Selected quad for the lemma: judgement_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
judgement_n	authority_n	church_n	particular_a	1,635	5	6.7687	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A34020	Gospel order revived being an answer to a book lately set forth by ... Increase Mather ... entituled, The order of the gospel, &c ... / by sundry ministers of the gospel in New England.	Colman, Benjamin, 1673-1747.; Pemberton, Ebenezer, 1672-1717.; Woodbridge, Timothy, 1656-1732.; Bradstreet, Simon, 1671-1741.	1700 (1700)	Wing C5399; ESTC W13238	38,537	52

Argument here is a Supposition of Shipwrack upon some desolate Island and we easily grant that one of the Company being elected may become a Minster of God unto them but it is more from the Providence and Call of God than their Election It s God must furnish 〈…〉 It● God must incline him to undertake it Its God that ●●i●s up the People to receive and entertain him as a Minister God gives success to his Ministry c. But besides this it is to be considered that God does not tye himself to those means which he has tyed us unto in ordinary cases according to that usual saying Jus divinum p●s●tivum cedit juri divino Natural● The case is who●●y extraordinary and God that makes the Necessity wi●● also dispence with our unavoidable Complyance Were our Author in the right the sinful Will of Man whereon the Election does depend might frustrate the whole Ministry that Christ has instituted But alas whether men will hear o● whether they will for bear our Lord will send his Ministers and whether Men will call them or no they shall beforced to confess Verily we had Prophets among us Ezek. 33 33. We wonder also that they ●●o insist upon it That it is Christs peculiar Prerogative to state his own Worship should s●oil him of another part of it to make his own Officers If the People may do one why not the other And it increases our Wonder that the Reverend Author should revive this Assertion at this ti 〈…〉 of day Forty six years after it has been so learnedly and so fully refu●ed in Jus Divinum Ministerij Eva g●li●i published by the Provincial Assembly of London chap. 9. without taking Notice of their Answers and Arguments 2dly We shall p●ss by several things in these Chapters which in a severe Disquisition we might justly except against Our second Charge is That he makes imposition of hands a little unnecessary Ceremony Though we can distinguish between Ordination and I ●position of Hands and approve what the afore-mentioned Assembly says pag. 157. We must distinguish between the Substance Essence and formal Act of Ordination and the Rite used therein The Essential Act of Ordination is the constit●ting or appointing a man to be a Minister or the sending him with Power and Authority to preach the Gospel The Rit● is Imposition of hands Yet we can see no reason why this Rit● being of divine Institution 1 T●m 5. 22. used by the Apostles the primitive Church and generally since the Reformation should now be run down as so triffling a Ceremony We know the Reyerend Author could have quoted a whole L●af of famous Authors who speak highly for it If the Provincial Assembly at London displease him the New-England Plat-form may satisfie him That Church Officers are not only to be ●●o●●n by the Church but ab●● ordained by Imposition of hands and Prayer or the Answer to the 32 Questions that says expresly Ordination is necessary by divine Institution But i● the Author indeed disquieted it the imposition of hands because but a Ceremony It is out looking back to pag 80 and we shall see he as much magnifies and contends for as meer a Rite to be sure s●●l the right hand of fellowship The Reverend Author not only speaks meanly of the laying on of hands of the Presbytery but ●● too ●●ch countenances the Imposition of hands by Brethren or Persons out of Office His Text of Scripture Numb 8 9 10. respecting the Children of Israel s putting their hands on the Levites is so fully and punctually answered by the Provincial Assembly of London pag. 188. that we remit the Reader thither for ●● love ●ot to transeribe In the New Testament he owns there is no instance of Persons out of Office imposing hands And notwithstanding all his instances the Apostles assertion stands good Heb. 7. 7. and without all contradiction the less is blessed of the greater The Authors next Essay is to remove the weighty Objection That none can give what himself hath not And this he does by some Simili●udes To touch upon one pag. 99. A Woman saith he by giving her ●el● in Marriage causeth the Man to ●●o●● she giveth her self ●● have the power of a Husband but no man will be so absurd ●● to say that a Woman has formally the power of an ●●●sh●●d A poor Return ind●●d to so weighty an Objection An unmarri●d Woman has power over her self to rule and govern her self and her Actions as fully as the Husband has when she is married though a particular Church without any Officer has not power to ●eed teach govern themselves and ad 〈…〉 Ordinances Here ●● a plain Disparity Moreover it is gro●● ●●●u●d to affirm that the Wife gives the Power to the Husband Indeed she gives her self but it is the Institution and Command of God that gives the Power and could we suppose that to be laid aside they would be equal To be sure it Women once get this Notion by the end that they give the Power to their Husbands we should soon have them indenting limiting and reserving in part to themselves by a Marriage Contract as well their Power and Authority as their Estates 4ly The Author asserts That no man ought to be ordained a Pastor except unto a particular Church pag. 101. Which kind of Doctrine doth indeed startle us because it manifests the Reverend 〈◊〉 to be very u●stable in his Judgment It is credibly reported That at a general Convention of Ministers at Boston May 26. 1698. and there are enough yet living who knew the truth of ●t to whom we appeal this Question was discussed Whether a Minister might be ordained though he had as yet no particular Church in order to 〈◊〉 Administration of Baptism and the gathering settling a Church This as we are told had a more peculiar reference to Mr. Clap's Nation at Rhode Island and it was voted and carried in the Affirmative and what is yet stranger was lead on and put to the Vote by the Author himself he being the Moderator of the Assembly Upon this conclusion Mr. Williams was ordained in the Colledge Hall in order to his Voyage to Barbadoes Now it is wonderful to us how the contrary to that which was a truth two years ago should obtain now Possibly the Reverend Author'● modesty won't suffer him to think the Ballance equal or we would put the late Vote of May 98 in the Scale against the Council of Calcedon p 105. 5ly We crave the Readers patience and will offer but one Remark upon these two Chapters In pag. 102 its said Pastar and Flock are Relates and therefore one cannot be without the other It is contrary to the Rules of Reason as Logicians know that the Relate should be without its Correlate To say that a wandering Levite who has no Flock is a Pastor is as good sence as to say to the who has no Children is a Father and the Man who has

no Wife is a Husband This is worn thred-bare and answered long ago by the Assembly at London and others and sometimes by the Author himself A Minister may be considered under a double Notion as a Minister of C 〈…〉 t or of this or that particular Church In this latter sence they are Relate Correlate and no otherwise Hence if he leaves them he ceases to be their Minister and they cease to be his Flock but still he may be a Minister of Christ and they a Church of Christ And thus in that little Book that is en●it●led The judgment of several Divines of the Congregational way concerning a Pastors Power occasionally to exe●t Ministerial acts in another Church besides that which is his particular Flock the Reverend Author expresses himself after this manner pag. 1. The Ministerial Power which a Pastor has received from the Lord Jesus Christ ●● not so ●o●fined to his particular Flock as that he shall cease to be a Minister when he shall act in the Name of the Lord else where And a little after I am as to this particular fully of the same judgment with the learned Dr. J. Owen in 〈◊〉 judicious Treatise concerning a Gospel Church Pag. 100 101 where he has these words Although we have no concer●●●us in the sig●ent of an indelible Character accompanying sacred Orders yet we do not think the Pastoral Office is such a thing as a man must leave be●●nd him every time he goes from home for my own part ● I did not think my self b●●nd to preach as a Minister authorized in all places and ●● all occasions when I am called thereunto I think I should never preach more in this World Thus Dr. Owen We see then that our Reverend Author and the famous Dr. Owen plainly hold that though there be a Relation to a particular flock yet a Minister is so au●hro●zed by Jesus Christ that he is capable in his Name to perform Ministerial Acts in other places and upon all occasions And were not our Author sincerely of this Opinion we cannot but think he would highly condemn any Minister that should be absent from his Flock four years together upon any service whatsoever ●ure if he be no way capable to act as a Minister of Jesus Christ he is all that while but as a stray Bird idly wandering from its Nest Yet at this time our Author would bear the World in hand that a Minister has no power to act as such but to his particular Flock and therefore quotes the words of the Plat-form chap. 9. sect 7. He that is clearly loosed from his Office Relation to that Church whereof he was a Minister cannot be looked on as an Officer nor perform any act of O 〈…〉 e in any other Church unless he be again called unto Office But a more eminent Assembly of Divines at London have quoted this very Paragraph pag 1●5 and severely but justly answered it as a great ●bs●rdity and contrary to sound Doctrine The answer to the other part of the Question Whether a Minister should be ordained only in the presence of that Church where he is ●●serve ● Will result from what has been already laid down The presence of Christ must be supposed when ever a person is seperated to his Ministry but seeing our Lord Commissions none immediately such must be present as have Power to authorize Commission and give the charge in his Name When ever a Call is given received and accepted whether it be by Words Message or letter both Minister and People are conceived as present face to face But the Circumstances of Times Places Persons Distance c. must determine this matter which as they m●● fall out may sometimes render it both prodent regular and necessar● then its the Voice of Providence for a Min 〈…〉 to be ordained on one Land and to serve in another Q. 14. Is the Practice of the Churches of New-England in granting Letters of Dismission or Recommendation from one Church to another according to Scripture and the Example of other Churches The Reverend Author refers to many Scriptures to prove the Affirmative but not one of them reaches the Question or proves ●● dismission for this end soil to take a person off from being a Member of one Church to be made a Member of another The Epistles or Letters he refers to are all Apo●ta●●cal or Ministerial not the Letters of one Church to another some only excepted which is mentioned as writ by the Brethren but Apol●● on whole behalf they wrote was not a Member of their Church nor do they write to those in Achaia to receive him as a Member but rather as a Minister or as a Christian of eminence and singular goodness Indeed there may be a good use of Letters of Recommendation and especially among strangers and where a Member removes from one Church to another a mutual satisfaction may be laboured after But we cannot but think such Letters frivilous when in the same Town and at two streets distance a Person known over all the Town for an exemplary Conversation prefers anothers Ministry Civility will constrain such persons to acquaint then Ministers of their purposes and the same Christian Civility obliges such a Minister to acquaint the other Pastor if need be to whose Ministry they repair that they have carried themselves well in his Communion and that he hopes they may prove blessings in all other But as for the Brethren We need not go to them to make a second Speech now to ask leave to with-draw and to render an account to every impertinent Talker who thinks the man Married to him and that his bed is broke into or that there 's no just reason for a divorce Moreover some people are forever dissatisfied neither conveniencies of Habitation liking the others Ministry profiting under it or dislike of some Customs and Practices which he would willingly be rid of the light of can satisfy And what must the grieved person do further in this case Why truly he has done his duty and may hear and communicate where God and his own sober Conscience directs him No● ought any Minister of Christ to reject his claim to the Lords Table with him To say no more our Reverend Author having in a former Treatise proved that persons baptized are thereby subjects of Discipline We think they all ought to be accountable to the Society where they are there persons being dismissed by the Providence of God whether they have letters of dismission or not Else by their principles an ordained Minister in London formerly of Communion with a Church in Boston being called to Office in a particular Church and having accepted the Pastoral Care thereof must first send over a Pacquet to New-England for a Letter of dismission And don't you think he would be well imployed Qu. 15 Is not the asserting that a Pastor may administer the Sacrament to another Church besides his own particular Church at the a●fire