Selected quad for the lemma: kingdom_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
kingdom_n	church_n	word_n	world_n	3,040	5	4.5870	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A78093	Temple-defilers defiled, vvherein a true visible Church of Christ is described. The evils and pernicious errours, especially appertaining to schisme, anabaptisme, and libertinisme, that infest our Church, are discovered. And directions to preserve from the sin and punishment of temple-defiling, delivered in two sermons preached at the lecture in Kingston upon Thames, Feb. 20. & 27. 1644. out of I Cor. 3.17. / By Richard Byfield pastor in Long-Ditton, Surrey.	Byfield, Richard, 1598?-1664.	1645 (1645)	Wing B6394; Thomason E278_20; ESTC R200019	46,454	48

This from the word Temple in the sense here used 2. Doct. Many there are yea many within the visible Church that are defilers and Violaters of this Temple of God 3. Doct. God will certainly punish every and all the defilers and violaters of this his Temple with punishments proportionable to their sin in violating and defiling the same For the first of these Note the difference I put between a Professor of the true Faith and a true professor of that true Faith One may professe the truth and not truly professe it he may be a hypocrite in his profession A Professor is visible and profession of the Faith may be discerned by men from profession of falshood but a true Professor and the truth of his profession is to be desired and prayed for but is not so easily discerned God onely that searches the heart can infallibly judge of this Again I use the word Society as the Genus of a Church not an Assembly for a Church is no lesse a Church when the Assembly is dismissed then when they are Assembled in the use of any Ordinance of God Nor a Congregation that word is too narrow it agreeth not to all the kindes but the word Society that agrees to a particular visible Church and to the whole visible Church to the Church in a house the Church in a Village of one Congregation the Church in a City consisting of many Congregations as the Church of Ierusalem of Ephesus of Corinth the Church in a Kingdom or Nation committed to the profession of the Faith of Christ the Church in the whole world the Church in her Officers gathered together to hear complaints the Church in her Members assembled to worship and serve the Lord according to the Gospel of Christ It is weak and a poor quarrell my opinion is it is so to deny a National Church under the New Testament for under the old its beyond all question and to plead there is no other visible Church then Congregationall The Church at Ierusalem was not Congregationall in that sense that is it did not consist of one Congregation that could meet in one place all the Members of it have one Pastor preach to them at one time and use other Ordinances of Worship as the Sacrament of the Lords-Supper Baptisme Publique Prayer and fellowship together twelve Apostles were not able to discharge to them the duty that belonged to the word and Prayer without the help of seven Deacons to take off them the care of distributing of the Church-Almes Act. 6. 1 2 3 4. It is hard to make clear proof that the word Church in all the History of the New Testament is given to a Congregation I desire to see it And why may not a Nation professing the Faith be called a Church as well as all the world of Professors be called a Church Why not now as well as under the Old Testament The word Church is applicable to every Society of men that professe the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ We read of Churches in the New-Testament because we have severall Societies and Nations of men converted and become the people of God And whereas I hear of some that say did ye ever hear of Nations converted in the Scripture those be strange conversions the conversions of whole Nations I answer did you ever read the Scripture and yet passe by those famous prophesies concerning the Church under the New Testament All Nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee O Lord And shall glorifie thy name Psa 86. 9. Again In the last dayes the mountain of the Lords house shall be established in the top of the mountains c. Isa 2. 2 3 4. And all nations shall fl●w unto it and many people shall go and say Come ye and let us go up c. And he shall judge among the Nations And again Zac. 8. 20 21 22. There shall come people and the inhabitants of many Cities and the inhabitants of one City shall go to another saying Let us go speedily to pray before the Lord and to seek the Lord of Hosts I will go also Yea many people and strong Nations shall come to seek the Lord and pray before him It is a strange thing you say The Lord speaks of it indeed as a strange work Who hath heard such a thing Who hath seen such things Shall a Nation be born at once Esa 66. 81. Yet Zion doth so To what purpose were that command Go teach all Nations and Baptize if a Nation might not receive the Gospel and Baptisme or can any doubt of such an effect of Preaching the Gospel when Christ hath promised to his Ministers preaching to Nations that He will be with them to the end of the world Who can deny whole Nations imbracing the Gospel that have not lost their senses the Nation of England at this day and the Nation of Scotland professe the truth of Christ and now in their representative bodies are all for Reformation for the power of godlinesse for the rooting out of Popery Heresie Schisme Prelacy Prophanenesse and in this work count not their lives and livelyhoods dear unto them Moreover since I am upon this point let me propose this Argument for a Nationall Church He that hath all power given to him of God in Heaven and earth and out of the fulnesse of that power saith Teach all Nations and Baptize them and promiseth his presence to the World and to make the Nations obedient to the Faith and to receive the Gospel and Baptisme doth in so doing set up properly one Church of all the Nations in the world that receive the Gospel and Baptisme and make Nationall Churches of the severall Nations that receive the Gospel and Baptisme But Jesus Christ hath all power given him of God in Heaven and Earth and out of the fulnesse of that power saith Teach all Nations and Baptize them and promiseth his presence to the worlds end to make the Nations obedient and to receive the Gospel and Baptisme Therefore IESVS CHRIST doth in so doing set up one Church of all Nations that receive the Gospel and Baptisme and make Nationall Churches of the severall Nations that receive the Gospel and Baptisme I have degressed somewhat but let it passe Whether there be a Nationall or Congregationall Church or no this is sure every Society of Christians professing the true Faith is a Church and the Temple of God which now we come to prove for that is requisite that both branches of the first Doctrine be made good by clear Scripture The fi●st that every Christian professing the true Faith especially the true Professor is Gods Temple read the 16. verse of this Chapter and chap. 6. 6. 19. Where the Apostle saith Know ye not that ye are the Temple of God What know you not this Every Christian profession answereth our outward call is called to this honour to be Gods Temple this is the dignity to which ye are

of God many of the Seraphims Esa 6. 6 7. with live-coales in their hands taken with the Tongs from off the Altar and laying them upon the mouthes of many faithfull able Ministers many an Esay They shall faile of their ends their folly shall be manifest to all 2. Tim. 3. 9. that is all the Elect but evill men and seducers will waxe worse and worse deceiving and being deceived they shall not yet deceive the Elect. You 'le say many of the choicest Christians cleave to them and many of them are the precious servants of Christ Iesus we cannot be otherwise perswaded for them I said but even now they may be saved but their workes shall perish themselves shall be saved yet so as by fire and for the rest marke it that was their ayme to get the choice Christians those whose hearts are for Christ and Heaven their designe is mostly upon any in whom any worke of Grace appeares So have all deceivers ever that they might glory in their flesh as our Apostle according to the wisdome given unto him hath written Gal. 6. 13. but they shall not compasse their end they 'le returne perceiving the strangers voice these gracious soules thought it had been Christs voyce which they heard in these men in these their errours but finding at length their mistake and under the sheeps-skin of gifts and graces perhaps shew of Scripture manifestation of the Spirit finding the bloody wolfe of errour and falshood that soul-murtherer they will embrace the truth and follow Christ perhaps hearing this you will for a while be froward for who can be willing to think he is in an errour or is deceived but Christ and his Father hold you in their hand and you cannot wrest your selves thence Another end they have they would be great and of same in the Church of God but their folly shall be manifest to all not only to the Elect but to all that will not deny the light of their reason and doe hold the Scripture in the Word of God and so shall fall in their esteem in mens hearts within the Visible Church our Saviour hath said it they shall be least in the Kingdome of Heaven Mat. 5. 19. of no esteem in the Church of Christ although for a while they beare the bell See the t●uth of it in all the Hereticks Schismaticks Novellists Persecuters and the like of all former ages they have no name of memoriall left but a rot is upon their memory Another end they have and that is to spread and propagate their Opinions and waies that they might with the Pharisees and Herodians of old leaven all the lump of Gods people but their folly shall be manifest and that manifestation of their folly shall set them their bounds they shall proceed no further Thus have all the ancient Heresies and Schismes of the Pelagians Donatists and the like been bounded and the infection stayed so God defiles Church-defilers they faile of their ends There are for them from God apportioned Plagues in this world they make rents and trouble Gods building the repairing of his house God will trouble them these Achans God will scatter them in Iacob and disperse them in Israel They break and teach the breaches and violations of Gods Commandements the least of his Commandements that of his day they shall be esteemed nothing in the Church be least in the Kingdome of Heaven Scandalous Brethren shall have their Milstone workers of iniquity strange punishments Heresies and divisions swarm God hath his East wind whereby he can sweep away those Locusts and cast them into the Red Sea Persecutors have their doom notably in this life besides hereafter Remember Antiochus of whom you reade in the second of Maccab. 9. chap. Remember Herod eaten up with wormes Act. 12. 23. Remember the Heretique Arrius that voided his bowels with his ex●rements in a common Iakes and all other Heretiques and Schismatiques and the Plagues upon Papists mentioned in Rev. 16. and 18. chapters It is not the least of punishments to give them over to their severall pernicious wayes that he that is filthy should be filthy still the spiritually proud should be so still where God saith they are joyned to Idols Let them alone They are Vain-glorious Let them alone They are given to errours and to make divisions Let them alone Thus you see how God will destroy the destroyers of his house The certainty of this just proceeding of the Lord appears in four things which are as so many reasons or grounds of this Doctrine 1. It is the vengeance of his Temple Jer. 51. 11. 50. 28 which is a sore vengeance in the execution whereof the Lord Pleadeth the cause of Zion throughly to give rest to his Church and disquiet his enemies whose spirit can sustain it self in the day of Visitation when the Lord shall say Behold I am against thee 2. Secondly the Argument is strong here from the lesse to the greater God hath said and will not repent of his word concerning Death and the Grave O Death I will be thy Plague O Grave I will be thy destruction Hos 13. 14. Because they offered to touch the bodies of his Saints which are his Temple and destroyed his holy place Shall God say thus of Death and the Grave and resolve that Repentance shall be hid from his eyes In this thing he will never alter his purpose that he determined And shall he not much more be the plagues and destruction of soul-polluters of d●stroyers of his Church of rophaners of the Communion of his Saints and people Thirdly the Temple of God is holy and inviolable therefore the sin of Prophaning and wasting of it is provoking and execrable Fourthly God is a jealous God and the vindicator and avenger of his glory “ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Zelo●es et vindex gloriae suae no gifts will pacifie jealousie no power can shelter and save from the jealousie of the Lord of Hosts It is he the mighty one of Jacob the holy one of Israel that saith Zach. 8. 2. I am jealous for Zion with great jealousie and I am jealous for her with great fury I have done with the explication and confirmation of the third Doctrine the application respecting the present Doctrine and the whole Text I shall draw up under two sorts of uses 1. Of Information 2. Of Exhortation 1. We may from hence inform our Iudgements in four truths First what is the Christian use of the Ceremoniall Law the practice of it is out of date and deadly but it is not cut out of the Bible “ Non observamus non quia damnata sed quia mutata sunt non ut res ipsae quae significabantur perirent sed ut ●●ru● sign● suis quaque temporibus convenirent Tom. 6. Aug. oratione cont Iud. c. 3. God hath left it as part of Canonicall Scripture that we may reade it preach and hear it that comparing the things themselves with those

of righteousnesse see the tenour of the Scriptures and accordingly produce Arguments and answer Objections as for Example There are arisen among us some that utterly deny the Baptizing of Infants of Professors of the Faith of Iesus Christ now how easily might this matter be resolved among men of quiet and Christian spirits They say Infants ought not to be baptized What one Text in all the Scripture saith so Not one What Arguments can they alledge Not one that reacheth the matter in hand for they all go no further then this that persons of age ought first to professe their Faith and then receive Baptisme but not this that they only ought to receive Baptisme how dare men say they must be excluded when God saith no such word on the other side doth not the Scripture plainly take-in such Infants into the Covenant and acknowledge them members of the Church of God The Infant Israelites were not born Heathens without were circumcised were meant as part of Abrahams seed the Nations to whom the Gospel comes and who do receive it are now of the same body with the Iewes partakers of the same promise the grace of God is larger under the New-Testament which it were not if such a part as the millions of infant-Christians that die before they come to years were cut off from it The Children of believers are holy whole housholds were baptized Christ blessed Infants upon this ground Because of such was the Kingdom of God that is not onely Heaven but the Church of the new Testament which is called the Kingdom of God there is this ground why those that are of age that repent should receive Baptisme because the promise is to them and the promise is to their children therefore their children have the like ground on which they ought to receive Baptisme these with the like Arguments are strong and unanswerable were it not that these persons doted and in their Pride will resolve to be contentious Let not any think that a small errour which shuts out from Christ and his Church millions of his Members which runs against the constant tenour of both Testaments which confines and imprisons the Grace of God in the New-Testament which makes the grace of Christ the second Adam not to reach one sort and condition of men over whom sin and death passeth by and from the first Adam which evertes and destroyes at one blow all the Churches of Christ in the whole world All this doth this unchristian error of the Anabaptists do The like might be said concerning Church Government whether the Hierarchy or Independency or Presbytery be of Christ in the Scripture It might soon be determined were it not for a spirit of Dotage Pride and Contention but I leave that to the Assembly where it depends and is in Agitation I hold you from the perusall of the Sermons which you heard with much attention I have written some particulars in the enumetation of Temple-Polluters under the second Doctrine which time cut off from delivering as I then told you the rest you have as near as I could set down save that one thing throughout the Sermons the Printer could not ●●nde any Characters or Letters to expresse that is the spirit with which they were delivered with lively voice You have the Instrument and Stick I cannot help you to the Rozin The Spirit of God make supply thereof while you read them in that superabundant measure Take me into your prayers and let me be in your esteem what I desire for ever to be whiles remaining in the flesh Even From my house in Long-Ditton April 7. 1645. Yours in the service of your faith RICHARD BYFIELD Errata Page 5. line 14. read converted for committed p. 6. l. 24. r. worlds end for world and. p. 23. In the Title r. Temple Defilers for Hereticks l. 6. r. Cavillers for Cavaliers p. 25. l. 6. r. continue for contemne Temple Defilers Destroyed 1 COR. 3. 17. If any man defile the Temple of God him shall God destroy THE circumstantials of this Text may profitably serve for our Exordium or entrance they are three who speaks how he speakes and to whom 1. Who speaks Paul an Apostle of Iesus Christ therefore it is a Gospel sen●e●ce Paul the Doctor of the Gentiles therefore you Gentiles ought to hear him Paul the mouth of Christ the Pen-man of the Holy Ghost and therefore he that despiseth this word despiseth not man but Christ but the Spirit but God 2. How he speaks First by way of denunciation of judgement The Gospel hath fire in it the Preachers threaten destruction yet the Preachers thereof no legall Preachers for our God is a consuming Fire it is true life and immortality are brought to light by the Gospel and it is no lesse true then Hell fire and Damnation is Language peculiar to the Gospel never any Preached in so frequent and plain termes the flames of Hell and that unquenchable fire as did our Lord Jesus who was sent of God Anointed with the spirit that oyle of gladnesse to preach the Gospel to the poor to heal and binde up the broken hearted that meek Lambe of God whose office it was to speak a word in season to the weary soul How often hath he Hell and Hell fire in his mouth in one Sermon Mat. 5. 22. 29 30. Three times in one breath with amazing illustrations Mar. 9. 43. 45. 47. At another time all his discourse almost beset as Paradise with a flaming sword with as sore as plain and equivalent expressions utter darknesse where shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth the Prison out of which there is no coming by any means till they have paid the utmost farthing the losse of the soul cutting asunder and appointing them their portion with hypocrites in no case any entry into the Kingdom of heaven no reward of their Father which is in Heaven Will any dare to deny that Iesus Christ was an Evangelicall Preacher And it stands with all reason that such Preaching should be for Gospel times for the greater and more glorious are the manifestations of Gods grace the greater and more glorious are the manifestations of Gods grace the greater is the sin and the heavier the wrath and condemnation due to the refusers Heb. 12. 25 29. ●he abusers the turners of such grace into lasciviousnesse and w●ntonnesse No marvell then if that Ministry of the New Testament that is as a mirrour to shew us the glory of grace with open face do with as great plainnesse of speech set Hell before us in open view Heaven is the more Heaven to them that see what Hell is It is not unbeseeming an Apostle a Teacher of Grace and of the Gospel to denounce the judgements of God Paul here speaks by way of threatning Secondly he speaks by way of Argumentation 1. Against building up the Church with wood hay and stubble ver 12. By which is meant not Doctrine Hereticall blasphemous and impious though that