that they offend God at every foot and yet this is what Men would establish from this Maxim That the justest Man sins Seven times a day Those who have a mind to Quote the Scripture should neither add to nor diminish from it they should not alter the Words nor divide Sentences from what goes before and what follows for otherwise there is no Absurdity or Impiety which may not be proved from the Word of God 5. But our Adversaries will say Whether that Place is alledged right or wrong it does not matter much since there are others which say the same thing in stronger Expressions Does not St. Paul say Rom. VII * Rom. VII I am carnal sold under sin for in me dwelleth no good thing for that which I do I allow not and what I would that do I not but what I hate that do I. I see a Law in my Members warring against the Law of my Mind and bringing me into captivity to the Law of Sin which is in my Members O wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this Death If St. Paul himself speaks after this manner who can deny that the greatest Saints fall into very heinous Sins and have still a large stock of Corruption in them Those who draw this Inference from the Words of St. Paul make him speak that which is quite contrary to his thoughts He is so far from saying any thing that favours the cause of Sinners that on the contrary his design is to prove the necessity of a good Life and to make Men sensible of the Efficacy of the Gospel in reference to Sanctification He has this in his view in the VII Chapter to the Romans where he represents the difference between a Corrupt and a Regenerated Man and between the Condition of Man under the Law and his State under the Gospel So that all he says of the Carnal Man sold under Sin c. is to be understood of a corrupt Man living under the Law I am not ignorant that Divines otherwise Able and Pious Men have thought that St. Paul speaks of himself in this Chapter and that he represents there what passes within a Regenerate Man but I know likewise that a great many Orthodox Divines have rejected that Exposition as contrary to the scope of the Apostle to the constant Doctrine of the New Testament and to the Spirit of the Christian Religion It h a sad thing that when a place is capable of two Senses Men should pitch upon that which comes nearer to the Pretensions of Sinners I do not intend here to enter into a Dispute nor to offend those of a contrary Opinion I am persuaded that they have no design to countenance Corruption but as in all things we ought to seek the Truth and as the Truth here is of great Consequence for the promoting of Piety so I entreat those who might have Scruples concerning those Words to make these following Reflections 1. Let them seriously and impartially consider whether it may be said that St. Paul was a Carnal Man fold under Sin a Man who did no Good but Evil and a Man involved in Death these are the strongest Expressions which can be used and which the Scripture uses to give as the Character of Wicked and Impious Men To believe this of St. Paul is so very hard that a Man must be able to digest any thing who is not startled at it 2. I desire them to attend to the Drift of St. Paul he had undertaken to shew that the Doctrine of Justification by faith did not introduce Licentiousness this he had proved in the whole VI Chapter as may appear by the reading it Is it likely that in the VII Chapter he should overturn all that he had established in the preceding \ and say that the holiest Men are captivated to the Law of Sin If this be St. Paul's Doctrine what becomes of the Efficacy of Faith to produce Holiness and how could he have answered that Objection which he proposes to himself Chap. VI. 1. and 15. Shall we continue in sin shall we sin we that are under Grace St. Paul ought to have granted the Objection if it be true that the most Regenerate are sold to Sin But it is plain that in the VII Chapter he goes on to prove what he had laid down already to wit that the Gospel sanctifies Men and not only this but that the Gospel alone can sanctifie Men and that the Law could not This is the Scope of the whole Chapter In the very first Four Verses he shews that Christians are no longer under the Law nor consequently under Sin and that they are dead to the Law that they may bring forth fruits unto God He expresses himself more clearly yet in the 5th Verse where he says that there is a considerable difference between those who are under the Law and those who are in Jesus Christ He plainly distinguishes these two States and the time past from the present When we were in the flesh says he the motions of sin which were by the Law did work in our Members to bring forth unto death but now we are delivered from the Law that we should serve in newness of Spirit These are the two States The Sate past was a state of Corruption the presect State is a State of Holiness But as it might have been inferred from thence that the Law was the cause of Sin the Apostle refutes that imagination from the 7th to the 14th Verse After this he describes the miserable Condition of a Man who is not Regenerated by Grace and who still is under the Law He begins to do this from the 14th Verse by faying the Law is spiritual but I am carnal sold under sin c. And here no doubt it will be said that St Paul speaks of himself and not of those who were under the Law for says he I am carnal c. But one may easily see that the Apostle uses here a way of speaking which is very ordidinary in discourse and by which he that speaks puts himself in the room of those he speaks of And St. Paul had the more reason to express himself in this manner because he had been himself under the Law before he was converted to Christianity There are many instances in Scripture of this way of speaking and we find one in this very Chapter which is beyond exception St Paul says in the 9th Verse I was alive without the Law once c. If we do not admit here a figurative expression or if these words are strictly taken then we must say that there was a time when this Apostle was without Law which is both false and ridiculous As therefore it is plain that when he says Ver. 9th I was without Law he speaks of the State of those Men to wliom the Law was not given so it is unquestionalbe that when he says I am carnal c. he describes the State of a
Corrupt Man living under the Law and not his own This is the Key which lets us into the meaning of his Discourse in which the Law is mentioned almost in every Verse 3. Lastly That which makes it as clear as the Sun that this is his true sense is that when the Apostle considers and speaks of himself as a Christian he uses quite another Language To be satisfied of this we need but run over this Chapter and compare it with other places in his Epistles If he says here ver 7 8. That concupiscence is felt and reigns within a man who is under the Law he declares Gal. V. 24. That Christians have crucified the flesh with the lusts of it If he says ver 9 10. That sin lives within him and that he is dead he had said Chap. VI. 2 11. That he was dead unto sin and living unto God through Jesus Christ If he says ver 14. That he is carnal and sold under sin it is apparent that he does not there speak of himself since Chap. VIII 1 and 8. he tells us That those who are in Christ Jesus are not in the flest and that those who are in the flesh cannot please God and have not his spirit If he says here v. 18. I know that in me dwelleth no good thing he declares Eph. III. 17. that Christ dwells in our hearts by Faith If he says ver 19. The good that I would I do not and the evil which I hate that I do he testifies in many places That the faithful do that which is good and abstain from evil If he complains ver 21 22 23. of his being captivated to the Law of Sin he teaches Chap. VI. 17 22. That Christians are no longer the servants of Sin that they an freed front it and become the servants of Righteousness If he cries out ver 24.0 wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this Death It is manifest that these are not the Expressions of a Man Regenerated by Jesus Christ for he addâ— immediately I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. There is therefore now as Condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus who walk not after the Flesh but after the Spirit For the Law oft he Spirit of Life which is in Christ Jesus has made me free from the Law of Sin and Death Chap. VIII 12. Now let any Body judge whether what is said in this Chapter can be applied to St. Paul considered as a Regenerated Christian Can it be said that Concupiscence reigns in him who has crucifyed it That Sin lives in him who is dead to Sin That he who is not in the Flesh is a carnal Man That he who is freed from Sin is sold to Sin That no good thing dwells in those in whom Christ dwells That a Man is at the same time miserable and happy a Slave and yet delivered by Jesus Christ dead and alive To say this is it not to call Good Evil and Evil Good to put Darkness for Light and Light for Darkness Is it not to admit downright Contradictions in Scripture But especially is it not to open a door to Licentiousness and to give us a strange Notion of a Regenerate Man By all that has been said I do not mean that there are no remnants of Corruption in those who are Regenerated Neither do 〈◊〉 deny but that in those whose Regeneration is but begun there is some such struggle as that which is described in this Chapter This is Musculus's Notion in his Commentary upon the Romans * Page 118. But that this Chapter should be the Picture of a Regenerate Man and of a true Member of Christ is a thing so contrary to the Gospel and to all he Ideas of Religion that one can hardly â—imagine how there could ever be Men who believed it But that which Corrupt Christians endeavour to prove by those Passages I have mentioned they think to put out of all question by the Examples of those Saints Whose Sins are recorded in Holy Writ To this purpose they alledge Noah Lot Abraham Sampson David Solomon St Paul St. Peter c and from these Instances they conclude that since those great Saints fell into such heavy Sins Sin is no Obstacle to Salvation and that it is not inconsistent with Piety If We did make a right use of the Word of God we would draw a quite contrary influence from these Instances and consider that it is absurd to plead Precedents against an express Law If we must needs be governed by Examples we ought certainâ—â— to chuse the good and not the bad one to imitate what is praise worthy in the Saints and not what deserves blame theâ— Faults being like so many Beacons set 〈◊〉 to keep us from striking upon the samâ— Rocks But to answer directly I say first Thaâ— we are a little too apt to rank among Sainâ— some Illustrious Persons mention'd in the Sâ—cred History who perhaps were nothing less than Holy Men and who it may be diâ—perish in their Sins tho' God thought iâ— to make use of them to carry on the Designs of his Providence and to deliver hiâ— People It would be a rash thing to pronounce upon any Man's Salvation or 〈◊〉 speak irreverently of those great Men bâ— the instance of Solomon whose Salvation has been at all times questioned by Divines should teach us not to be so hasty in placing those among Saints of whom the Scripture speaks with some honour and is sheltering our selves under their Examples As to those who by the Testimony of Scripture it self did truly fear God 〈◊〉 might observe that they fell but once into those Sins related in the Sacred History which would by no means favour impenitent and habitual Sinners But this answer does not fully satisfie for besides that it apposes a thing which in respect of several â—ersons cannot certainly be known there are â—ome Sins which are so black such as Adulteâ—y and Apostacy that a Man can hardly comâ—it them more than once except he is alâ—gether sold to Sin and further any one of â—ose Sins is incompatible with a State of â—egeneration We must therefore frankly own that â—hen those great Men sinned in that manâ—er they did not act like Saints that they â—ut themselves into a State which considerâ—d in it self was a State of Damnation and â—hat they had perished if they had contiâ—ued in it for as Ezekiel says Chap. XXXIII â—8 When the righteous turneth from his â—ighteousness and committeth iniquity he shall â—ven die thereby We may judge of the heinâ—usness and danger of those sins by the deâ—ree of Repentance which some of these Men â—ave expressed for them and by the publick â—cknowledgments they made of them What â—arms was David in when he composed he LI Psalm which is the Psalm of his Repentance What a deep sense had St. Peter of his fault in denying his Master What do then such Examples signify to â—hose who live
giving an account of his Dispute with St. Peter and of his reproving him for his too great Compliance with the Jews he affirms that we are justified by the Faith of Christ and not by the Work of the Law Why has not than difference been observed which St Paul makes about Works When he speaks of the Works of the Mosaical Law he calls them the Works of the Law or barely Works but when he treat of the Works which the Gospel prescribes he call them Good Works because they are really good holy and profitable in their own Nature but this Title of Good Works is never bestowed upon the Works of the Ceremonial Law which considered in themselves had nothing of Goodness or Holiness in them In a word Good Works in St. Paul's stile are quite another thing than barely Works or the Works of the Law If this had been considered such great â—ains needed not to have been taken to make * Rom. 3.27 St. Paul agree with St. James †Galat. 11.16 St. Paul says that Man is justified by Faith withâ—ut the Works of the Law | Jam. 11.24 and St. James â—hat Man is justified by works and not by Faith â—nly There is no contradiction between these two Apostles Both follow one Hypothesis and argue upon the same Principles St. Paul disputing against the Jews who wou'd tie Christians to the Observance of the Works of the Mosaical Law â—â—ffrms that Faith in Christ is sufficient provided it brings forth Good Work 's â—nd that it is not necessary to observe the Mosaical rites St. James disputing against â—ereticks who pretended that Faith did â—ave without Good Works and so did â—ntirely ruin our Saviour's Morals deâ—lares that Faith which does not proâ—uce Good Works is not sufficient to â—alvation Is not this the same Doctrine with St. Paul's But instead of reconciling these two Apostles some People find here great difficulties They do not reconcile St. James with St. Paul but they rather refute St. James by St. Paul St. James is expounded with great Caution as if he had gone too far by saying that Man is justified by works and not by Faith only This Proposition is softned as much as possible it is excused rather than explained but as for what St. Paul says that Faith alone justfiies without Works it is taken in the utmost strictness so that all is ascribed to Faith and nothing to Good Works Nay Faith is set in Opposition to Good Works and God to God himself the Passages of Scripture which speak of Faith being brought out against those which relate to Works It is true say some the Scripture says that without Holiness no manshall see God but it is likewise written that we are not justified by our Works but only by Faith And by this way of reasoning Men raise themselves above the reproaches and accusations of their own Consciences I say it once more this is to attack and confute the Word of God by it self and to charge the Holy Ghost with self-contradiction For in short if a Man can be justified without Good Works he can be saved without them too since the being justified is the same thing with the being saved Now if a Man can be saved without Good Works he may see the Face of God without Holiness which is directly contrary to what St. Paul tells us * Heb. 21.14 that without Holiness no man shall see the Lord. 2. A great many People imagine that it is one of the Priviledges of Christians not to be tied to the Observation of God's Law as the Jews were some mistaken places give occasion to that Error and particularly this †Rom. 6. We are no more under the Law but under Grace These words are thus interpreted The Law did prescribe Works but the Gospel requires only Faith the Law did threaten but the Gospel speaks only of Grace and Pardon So that to require Works at this time of day is to bring back the Dispensation of the Law There is something of Truth in this reasoning but those who make use of it to free themselves from the Observation of God's Commandments do very little understand either what the Law or the Gospel is and wherein these two Dispensations differ It is certain that the Law was a Dispensation of Severity it did not propose to Men remission of sins and salvation as the Gospel does The Law had not that power and efficacy to sanctify Men which Grace has The Law laid upon the Jews great many Obligation which were not only burdensom and painful but which besides had no intrinseâ—â—â— Holiness in them and those Duties were enjoyned under a Curse The Law it self was a time of Severity and Malediction in respect to all the Nations of the Earth since all the while that Oeconomy did subsist they were excluded from the Covenant which God had made with the Jews In these several regards we are not under the Law but under Grace But if from this that we are not under the Law we should infer that we are no longer bound to do what is just this Inference would overturn the whole Gospel and transform Religion into Libertinism Iâ— because we are under Grace we ought to speak no more of Works why should the Gospel prescribe Works and the same Works which the Law enjoyned excepting only the Ceremonies Why should this Gospel call us to a Holiness which exceeds that of the Jews and enforce this Obligation with more terrible Threatnings than those of the Law Why did our Saviour John the Baptist and the Apostles preach up Repentance and enter upon their Ministry with these Words | Mat. 3.2 and 4.4 repent ye According to the Hypothesis of these Men they should have spoken to them after this manner * Acts 11.17 This is the time of Grace the Law is past and the Covenant of Works is abolished therefore fear nothing let not your sins trouble you for Salvation is promised to all Mankind Whence comes it to pass that our †Mat. 5.6.7 Saviour speaks only of Works in his Sermon upon the Mount or that St. Paul declares that the natural intention and the proper effect of Grace is to teach Men to live according to the rules of Temperance Justice and Godliness Must we say that God is altered that he does not love Holiness so much now as he did heretofore of that Sin is become less odious to him since it was expiated by the death of his Son But it is said we are no more under the Law What are Christians then a Lawless People On the contrary we are under the Law I mean under the Law of Christ under | Rom. 8.2 the Law of the Spirit of life which makes us free from the Law of Sin and Death But let us hear St. Paul himself in what sense and respect does he say that we are no more under the Law but under Grace He says this precisely to shew that
which distinguishes us from Brutes and a Conscience which discerns between Good and Evil we ought then to live according to Reason and the Principles of Conscience and to do that which becomes the Nature of Man We are Men and by consequence Mortal we know we are not to live always in this World and knowing this we must either think of another Life or propose to our selves no other End than that of Beasts which follow their Instinct while they live and then die never to live again We are Men but we are not Independent we have a Creator and a Master and as we are endued besides with Understanding we are to give an account of our Actions before his Tribunal it is therefore agreeable to the Nature of Man to live like a Creature that depends upon God and that must be Judged So that this Consideration that we are Men is so far from excusing that it condemns Corruption But it may be said that we are weak Men. This is very true our Nature is frail and has besides a strong byass to evil But God speaks to us as to weak Men he commands us nothing but what is proportioned to that state of Imperfection we are in Besides this Excuse does not at all become Christians To say we are weak Men is to shew we have but little sense of God's kindness towards us We are not only Men but we are Christians too and this quality raises us above the natural condition of Men it makes us New Men and New Creatures Why do we then forget the Glory to which God has exalted our Nature through Jesus Christ Why would we still lie down under the burden of frail and corrupt Nature It is further said that we are not Angels But neither is it necessary that we should be so to do that which God Commands us When God gives us his Laws he knows he gives them to Men and therefore they are admirably suited to our present Condition in this World If we were Angels God would give us quite other Laws the Gospel would be abolished and the World should continue no longer in the state it is in It is therefore an absurâ— Imagination to think that one cannot perform the Duties of Religion without being of an Angelical Nature Let us then no longer pretend that because we are Men we are too weak to observe the Duties which Religion prescribes thâ—â— excuse charges God with injustice as if he did require from us such things as are not agreeable with our Nature and Condition it is injurious to the Gospel and to the Christian Religion as well as to the Grace of Christ and the power of his Spirit iâ— is false since the Scripture declares that Grace regenerates and strengthens us and that it makes us able to overcome the vitious inclinations of our Nature and to free our selves from the dominion of Sin And Lastly it is contrary to Experience for those many Saints and good Men who Practised the most * Jam. 5.17 sublime and difficult Duties of Piety were Men as we are and as the †Heb. 12.1 Sacred Writers observe they were subject to the same infirmittes with us and many of them perhaps had not those Advantages which we have 2. It is often alledged as an excuse That no Man is perfect and that every one has his Faults This is said every Day and some pretend with that saying to excuse every thing Excuses for the most part have something of truth in them This Proposition That no Man perfect is very true in one sense and altogether false in another No Man certainly is Perfect in the strict sense of that Word or as it imports a full and accomplished Perfection free from all defect such a Perfection is to be had no where else but in Heaven But there is a Perfection commenced or begun of which a Man Redeemed and Sanctified by Jesus Christ is capable If it was not so why should Christ and his Apostles exhort us * Mat. 5.48 Phil. 1.10 1 Thess 5.23 to be perfect Why should they tell us †1 John 5.9 that he who is born of God does not sin And that a Christian is ‖ 1 Cor. 1.8 2 Tim. 11.21 thoroughly furnished to every Good Work If you ask Who those Perfect Men are I answer That they are those who aspire to Perfection in whom Sin does not reign who do not allow themselves in any vitious Habit who sincerely and honestly apply themselves to Holiness and have accustomed themselves to practise 〈…〉 the Duties of it with delight Whoever is arrived at such a State has attained thaâ— Perfection which is attainable in this Life and to which Christians are called by the Gospel tho' there remain still in him some infirmities inseparable from Humane Nature and never totally to be rooted out before he gets to Heaven We cannot be Perfect in that first and strict Sense I have mentioned but we may be Perfect and God will have us be so in the second and Evangelical Sense of that Word It is therefore a frivolous Excuse in the Mouth of Corrupt Men to say That no Man is Perfect and that we cannot attain to the Perfection or to the State of the Blessed in Heaven for this is to shift the Question because that is not the Perfection which God requires We ought not to fix a false and absurd Sense upon God's Commandments that we may have a pretence not to obey them The Question is Whether Christians are not bound to do that which God would have them do and which they are able to do in this World this is the Perfection to which he calls us We may apply very near the same Answer to that other Excuse That every body has his Faults There are Faults which do not destroy Piety and God is graciously pleased not to impute such Faults to those that Fear him and in this Sense no Man â—s free from Faults but there is another â—ort of Faults which should not be called bare Faults or Defects those are the Vices and Passions which cannot consist with Piety the great the reigning the habitual or deliberate Sins True Christians are free from such Faults and those who are not free from them are not true Christians If this Maxim That every one has his Faults is not thus explained we must speak no longer of Vertue and Vice for this Excuse will serve for all Sins and acquit every Body If a Man is given to Swearing if he is Revengeful Passionate or False if he commits Adultry it is but saying Every one has his Faults and no Man is Perfect Such Language from a Man full of vitious Habits is unsufferable What dismal Consequences would not Libertines draw from such a Principle We must therefore understand this Proposition in the sense and with those restrictions I have observed and then it may be useful to comfort Good Men but it will never excuse those who are Vicious 3.
we ought to live no longer in Sin These are his own words * Rom. 7.14 15 16 17.18 What then Shall we Sin because we are not under the Law but under Grace God forbid On the contrary Sin shall not have dominon over you for ye are not under the Law but under Grace you were formerly the servants of Sin but now being made free from Sin and become the servants of God Ye have your fruit unto holiness We need but read the sequel of his Discourse to see how he inveighs against those who turned the Grace of the Gospel into a pretense to live in Sin Before I leave this matter I shall taâ—â— notice of two Errors which are pretty common The First is the applying to Christians at this day all those things which were spoken of old by the Apostles to the Converted Jews It is said that we are no more under the Law and Christians are often exhorted to bless God for being no longer under the Curse of the Law and the Yoke of Moses And upon this a great many Oppositions are observed betwixt the Law and the Gospel For my part I do not think those Exhortations and Oppositions so very proper to be insisted on when we are speaking to Men who never were Jews unless we do it with a design to shew the Excellency of the Gospel-Covenant above that of the Law and the advantages of Christians above Jews For after all the Law was given only to the Jews and the Gentiles were never subjected to the Ceremonies or the Curse of it as the Jews were Why should we then say to People who never were under the Law You are no more under the Law The Apostles indeed spoke in that manner to the Converted Jews but as to those who were formerly Pagans it would be more fitting to tell them * Thess 1.9 Ephes 11.12 4.17 You have been converted from Idols to the living God Remember that ye were in times past Gentiles without hope and without God in the World and therefore live no longer like Heathens It is a great fault not to expound the Scripture according to the true scope of it and to apply all that it contains to all sorts of Persons without distinction The other Error is of greater consequence People fancy that because we are not under the Law which was a Covenant of Rigor we are now to speak of nothing else to Men but of Grace and Promises and that it is contrary to the Spirit of the Gospel to threaten and to denounce Curses against Sinners It has been said already in what sense the Law was a Covenant of Rigor in opposition to the Covenant of Grace but the Gospel has also its Curses and they are much more terrible than those of the Law The Gospel speaks of the future Punishments of another Life in much clearer and stronger Expressions than the Law does To be convinc'd of this we need but reflect upon that opposition which St. Paul makes between the Law and the Gospel in the Tenth Chapter of the Epistle to the Hebrews He that despised Moses Law died without mercy under two or three Witnesses of how much sorer punishment suppose ye shall he be thought worthy who has trodden under foot the Son of God and has counted the Blood of the Covenant wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing and has done despight unto the Spirit of Grace We know him that has said Vengeance belongeth unto me I will recompense faith the Lord. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hand of the living God 3. The Libertines do likewise abuse what St. Paul says in the Epistle to the * Gal. 5. Galatians concerning Christian Liberty when he declares that Christians are freed from the bondage of the Law when he exhorts them to stand fast in that Liberty and protests that Christ prositeth nothing to those who would be justified by the Law But a Man may see with half an Eye that the Apostle means only that Christians are no longer bound to observe Circumcision and the other Ceremonies of the Law of Moses That St. Paul has no other view or design but this will plainly appear to every one who will read the whole Epistle and particularly the second Chapter of it In the V Chapter we find two things which are decisive in this Matter 1. St. Paul speaks there expresly of Circumcision * Gal. V. Behold I Paul say unto you that if you be circumcised Christ shall profit you nothing for I testifie again to every Man that is circumcised that he is a debtor to do the whole Law †ver 13. Christ is become of none effect unto yon whosoever of you are justified by the Law ye are fallen from Grace 2. It is very observable with what circumspection the Apostle delivers himself left his Doctrine should be wrested to favour Licentiousness after he had said You are called to liberty he adds immediately only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh He explains what he means by living after the Flesh by making an enumeration of those Sins which the Flesh produces and which exclude Men from the Kingdom of Heaven He exhorts Men to live after the Spirit and to practise the Christian Vertues In the Fourth Chapter he pursues the same Exhortations and he ends the Epistle with these remarkable Words which contain the summ of his Doctrine * Chap. VI. 15. For in Christ Jesus neither Circumcision availeth any thing nor Vncircumcision but a new Creature that is to say Whether a Man be a Jew or a Heathen it matters not so he believes in Jesus Christ and observes God's Commandments †ver 16. Peace and Mercy be on them all who walk after this Rule Is there anything plainer than this Doctrine And yet how clear soever it may be Christian Liberty is alledged to set Men free from the Obligation to keep God s Commandments All that St. Paul fays against Circumcision and the Ceremonies of the Law is by an Enormous Blasphemy turned against the Holy Commandments of the Son of God Can any thing more Odious or Prophane be imagined than the perverting of the Holy Scripture at this rate 4. Those who plead on the side of Corruption are wont to object against what is said in behalf of Holiness this Sentence of Solomon's | Ephes VII 16. be not righteous overmuch neither make thy self over-wise And what Inferences do they riot draw from thence They conclude from this Place That a Man ought not to pretend so much to Holiness or to set up for a good Man and that in all things Mediocrity is best One may easily apprehend that such Sentiments must needs introduce Licentiousness especially when they are thought to be supported by a Divine Authority But let us see whether or no such Conceits can be founded upon this Sentence of Solomon's I shall ask in the first place Whether it is possible for a
uncertainty and obscurity in a Religion where there is nothing but Controversy and different Opinions The want of Union is then a most considerable Imperfection in the present State of the Church It were to be wished that some Remedy might be applied to so great an Evil and that those Controversies which produce and cherish it might be turned out of Doors The way to compass this would be to endeavour in good earnest the Reforming of Manners and the restoring of Order This great and noble Design will no sooner be pursued but Men will be ashamed of all these Contentions they will look upon them as trifling Amusements and find no relish in those Disputes which to say the truth do only employ such Persons as are conceited with vain Learning and narrow-spirited Men who are not capable of larger and higher Views IV. If we examine the present State of the Church with relation to Order there we must ingenuously confess that great Defects are to be found In Matters of Order and Discipline Christians ought to Regulate themselves First by the Laws which Christ and his Apostles have set them and then by the Example of the Primitive Church and of the Purest Antiquity it being evident that what has been practised in the First Ages of Christianity and does besides agree with the Rules and the Spirit of the Gospel should have a great regard paid to it by all Christians Now it cannot be denied but that most Churches have considerably departed from that Ancient Order To prove this by some Instances it is certain in fact that the Ecclesiastical Order and Government which obtains in many Places is not such as it ought to be None caâ—n be ignorant of this but those who are altogether unacquainted with Antiquity or who being full of Prejudices find what they please in Scripture and Church-History Can it be said that the Elections of Bishops or Pastors are Canonical as they are managed in many Places arid that the Practice and Order established by the Apostles and the Primitive Christians are observed every where It is certain likewise that all Churches are not furnished with a sufficient Number of Persons to perform Divine-Service and to Instruct and Edify the People When we look back upon the Primitive Church we find that tho' it was poor and persecuted yet it had its Bishops its Priests its Catechists and its Widows At this time we see yet in several Places that one single Town maintains a great Number of Church-men who indeed for the most part are very insignificant but elsewhere it is quite otherwise one single Man does often perform all the Ecclesiastical Functions nay sometimes many Churches have but one Pastor This Disorder as well as many others proceeds partly from the want of necessary Means and Funds to supply the occasions of all Churches Here it might be proper to speak of the Pastoral Functions and of the Administration of Discipline but these Two Heads being important I reserve what I have to say about them for the Two next Chapters We ought here not to omit the want of Union and Correspondence among Churches If they had more Communication and Intercourse one with another great Advantages would follow from thence Right Measures might be taken for the Edification of the People and for the Redressing of Abuses and Scandals that Uniformity which is so necessary both in Worship and in Church-Government and Discipline might be established And that would contribute much to the Honour and Safety of Religion in general The Church would appear then like a well-ordered Society and like One Body of which all the Parts should maintain a relation to and a strict dependance upon one another On the other hand it is a great unhappiness when Churches have little or no Intercourse or Communication one with another so that every one orders its Matters and Customs the Form of its Worship and Government within it self Thus in many respects it would be easie to shew that Things are not altogether Regulated in the Church as they ought to be with relation to Order Men are not sensible of these Defects because they are apt to judge of Religious Matters by the Practice of the present Time and by the Customs of their respective Countries besides that Antiquity is but little known And yet these Defects contribute more than is commonly imagined to the decay of Piety and Zeal The want of Order in any Society does most certainly bring Confusion and Licentiousness into it V. The Worship of God being the end and the essence of Religion we cannot but inquire whether all things are well regulated with relation to that To speak here only of the publick Worship it would be very necessary that it should be performed every where in such a manner that the People might understand the most essential parts of Religion and Divine Worship to be Adoration Praise and the invocation of God and that the discharging of these Duties is the end of Publick Assemblies I remark this particularly because in many places Devotion is placed only in the hearing of Sermons Churches are properly nothing else but Auditories People fancy that Sermons are the chief thing they meet for and that preaching is the principle Function to be exercised by Ministers in the Church The Prayers and the Psalms are looked upon only as Preliminaries or Circumstances to a Sermon This is a dangerous Notion because on the one hand it makes Christians neglect Divine Service and on the other it renders Religion contemptible when Sermons are not so edifying as they should be which happens but too often And therefore it would not perhaps be amiss if as it is practised in several Churches Divine Service was distinguished from Sermons by some circumstances of times or persons so that it might be one thing to celebrate Divine Service and another to hear Sermons Several Reflections might be offered here concerning the principal things relating to Publick Worship such as Forms of Prayers Liturgies the Manner of praising God and Sacred Hymns It would be a question worth the examining whether we ought in Christian Churches to use only Psalms and Canticles out of the Old Testament among which tho' some are most edifying and full of excellent expressions of Piety yet there are many which relate altogether to some particular passages of those times or if they speak of Christ it is only in a Prophetical style very obscure to the People One would think that Christian Hymns which should be sung to the honour of God and Jesus Christ chiefly to celebrate the Wonders of our Redemption might be extraordinary useful to nourish Piety and to stir up Devotion as well as more agreeable to that which the Apostles prescribe and which the Primitve Christians practised in their Assemblies Would it not likewise be necessary to agree about giving the Holy Sacrament to sick and dying Persons and to restore the more frequent use of the Eucharist acpording to the
Hospitality from minding their Function as they ought and from discharging the Duties of it with Authority and Zeal It forces them to have recourse to several mean or unlawful Methods to supply their Necessities and those of their Families and to do many things which do not comport with their Employment From thence proceeds likewise the want of able Ministers A great many Persons who might have the necessary Talents Qualifications and Means to be very useful in the Church take a disgust at that Profession by the fear of Contempt or Poverty As long as things are in this state Religion will be despised and Corruption will still be in vogue It is not so easie to remove this Cause of Corruption as it is to detest it The re-establishing of Order seems to be a thing extreamly difficult To this end it would be requisite that Princes arid Church-men should act in Conjunction But there are few Christian Princes who lay this to heart and Divines have quite other things in their thoughts Their great business is to maintain what is established and to dispute with those who find fault with it On the other hand Knowledge or Resolution is wanting and there is not enough of honesty or greatness of Soul to confess the Truth Few Writers have the Courage to speak so impartially as the Famous Author of the History of the Reformation in England has done in the Preface to his Second Volume It is thought by many Persons that all would be ruined if the least alteration was made Some of those Defects which have been mentioned in this Chapter are now become inviolable Customs and Laws Every body fancies true and pure Christianity to be that which obtains in his Country or in the Society he lives in and it is not so much as put to the question whether or not some things should be altered As long as Christians are possessed with these Prejudices we must not expect to see Christianity restored to an entire Purity But yet it is to be hoped from the Grace of God and the force of Truth that Christians will open their Eyes at last and that Divines will grow sensible of the necessity of minding these Things The main Point here is to shake off all Prejudice and to consider things in their Nature and Original Our Saviour has left us an Excellent Rule when speaking of the Abuses which had been so long received among the Jews in reference to Marriage he tell us PLACE = foot n = * Mat. XIX That from the beginning it was not so This Maxim is of great use and a lover of Truth and Vertue should always have it before his Eyes It were to be wished that we should still appeal to it and that instead of Governing our selves by the Custom of the present Time we should run up to the Ancient Constitution and compare what is done at this Day with that which has been and ought to be done This would be the true Way to Reform Abuses and to draw near to Perfection and to bring things back into the Natural and Primitive Channel CAUSE II. The want of Discipline IT is not my Design in this Chapter to speak of Church Discipline in general I shall only insist upon that Part of it the End of which is to Regulate the Manners of Christians And this is an important Matter The want of Discipline is one of the greatest Imperfections which have been observed in the present State of the Church and one of the most evident and general Causes of the Corruption of Christians But because some Men have pretended that Discipline such as I suppose it in this Chapter was a Humane and Arbitrary Institution the observation of which was not absolutely necessary and might be dangerous I think it proper to say something here concerning the Original and the Necessity of the Discipline of the Church It is certain in the first place that all Societies and Bodies have a Right to establish an Order to Regulate themselves by and to provide for their Security and Preservation When several Men or People unite to Form a Body they have Power to make Laws and Regulations to which all the Members of that Body may be tyed and to exclude those from their Communion who will not submit to them But these Laws ought not to clash with other Laws already established nor with just and acknowledged Rights I think this Power which is granted to the meanest of Societies cannot be denied to the Church and this proves already that the Church had a Right to Appoint a Discipline to which all her Members should he subject provided that Discipline did not on the one hand prejudice Publick Tranquility and the Authority of the Magistrates nor any ways contradict on the other hand the Laws of the Gospel Now as Discipline is not liable to either of these Inconveniencies but does rather perfectly agree with the welfare of Civil Society and the Spirit of the Christian Religion as will be proved hereafter so the establishing of it seems to be equally lawful and necessary II. But further Discipline is an Order which has God for its Author We find the Institution of it in Holy Scripture and in the Laws of Christ and of his Apostles I shall recite the Chief of these 1. In St. Matthews Gospel Chap. XVIII 15 16 17. We read these Words If thy Brother shall trespass against thee go and tell him of his fault between thee and him alone If he shall hear thee thou hast gained thy Brother but if he will not hear thee then take with thee one or two more that in the Mouth of two or three Witnesses every word may be established And if he shall neglect to hear them tell it to the Church but if he neglect to hear the Church let him be unto thee as a Heathen Man and a Publican For the right understanding of these Words We must know that our Saviour does not enact here a new Law and that an Order like that which is here prescribed was already observed among the Jews But here as upon many Occasions Our Saviour did comply with the Customs and Practice of that Nation because he judged that those Customs were good and fit for his views and purposes The first Christians did the same in matter of Order and Government they did form the Christian Church upon the Model of the Jewish Assemblies and upon the Method which was there observed This is the Key of the Place I have now quoted Our Saviour approves the Jewish Practice and enjoyns his Disciples to observe the same Order amongst them It cannot be doubted but that this was his Meaning For he speaks to his Disciples and it appears by all the circumstances of this Passage and by the sequel of his Discourse that he is giving here a Law which concerns the Christian Church It is true indeed that he properly speaks of private differences but what he says ought to applied to
all those disorders which may happen in the Church and particularly to Scandals And surely it is evident that if we may proceed in the Methods here enjoined when the Case is only concerning some differences between private Men we have much more right to do so relation to with public Sins since they are Cases which Concern the whole Church and that directly and which do yet more properly belong to her Cognisance than the quarrels of private Men. The Meaning of Christ is then that there must be an Order in his Church for the removing of Scandals He supposes that the Church has a right to interpose upon those Occasions and he commands that those who shall refuse to hear the Church be looked upon as if they were her Members no longer and that Communication with them should be avoided This is the import of these words Let him be unto thee as an Heathen Man and Publican 2. The V. Chapter of the first Epistle to the Corinthians ver 2 3 4. decides this matter St. Paul having been informed that there was a Man among the Corinthians who lived in Incest he writes about it to that Church and first he reproves them for not having cut off from their Communion the person who had committed so Infamous an Action In the next place he does himself Excommunicate that Man and deliver him up to Satan I know that perhaps this Power of delivering up to Satan belonged only to the Apostles and it is likely that this was one of those extraordinary Punishments which they had a Power to inflict upon Prophane and Rebellious Persons But as for Excommunication it is the common and ordinary Right of the Church This Right or rather this Duty of the Church is clearly asserted by the Censure which the Apostle addresses to the Corinthians because they had not taken that Incestuous Person from among them and because they had not observed the Order he had given them before not to suffer Fornicators * Ver. 4. I wrote unto you already not to company Fornicators He repeats this Order in these Words which contain an express and general Law against all Scandalous Sinners †Ver. 12. I write it unto you again not to keep company if any man that is called a Brother be a Fornicator or Covetous or an Idolator or a Railer or a Drunkard or an Extortioner with such a one no not to eat This is positive And what the Apostle adds Do not ye judge them that are within is a confirmation that the Church has a Right to do so with relation to her Members Lastly he concludes with these Words * Ver. 13. Therefore put away from among your selves that wicked Person for thus this Verse is to be rendred as the Drift of the whole Chapter of which this is the Conclusion shews it evidently I desire the force of this Proof may be considered It is not one single Passage which I here produce it is a whole Chapter it is a Thread of Arguments and of express and reiterated Injunctions St. Paul describes those whom the Church ought not to suffer in her Bosom he appoints what is to be done in reference to them which is that they ought to be cut off from the Body of Christians and that their Company is to be avoided There cannot be a clear and express Law if this is not so 3. There are some other Places which have no ambiguity in them 2 Thess III. 6. We command you in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ this Preface is Remarkable here is a Law in due Form which the Apostle is going to deliver he proposes it by way of Command and he interposes the Auhority of our Lord Jesus Christ We command you in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ that ye withdraw your selves from every Brother that walketh disorderly and not after the Tradition which he received of us This Law is repeated ver 14. If any man obey not our word by this Epistle note that man and have no company with him that he may be ashamed 4. The 1st Epistle to Timothy affords us Proofs unanswerable The design of St. Paul in this Epistle is to establish Order and Discipline in the Church To this purpose he gives several Precepts to Timothy he Instructs him exactly how Pastors ought to proceed about Information Censures and the Principal Offices of Church-Government * Chap. V. Rebuke not an Elder but instruct him as a father and the younger men as brethren the elder women as mothers the younger as sisters with all purity †1 Tim. I. 20. 2 Tim. III. 5. Against an Elder or a Priest receive not an accusation but before two or three witnesses Them that sin rebuke before all that others also may fear I charge thee before God and the Lord Jesus Christ and the Elect Angels that thou observe these things without preferring one before another doing nothing by partiality I might add other Places out of this Epistle and the following and out of that to Titus | Tit. III. 10. Here is then again a whole Thread of Discourse prescribing the Order according to which the Church is to be Governed Here are particular Rules and St. Paul uses an Adjuration to oblige Timothy to observe them These Laws do not concern Timothy in particular but St. Paul speaks here of the Episcopal Function and of the Duty of the Pastors of the Church in general We need but read the Epistles to Timothy and the beginning of that which he writes to Titus to be satisfied that he intends this Order should be settled in all the Churches Either there is nothing plain in Scripture or it appears from all these Places That Discipline is Instituted of God that the exercise of it is committed to Pastors that scandalous Sinners are not to be tolerated in the Church that private Men ought to avoid their Company and that the Governors of the Church are bound to proceed against them by private and publick Censures and even by Excommunication If the Passages I have cited do not prove all this we may wrangle about every thing and all Arguments from the Sacred Writings may be eluded The Institution of the Sacraments is not more express or positive III. But tho' these Places were not so positive and so clear as they are yet we may be asssured that this is their true meaning because this is the sense in which the whole Primitive Church understood them The Practice of the First Ages in conjunction with the Laws of Christ and of his Apostles amounts to a Demonstration which cannot be withstood besides that we are to presume that what has been practised from the Foundation of the Church and in the time of Her Purity was settled by the Apostles themselves or by Apostolical Men so that we ought as much as possible to conform our selves to it Now we know that Discipline was observed in the Primitive Church notwithstanding the
unhappiness of the Times and the Perfecution This is unquestionable matter of fact and therefore I shall take it for granted and only say in short that then all those who embraced Christianity were engaged by a solemn Vow to renounce the Vices of the Age and to lead a holy Life that those who were Baptized were not suffered to live disorderly that vicious Persons were debarred the Holy Mysteries that those who fell into great Sins were Excommunicated as well as those who were Contumacious and Incorrigible that such were not restored to the Peace of the Church but after various degrees of Penance and a publick acknowledgment of their Faults and that as to those who relapsed they were received only at the Hour of Death Very clear Monuments of this Practice are still extant in the Writings of the Ancient Doctors of the Church as well as in the Old Canons and Decrees of Councils This Discipline must needs have been very severely observed since St. Ambrose was not afraid to put it in Practice against the Emperor Theodosius I am not ignorant that the Primitive Church has varied about certain Circumstances that the Penitents were treated sometimes with more and sometimes with less severity and that the time of their Penance was longer or shorter But as to the main or the essence of Discipline it did always obtain in the Primitive Church And it was as little questioned then Whether Discipline ought to be observed as whether Christians should be Baptized This usage among the first Christians is at least a strong presumption in favour of Discipline but it being consonant besides to what we read in the New Testament I do not see how there can remain any doubt about this Matter IV. In the last place the Nature of Discipline it self proves the usefulness and necessity of it All those who are not blinded with Prejudice must own that Discipline considered in it self is altogether agreeable to the Spirit of Christianity 1. The honour of Religion and the promoting of Christ's Kingdom require Order in the Church Who does not see but that if the Church did tolerate Scandalous Persons and take them into her Bosom and make no difference between them and the Faithful She might justly be charged with all the Disorders and Scandals which are observed in the Lives of bad Christians and be looked upon by Infidels as a Prophane Society where Vice is permitted But the Exercise of Discipline is an authentick disowning of Vice whereby the Church declares publickly that She does not allow of it 2. Discipline is a most efficacious means to procure the Conversion of Sinners A Man must be very much hardened when the being removed from the Communion of Christians does not reclaim him But when a Scandalous Person is suffered to live in the Society of the Faithful when he is admitted to the same Priviledges with other Members of the Church this gives him an occasion to harden himself in Sin and to think that he is as good a Christian and that he has as much Right to Salvation as others which is a most dangerous but withal a most common Imagination 3. Discipline is useful to the Church in general Many who may otherwise have ill Inclinations are restrained by Example or Shame or Fear or ever by Conscience Good Men are thereby doubly Edified since on the one hand this Rigour confirms them in their Duty and that on the other hand it makes reparation for the Scandal which other Mens Sins give them From all this I conclude that Discipline is a Sacred Necessary and Inviolable Order It cannot be said that it is a Humane or Arbitrary Establishment which may be altered or which was only to continue for a time An Order which has its Original in the express Laws of Christ and his Apostles and which is appointed in Scripture as a general Law an Order which has been observed in the Primitive and Apostolical Church an Order which is founded upon the very Nature of the Church and Religion and which perfectly agrees with the Spirit of the Gospel such an Order certainly ought to be followed as being of a necessary and indispensable obligation I say it again there is nothing more positive than this in the Institution of the Sacraments Discipline as well as the Sacraments is founded upon Dvine Institution and confirmed by the practice of the Primitive Church but in Discipline there is one thing more than in the Sacraments for whereas the Sacraments considered in themselves and without respect to the divine Institution are things indifferent and of no use Discipline in it self is just and useful agreeable to the Principles of Christianity as well as to plain reason and sense I have perhaps been too large upon this Subject but it was to be proved in the first place that Discipline is necessary and instituted by God since that is the ground I go upon in this whole Chapter This Sacred Order which had been fetled in the beginnings of Christianity was altered in process of time And in this as in many other things Christians grew remiss This was done by degrees for good Laws are not commonly abolished all at once but through insensible changes We learn from Ecclesiastical History that the slackning of Discipline is chiefly to be imputed to the taking away some publick Penances Those Penances were converted into private Confessions and Penances At first this alteration was only concerning some Sins which were not thought to deserve the utmost rigor of Discipline for as to great Sins such as Murder and Adultery the Ancient Order was still in force But at last about the end of the IV. Century Publick Penances were Abolished first in the Eastern and sometime after in the Western Churches Instead of Penances private Satisfactions were appointed and then Men unhappily began to be more concerned about the exterior of Penance than about what is Spiritual in it and fit to reclaim Sinners This was done at first by a kind of Relaxation or Indulgence but that which at the beginning was no more than an exception to the Law succeeded in the room of the Law it self and from thence sprang Indulgences Satisfactions Penance Auricular Confession and many other Practices which are but Corruptions of the Ancient Discipline The Bishops on the other hand being distracted by temporal Cares after the Conversion of the Emperors to the Christian Religion began to neglect the essential parts of their Function and the Conduct of their Flocks They were for humouring great Men who thought it hard to submit to the publick Order This is a short account how the purity of the Christian Religion was considerably adulterated in the point of Discipline We are now to examine what the present state of the Church and Religion is with relation to Discipline All the abuses which came up in the room of the Ancient Discipline do still subsist in most places both in the Greek and in the Latin Church The Canons and
when it is joined with Ecclesiastical Discipline but to think that Civil Laws are sufficient to Regulate Manners and to reclaim Sinners is a Conceit almost as unreasonable as it would be ridiculous to proceed against Robbers or the other Disturbers of the publick Peace only by Spiritual Punishments Let no Man then confound those things which God has set asunder 6. It is farther said That these Rules of Discipline were only for a time and that the times are altered But how can it be proved that the Laws of Discipline were made only for a time Is there any ground for this either in the Scripture or in the Nature of those Laws Are the Laws of Discipline like those of Moses which do no longer bind us Did the Apostles make this distinction Did St. Paul say upon this Subject as he did in another Case * 1 Cor. I only give my judgement I have no Commandment of the Lord Does he not speak positively of the Order according to which the Church is to be Governed Does he not Command in the Name of Jesus Christ Does he not establish general Laws and Maxims for all the Churches The Apostles indeed appointed some Rules the observation of which is not necessary at this Day because those Regulations were visibly founded upon particular Reasons which do no longer subsist and therefore they are not proposed as general Laws But the Reasons upon which Discipline is founded and which are taken from Order and Edification from the Honour of the Church from the Conversion of Sinners and from the Nature of the Christian Religion those Reasons do still subsist and consequently the Rules of Discipline are Sacred and Inviolable especially being delivered by way of Command and repeated in so many Places The Christian Church is to be Diffused all the World over sometimes She is Persecuted and sometimes She enjoys a Calm but whatever State She may be in her Nature does not alter As there is but one God one Church one Faith one Baptism so there is to be but One Order at least as to Essential Things and that Order ought to be conformable to the Laws of the Apostles Or else there will be as in fact we see there are as many different Customs and Disciplines as there are Kingdomes States Provinces nay Towns and Churches 7. It is commonly objected That the Zeal of the Primitive Christians is extinct that Men are now very Corrupt and that it would be impossible to bring them to a submission to the Discipline of the Church But that very thing that Men are corrupt proves the Necessity of Discipline Order is never more necessary than when all is in Confusion * 1 Tim. I. 9. St. Paul says that the Law is not made for a righteous Man but for the Lawless and Disobedient Discipline seems more necessary now than it was in the first Centuries because then Persecution kept Corruption out of the Church but when the Church is in peace Vices and Scandals do infallibly multiply and then it is that good Discipline is of excellent use But then it is said that it would be impossible to restore it considering the Disposition Men are now in I confess this design would meet with opposition Those who go about to restore Order and suppress Licentiousness must still encounter difficulties but yet this might be compassed if Princes and Magistrates did not oppose it If all the Pastors did set about it with a Zeal accompanied with Prudence and Gentleness if they did carefully instruct the People concerning the necessity of Discipline and if they did apply themselves to the civil Powers with equal Vigour and Respect they would carry the point at Last After all the People are not in a worse disposition than the Heathens were in before the Apostles preached the Gospel to them and there are Christian Princes and Magistrates who have Piety and Zeal If then the Heathens of old could be brought under the Discipline of Christ in the sight of Heathen Magistrates should we despair of subjecting Christians to it The instance of those Churches where Discipline is observed at least in part and where Excommunication and publick Penances are in use shews that there is no impossibility to succeed in this design If the thing was impossible God would never have commandded it 8. In the last place here is an Objection which is commonly urged with great force and which seems to have much weight in it It is said that we have reason to fear that Discipline would bring Tyranny into the Church and that those who govern it would then assume too much Authority Let us see whether this Fear is well grounded And First if we suppose this Principle that Discipline is instituted of God and that the Apostles did commit it to the Church and her Governours which I think has been fully demonstrated will it not be a kind of Blasphemy to say that Discipline is not to be suffered lest Pastors should become Tyrants Would not this reflect upon our Saviour and his Apostles as if they had established a dangerous Order which is apt to introduce Tyranny At this rate the Apostles and the Primitive Christians did incroach upon the Liberty of the People and the Authority of Princes Every Christian will abhor this Consequence and yet it results naturally from the opinion of those who reject Discipline for fear of Tyranny Besides supposing that Christ has instituted the Order we speak of can we thus argue against it without shaking off his Yoke But Men do not consider this They fancy that every thing that is granted to the Church is granted to her Governors whereas they should remember that it is paid or yielded to Christ whose Right it is and who cannot be despoiled of it without Sacrilege Here we might retort the Charge upon those who bring it They talk of Tyranny and is it not an intolerable piece of Tyranny to oppose a Divine Law and to debar the Church and her Governors of the enjoyment of those Rights which God had given them But to come closer to the Objection Nothing can be feared but one of these two Inconveniences either an Empire over Consciences or some Prejudice to the Publick Tranquility and to the Authority of civil Powers As to the first of these two Inconveniences there is no great reason to fear it since the Apostles who so expresly recommend Discipline to Pastors forbid them at the same time to assume a Dominion over Consciences Provided Discipline is used only in those cases and in that Manner which the Scripture appoints and as it was practised by the first Christians * 1 Pet. V. 2. 2 Cor I. 14. nothing like this is to be feared from it The Discipline we speak of does not meddle with Points of Faith and so Fear in this respect is groundless As to those Cases which concern Manners Injustice can hardly be committed about them The Church does not Judge of secret and