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	great_a	minister_n	1,301	5	6.3461	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A11457	Tvvo sermons: preached at tvvo severall visitations, at Boston, in the diocesse and country of Lincolne. By Robert Sanderson, Bachelour of Diuinitie, and late fellow of Lincolne Colledge in Oxford	Sanderson, Robert, 1587-1663.	1622 (1622)	STC 21708; ESTC S112208	62,742	104

to the preiudice of Christian Liberty And againe Secondly Men must vnderstand that it is an Errour to thinke Ceremonies and Constitutions to be things meerely Indifferent I meane in the generall For howsoeuer euery particular Ceremony be indifferent and euery particular Constitution l Artic. 34. arbitrary and alterable yet that there should be some Ceremonies it is necessary Necessitate absoluta in as much as no outward worke can bee performed without Ceremoniall circumstances some or other and that there should be some Constitutions concerning them it is also necessary though not simply absolutely as the former yet ex hypothesi and m See Caluin li. 4. Instit. cap. 10. § 27 necessitate conuenientiae Otherwise since some Ceremonies must needes be vsed euery Parish nay euery n Quot capita tot Schismata Hieronym Man would haue his owne fashion by himself as his humor led him wherof what other could be the issue but infinit distraction and vnorderly confusion in the Church And againe thirdly to returne their weapon vpon themselues If euery restraint in indifferent things be iniurious to Christian Liberty then themselues are iniurious no lesse by their negatiue restraint from some Ceremonies o Like that Col. 2. 21. Touch not taste not handle not Weare not Crosse not Kneele not c. then they would haue the world beleeue our Church is by her positiue restraint vnto these Ceremonies of wearing and crossing kneeling c. Let indifferent men iudge nay let thēselues that are parties iudge whether is more iniurious to Christian Liberty publike Authority by mature aduice commanding what might be forborne or priuate spirits through humorous dislikes forbidding what may be vsed the whole Church imposing the vse or a few Brethren requiring the forbearance of such things as are otherwise and in themselues equally indifferent for vse or for forbearance But they say §. 21. And the purpose and practice of our Church herein iustified our Church maketh greater matters of Ceremonies then thus and preferreth them euen before the most necessarie duties of preaching and administring the Sacraments in as much as they are imposed vpon Ministers vnder paine of Suspension and Depriuation from their Ministeriall Functions and Charges First for actuall Depriuation I take it vnconforming Ministers haue no great cause to complaine Our Church it is well knowne hath not alwayes vsed that rigour shee might haue done Where she hath bin forced to proceede as farre as depriuation shee hath ordinarily by her faire and flow and compassionate proceedings therein sufficiently manifested her vnwillingnesse thereto and declared her selfe a Mother euery way indulgent enough to such ill-nurtured children as will not be ruled by her Secondly those that are suspended or depriued suffer it but iustly for their obstinacie and contempt For howsoeuer they would beare the world in hand that they are the onely per secuted ones and that they suffer for their consciences yet in truth they doe but abuse the credulitie of the simple therein and herein as in many other things iumpe with the Papists whom they would seeme aboue all others most abhorrent from For as Seminary Priests and Iesuites giue it out they are martyred for their a Pro inficiatione pontificatus faeminei Aquipont in resp ad Solm de Antichristo Thes. 15. Speaking of the Priests executed in the Raigne of Qu. Elizabeth religion when the very truth is they are b See Donnes Pseudo-Martyr per totum especially c. 5. c. iustly executed for their prodigious Treasons felonious or treacherous practises against lawful Princes and Estates So the Brethren pretend they are persecuted for their consciences when they are indeed but iustly censured for their obstinate and pertinacious contempt of lawfull authoritie For it is not the refusall of these Ceremonies they are depriued for otherwise then as the matter wherein they shew their contempt it is the c The practise of our Church sufficiently confirmeth this which censureth no man for the bare omission of some kinde of Rites and Ceremonies now and then where it may be presumed by the parties cheerefull and generall conformity otherwise that such omission proceedeth not either from an opinatiue dislike of the Ceremony imposed or from a timorous and obsequious humouring of such as doe dislike it Whosoeuer willingly and purposely doth openly breake c. Artic. 34. Contempt it selfe which formally and properly subiecteth them to iust Ecclesiasticall Censure of Suspension or Depriuation And contempt of Authority though in the smallest matter deserueth no small punishment all authoritie hauing beene euer sollicitous as it hath good reason aboue all things to vindicate and preserue it selfe from Contempt by inflicting sharpe punishments vpon contemptuous persons in the smallest matters aboue all other sorts of offenders in any degree whatsoeuer Thus haue wee shewed and cleered the first and maine difference betwixt the Case of my Text and the Case of our Church in regard of the Matter the things whereabout they differed being euery way indifferent ours not so And as in the Matter §. 22. I. In the Persons so there is secondly much oddes in the condition of the Persons The refusers in the Case of my Text being truely weake in the Faith as beeing but lately conuerted to the Christian Faith and not sufficiently instructed by the Church in the doctrine and vse of Christian Liberty in things indifferent Whereas with our refusers it is much otherwise First they are not new Pr●selytes but men borne and bred and brought vp in the bosome of the Church yea many and the chiefest of them such as haue taken vpon them the Calling of the Ministery and the Charge of Soules and the Office of teaching instructing others And such men should not be weakelings Secondly ours are such as take themselues to haue farre more knowledge and vnderstanding and insight in the Scriptures and all diuine learning then other men such as betweene pitie and scorn seeme most to wonder at the ignorance and simplicity of the vulgar and to lament which is God knoweth lamentable enough though not comparable to what it was within not many yeeres since the want of knowledge and the vnsufficiency of some of the Clergie in the Land And with what reason should these men expect the priuiledge of weake ones Thirdly our Church hath sufficiently declared and published the innocency of her purpose and meaning in enioyning the Ceremonies not so onely but hath beene content to heare and receiue and admit the obiections and reasons of the refusers and hath taken paines to answere and satisfie to the full all that euer yet could be said in that behalfe And therefore it is vanity for these men or their friends in their behalfe to alledge weakenesse where al good meanes haue beene plentifully vsed for full information in the points in doubt Lastly vpon the premises it doth appeare that the weakenesse of our Brethren pretended by those that are willing to

a thing we are not certaine of and wee must haue certainer grounds for what we do then vncertaine examples Secondly what if Phinehes had the Magistrates authoritie to enable him to that attempt It is not altogether improbable to my apprehension from the fifth Verse of the chapter where the Story is laid downe Numb 25. 5. especially paralleld with another Story of much like circumstances Exod. 32. 27. that as there the Leuites so heere Phinehes drew the sword in execution of the expresse command of Moses the supreme Magistrate If neither thus nor so yet thirdly which cutteth off all plea and is the most cōmon answere ordinarily giuen by Diuines to this the like instances drawne from some singular actions of Gods Worthies Men of Heroicall spirits and gifts such as were Dauid Samson Ehud Moses Elias and some others especially at such times as they were employed in some speciall seruice for the good of Gods Church were exempt from the common rules of life and did many things as wee are to presume not without the a Nec Samson aliter excusatur quòd scipsum cū hostibus ●uin● domus oppressit nisi quòd latenter Spiritus Sanctus hoc iusserat qui per illum miracula faciebat Augustin l. 1. de ciu Dei ca. ●1 Si desenditur non fuisse peccatum priuatum hab●isse Consilium indubitanter credendus est Bern. secret motion and direction of Gods holy and powerfull Spirit which were therefore good in them that secret direction beeing to them loco specialis mandati like that to b Gen 22. 2. Abraham for sacrificing his sonne but not safe or lawfull for vs to imitate Opera liber● spiritus c Chytr in Gen. 14. in Exod 32. say Diuines non sunt exigenda ad regulas communes nec trahenda in exemplum vitae The extraordinary Heroicall Acts of Gods Worthies are not to bee measured by the common rules of life nor to become exemplary vnto others Of which nature was d 1. Sam. 17. Dauids single combate with Goliah and e Iudg. 16. 30. Samsons pulling downe the house vpon himselfe and the Philistines and f Exod. 2. 12 Moses slaying the Aegyptian and g Iudg. 3. 15 c. Ehuds stabbing of King Eglon and h 4. King 1. 10. 12. Eliahs calling downe for fire from Heauen vpon the Captaines and their fifties and diuers others recorded in Scripture Of which last fact we haue our blessed Sauiours iudgement in Luke 9. that it was done by the extraordinary and peculiar instinct of Gods Spirit but is not to bee imitated by others without i Imitando ab alijs exprimi nec poss●ut nec debent nisi e●dem 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Spiritus excitentur Chytr in Exod. 2. particular certaine assurance of the like-instinct Where when the Disciples would haue called downe for fire from Heauen vpon the Samaritanes and alledged Elias for their precedent k Luk. 9. 54. Lord wilt thou that we command fire to come downe from Heauen and consume them as Elias did His answere was with a kinde of indignation as both his l 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Luk 9. 55. gesture and speeches shew Nescitis cuius spiritus estis You know not what manner of spirit you are of Elias was indued with an extraordinary spirit in the freedome whereof hee did what he then did but it is not for you or others to propose his example vnlesse you can demonstrate his Spirit And if Phinehes Act also was as most m De Phinees au●em dicendum est quid ex inspiratione diuina zolo Dei commotus hoc fecit Aquin. 2. 2. qu 60. art 6. ad 2. Theologi passim thinke it was such as these it can no more iustifie the vsurpation of Magistracie then Dauids act can bloudy Duels or Samsons selfe-murther or Moses's secret slaughter or Ehuds King-killing or Eliahs priuate reuenge I haue stood the longer vpon the discouery of this sinne that men might take right iudgement of it and not thinke it either warrantable or exc●sable by any pretension of zeale or of whatsoeuer other good and that both such as haue gone too farre this way in their practice already for the time past may acknowledge their owne ouersight and bee sorry for it and others seeing their errour may for the time to come forbeare such outrages and keepe themselues within the due bounds of Christian sobriety and their particular Callings And thus much of the former instance in a matter of Commission I am to giue you another in a matter of Omission Euery omission of a necessary duty is simply euill §. 31. The later instance as a sinne But affirmatiue duties are but sometimes necessarie because they doe not obligare ad semper as being many it is impossible they should And many times duties otherwise necessarie in case of Superiour reason and duties cease to bee necessarie pro hîc nunc and then to omit them is not to doe euill Among other necessary duties this is one for a Minister furnished with gifts and abilities for it to acquaint Gods people with all materiall needfull truths as hee can haue conuenient occasion thereunto And such conueniencie supposed not to doe this is a Sacerdos deb●tor est vt veritatem quam audiuit à Deo liberè praedice● 1● qu. 3. noli timere Ex Ch●ysostom simply euill Now then to make the Case and the Question The Case thus A Minister hath iust opportunity to preach in a Congregation not his owne where he seeth or generally heareth some errour in iudgement or outragious sinne in practice to bee continued in with too publique allowance Hee hath libertie to make choyce of his Text and theame and leisure to prouide in some measure for it and his conscience telleth him he cannot pro hîc nunc direct his speech with greater seruice to Gods Church then against those errours or sinnes Hee seeth on the other side some withdrawments his discretion may perhaps bee called in question for meddling where he needed not hee shall possibly lose the good opinion of some with whom he hath held faire correspondence hitherto he shall preserue his own peace the better if he turne his speech another way This is the Case The Question is whether these later considerations and the good that may come thereby bee sufficient to warrant vnto him the omission of that necessary duty The rule of my Text resolueth it negatiuely § 32. A Minister in what Cases he may conceale some diuine truths from his auditory they are not sufficient The Duty being necessary pro hîc nunc it is simply euill to omit it and therefore it may not be omitted for any other good I deny not but a Minister may with good discretion conceale many truths from his flocke at least the opening and amplifying of them if they bee not such as are needfull for them to know either for the stablishment