Selected quad for the lemma: ground_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
ground_n	church_n	faith_n	true_a	5,913	5	5.6645	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A67180	The jus divinum of presbyterie. Or, A treatise evidently proving by Scripture; all true ministers or embassadours of the Gospell to be rightly called divines or, Jure divino.	Writer, Clement, fl. 1627-1658.	1646 (1646)	Wing W3724; ESTC R220188	18,132	42

thereof also given him to profit the body withall Scripture Acts 6. 3. Wherefore Brethren look ye out among you seven men of honest repute full of the Holy Ghost 8. Quer. Whether from this Scripture may not be collected That Deacons were to be men full of the Holy Ghost that is eminently furnished with these gifts How much more then ought those who take upon them to be superiour Ministers of the Gospell to be such Scripture Joh. 16. 7 8 9 10. If I go not away the comforter will not come unto you but if I depart I will send him unto you And when he is come he will reprove the world of sinne and of righteousnesse and of judgement of sinne because they believe not in me of righteousnesse because I go unto the Father and ye see me no more 9. Quer. Whether from these Scriptures may not be collected That no ministry of the Gospell since the assention of Christ had power so to convince their hearers as to bring the sin of unbelief upon any that rejected their ministry nor to give any certain and undoubted ground of faith unto them without this witnesse of God by signes and gifts of the spirit which may be another reason why the Disciples themselves were cōmanded to stay untill they were indued with power from on high by the comming down of the holy Ghost upon them Scripture Joh. 5. 31. If I bear witnesse of my self my witnesse is not true 33 Ye sent unto John and he bare witnesse unto the truth 34 But I receive not testimony from man 35 But I have greater witnesse then that of John for the works which the Father hath given me to finish the same works that I do bear witnesse of me that the Father hath sent me Compared with Joh. 15. 24. If I had not done among them the works which no other man did they had not had sinne but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father Joh. 10. 37. If I do not the works of the Father believe me not 10. Quer. Whether from these Scriptures may not be collected That Christs own Ministry witnessed both by himself John the Baptist or any other man or men was not sufficient so to convince his hearers as to bring them under the sin of unbelief unlesse it had been also witnessed by the mighty works which he did in their sight being such as none could do but by the speciall power of God Scripture 1 Cor. 2. 4 5. My speech and my preaching was not with inticing words of mans wisdome but in demonstration of the spirit and of * That is God povverfully vvrought vvith him confirming his preaching vvith signes and miracles c. as Act. 19. 11. 12. Heb. 2. 4. power that your faith should not stand in the wisdome of men but in the power of God 11. Quer. Whether from these Scriptures may not be collected That that faith which is grounded upon any word Scripture or doctrine convayed to us by the hands or ministry of any men whatsoever not being also witnessed and confirmed by demonstration of the spirit and power of God as aforesaid stands in the wisedome of men and not in the power of God nor is such faith as the Church of Corinth had and therefore can be no true faith of the Gospell For all divine newes or doctrine such as the Gospell is requiring belief and obedience upon penalties as the Gospell doth ought to have some divine evidence and demonstration to confirm it otherwise it is no sufficient ground for true faith but may be waved without sinne because whatsoever is but uncertainly or fallibly evidenced as all in this case delivered meerly upon the credit of men is may as uncertainly or fallibly be entertained without any sinne yea it were folly if not sinne to do otherwise Scripture Joh. 16. 12 13 14. I have many things to say unto you but ye cannot bear them now howbeit when the spirit of truth is come he will guide you into all truth for he shall not speak of himself but whatsoever he shall hear that he shall speak and he will shew you things to come he shall glorifie me for he shall receive of mine and shall shew it unto you Acts 20 29 30. For I know that after my departure shall grievous Wolves enter in among you not sparing the flock also of your own selves shall men arise speaking perverse things Acts 21. 10 11. There came down from Judea a certain Prophet named Agabus and when he was come unto us he took Pauls girdle and bound his own hands and feet and said Thus saith the Holy Ghost so shall the Jews at Jerusalem binde the man that oweth this girdle and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles 1 Tim. 4. 1. Now the spirit speaketh expresly that in the later times some shall depart from the faith giving heed to seducing spirits Acts 8. 29. Then the spirit said unto Philip go near and joyn thy self to this Charet Acts 10. 19 20. While Peter thought on the vision The spirit said unto him behold three men seek thee arise therefore and get thee down and go with them doubting nothing for I have sent them Acts 13. 2. As they ministred to the Lord and fasted the Holy Ghost said separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them 1 Cor. 14. 29 30. Let the Prophets speak two or three and let the other judge if any thing be revealed to another that sitteth by let the first hold his peace for ye may all prophesie one by one that all may learn and all may be comforted 2 Tim. 4. 3 4. The time will come when they will not indure sound doctrine but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves Teachers having itching ears and they shall turn their ears from the truth and shall be turned into Fables 12. Quer. Whether from these Scriptures may not be collected 1 That the gift of prophesie is not a power of utterance enabling a man to speak the space of an hour two or three and therein to declare some notions or doctrines contrived by Arts and learning or gotten by reading studying or the like which is as falsly as commonly stiled preaching the word of God when indeed it is farre more likely to be that Ministery of Fables foretold of by St. Paul unto which the people should give up themselves and as we see evidently is come to passe 2 That the gift of prophesie was an expresse revelation by the spirit of the minde of God for their direction in things of speciall concernment to the Church in generall or to some member thereof in particular and a fore-telling things to come 3 That whensoever any thing was thus revealed by the spirit to any of the Members the same was to declare it for the mutuall edification and exhortation of the Church that all might learn and all might have comfort Scripture Matth. 3. 11.

c. which proves that our Assembly of Presbiters have the like Answ No more then it proves an Assembly of Episcopall Anabaptisticall Arminian or Arrian Presbyters have Divine Right nor more then it proves the Councell of Trent had Divine Right Objection Ours are godly Orthodoxe Divines the other an Hereticks Idolaters c. Answer Who but themselves and such onely as are their judgement will say so The same will each of the other respectively say of themselves and the contrary of their opposites But in this case man witnesse and as Christ sayes his own witnesse himself is not true Joh. 5. 31. 33. 35. Objection But thefe and other Texts in the New Testament do give Divine Right and power now to some to be Ministers of the Gospell Answer No more then the Book of the Prophesie of Jonah gives authority to some to preach to Nineveh Yet forty dayes and Nineveh shall be destroyed nor no more then the History of the Book of Kings gives authority to any to be Kings nor no more then the History of the Scribes and Pharises of the chief Captain of the Centurion or of Demetrius the Silver-Smith mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles gives authority to any to be such For as the Ministry of the Gospell is a Divine Office so it must necessarily be derived from a Divine power and bring with it suitable evidence without which the recitall in Scripture of such an Office proves no more one man then every man to be in that Office and no more then the recitall in Scripture of the Office of a King or chief Captain c. proves a man to be such without producing a lawfull Title and suitable evidence Objection True Ministers of the Gospell had Divine right and power whence then had they it if not from Scripture Answer They had it from Heaven and were therefore commanded to stay untill they were indued therewith from on high Luk. 24. 49. which was with the power of the Holy Ghost comming down upon them Acts 1. 8. Objection But Paul and Timothy with divers other are mentioned in Scripture to be true Ministers of the Gospell and to have Divine power yet received it not from on high as the former did Answer Though they received it not so immediately as the former did which first received it yet they received it from on High as well as they by the laying on of the hands of the Presbyters or true Ministers so Paul by the hands of Ananias Acts 9. 17. and Timothy by the hands of Paul 2 Tim. 1. 6. Yea the truth is all the Disciples and Believerr were indued with Divine Rights and power more or lesse for by the hands of Peter and John the Believers at Samaria both men and women received the Holy Ghost Acts 8. 12. 17. Likewise by the hands of Paul the Twelve Disciples at Ephesus received the Holy Ghost and spake with tongues and prophesied Acts 19. 1. 6 7. And as all the members of the Church were severally indued with these gifts of the spirit so they were to administer and do service accordingly As is evident by Rom. 12. 6 7. 1 Cor. 12. 27 28. Ephes 4. 11. So then it 's most apparent that the laying on of hands was no vain and fruitlesse ceremony as now it is Objection To what end then were the Books of the New Testament first writ if not for a ground and rise of true Ministers and Churches Answer They were writ for farther information and direction to true Ministers and Churches then in being and to whom also they were for the most part if not altogether sent but not to erect or impower any to become such These things considered I Quere Whether it be not justice reason and honesty for our Learned Clergy in pitie to their Lay and unlearned brethren from whom they and their predecessors have received such vast Revenews time out of minde for little or nothing either to give satisfaction in the premises or else for ever henceforth to forbear not onely their proud aspiring desires and endeavours of Domination over them but also to leave off their vile and reproachfull tearmes of Obloquie as of Sectaries Schismaticks Hereticks c. which usually from * VVitnesse Edwards his Book intituled Gangraena wherein the malitious Authour hath much discovered his own Orthodox ignorance impudence and folly Presse Pulpit they cast upon others farre more worthy then themselves Neverthelesse if after so many seven yeares servitude under our Ecclesiasticall Task-masters there be any yet so sottish who will not go free but will still vassalize themselves their judgments and consciences to any of that kinde Then by my consent let such have their ears bor'd thorow with an Awl and be made slaves for ever according to the Law Lev. 21. 6. Deut. 15. 17. But let the rest be uninslaved and go free according to right reason justice and their native priviledges especially they hauing redeem'd them at so deer a rate even to the eminent hazard of the totall vassallizing both of themselves and theirs for ever And yet notwithstanding all that hath been said I do not intend or suppose that pious and good men may not make a holy and comfortable use of the Scriptures No rather I earnestly perswade all men to the diligent reading thereof and meditation thereupon that so their hearts and mindes may be filled with the knowledge of the love of God to mankinde aboundantly there manifested and in the strength thereof to resolve to walk as becommeth true and reall Christianitie and no longer to conform themselves according to the fashion of this world under the meer name of Christians nor content themselves any longer with meer formalities and in drawing near to God with lip-service onely whilest their hearts run after covetousnesse or the vanities of this life as do the Gentiles but to live righteously soberly and godly in this present world that so their light may shine before men who seeing their good works may glorifie our Father which is in heaven And as any one shall increase in necessary and usefull knowledge I conceive it 's his duty to labour the strengthening of others and to beget the same knowledge in them And since no man commeth now with Divine authority and infallible demonstration and power to convince men as aforesaid let us all lay aside all peremptory insisting upon obscure and long controverted arguments all distinction of Clergy and Laity all anger and bitternesse all evill speaking judging and condemning one the other about difference of opinion and let our zeal be expressed who shall be most loving and tender-hearted and who shall exceed in doing most good each to other My aim is so far from discouaaging any one in making a right use of the Scriptures that I rather shew that all men have a like interest in the use thereof and a possibility to understand them as well and as truly as those who hitherto would be supposed to be by Divine Commission Ministers of Christ or Clergy to remove which long rooted Errour is my speciall work and to make known that any man of what calling or quality soever may lawfully publish or propose whatsoever he hath conceived from Scripture to the consideration of every particular mans understanding which is each mans judge other judge in these matters I finde none nor can I set limits to any mans understanding onely I advise since our condition herein is as it is That all things be duly and seriously weighed and that we be fully perswaded in our own mindes from an experimentall knowledge of the benefit and use of any thing we have a minde to propose or publish before we propose or publish the same and that all things be done without breach of love a rule easie to be understood and without breach of that good order which in discretion and upon mature deliberation may be agreed upon Let no man be startled for want of Learning as fearing he cannot understand the Scriptures aright though he have them in his own mother tongue because he understands not the Originall Languages wherein they were first written Objections of this Nature proceed from such as would hold captive the unlearned under the Superstitious Bond of a Romish necessity of an infallible Iuterpreter and dependance upon the Clergy and learned men but this way of theirs is palpable evill it would far better become those that say there are many errors in translations to amend them if they are able but if they are not able why boast they themselves above others if they can and will not mend them it is worse then if they were unable to mend them When they have said all they can to scarce people from trusting to their own judgements and understands of Scripture by the meer help of Translations they must confesse that the most skilful'st amongst them cannot prove they ever have had a sight of that which properly may be called an Originall and that they understand those things they have but imperfectly and are as little infallible as any others For there have alwayes been and still are more different and opposite judgements between the most learned and greatest Schollers then between any sort of men whatsoever which could not be if by all their Schollership they could attain to an infallibilitie or certainty of that which they pretend to know And therefore like true Christians they should rather rejoyce to observe in plain people so generall a desire after knowledge in the search of Scripture so great a love to Christian vertue and encourage them to a faithfull perseverance therein FINIS