Selected quad for the lemma: duty_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
duty_n	minister_n	people_n	word_n	2,669	5	4.3315	3	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A60564	The Quaker disarm'd, or, A true relation of a late publick dispute held at Cambridge by three eminent Quakers against one scholar of Cambridge ; with a letter in defence of the ministry and against lay-preachers ; also several quæries proposed to the Quakers to be answered if they can.	Smith, Thomas, 1623 or 4-1661.; Whitehead, George, 1636?-1723.; Allen, William, d. 1686.; Fox, George, 1624-1691.	1659 (1659)	Wing S4227; ESTC R18877	22,488	24

B. Saviour yet was not by any thought fit to be termed an Apostle till he had a speciall call to that office Act 1.23 29. 2ly Considering that Ioseph sirnamed Barsabas was a witness to all this as well as Matthias yet never exercised the Apostleship though it seems the Church of Christ esteemed him fit for it because he was not ordained thereto ●nymore then many others who where educated in the schole of Christ as well ●s the best 30. 3ly Considering that the most Blessed Iesus himself the only begotten son of God often profest that he came not without being sent Io. 17.8.18 Nor preacht any thing but what he heard nor did any thing but what he was commanded and this in a time when there was confessedly very great necessity of Reformation And then with what face other then brazen can any man now justifie the doing these things of himself who neither pretends that he is the Son of God nor yet that he seeth such a necessity of Reformation 31. Lastly considering that not only those Christians who lived neerest the times of our Saviour who probably might know more of his institution than t is possible we at this distance should but all succeeding ages for 1600. Years have had a Clergy and a discipline Certainly Sir we have sins as great as any of them the old sins to mortifie I heartily wish to God we had no new ones too then unheard of and therefore certainly we stand in as much need of Physicians as any of them did of all the blessed remedies and wholesome medicines against them which our good God hath appointed 32. I might adde many other places of Scripture as 2. Cor. 5.19 God hath reconciled us to himself by Christ Jesus and given to us the Ministery of reconciliation Now then we are Embassadours for Christ Wherein I entreat you to Observe that he saith committed to us the ministry of reconcilation here then is an appropriate Ministry not common to all the vulgar We are Embassadours T is limited to some few by vertue of a commission All cannot be Embassadours The Church is a body and all cannot be ears or eyes 1. Cor. 12.14.15.16 33. But I must not omit the answer which your friend made to Rom. 10.15 he said he was sent by the Church of Christ at Bedford To which I replyed 1. That that which he called the Church of Christ at Bedford could not send him or give him power to preach c. Because nothing can give that which it self hath not That Church consisting only of women and a few Lay-men is not in indeed a Church of Christ none of them hath power to preach or administer the Sacraments and therefore none of them can give the Tinker power to preach and administer the Sacraments 34. 2. The Church of Antioch was in all probability very numerous in those dayes when miracles were ordinary and three thousand were converted in one place at one sermon and yet in all the Scripture you shall not find by any word the least sign that those many people who were thus converted at Antioch did joyn together in church-Church-duties and ordinances as the Lords supper which the primitive and best Christians received every day Act. 2.42.46 and the people of your Town have not desired as I hear these fourteen years untill Barnabas and Paul had been with them When these two who were ordained Ministers of the word came unto them then and not till then were the Christians at Antioch termed a Church Act. 11. from the 20th verse to the 27th 35 I confess 't is both lawful and laudable for private Christians to endeavour the conversion of any that be indeed Infidels or Unbelievers to the truth of the Gospel or to teach children or servants the Catechisme c. and if this Tink●● had done no more staid at Bedford and taught his Family the Lords Prayer the Apostles Creed the Ten Commandments and the Doctrine of the Sacraments which things few of his followers in these parts can endure to hear of or if he had followed S. Pauls advice 1 Thes. 4.11 studied to be quiet and done his own business I should have nothing to have said against him 'T is lawful for private Christians to do what they can to convert Jews or Turks or Heathens or Atheists that is to prepare stones for the building of the Church as the antient Ecclesiastical stories tell us that Frumentius and AEdesius did in India and the captive maid in Iberia but after they be converted after they are baptized to unite these together and make up a building to assemble them in an Ecclesiastical bodie to usurp the Pulpit and that power which our Saviour distributed when he said All power is given to me both in Heaven and Earth go ye therefore and preach This is such a piece of presumption as we read not in the Acts of the Apostles nor in any other Ecclesiastical story that I have seen that any of the primitive Christians were ever guilty of But all this your T. hath been guilty of and much more For he hath not only intruded into the Pulpits in these parts and caused the people of your Town to hate their lawful Minister Mr. Iohn Ellis sen but as he told me encouraged them to proceed so far as to cudgel him and break open the Church doors by violence I wonder what example or precept in the Scripture he hath for this When he hath read Tit. 3.2 I desire him to see his doom 1 Pet. 4.15 where {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} that is one that thrusts himself in to preach in another mans parish against his consent is reckoned by the H. Ghost among no honester men then a Thief and a Murderer This will be a sad Text for him when the books shall be opened before him at the great Judgement day 36. And here I give you under my hand what I professed to the T 's face that if I could see any reason to draw me out of the true ancient Catholick and Apostolick Church into which I was baptized whereof the Church of England is the soundest part as I am ready to make appear against the Papists and all other new and old Schismaticks and Hereticks their Confederates If I say I could see any reason to draw me out of that Church into your Schisme who encourage the Tinker to preach I see not what should stop me from running into the worst Sect in the world from being an Anabaptist or Ranter or Quaker or Antiscripturist or what not 37 Give me leave to tell you a storie you gave the Tinker leave to tell you several of things done at Bedford T is out of S. Augustines Notes on Iohn 1.2 3. All things were made by him S. Austin saith that a Manichee another being troubled with Flies and disputing one of them said he thought that our good God could not be the Creator of such troublesome Insects Why then replied the

other who made the Bee which is somewhat bigger and hath a sting He yielded that the Devil made it From a Bee they proceeded to a Locust from a Locust to a Lizard so to a Bird to a Sheep to an Oxe to an Elephant to a Man And thus was the silly man deluded into a perswasion that he himself was not Gods Creature Just such a dreadful Conclusion do most of these people make who think it lawful for a Tinker or a man not ordained to preach are they not ready to pull down the Church walls to mend the High wayes you know who desired it To take the Bells out of the Steeple and carry them in Butter-panniers to London and sell them you know who did it Do they not cry that Sacraments are needless meer empty Ceremonies Preaching Foolishness Paul and Barnabas the sons of the Prophets Bablers Are they not ready to cry down Faith for a fancy All Clergie-men as Limbs of Antichrist Devotion as an emasculating trick of Machiavel In a word if these men may prevail down go Presbyters as well as Bishops Universities Schools Hospitals All thoughts of God All Reverence to his Word and all that is Holy And instead of these in rusheth Carneades's Philosophy that gain is Godliness and then the poorest hireling in the Town will soon have as much land as you or your Heir For men will turn from being an orderly Common-wealth to be a Community of Bears Tygers to delight in tearing and devouring each other from living in civil conversation they come to joyn hands in that grand piracy wherein the stronger swallow up the weaker upon no other pretence of right or reason imaginable but because they are the stronger saying with the Atheists Wisd. 2 1● Our strength is in the law of Iustice and that which is feeble is found to be nothing worth 41. But I see this paper swells above the ordinary extent of a letter and therefore I shall draw to a conclusion when I have spoke to one particular which is the common talk of this County viz. That one of your daughters being troubled in mind you sent for this Tinker to quiet her conscience 42. Sr. I know you are a man of so much prudence that if her or your temporall life were shaken with a palsy or the title to a parcell of your visible estate questioned by some potent-man you would not think it enough to employ a cheap Atturney or an ordinary Agent or send for some country dame to administer her kitchin physick but the ablest counsellors and the skilfullest Doctors should be posted to and exceeding much wariness and diligent attendances made use of and all thought little enough For truly a mans life and health and sometimes his estate is worth all this and in some cases it needs it all But then I beseech you do you beleeve your immortall soul for which Jesus laid down his precious bloud the only triflle and toy about you Are there not a thousand dangers and a million of difficulties and innumerable possibilities of miscarriage And how then comes it to passe that you think a Tinker or mean ignorant person can serve here If a man or woman be sick saith St. Iames 5.14 let him send for the Presbyters of the Church and let them pray over him 'T is needfull certainly to have such guides St. Iames knew which were best to steer the vessell when a stormy passion or a violent imagination despair or presumption transport a man to awaken his reason and quicken his devotion 43. And truely considering how like beasts of the heard men both of high and low degree do live in this age t is but reason that there should be a deal of retirement and initiation industry and instruction to educate such a person to tame the beast within him to subjucate his lower soul to enlighten his naturall and ●ctuate his spirituall powers to clear his eyesight that he may have a plain prospect of those gaities which the worldling dotes on and a true sense of the realities above to instruct his understanding and judgment that he may be able to resolve the many abstruce and intricate cases of conscience to confute the infinit● company of impudent hereticks and gainsayers which St. Paul notwithstandin● your anger looks upon as the preachers duty Tit. 1.9 to prepare him for so high and difficult an employment 44. I would now use some arguments drawn from reason and common sense to prove t is unlawfull for this Tinker to preach but supposing that you believe Scriptures to be the word of God I think such arguments needless 45. Remember that he who commits Ieroboams sin doth justly incur Ieroboams punishment and to hear such a person as Ieroboam set up is to commit Ieroboams sin For if such men had no hearers no applauders they would soon lay preaching aside To hear him then is to partake of his sin which the Apostle bids us beware of Rev. 18.4 Eph. 5.7 Besides he that hears such throwes his Soul unnecessarily upon temptations and out of the promise of Gods blessings for no blesing is promised to any but while he is doing that which God commands now he commands us to hear our Sheepheards Io. 10.1 to hear Moses and the Prophets Matt. 16.31 and those that sit in Moses chair Matt. 23.3 But never commanded us to hear the lowest of the people or men not ordained To this I might add that the flock must be under an oversight Act. 18 23.-20.28 1 Pet. 5.2 1 Thes. 5.12 Heb. 13.17.24 A mans own pastor hath a more speciall dispensation of the grace of God Eph. 3.2 and a pastors more especial tye to his flock than another argues that they are more especially tyed to him He is appointed to feed them they therefore to hear him 46. I shall commend you to the work of Gods grace when I have entreated you to consider the words of our Saviour Iohn 10.5 the sheep of Christ will not hear the voice of a stranger but will fly from him The sheep here are those who shall stand at the right hand of Jesus in the day of judgment Mat. 25.33 as the T. confessed when I urged this text against him And that by a stranger is meant an intruder into the sacerdotall office appears by comparing this place with Num. 16 40-1.51-3.10-18.7 And with other texts where this word is interpreted to be one that is not a Levite one not ordein'd by imposition of hands as the Preachers were not only in the first and best times of Christianity 1. Tim. 4 15-5 22-2.22-3.10.6.13.14 2. Tim. 1.6 Tit. 1.5 but also ever since in all places all ages till this 47 And now Sir let me beseech you for Gods sake for Christs sake for his Churches sake for your reputation sake for your childrens sake for your Countrys sake for your own immortall souls sake to consider these things sadly and seriously not to think a Tinker more infallible then the pu●● spouse of Christ the Church of all ages mentioned in your creed but to search the Scriptures 〈◊〉 Canon whereof you receive meerly upon the authority of that Church and to foresee what will be 〈◊〉 sad consequence both to the souls and bodies and estates of you and your children in following 〈◊〉 strangers Entreating you to peruse also this enclosed printed paper against Lay-preachers I bes●●● the Lord to give you and yours understanding in all things remaining Your faithfull Servan● in Christ Jesus Caucat May