Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	church_n	elder_n	rule_n	1,073	5	8.7292	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A53265	New-England pleaded with, and pressed to consider the things which concern her peace at least in this her day, or, A seasonable and serious word of faithful advice to the churches and people of God, primarily those in the Massachusets Colony, musingly to ponder, and bethink themselves, what is the tendency, and what will cetainly be the sad issue, of sundry unchristian and crooked wayes which too too [sic] many have been turning aside unto, if persisted and gone on in delivered in a sermon preached at Boston in New-England, May 7, 1673, being the day of election there / by Urian Oakes ...	Oakes, Urian, 1631-1681.	1673 (1673)	Wing O21; ESTC W23179	65,078	72

substantially done by them They were set in the right way wherein we are to proceed and make a progress And he made them unanimous about it and bl●ssed what they d●d marvelously It will be our Wisdome Interest and Duty to follow them as they followed the Guidance of the Spirit of Christ. Oh consider what will be the sad issue of Reovlting from the Way fixed upon to one extreme or to another whether it be to Presbyterianism or ●rownism As for the Presbyterians it must be acknowledged that there are among them as Pious Sober Learned Orthodox men as the World affords and that there is as much of the Power of Godliness among that party and of the spirit of the good old Puritan as among any People in the World And for their Way of Church-Government it must be confessed that in the day of it it was a very considerable step to Reformation The Church of God hath been recovered by degrees out of the Antichristian Apostacy When our Lord Jesus wrought the Cure on that Blind Man Mark 8.23 24 25. He first saw men as tree● walking and then saw every man clearly Great Blindness had happened to the World for many Ages and the cure was performed by the Hand of Christ gradually and to see men walking as Trees to have any Glimmerings of Truth was a good degree of Recovery and a far greater mercy then to be sta●k b●iud and should be so acknowledged The Reformation in King Edward's dayes was then a blessed work And the Reformation of Geneva and Scotland wa● a la●ger step and in many respects purer then the other And for my part I fully believe the Reasons of which Belief cannot be rendred here that the Congregational way far exceeds both and is the highest step that hath been taken towards Reformation and for the substance of it is the very way that was est●blished and practised in the Primitive times according to the Institution of Jesus Christ. And indeed it hath been and is my perswasion from what I have read and observed that those that will forsake the Congregational and pass over to the Presbyterian-way because of some diffe●ences of notion among our Congregational Divines or difficulties in the practise and way of the Congregational Churches shall find that they make but a bad exchange and that there are as many or more Differences Difficulties and Entanglements in the Presbyterian Principles and Practise And I must needs say that I should look upon it as a sad degeneracy if we should leave the good old way so far as to turn Councils and Synods into Classes and Provincial Assemblies and there should be such a laxeness in Admission of Members to Communion as is pleaded for and practised by many Presbyterian● and Elders should manage all themselves in an Au●ocratorical absolute way to the utter Subversion or Overthrow of the liberty and priviledge of the Brethren Our Worthies that are gone off the Stage allowed the Priviledge of the Brethren without any infringement of the Rule and Authority of the Presbytery and knew how to reconcile them together Whatever influence the concurrence of the Brethren hath into Church Acts clear it is that it is necessarily required to the exercise of Church Authority that all Ordinances may be admininistred in a way of Edification The Expressions of the deservedly Famous Dr. Owen are very considerable The Reason saith he why the consent of the Church is required unto the Authoritative Acting of the Elde●s therein is not bec●use from thence any Authority doth acerue unto them a new which vertually and radically they had not b●fore but because by the Rule of the Gos●el this is required ●o the orderly acting of their power without which it would be contrary to Rule and th●refore ineffectual as also it must needs be from the n●ture of the thing it s●lf for no act can take place in the Church without or against its own consent whilest its Obedience is voluntary an● of choice And in case the Church refuse to consent to such Acts a● are according to Rule the Elders must instruct them in their Duty declare to them the danger of Dissent wait patiently for the concurrence of the Grace of God with their Ministry in giving Light and Obedience to the Church and in case of the Churches continuance in any Failure of Duty to seek for advice and counsel from the Elders and Brethren of other Churches Thus that Man of Renown in his excellent Treatise of Worship and Discipline Pag. 130 131. If this be attended the Congregational way is so far secured I know there are many that are bold to Affirm that the Ministers among us are generally revolted or revolting to Presbyterianism If I were perswaded that any such thing were done or designed I should account it my duty with all due respect to give in my Testimony against it at this time This indeed would be a real Degeneracy and Defection from a better way that God hath by an High Hand of Providence set up among us and signally ow●ed and blessed But I am fully perswaded that such Representations of you● Elders● as to far the greatest part of them are injurious groundless Calumnies which some men m●st answer for It was candidly and truly said by that Reverend Servant of Christ sufficiently known to be no Presbyterian that Preached on this solemn occasion two years ago that ●●ting some Eccentricks we are all generally agreed in the Principles of Purity and Power of the Churches Mr. Oxenbridge his Election Sermon Pag. 45. that is we are all generally Congregational men And none will say otherwise but those that have profit by the Fable If the Doctrine of Discipline drawn out of the Scriptures and delivered to us in the Platform as well as in the writings of famous and blessed Cotton Hook●r Mather Shepard and the rest of ou● Worthies be Congregational I doubt not but you have for the substance of it the hearty Consent of the most if not all your Elders to it I cannot find upon my utmost enquiry that there is any reall Foundation for such Invidious Reports or any thing that answers the great Cry which some make Differences indeed there are among godly learned men about some Apices or less considerable particulars and ever were among your Famous Leaders and yet they walked sweetly together and never branded one another with the name of Presbyterians There is doubtless a Latitude in the Congregational Way wherein good men may walk a Breadth and Degrees do not vary the Species And I am perswaded that if many of the Clamorous or loud Accusers of the Ministers of Christ would examine themselves Impartially the verdict of their ow● Consciences would be that the Reason why they charge their Elders with Presbyterianism is because they themselves are revolted to the other Extream or never came up to the true Congregational way as it is delineated by our Worthies out of the Scriptures Else what do