Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	day_n	good_a	lord_n	2,726	5	3.8026	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A27014	Sacrilegious desertion of the holy ministery rebuked, and tolerated preaching of the gospel vindicated, against the reasonings of a confident questionist, in a book called Toleration not abused; with counsil to the nonconformists, and petition to the pious conformists / by one that is consecrated to the sacred ministry, and is resolved not to be a deserter of it ...	Baxter, Richard, 1615-1691.	1672 (1672)	Wing B1380; ESTC R5946	61,174	146

Church and the Souls of other men than the benefit to us and others is like to countervail That cannot be done lawfully which cannot be done without doing more hurt than good and destroying the end Obj. We must do that which God bids us and leave it to him what shall be the success Ans True But you must prove then that God bids you do it for we will not take your word A●●●●matives bind not to all times No duty is at all times a duty Nay out of season it is a sin He that saith Pray continually would not have you pray when you should preach or hear or be quenching a Fire in the Town He that commanded Sacrifice set some to learn the meaning of these words I will have mercy and not sacrifice There is few of you but would forbear a Sermon or Prayer to save your own or others Lives And you receive the Sacrament but once a moneth at most which the Primitive Churches used every Lords Day 3. The same practice than in one place where it will do more good than hurt is a duty which in another place where it will do more hurt than good is a sin 4. The Case is now of so great moment that no Minister should rashly determine it for himself nor upon the desires of some of the people only but should consult with wise and sober men that are impartial 5. The benefits to be expected and compared are these 1. The pleasing of God when we know it is his will and the profit of mens Souls by the most regular manner of Discipline and Worship 2. The setting up an imitable example of right Discipline and Worship to other Churches but then woe to them that set up a worse 3. The satisfying the Consciences of some honest mistaking people who think erroneously that a Conforming Minister may not be Communicated with or at least not in the use of the Liturgie or in a Parish Church or that the Sacrament may not be received kneeling 6. The evils to be feared and compared with the benefits are these 1. The exasperating of the minds of persons for number or quality considerable and so alienating them from their brethren and hindring their good 2. And thereby weakening the Protestant interest in a time which requireth our greatest Concord 3. And the setting of parties against parties and Churches against Churches and turning Religion into contentions and mutual oppositions 4. And the countenancing of unlawful separations which will all shelter themselves under such examples and the dividers will not see the different principles on which we go while our practice seemeth to be the same 5. And so it may be injurious to future Ages by seeming to give them presidents for unlawful separations 6. And it is not the least evil consequent that we shall cherish not only the Error of those that think worse of the Parish-Worship Assemblies than there is cause but we shall also accidentally nourish their pride who will think themselves a holier people because they Erroniously over-censure the persons and practices of others 7. The prime great obligation for the cure of all this doth Ile upon some of the conforming side It were easie for them not to silence Christs Ministers that are as wise and good as themselves It were easie for them not to punish a godly person so heavily as an Excommunication comes to for the weakness of scrupling a Sacrament-gesture and not to punish their Children with being unchristened or themselves with Excommunication who think the dedicating Image of the Cross unlawful or think it their own duty to enter their own Children into the Covenant of God rather than Godfathers that have no propriety in them and they are sure never intend to take them for their own or use them as they covenant to do 8. If on such occasions true godly Christians are cast out of their Parish-Churches whether they err or not all Ministers are neither obliged nor allowed to desert them and so to add cruelty and affliction to the afflicted 9. They that think they answer all by saying that these peoples scruples are but Errours do but 1. Shew their self-esteem who can call that Errour which they have said so little to prove to be so in some of their instances 2. And he talketh neither like a Pastor nor a Christian nor a Man that thinketh all that err should be cast out of the Church 10. To discern whether in this case a distinct Church is to be gathered or not is a work of meer Christian prudence and must be determined by comparing the good and evil consequences together and discerning truly which preponderateth And he that through Imprudence misjudgeth either way doth sinne 11. Therefore it is folly and sin for Ministers Conformable or Nonconformable to expect that in this all should go the same way and to censure those that differ from their Opinion when they may be under different circumstances 12. They that live in London where it hath ever been usual to go to Neighbour Parish-Churches from their own and where custome and abundance of accidents make the inconveniencies less have not so much against their different Church-meetings as those in Countrey Towns and Parishes have 13. Those that live where the Nonconformists are the main body of the people and the rest are such for number and quality whose displeasure is of less publick consequence have the less against their distinct Church-meetings 14. Those who live where the Nonconformists are few and the Conformists for number and quality most considerable and are like to be greatly exasperated by distinct Churches must deny their own personal conveniencies rather than hinder a greater good and may not do that which others may do 15. When the publick good forbids it the tolerated Ministers must not gather distinct Church-Assemblies but joyn with the publick Churches and help the people by their instructions at other times 16. When the publick good forbids it not the tolerated Ministers must hold distinct Assemblies for assistance in Doctrine Worship and Discipline as near as they can to the will of God But so as to further and not disgrace nor hinder the honest Parish-Ministers living with them in Unity Love and Peace and whether de nomine their Assemblies shall be called distinct Churches is a case of no great moment though I think that it is fittest to take them for distinct Churches secundum quid and not simpliciter as many Chappels be Seeing though in the Assemblies they distinctly worship God c. yet they hold personal Communion in a godly conversation with the rest of the Christians in the Parish and should sometimes also assemble with them And so much for my own opinion in this case 27. If Christians would but give over the censoriousness contentions and abuse of others which different Assemblies in the same Town are usually employed in I see not what great hurt it would do any for Anabaptists Separatists c.

of it if it ever be done Come and impartially debate the case with us Who have bin the great causes of Protestants divisions Conformists or Non-Conformists But I am ashamed to say that it needeth a debate But O that you would yet repent of what is past instead of reproaching those that you have afflicted And for the time to come if we hav● not unity and peace for my own part I can say it shall be your doing and wilful doing to refuse it CHAP. XI Counsel to the Non-Conformists Ministers and People BRethren you hear by this Author that the Conformists are greatly afraid of Popery and that the danger by some will he said to be from you but who ever taketh you for the Papists friends the Papists themselves will never so esteem you You see that some Comformists are desirous of peace and concord with you for the common end the Churches strength against all adversaries God forbid that you should not be as forward to love and peace as they I have these following counsels to give you before I go out of the World expecting to have you ere long in a condition which will require more wisdom holiness and fortitude than I fear the most are yet possessed of 1. Resolve by the grace of God against all temptations and through all difficulties faithfully to ply your Ministerial work You see how much Satan is against it and how he tryeth every way to hinder it sometimes by force and fears sometimes by flatteries sometimes as that old Prophet seduced the other by coming as in Christs name as an Angel of Light and by Ministers of Righteousness He maketh not light of your Ministry else he would not do so much against it O do not you make light of it Our Ordination Vow and Covenant is Holy If Ananias and Sapphira dyed for alienating consecrated money by a lye what shall we expect if we alienate consecrated persons by a lye Souls are precious sin is strong Satan is subtile the World is deceitful the flesh is unreasonable deceivers have great advantage time is short O therefore work while it is day for the night cometh when none can work Our own floath and sin is the most dangerous silence How many souls feed or famish live or die as we do our duty or neglect it Can you spare your flesh or labour when you think what impenitent souls must feel for ever and what the Sanctified shall enjoy Would you not shine your selves as Stars in the Firmament Would you not be found by Christ so doing Would you not convert Sinners from the errour of their way when it is the saving of a soul from death and covering a multitude of sins What ever Word of God deceivers may abuse to stop your mouths be sure that holy Covenants must be kept that Sacrilege is a sin that nature it self tells you no man hath power to nullifie your Obligation to Charity it self in the work of mens Salvation that the love of God dwelleth not in you if you see your Brother have need and shut up the bowels of your compassion from him Men may regulate your charity for good but not destroy it If the poor were famishing about you no Law can disoblige you from relieving them Be sure that necessity is laid on all the Ministers of Christ though not by the same way as it was laid on the Apostles and woe be unto them if they preach not the Gospel Fear none of those things that you shall suffer they are the prognosticks of your Crown You shall judge the world that judgeth you It will be joyful to hear These are they that came out of great Tribulation c. Even Dr. Th. Jackson notably concludeth that the reason why Martyrdom among Christians now is rarer than among Unbelievers heretofore and that more suffer not as John Baptist did of Herod is not because Great ones among Christians are not ready to do as Herod did but because Ministers more omit their duty The dearest duty is the most gainful 2. I beseech you Study harder that you may now so preach as that you may convince men practically that you are really useful needful to the World and that your silence is a real loss They that now take your labours to be needless are tempted to it by the weakness of too many They can scarce find in their hearts to say so of any Eminent judicious Men If when you have so long made the World believe that silencing you is a most heynous sin you shal now preach so rawly so incongruously so injudiciously unskilfully or coldly as to confute your selves harden those that were for your silence how great will your shame be If you will be thought more useful than others think you preach better now than others do I really fear lest meer Non-conformity have brought some into reputation as consciencious who by weak preaching will lose the reputation of being judicious more than their silence lost it What now will you do better and more than others to prove that the Nation cannot spare you I expect not great Judgement Learning in all the younger sort nor those that in these times have bin kept from study by labouring to get their children Bread but verily the injudiciousness of too many among you is for a lamentation But the grand calamity is that the most injudicious are usually the most confident and self-conceited and none so commonly give way to their ignorant zeal to censure back bite and reproach others as those that know not what they talk of I impute not this to you as Non-Conformists but as sons of Adam for experience hath convinced me that PRIDE OF UNDERSTANDING when men have little to be proud of or confidence of all mens own apprehensions is the vice of Men Women and Children when they are past eighteen years of age which seemeth to be most desperately uncurable Few sorts so silly but are always in the right and others erroneous in comparison of them as Bedlams pitty the ignorance of their Keepers So that I fear not the prevalency of scepticism in the world though I fear infidelity Self-conceitedness I warrant you will keep it under Such ancient as Ephrem Syrus Macarius Martin c. who were of little Learning but holy and humble and presumed not above their knowledge were honoured in the Churches but when the Egyptian Holy Monks would shew their humble pride and ignorance by tumults and zealous madness to seek the blood of the Bishops that believed not that God had Hands and Feet like Men and to destroy those as ungodly that were not as foolish as themselves what could have bin more scandalous against the honour of Godliness and Christianity 3. Over value not your own Preaching and under value not other mans because they are Conformists The number and necessities of the ignorant and ungodly indeed do make your labours necessary were you less fit than many of the Conformists