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	person_n	1,479	5	5.0691	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A27412	A disswasive from error much increased a perswasive to order much decayed / by Joseph Bentham.	Bentham, Joseph, 1594?-1671.	1669 (1669)	Wing B1909; ESTC R25276	73,061	94

doubt that disobedience to their lawful commands in lawful things tends to the Rom 13. 3. damnation of souls Object I will then submit to the punishment inflicted according to Law Answ But what if that is not sufficient in point of conscience for Laws made of things just and profitable for humane societies intend the subjects obedience in doing them and are confirmed with a double bond the wrath of the Magistrate and conscience towards God by undergoing the punishment the injury done to man is satisfied but by resisting the Magistrate in intention and breaking a profitable Law a man remains under the pollution of sin before God from whom none can discharge The Law enjoyns publick Worship and forbids such private Meetings you neglect the publick Worship and extol your private Meetings as the only way you condemn the Law as unjust and commend your so doing as good whereas the Law tending to settle preserve and keep unity peace order and concord must needs be good And being so consider whether such Meetings can be so 1. Confronting and disobeying lawful Authority 2. Casting dirt and disgrace upon the face and form of Government proclaiming it persecuting and tyrannical compelling such good people as you would be accounted to creep into Barns and Houses as if you wanted the truth publickly taught in our publick Meetings 3. Do you not in so doing condemn our Church as false if not Antichristian 4. Do you not condemn all the allowed Clergy as unprofitable and naught 5. Do you not neglect and draw others to neglect the publick Ordinances of Christ 6. Do you not cause people to slight their Teachers and to question whether there be such a thing as Religion and so to turn Atheists 7. Do you not hereby cause people to think our Laws are but scare-crows and our Law-makers to be such men who regard not what they do so to undervalue the one and other 8. Do you not encourage your Teachers to do that they have no warrant to do from God or man For what warrant have they to exercise the Ministerial function since the same Authority which enabled them to disinables them from preaching It is the Law which inables us to and allows us where and when to preach which Law hath power to disinable also To this end see the judgment of the old Nonconformists in a Book put forth by Mr. William Rathband in which they prove against Separatists that the Church of England is a true Church and that separation from it is unlawful Amongst many other things they answer the Separatists objecting against them their yielding to suspensions and deprivations thus That so long as the Bishops suspend and deprive according to the Law of the Land we account of the action herein as of the act of the Church which we may and ought to reverence and yield unto if they do otherwise we have liberty given us by the same Law to appeal from them Object If it be said that the Church is not to be obeyed when it suspends and deprives us for such causes as we in our consciences know to be insufficient Answ We answer say they That it lyeth in them to depose that may ordain and they may shut that may open and that as he may with a good conscience execute a Ministry by the ordination and calling of the Church who is privy to himself of some unfitness if the Church will press him to it so may he who is privy to himself of no fault that deserveth deprivation cease from the execution of his Ministery when he is pressed thereunto by the Church And if a guiltless person put out of his charge by the Churches authority may yet continue in it what proceeding can there be against guilty persons who in their own conceits are alwayes guiltless or will at least pretend so to be seeing they also will be ready alwayes to object against the Churches judgment that they are called of God and may not therefore give over the execution of their Ministry at the will of man Object And to the speech of the Apostles objected Act. 4. 19 20. Answ They shew it is most unskilfully alledged there being three differences between their case and the Apostles 1. They who inhibited the Apostles were known and professed enemies to the Gospel 2. The Apostles were charged not to teach in the name of Christ nor to publish any part of the Doctrine of the Gospel which commandement might be more hardly yielded unto than this Our Bishops are not only content that the Gospel should be preached but are also Preachers of it themselves 3. The Apostles received not their calling and authority from men nor by the hands of men but immediately from God himself and therefore also might not be restrained or deposed by men Whereas we although we exercise a function whereof God is the Author and we also called of God to it yet are we called and ordained by the hands and Ministry of men and may therefore by man be also deposed and restrained from the exercise of our Ministry Thus they See also Mr. Bals tryal of the grounds of separation a solid work 9. Do not such Meetings asperse all the penal Laws of the Land and the judicial proceedings which have been since the Reformation against Papists Priests and Jesuits or any other justly suffering for their Religion as acts of highest injustice 10. Do they not endeavour the rending and crumbling our Church to nothing 11. Are they not a menas to fill the Kingdom full of factions and tumults 12. Yea and are they not against your so much cryed up Covenant which was to bring the Church of God in the three Kingdoms to the neerest uniformity in Religion whereas you by thus doing go about to divide and subdivide not being ignorant what fruits our Saviour shews to come Mat. 12. 25. from division saying A Kingdom divided against it self political good Laws and constitutions Ecclesiastical as doctrine and discipline brings desolation probably and very often Look but to the Church of Corinth what desolations Their preaching an empty thing when one for this anther 1 Cor. 1. 12. 1. Cor. 11. 20. for that Their Communions became desolate and by such means and doings St. Paul became their enemy who gave them their very being in faith and was their spiritual father And what desolation such divisions bring with us is evident what casting off your Preachers their old precepts and your old practises until at length some grow from something to nothing Is it not so when some noted for parts and piety long since a long time talk so Atheistically as to profess a readiness to hear the one and the other with a resolution to believe neither the one preaching against the other and that there was never any sound preaching since Christ's time Are these good fruits and would not such have objected the same against the Prophets Apostles and Christ himself false Prophets and Apostles

therefore we should be as careful to avoid errors as other vices Since a blind eye may be as bad as a lame foot since a man wanting light is apt to fall and stumble and the Apostle shews that Rom. 1. 26. a vain mind hath vain affections II. Proposition The second Proposition is this Although many men who know much do greatly err yet error and ignorance are of so neer kin that ignorance is usually the mother of error An ignorant man may be stubborn and wilful yet he cannot be fixt and Mat. 22. 29. steddy but is doubtful and wavering yet prone to settle himself in that which is unsound so subject to error If a knowing man doth err it is hard to convince him and if he who knows no reason doth err he will not be convinced by reason Surely error properly proceeds from ignorance for he who maintains either opinion or practise against conscience is more than in an error It is obstinacy when it refers to practise it is Heresie when it refers to opinion for in Hereticks errors are usually against light and such delight in error III. Proposition He who judgeth himself to be in the truth is not to leave the truth because some call it error for as we are not to take up errors because some call them truths so we are not to let go truths because some call them errors Good men should be easily led into the Prov. 22. 23. Isa 11. 6. right way and turn to the truth but not forced from it many things being called errors which are not A man therefore not convinced and desirous to be informed he is out of the way nothing said to satisfie conscience and to change his jugment much spoken but little proved many reasons in number all light in weight he is not to leave the truth judging it to be so And men should be careful not to brand such for errors which are not or they think to be so except and until they can prove them to be so which Christ doth giving reasons and making good his charge for invectives do Mat. 23. 13 14. c no good discoveries may We are to make good our charge when we accuse any of error or heresie many being falsly accused as we are by Papists who spread the livery of Hereticks and Schismaticks on us Innocent truths often suffer under odious imputations To prove error therefore we are to be more in argument than in passion to condemn things by reasoning not miscalling IV. Proposition Although men do usually offend towards such who do err using bitter speeches against them they think are in error yea then when they cannot prove it an error as Jobs friends had many hards words against Job few or no sound Arguments it being easier to be angry with an error than to argue against it and men are usually so angry because they have little reason they often having most earnestness against opinions who have least to say against them Moreover although they who suppose us to be in error do therefore magnifie themselves against us and in so doing come under the Apostles reproof they sinning in Rom. 11. 17 18 14. 3. 1 Cor. 10. 11. so doing 1. Because they forget their own frailties and how apt they are to fall whereas by others failings we should take notice to what we may be tempted as by others holy actions we are to learn what we should do and because such forget that they have fallen into other sins and errors if not the same Yea suppose they are freer than is possible Joh. 8. 5. to be on earth why should they magnifie themselves over others who sin Doth God so O no he pities and spares Bewail we then their condition pray for them and bless God who hath preserved us It being no easie matter to convince such who err error being as binding as truth not in the name of error but of truth men being in love with their own conceptions which are as the flesh of their own minds And men taking up an opinion think it a disgrace to lay it down again it being also a rare thing to make men yield up their judgments although misguided When therefore we deal with erroneous persons it is good to follow the Apostles direction instructing opposers with meekness 2 Tim. 2. 25. since gentle dealings will best become disswasives from error for where the matter is like to displease the manner should not be sharp Bitter pills must be sugar'd that they may go down the better otherwise men of contrary minds will think all spoken against them to be out of rage anger And other offendors will better abide sharpness than they for contrary opinions think they are in the right and pride is touchy whereas other sins fill the soul with shame and there is not that boldness to reply whereas in opin●ons where men think they are in the right we have need to deal gently lest pride take prejudice according therefore to St. Pauls precept and St. James his practise I beseech you brethren do not err V. Proposition We are to be careful not to live in or m●intain any error in our selves and in our several places we should endeavour to draw others Jam. 5 19 20. from their errors turning men from the error of their wayes This is a duty and needful since good men are subject to err Mat. 24. 24. error being catching and much comply●ng with our natural thoughts we being also to take care of others salvation one member of the safety of another yea of the meanest in the Hab. 3. 12. 11. 15 16. Exo. 23. 4. Church one spark oft occasioning a great flame It being also an act of charity to reduce those who go astray even a straying beast much more a man although usually none are so angry as they who are seduced into opinions by interest their sores must not be touched for to maintain an error is Gal. 4. 15. a vain thing nothing being more vain than errors or false opinions of God of the wayes of God and of his dealings Error is vanity it is a lye He therefore who is in an error 1 Joh. 2. 21. should be convinced although some will make a fair cover for a deformed error there being no error but some will second yea and some mens consciences when they know not what to say will be talkative although it is an ill office to be Orators for our own or others errors our own or others sinful practises considering also how subject man is to err in speech practise and judgment And that men knowing they may err are in a fairer way to the truth than such who think they cannot err they erring in so thinking whereas such are most secured from error who think they may err Errors also in doctrine are usually accompanied with errors in life The gross prophaness of the Brownists is shewed in a Book called the