with And so turned Seekers that is A Sect who think there are None they can join with And therefore they cast off all Publick Duties and serve God by themselves alone Because they can see none so Holy as themselves And therefore ye would suspect Zeal when joyned with Error And fear Error most when it is covered over with Zeal For Error is never so dangerous as when it gets on the mask of Zeal It being then most cruel and most impudent People then have no will to medle with it lest they should seem to be Enemies to True Piety And therefore because it is suffered and born with it turns impudent until it undo all I only give One word to guard this and so I shall end There is not one Error that we refute but if not guarded Prophane Men may abuse it and so may they This to cast at those who are piously strict though in an orderly way And therefore We say it is every Christians Duty to walk tenderly and to be so strict towards others as God requires of him The thing we have Refuted as an Error is only this That because a Man cannot get all Duties gone about by All so strictly as God commands That therefore he will Separate from altogether But withal we did show That not only a Man should be strict on himself where right strictness will alwayes begin but also do what in him lyes according to his Duty and Calling That the Ordinances of God may be keeped pure by others FINIS A SERMON Preached before the SYNOD AT GLASGOW APRIL 5th 1653. The first SERMON 1 Corinth 1. 10. Now I beseech you Brethren by the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ that ye all speak the same thing and that there be no Divisions among you but that ye be perfectly join'd together in the same Mind and in the same Judgement THIS Text begins a new Purpose so it is not necessary to speak much for clearing of the Dependance and Cohesion Only ye would know somewhat of the State of this Church at the time when this Epistle was written which will help us not a little to take up the Occasion and Scope of the Words read Paul having planted a Church at Corinth was after driven from thence by the sury of the Jews as appears from Acts 18. 12. In whose absence partly through the malice of Satan partly through the subtilty of false Apostles the Church was rent in Factions some taking part with one Pastor and some with another according to the diverse estimation they held them in for their Humane Eloquence great Knowledge and other parts The Church being thus rent the Apostle addresseth himself timously to the Cure of this so Great an Evil But because he was almost out of request with the most part of that People tho as he himself Chap. 4. v. 15. declares he had begotten them in Christ Jesus through the Gospel Therefore as a skill'd Physician being to administer a bitter Potion he suggereth the brim of the Cup by shewing That whatever was Their respect to him yet his Affection did remain the same towards them And this he insisteth on from the beginning to the tenth Verse wherein he falls upon the Sore he intends to Cure to wit Their Factions and Schism's Obtesting them gravly in the Name of Jesus Christ That they would set about the Healing of these woeful Rents before they should turn to worse In the Words there are two things 1 A Duty to which they are exhorted 2. Some Arguments moving them to set about this Duty The Duty is last in order of the Words and propounded in three Sentences 1. That ye all speak the same thing 2. That there be no Divisions among you 3. That ye be perfectly joined together in the same Mind and in the same Judgement The Duty pressed in all these may be taken up in two 1. An Evil they were to Eschew 2.
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
State so is it in the Church as to this purpose No Union can be there as of one actually incorporate Body except it be under one and the same Supreme Rulers So is it in the Church So long as there is no agreement about One and the same Supreme Representative under whose Authority we may stand for the present But one part standeth for it's Authority another is contrary unto it or setting up another against it In this case the matter is clear there is no compleat Union but a fixed Schism or at the best a strong tendency unto it A Third thing to be eyed is If so Our Union must be under one Supreme Representative then such ways of Union will do no good as carry not alongs the Body An Union if not with the Body instead of healing doth widen the Rent A resolution or desire to unite with a few not caring for the rest will not produce an union I mean of the Church altho it may be of a stronger Party in the Church These few would possibly as gladly unite as others would have them if it were not evidently a strengthening of the Breach Fourthly Yet a Part ought to labour with the Body for condescending as low as warrantably can be for Peace's sake Only a Caveat must be here They are so to deal with the Body to condescend for Vnion as to beware of making a new Rupture in the Body upon their not granting For that were in a desperate way to make a new Rent because others will not take Our way for removing of the Old Fifthly If we desire an hearty cordial Vnion it would be endeavoured without rubbing upon the Credit 1. Of Persons 2. Of Parties 3. Of Ordinances If the Credit of all can be held up it 's well He is no friend to Vnion that would endeavour the contrair But if some must suffer Love to the Publick and Zeal for God will teach That the former is to yeild to the latter viz. Persons to Parties and the Credit both of Persons and Parties yea and of both Parties themselves if need be are to stoop for upholding the Authority of Divine Ordinances A litle of this Self-denial would do much good But how litle of it is there to be found Sixthly Dividing Principles and such as tend of their own nature to obstruct Union should be abandoned There is One Principle often spoken of by some and now made more publick which if maintained in Our judgment will close the door upon Union in hast to wit That it is unlawful to sit in an Assembly with those who have enacted persecution against the Godly And this in the sence of the Propounders as it is expresly tho injuriously applyed by them is as much as to say It is unlawful to joyn in any Assembly made up for the most part of those who acted in and approved of Our late Controverted Assemblies Now if it be unlawful to joyn in an Assembly made up for the most part of such why not also unlawful to join in a Synod or in a Presbytry likewise made up of such yea and to join at a Communion Table where the most part are such And indeed some of the People chiefly draw out their Principle to this full length A Principle which to say no worse of it striketh at the very throat of Peace and if stood to makes it desperat and so I hope is and will be disowned by all who cordially pretend to Peace and Union in the Church These I conceive and many moe should be eyed by Us in Our aiming at Union if we would have Our endeavours effectual But because a Compleat Union in an ordinary way is not to be so soon expected I shall in the next place give Two Directions for managing our Differences So as the Church of Christ may have less hurt by them at least The first Direction is That we ought to guard against these Tentations which Our Standing Division may readily make way for Whereof I shall mention Three The First Tentation is this An oversight of every other fault almost whether in Ministers or Professors providing they be true to the Party A Party is a dangerous thing and in nothing more dangerous than in this That it driveth men if not all the more tender to take fidelity unto the Party to be the prime if not the only 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and badge of honesty and enclines them to look on all other things whether Corrupt Principles or loose Practices as excusable Infirmities A woeful Tentation and destructive both to Truth and Piety And therefore ought so much the more to be guarded against on both hands A Second Tentation is The secret wishing after and rejoycing in the Slips one of another An Evil so woeful that David complains to God of it even in his avowed Enemies Ps. 38. 16. When my Foot slippeth they magnify themselves against me And Jeremiah complaineth of it in his false Friends Ch. 20. v. 10. They watched for my halting And yet an Evil that even Good men if once engaged in Parties will have a Battel with A Third Tentation upon Our standing Divided and which is also to be guarded against is A bending of Our selves to the outmost of Light and possibly beyond it for strengthning of our selves to the doing of these things in relation to these who now Rule which not long since we would have abhorred both in our selves and others It is very possible that as Gifts blind the Eyes of the Wise Exod. 23. So the seeming advantage unto that which we conceive Truth may draw out somewhat like an Approbation to such like Work from those of our own Judgement and if these do approve it is the less matter think we that others do disapprove But we ought to remember there are others to sift our Actions Forreign Churches abroad our own Conscience being sober and settled and above all God the Judge of All. A Second Direction for managing our Differences is That we ought not to be so taken up with others as to take our Eye off from guarding against that which is Satan's main design against the Church of Christ at this time Satan does as a subtile Warriour labour to raise a Mutiny among the Forces which should oppose him that while they are wrangling one with another he may carry his Point without stroke of Sword Being to insist a little on this Direction I shall first speak to what I conceive to be Satan's main design against the Church at this time 2 I shall give some Directions to manage our Differences So as not to further this his main design nor yet to be short-coming in our Duty against it And First For taking up what is Satan's great Design we shall in a word or two lay before you a wonderful Contexture as it were of God's Wisdom and Satan's Malice since the first beginnings of the Christian Church even untill now There is no Truth almost but Satan's
Malice hath set it self in some one Age of the Church or other to bear it down And God's Wisdom hath still overshot Satan making use of his Malice in opposing Truth for the further clearing of that Truth which he intendeth most to obscure and darken Satan's first design in the first Ages of the Christian Church was to beat down that great Fundamental Truth of Christs Divinity But after long debate this Truth was fully cleared by the means of several Worthies whose Spirits the Lord stirred up in these Ages to mantain That so much opposed Truth Satan therefore being beat off this strong Fort of Christianity retired a little and laboured next to bear down the Truth of Christs Humanity But the Truâ—h hereof the more it was opposed growing the brighter The Lord making Light break up convincingly in the midst of Hot Debates Satan retired a little further yet and bent his whole force in the following Ages against the Vnity of Christs Person And next against the Distinction of his Natures But Satan not prevailing this Way either he set himself to undermine Christ Jesus in all His Offices 1. By setting up the Infallibility of Popes and Councils against His Prophetical Office 2. The Doctrine of Merit in the matter of Justification against His Priestly Office 3. The Doctrine of Free-will and power of it in Man's Conversion to God against the Inward part of His Kingly Office And for the Outward part of it he set himself to wrest the Scepter of Christ's Government from His own Office-bearers and put it in the Hands of Popes Cardinals Arch-bishops and Bishops But after long Contest Truth is now aboundantly cleared and confirmed in all these Thus as One saith the Lord Jesus hath been content to dispute His Ground by Inches with the Devil until almost He hath beat him out of all only Satan hath no will to quit it so it seems to us he is now giving his last and sorest On-set on which in a desperate way he is to venture all wherein his design is evident to cast all in a Confusion First By trampling under foot the Outward Court of God's House I mean the Constitution of His Church Visible by the Doctrine of Renting and Separation And next to deprive the Catholick Church Visible and all Her considerable Members of all Government by the Doctrine of Independancy which confineth the whole Power of the Keys within the narrow circuit of a Particular Congregation whereby all the Particular Churches are left as so many small Boats in a storm to dash one against another having no Intrinsical authoritative Mean to make them steer an even Course without rushing one upon another Thus Satan aimeth to cast all in confusion that he may undo all What in former Ages he could not do in destroying Gospel Truths by Piece-meal and one by one he intends now to do it by whole sale and all at once For if once the bottom of the Ship be split and the Rudder broken the precious Ware contain'd in it can hardly be preserved Now that Satan's main design is to deface these Truths which are about the Constitution and Government of the Visible Church that thereby all may be covered with Confusion appeareth In that not only the method God hath hitherto keeped doth point at it There being few other Points of Truth to clear but also the thing speaketh for it self the main speat of the Errors of the time running directly contrary to these So that certainly as God intends to clear Truth in these so it 's not the least part of Satan's main design against the Church of Christ at this time to obscure Truth in these This then being Satan's design I shall in the next place give some Directions how to manage our Differences so as not to further this main design nor yet be short coming in our Duty against it Of which Directions I shall reckon Three First We ought to examine Opinions and Practices even tho by us conceived just and lawful How far they may contribute for furtherance of that Design and in that respect should be more circumspect and sparing at least in medling with them Thus the Apostle Paul Gal. 2. 3. would not Circumcise Titus tho Circumcision at that time was a thing Lawful as appears from his Circumcising of Timothy Act. 16. 3. much about the same time and yet he would not Circumcise Titus The reason is v. 4. There were False Brethren present who would have taken advantage of That his Practice to confirm themselves in their opposition to that Truth which Satan intended most to bear down at that time to wit The freedom of the Christian Church from the yoke of Mosaical Ceremonies therefore he thinks himself bound to abstain from that practice tho in it self Lawful and which in some other cases would have been necessary And that lest by That his Practice he should have been advantageous to Satan's main design against the Church of Christ at that time It 's true Truth remains still Truth however Satan abuse it yet seing all grant that the venting of some Truths at sometimes is unseasonable and so for that time may be forborn And seing it would seem that nothing makes a Truth more unseasonable than when it is known that Satan will make bad use of it for bearing down that Truth which God intends mainly to clear It will follow that the venting of such a Truth ought to be at least with great modesty and much holy Circumspection if not altogether forborn for that time For Application of this Direction I will not say much Only I shall propose it to your serious thoughts Whether or not the late Proceedings in opposition to the Supreme Judicatories of the Church together with the Tenets whereupon they are grounded which for Peace's cause and from unwillingness to give the least occasion of Irritation I forbear to name whether or not I say These even supposing the Lawfulness of the Practices and Truth of the Opinions seem not to have been unseasonable for the time as being apt to be abused for leading People upon the Errors of the time Such as the Contempt of Ecclesiastical Judicatories Quarrelling the Constitution and Separating from the Fellowship of our Church I fear much it will be hard for People not acquainted with subtile Distinctions to conceive that any Corruption amongst those with whom we converse can make Civil Fellowship with them Unlawful but it must make Church Fellowship especially Communion-table Fellowship with the same Persons to be as much if not much more Unlawful But I forbear not being without hopes but that Brethren Gracious and Wise will ponder what they hold and what they practise when they see bad use made of it beyond their own Intention and Purpose There is one thing further I shall say for application chiefly upon the other hand and it is this Such Practices ought to be eschewed as may prove unjust and unnecessary Irritations unto People to
the Lord's Table profess ye have done Your Duty now is with purpose of heart to cleave unto the Lord. I shall not run far back for finding out the Connexion of this Purpose with that which goeth before Only ye may observe that Luke the Penman of the Holy Ghost in this History of the Acts doth shew from Verse 19 of this same Chapter how that through occasion of that Persecution which the Church at Jerusalem met with after Steven's Death mentioned Chap. 8 the Gospel being preached by those who were forced to fly for their lives did wonderfully spread as far as Phanâ—ce Cyprus and Antioch And many in these Regions and Kingdoms were taken with it for Verse 21 The hand of the Lord was with them and a great number believed and turned unto the Lord. Whereupon as is shown v. 22. when these tidings came to the Church at Jerusalem They sent forth Barnabas A Man of extraordinary Parts and Calling for he was an Apostle as is clear from Acts 14. 14. I say the Church sends him as far as Antioch for helping foreward the Work And in this Verse we have Barnabas his coming to them and what he does when he comes 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. In which Words we have these things consideraable 1. Barnabas his coming to Antioch 2. We have what he saw when he came He saw the Grace of God to wit The wonderful effects of God's Grace in bringing so many to embrace the Doctrine of the Gospel 3. We have what this sight did work upon him 1. It made him Glad 2. It brought a pithy needful exhortation from him to these New Converts the sum whereof is here set down That with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. What Explication is needful I shall insist on as I go through the Particulars First It is mentioned he came to Antioch But we hear nothing of any great train he carried along with him Or any great solemnity at his Reception tho he was an Apostle the highest Office-bearer in the Church But only that he came doubtless in a sober way as became a Minister of Christ It was a thing then unknown in the World for Church-men to go accompanied with Trains like Princes and that whole Countrey sides and greatest Personages in them behooved to wait upon their Grandeurs It never was well with the Church of God since Church-men began to overtop Peers and Nobles But the thing I mark from this is That Barnabas tho an extraordinary Office-bearer in the Church and an Apostle doth nevertheless obey the Orders of the Church at Jerusalem For it 's mentioned v. 22. That the Church at Jerusalem sent him forth and here That he did come accordingly Now what this Church at Jerusalem was to whose Directions he subjected himself is clear from Act. 21. 18. It was the Church of Elders or Presbyters even a Presbytry as hath been made out convincingly these years by-past against the Independants To the direction of which Elders the Apostle Paul did submit himself there as Barnabas doth here From which it is clear that even the Apostles and extraordinary Office-bearers of the Church were very respective and tender of that Authority which Jesus Christ hath given to His Church and the Judicatories thereof This appears chiefly in Two things First When there were Churches constitute and Church Judicatories erected to manage the Discipline of the Church the Apostles did not exercise power of Jurisdiction over these Churches by themselves alone neither in the Ordination of Ministers nor in the Censuring or Excommunicating of Scandalous Offenders but tho they were without doubt universal Pastors of the whole Church yet they did remit the same to Ordinary Church Judicatories Thus Paul doth not Ordain Timothy to be a Minister alone but admits the Ordinary Presbytery to do it 1 Tim. 4. 14. Neglect not the gift that is in thee which was given thee by prophesy with the laying on of the hands of the Presbytery And 1 Cor. 5. he clearly speaks of the power of Excommunication as residing in the Church Judicatory at Corinth and reproves them for their not making use of that Power in Excommunicating the Incestuous Person and stirrs them up to their Duty V. 4 5. That In the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ when ye are gathered together and my Spirit with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ. V. 5. To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the Flesh that the Spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus A Second thing wherein the Apostles did show their respect to Church Judicatories was this which is here mentioned in the Text That in many things they were ordered by and subject to their directions Thus in the place cited Acts 21. 20. The Church of Elders or Presbyters at Jerusalem give their Injunctions to Paul that for removal of an offence that many thousands of Jews had taken against him he should publictly practise some of the Jewish Ceremonies in purifying himself and shaving his head which were at that time things indifferent And accordingly it's mentioned v. 26. That Paul did follow their direction All which shews that the Authority of Church Judicatories was very much tendred even by the Apostles themselves The Bishops do indeed boast themselves to be the Apostles Successors and their only Successors I shall not stand upon this It being made very clear by Protestant writers against the Papists In the controversy about the Pope That the Apostles had no Successors as to what was extraordinary in their Office and as to that which was Ordinary in it as to Preach the Word Dispense the Sacraments and exercise Church Discipline over particular Churches That they have in these all Ministers for their Successors But passing that What I am now on is That the Bishops of these latter times have encroached more upon the Power and priviledge left by Christ unto his Church and Church Judicatories than ever the Apostles them-themselves whose Successors they give themselves out for did For as I have cleared from the present Doctrine The Apostles did leave the matters of Ordinary Jurisdiction to be managed by Ordinary Church Judicatories but so do not they The whole Body of Christ's Ministers within a Church though they were all gathered together may neither Ordain a Minister nor Excommunicate a Scandalous Offender but this must be done only by the Bishop and such as â—e doth Substitute under him for it Again the Apostles were in some things at least subject and ordered by the Directions of Church Judicatories but so are not They such a Condiscendance could not stand with their Honours and Dignities Secondly We have in the Text what Barnabas saw among them when he came and this is called The Grace of God The meaning whereof is not as if all of them
do that which men are apt to take and have reason to take for a denial of the Truth tho they do not deny it in so many words But Secondly We must cleave unto the Lord by Cleaving to and continuing in his Service for that is the other thing which he hath recommended to our Care as an evidence of our respect to him Joshua bids the People Take diligent heed to cleave unto the Lord and serve him Jos 22. 5. Now this holds first of the Ordinances he hath appointed for his Service and Immediate Worship Ye must Cleave to these In order to which 1. Beware of Will-worship or doing that in his Worship which he hath not commanded Colos 2 20. Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the Rudiments of the World Why as though living in the World are ye subject to Ordinances To wit Ordinances and Commandments of Men in Gods Service as he explains verse 22. And he gives some instances of them verse 21. Touch not taste not handle not It is true men may appoint the outward Circumstances of Order and Decency for going about these parts of God's Worship which he hath commanded such as are Time and Place what hour of the day ye shall meet at publick Worship and in what Place and such like which are Common both to Civil and Religious Actions but they may not under that pretext appoint new practices of Worship to God or significant engaging Ceremonies As for example That the Sign of the Cross be used in Baptism As a Token we shall not hereafter be ashamed to Confess Christ Crucified And that Ministers Preach with a White Shirt or Surplice above their Garments to signify the Holiness of their Calling or as the Ancients did ordain those who were Baptized to wear White Garments for the space of eight dayes after Baptism To signify their being washen from Sin For by that same Rule They may command every one to taste Vinegar and Gall at the Communion as a Sign that they shall not be ashamed of Christ who Died so And to put on an Helmet Breast-plate and other Armour in time of Publick Worship To signify our Resolution to Fight the Battle against Sin and Satan so long as we live And suck or drink in Milk publickly in time of Divine Worship In token that by Faith we draw in the sincere Milk of the Word that we may grow thereby Now any may see that to command these and such like were to appoint New Work in Gods Service and more than to do that Work he hath appointed Orderly and Decently Besides many things of Lesser moment and of the same nature with these I mean significant Ceremonies are appointed by God in his Law to which there is yet added that Sanction Deut. 12. 32. What thing soever I command you observe to do it thou shalt not add thereto nor diminish from it So that the appointing any such things in the Worship of God is an adding to Gods Law which is there prohibited I shall be more brief in the following Directions for Cleaving to the Ordinances of Gods Immediate Worship And therefore 1. Beware of Irreligious Impiety in neglecting these Ordinances Ye are commanded to wait upon them Pray without ceasing Despise not Prophesying or Preaching Speak to your selves in Psalms and Hymns Give attendance unto Reading Ye cannot cleave to the Lord in these Ordinances if ye neglect to go about them ye must countenance publick Ordinances make Conscience of secret Duties 2. Beware of Formality in going about them by resting in an out-side work But above all things strive to bring the Heart up to them otherwise ye do not as ye ought cleave unto them God is a Spirit and will be Worshiped in Spirit and in Truth The Lord will not rockon you to cleave unto them tho ye be present at them if so your Heart be far away from them 3dly Beware of up-sitting or back-sliding from making Conscience of them after ye have once begun That it be not said of you as the Apostle Paul said once of the Galatians Ye have run well but who did hinder you that ye should not obey the Truth Otherwise ye do not cleave unto them But further This cleaving to the Lord by cleaving to and Continuing in his Service doth hold in the Duties of our Particular Callings and Stations And in order to your Cleaving to these or to the Lord by making Conscience of these 1. Do not neglect them I mean those Duties which ye owe whether as Servants or as Masters as Parents or as Children as Husbands or as Wives as Magistrats or as Subjects Much of the Life and Power of Religion is manifested in the Conscientious discharge of such Duties and a man manifests best what he hath by making Conscience of such Rom 12. 11. Ye are not to be Sloathful in Business 2. What ye do even in things of that kind strive to do it as Service to the Lord. For as I have shew'd so much is enjoyned Servants Thus shall ye Cleave to the Lord even by going about your Ordinary Calling when ye discharge the Duties thereof as Service to Him that is when ye do them because He appoints you so to do and that ye may adorn Religion and take away all occasion of Reproach by your Conscientious Diligence in the practice of them 3. Let not the Duties of your particular Stations make you neglect the Duties either of Publick or Private Worship there is time for both ye cannot Cleave to the Lord in the Duties of the one sort if they shall justle out the Duties of the other 4 Strive to keep Communion with God even in the practice of such Duties by sending up secret thoughts and pithy ejaculations to God among hands as Nehemiah did chap. 2. By labouring to make a Spiritual use of every thing that occurs or which ye meet with This much now for their cleaving to the Lord the thing He would have them to do I shall now speak a little only to the manner wherein the Lord would have it gone about It s with a purpose or resolution and a purpose of Heart 1. It 's with a purpose and resolution he would have them take on a fixed resolution to do and that as an help to make them do Hence take this Doctrine That ye may cleave to the Lord and continue constant and stedfast in his Truth and Service ye must take on a fixed Resolution and Purpose so to do I suppose ye have taken on such a Resolution as this at your coming to the Lords Table but tho ye have done it yet your wisdom will be every day to renew it David had taken on such a purpose Psal. 17. 3 I am purposed that my Mouth shall not transgress yea he binds himself by an Oath to it Psal. 119. 106 I have Sworn and I will perform it that I will keep thy righteous Judgments This is that piece of the spiritual armour called
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
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
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