wonder if others do it by slandering them and perswading all to separate from them And if they say Rom. 3. 7. If the Truth of God hath more abounded through my Lye unto his Glory why yet am I also judged as a sinner But God and Truth may be better served by Truth But falshood must by falshood be upheld But Sir my Reputation is at your service for an honester use but seeing it was but for the destruction of Christian Love and Peace that you designed to make a stepping-stone of it try whether you be not slipt beside it into the dirt Sect. 77. E. B. I thought it my duty to reprove you and to see your sin and error herein in order before you R. B. I have much more sin than you are aware of which all such invitations do call me to renew my sorrow for and vigilancy against But when I once take the Principles of Christian Love and Vnity for sin and the principles and practice of Enmity and Division for my duty I shall then avoid sin as sinfully and lamentably as many in this age have done Sect. 78. E. B. If you will still go on and under pretence of writing for Love do what you can to keep up a mixed disorderly persecuting and imperfect Church-State leaveing us no hope nor possibility of reformation R. B. 1. This is another implyed Untruth that I keep up a persecuting Church-State when I have written so much more than you against it yea that I do what I can to do it as if you thought that we can do no more evil than we do and our power were as small to sin as you make it to be to good But you will find at last that separating from Churches for mixture and imperfection and such disorder as we have now in question and to cloak this with slandering the honest Conforming Ministers with Persecution who lament it in others and never practise it though I am not one that take them to be blameless this will prove a greater hinderance to Reformation than a sober peaceable Christian conversation will be 2. And thus unskilful builders do pull down Did our Separations and Church-divisions these six and twenty years last past promote our Reformation Wonderful That men can yet take that for the reforming way which hath destroyed Reformation and brought us into all the confusions we are in Will all this experience teach us nothing I will cease wondering at the words Luke 16. 31. If they hear not Moses and the Prophets neither will they be perswaded though one rose from the dead And do you not know how your erronious reasonings and practices do occasion men even to scorn at your talk of Reformation and if we did not disown you and renounce your errors and mis-doings the Non-conformists were like to be exposed to common derision for your sake and accounted a sort of men at enmity with sobriety and peace and multitudes were like to be hardened by you into greater evils and enmities than I will name And can any ignorant Mountebanks more mortally and perniciously practise Physick than you thus practise the Reformation of the Churches Which are wounded and torn by such Reformers Sect. 79. E. B. My miscalling you Learned Judicious Mortified is indeed the only untruth which you can justly charge me with R. B. Alas Sir is that sin such a jesting matter Will you end as you begun When you said you had done will you not have done writing untruths When you have no other matter for Vntruths will you make this another to say that no one of thirty three which I named to you can be justly charged on you Ask any sober impartial man who hath read your Book and mine whether you have cleared your self of any one of them or spoken any thing that is considerable and probable to such a purpose Sect. 80. R. B. 23. Mr. Bagshaw having done begins again to call me to recant unseemly abuses of Mr. Brown and one that a Book prefaced by him is written of And he reciteth both their Letters As to Mrs. Letter I give her this account of my thoughts of her and the Book that 's written of her 1. That I make no doubt but all the holy truth which she hath learned all the mortification of sin and reformation of life all the faith in Christ and Love to God and holiness which is in her are the true fruits of the Spirit of God and he is a wretched person that will ascribe these to Melancholy 2. And I doubt not but in a Melancholy distemper as Satan findeth his advantage for some special temptations so God can make his advantage to further the sanctification of such a soul 3. But he that giveth me that Book to read and would have me ignorant that Melancholy had a great hand in her fastings temptations and several conceits there mentioned and this after my experience of multitudes in the like condition yea when I am still wearied out with the Cases of such from time to time doth put an utter impossibility upon me For if my Ignorance herein would gratifie such it is not in my power to be ignorant when I will But I can bear with it in others Therefore her words If this be the effect of Melancholy go on an untrue supposition I have told you what were the effects And her sorrow that I am found deriding the effects she mentioneth is the effect of worse than Melancholly as being founded in her untruth Next this Woman accuseth me with all these following untruths 1. That Brother Browne was the Author of that Book Answ Not a true word I only said that it was published by him as uncontrolled fame affirmed but not that he was the Author I can find no such word in my writings If you can tell me where And doth not his Epistle before it shew that he was one of the Publishers 2. That I was suddenly moved to go hear Mr. Baxter Answ False again I only said was suddenly moved to go into the Church that is As she was passing by in the street not knowing who Preached 3. That ought of his Sermon had any impression upon me which I could not attend to because I was so terrified with the words of the Text Rom. 6. 21. Answ False again I have no such words that ought of my Sermon had any impression on her but only of the Time that before the Sermon was done she oould hardly forbear crying out 4. That I went away resolved upon a holy life Answ Another mistake I said only she went home a changed person Resolved that is did resolve for a holy life That she went home changed she denyeth not for her terrours were some change That she Resolved for a holy life her self and her Book profess But whether as soon as she went home or how many dayes after I never undertook to tell But how could she be Converted without resolving
Principles of Church-division and censorious unwarrantable Separation I Know there is in Holiness a contrariety to sin and Heaven and Hell must finally shew the difference for ever And to reconcile them is as unpossible as to reconcile Light and Darkness I know that it is the endeavour of every faithful Minister of Christ to make this difference plainly known and in Doctrine and Discipline to separate the precious from the vile and to make ungodly men know that they are ungodly and to give to each their proper portion and to keep the Churches as clean as they can by lawful means I know that the ruine of this purging and differencing Discipline is a great part of the lamentable ruine of the Churches and occasioneth that scandal to the Mahometans and Heathens because of the wicked lives of Christians which is one of the greatest hinderances of their conversion And that all Christians should use their utmost skill and power to recover Religion to its primitive Purity and Splendour and Discipline to the most effectual regular exercise And I know that in mens private converse there must be a great care what company we converse with and especially whom we make our familiars And that to be indifferent and to intimate an equality or likeness of the godly and the wicked in doctrine communion and familiarity is a notable sign of an ungodly person And upon these accounts I know that when persons are newly recovered from ungodliness themselves they are very much inclined to fly from the company of such as far as their safety doth require And by this inclination and their ignorance they are frequently tempted to go further from them in Church communion than God alloweth them to do and instead of separating from them in their sin to separate from them in their duty and to separate from the Churches of Christ in his true worship because of the mixture and presence of the bad And this they are drawn to 1. By forgetting the Scripture pattern and state of the Churches even in the purest age and thinking only what they desire rather than what is to be expected or done 2. By forgetting the difference between the Church visible which is alwayes mixt with Hypocrites and offenders and the Church invisible which shall all be saved 3. By forgetting the difference between their private familiarity where they are choosers of their company themselves and their Church communion where the Pastors are the Rulers and Judges of the fitness of the members Or else not understanding that this use of the Keyes and judging of the fitness of the members is indeed the Pastors Office and not theirs 4. By not considering that nothing must be done by Discipline upon Offenders but in a course of Church-Justice upon due Accusations Summons Audience Proof and patient Admonition And not by casting out any irregularly upon the expectation of every one that will say that they are ungodly and scandalous 5. By forgetting the great difference between joyning with men in sinful actions and joyning with them in their duty in which they should be encouraged 6. By forgetting the great difference of keeping in our own place and duty though bad men are present and going out of our place and duty to joyn with them in sin 7. By forgetting that God will have all mens own wills by Choosing or Refusing to have more hand in their Welfare or Misery than other mens And if they mischoose the sin will be their own 8. By forgetting that God hath not left the Church at arbitrary liberty to judge any Godly or Ungodly at their pleasure But hath given us a set Test or Rule to judge them by which is their sober Profession of Consent to the Baptismal Covenant upon which the Adult and their Infants have right to Baptism And being Baptized have Right to Church Communion in all the Acts which their Age and Understanding makes them capable of And it is Church-tyranny to refuse such as shew this Title till they are openly proved to forfeit it by Impenitency in gross sin after publick admonition and due means This is the truth and the method of Christs discipline and the Rule of our Communion 9. By superstitious placing their Religion in indifferent and undertermined things and laying a greater stress on the words of prayer than there is cause Overvaluing their several outward forms expressions and orders in the worshipping of God when instead of provoking each other to faith and fervency to Love and to good works they place more of Godliness in words and circumstances which God hath certainly left free to every mans conscience than God doth place in them And one thinks that he is irregular that prayeth without a set form and another that he is ungodly that prayeth not by the Spirit who useth a set form when both do but speak their own superstition and make Laws and Rules which God never made Superstition and our own additions in Religion even in those that cry out much against it is the occasion of most of our Church-divisions One side supposeth every disorder or unfit expression in free prayer to be a greater fault than indeed it is And that its unlawful therefore to joyn with a Church that hath no set forms Another party supposeth the forms in the Church Lyturgy to be worse than they are and that it is unlawful to joyn in them or to receive the Lords Supper when they are used When as God hath neither tyed us to set forms nor from them save only as unsuitableness to any particular persons may make one less edifying than the other And both free prayers and set forms studied prayers and sudden prayers are all the work of man as to mans part and therefore they must needs be imperfect and faulty as man is And yet in both we may pray by the Spirit even with the holy and fervent desires which the Spirit exciteth in us And the Spirit may ordinarily be a Spirit of supplication in us and help our infirmities in the one way and in the other And therefore though I will not equall them For I prefer some mens free praying before any forms and I prefer the Common prayers before some mens free prayers yet I may say that I will neither Assent and Consent to every word in the one nor in the other no not of any man that ever I heard And yet I will not take it for unlawful to joyn with Church or Family or person in the one or in the other yea upon long experience if I had fully my own choice and liberty I would use free prayer one part of the day or one day and a well composed form another part because I see commodities by both and such inconveniences of either way alone as are if possible to be avoided But when the Mind hath received a prejudice against either way by Education Custom or former distastes no reason how clear soever will overcome it till age and
should find the Evidences of Gods favour and acceptance in the life of Faith and Love and Holiness do lamentably quiet themselves instead of these with being members of such strict societies as profess even a separating conspicuous holiness 20. Lastly But one of the greatest snares of all is that men cannot bear the Censures of those that are inclined to Separation And therefore rather than be accounted and called by them Formalists Temporizers Carnal or such like they will do as they do and turn their zeal into partial and unjust censures of the persons words and outward Modes and Circumstances of Worship of those that they dissent from These and such other causes of Dividing inclinations I did upon the special necessities of the Churches and some of my own acquaintance lay open in a Book called the Cure of Church Divisions which made a great noise as water powred upon the flames But though some upon misunderstanding and some by guilt and interest muttered much against it I never had a word against it privately or publickly in writing by way of Confutation of any thing in it save only a Libell of one that now calleth himself Edward Bagshaw a man that I am not acquainted with though I have seen and spoken with him and though to my trouble when his fancy led him that way he unskilfully wrote for me against the Bishop then of Worcester I greatly rejoyce that in these times of tryal so few of the Non-conformable Ministers are by sufferings and passions hurried into the dividing extream If injuries or interest would excuse any sin I think there are few Ministers in England who have more inducements to the angry separating way than I have But shall I therefore wrong the Truth and Church of God and my own and others souls God forbid Brethren it is none of my meaning to disoblige you from your ancient faithful Ministers Nor yet to perswade you to hear any insufficient or intolerable man much less to commit your souls to the Pastoral care of such a person nor yet to prefer a worse before a better who may upon lawful terms be enjoyed But the things that I perswade you to are these 1. Not to entertain false uncharitable dividing principles in your minds which will break the peace of all societies 2. If you differ about Infant Baptism Indepencie Common prayer or such like that yet you will not think your differences oblige you to deny Communion to all you differ from 3. That if you are so sinfully partial that you cannot joyn in the same Churches you would yet live charitably and peaceably in several Churches 4. That you would not say any Church of Christ is No Church because it is not of your form or mode 5. That you would not say that Communion with any Church is unlawful because their external worshipping form is not of your fashion or before you have proved what you say My advice is calculated to the Vnion and peace of all true Churches and not those of one form or mode alone And I note it as a considerable providence of God that I am drawn in to defend the Principles of Love and Concord in these trying times against such an adversary as Mr. Bagshaw is It hath of late been Gods way to let us know the evil of Principles by their effects on the men that we have had to do with As Malignant principles would not have been sufficiently distasted by us if they had not shewed themselves in malignant practices So Dividing principles had never been sufficiently known in England if they had not ruined a Reformation silenced so many hundred Ministers and laid us in the dirt as they have done And if the Cause of Dividers must be judged of by the defenders I advise you to consider of these things following 1. How many notorious false doctrines he hath delivered 2. How many other notorious Crimes in two Libells he hath committed In special let every sober person judge whether Ignorance Temerity Pride and high self-conceitedness with malignant unconcealed calumny do not only defile but even constitute or make up his Books 3. What bitter enmity is here exprest against the Principles of Love and Vnity and Concord and Peace and Sobriety it self 4. How many score notorious untruths he shamelesly publisheth in these two Libells 5. How much he fighteth against Repentance and so with gross Impenitency aggravateth all his crimes 6. How like his own Spirit is to that which he accounteth the Spirit of imposition and persecution And how vehement he is against the same persons as such are and as impudently slandereth them and as bitterly and professedly designeth to make them odious But he that professeth to make another odious thereby disableth himself from doing it 7. Whether ever in all your lives you saw two Libells written against another which do not only perform but even attempt so little and next to nothing at all to give any answer to the Books he writes against Read mine and read his and I defie any thing but madness it self or blind partiality or wickedness to make any man think that he hath confuted what I have written I confess I admire at the mans insensibility that doth not perceive how much he hath done by pretending an Answer and giving none or worse than none to make his cause or himself contemptible Can any man in his wits think that he hath confuted the Principles of Concord which I laid down in my Directions 8. Whether such a man as this do shew himself wiser than Dod Hildersham Ames Baine and all the old Non-conformists according to the importance of his boast or whether he give us cause to believe that God hath revealed more to him than to them while he himself can no better reveal it unto others 9. When I had set down at least thirty three Vntruths which he deliberately dared to write and publish did you ever read such a pittiful vindication He hath not spoken to any considerable number of them And of those few that he speaketh to try if you can find any one of which he cleareth himself And yet he professeth not repentance for any one of them Nay to open his Impenitency he professeth falsly that I cannot justly charge him with any of them and addeth in the last Libell forty eight palpable Vntruths more Just like one that being accused of swearing should forty eight times swear that he never sware 10. How far he proceedeth in his separation and how far he would draw poor unstable souls It is not only from the Conformists and the Parish Churches that he would have you separate and all in the whole world that are worse than they but also from all the Non-conformists in England that are not better than I as his concluding Advertisement fully telleth you All of my mind and measure are unworthy of the communion of this humble tender credible man 11. What means is there left in the world to
me was He that is not sound in the Doctrine of Justification or to that sense And what made them threaten to disown him if he would not cease such wayes Did ever sober men go about with such general accusations and expect that men answer to they know not what 6. But what are the few words that would satisfie you A yea or a nay What if I say Sir I think I am sound in the doctrine of Justification and I think you speak evil of the things you know not Would that have satisfied you Sect. 32. E. B. And in another place you tell me that you have written the better part of above fifty Books against the prophane the Jews and the Mahumetans I will not enquire to what purpose for I am very confident none of those did ever read what you have written against them But add to these your several other Treatises your Books will in all amount to as many Volumes as Tostatus writ concerning whom and all such kind of Writers you once gave this true Character though since you have most unhappily forgotten it I cannot but account all those Tostatus's as impudently proud who think the world should read no bodies works but theirs Pray Sir read this passage again and compare it with what you have already written and what as I hear you do yet further intend to write and then tell me in earnest what you think of your self R. B. 1. Seeing our debates about Church-dividing must needs be turned to this Whether I am proud I grant you the conclusion that I am proud and what would you have more 2. Your ductile followers that never saw Tostatus know not how you cheat them by these words and that you measure by Number and not by bulk and twenty of some of my Books will not make one of Tostatus's for bigness If you go to number how many more wrote Origen But a Sheet is not so big as a large Volume in folio 3. I never accused Augustine Chrysostom Calvin Zanchy c. as imitating Tostatus And I have not wrote so much as they 4. The best way to cure one that writeth too much is to perswade men not to buy and read it and then the Booksellers will not print it And till you can do that you see that all men are not of your mind And by what obligation am I bound to be of your mind alone rather than of many thousands that are of another and those that still importune me to write more Is it pride only to differ from you and to write against your judgement Or were not the Fathers and Divines fore-mentioned with Rivet Chamier Beza Luther c. yea and Dr. Owen too proud if large Writings be a sign of Pride 5. When you question to what purpose it is to write Books against the Prophane and Jews and Mahumetans that is against Infidelity and to defend the Christian faith you shew what a Guide you are to the Church 6. When you are confident that none of the Prophane c. did ever read what I wrote against them either you believe your self or not If you do how unfit are you to be believed of any that know no better what is credible in a matter of fact Could you think for instance that my Call to the Vnconverted hath been printed so oft I think some scores of thousands and translated into French by Mr. Eliots as he said he was doing into the Indian Tongue and no prophane person ever read it You will take this very instance its like for my pride which you make necessary to shew your temerity and deceit But if you do not believe your self how much less should others believe you 7. Will no sober Readers think that you set your self to do the Devils work against the service of the Church of God by seeking to silence us from writing by your contumely and scorns even from writing against the Prophane and Infidels at a time when we are by others silenced from publick preaching Let your conscience tell you if I had obeyed you from the first and never written whether the Devil or most that have made use of what I wrote would have thankt you more 8. Did not the Primitive Teachers Apostles and others leave us their Examples for Writing as well as for Vocal Teaching And are they not two wayes of predicating or publishing the same Gospel And if so would he serve God or the Devil that would scorn us all as Proud for preaching so much as the best men do 9. And do you not yet see how much you have of the same silencing Spirit which you profess to separate from 10. But your warning for a review hath brought me to Repent of and Retract that passage against Tostatus as being too rashly uttered Because 1. He wrote when good Writers were more scarce than now 2. Because he might be willing that other mens works should be preferred before his and that his own should not be wholly read but partly perused on particulas occasions 3. And it is unseemly to reprove industry Now we come to the Question after all this Sect. 33. IN stating of this Question You do E. B p. 10. your self grant so much that you scarce leave any thing to be either disputed or denyed R. B. Remember Reader that my Professed design on the Title page is 1. To invite all sound and sober Christians by what names soever called to receive each other to Communion in the same Churches 2. And where that which is first desireable cannot be attained to bear with each other in their distinct Assemblies and to manage them all in Christian Love 3. And that under the first head I particularly prove that It is lawful to hold Communion with such Christian Churches as have worthy or tolerable Pastors notwithstanding the Parochial order of them and the Ministers Conformity and use of the Common-Prayer Book This last is the true state of the Question which I affirm with these two limitations or explications That is 1. That it is lawful statedly to communicate as a member with such a Parish Church where we cannot consideratis considerandis have Communion with a better upon lawful termes 2. That those that can have stated Communion with a better may yet lawfully communicate sometimes with such a Parish Church as we may do on just occasion with a Church of Neighbours or Strangers where we live or come Yea that we ought to do so when some special reasons as from Authority Scandal c. do require it These are the summ of my Assertions Though my main cause oblige me as much to prove to a Conformist that he may have Communion with a Church of Non-conformists yet I had no call to prosecute that particularly as I had to the other for the reasons which I rendred at large And this being the Case judge now of this mans Dissent and furious opposition whether sober people have reason to
persecution oppression injuries slanders must be patiently let go as being none of ours when it cannot be kept by lawful means or without a greater hurt Acts 22. 28 c. Prop. 6. But our Liberty in either of these three last mentioned Cases ought not causelesly to be taken from us by others nor must be causelesly cast away by our selves nor should we yield to false Teachers who would deceive the Churches by telling them that they are under Divine Obligations when they are not and make them believe that things lawful are unlawful and things indifferent are necessary Gal. 2. 4 5. Col. 2. 16 18 20 21 22 23. Acts 15. 1 Cor. 7. 21 22. The third Proposition is it that I am to prove And Pauls becoming all things to all men to save some a Jew to the Jews his shaving his head his circumcising Timothy with the reasons of it his resolution to forbear the eating of flesh rather than offend the weak and his perswading others to do the like do fully prove it He maintaineth the Christians Right of Liberty against false Teachers but he maintaineth not the Exercise of it when he had reason to let it go For Liberty is not necessity 1 Cor. 9. 1. Am I not free 4 5. Have we not power to eat and to drink Have we not power to lead about a Sister a Wife as well as other Apostles 12. If others be partakers of this power over you are not we rather Nevertheless we have not used this power but suffered all things lest we should hinder the Gospel of Christ 15. But I have used none of these things 19 For though I be free from all men yet have I made my self servant to all that I might gain the more And unto the Jews I became a Jew that I might gain the Jews To them that are under the Law as under the Law that I might gain them that are under the Law To them that are without the Law as without Law that I might gain them that are without Law To the weak I became as weak that I might gain the weak I am made all things to all men that I might by all means save some And this I do for the Gospels sake See 1 Cor. 8. 13. Rom. 14. 21. It is good neither to eat flesh nor to drink wine nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth or is offended or is made weak Christ himself saith Matth. 17. 26. Then are the children free notwithstanding lest we should offend go thou c. and give them for me and thee 1 Pet. 2. 16. As free that is as such as by Christ are freed from true bondage but not from order and subjection and therefore not having or using liberty for a cloak of maliciousness but as the servants of God No man hath liberty to be unruly or hurtfull Rom. 7. 3. If her husband be dead she is free from that Law and yet may give away that freedom Yea of the very liberty from the Jewish Law the Apostle saith Gal. 5. 13. For ye have been called unto liberty q. d. therefore let not false Teachers perswade you that you are bound to that which you are freed from only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh but by Love serve one another q. d. in the exercise of this Liberty you must do or not do the things you are at liberty in as may do most good according as the Law of Love requireth and not as your own carnal interest and lust inclineth you For all the Law is fulfilled in one word in this Thou shalt Love thy neighbour as thy self 1 Cor. 16. 25 28 29 30 31. Whatsoever is sold in the Shambles eat asking no question for conscience sake But if any man say unto you This is offered in sacrifice to Idols eat not for his sake that shewed it and for conscience sake Thus our liberty is not to be exercised against Love for we have no liberty to hurt our brethren 29. Conscience I say not thine own but of the others Thus others by weakness and consequently Rulers by authority may restrain the exercise of our liberty For why is my liberty judged of another mans Conscience that is Not that his Conscience is the Rule of my Right or his judgement taketh away my title to liberty but his interest and the Law of Love do take away my Right of using my liberty to anothers hurt 3. For if I by grace be a partaker that is lawfully according to my Christian liberty why am I evil spoken of for that for which I give thanks that is it is a fault in those that accuse me of sin when I do that which is lawful in it self abstracted from the Consequents or scandal Whether therefore ye eat or drink which are things indifferent as to the kind of food or whatsoever ye do how lawful in it self soever do all to the glory of God For the interest of the End must guide and restrain you in the use even of things in themselves indifferent For no man hath liberty to dishonour God nor to hurt another nor to disobey just power I beseech you therefore while you promise men liberty be not your self and make not them the servants of sin 2 Pet. 2. 19. And take notice that Liberty must be distinguished as to Right and as to Vse And that the use must often be denyed and not maintained 2. Let us next see Whether there be no way but separation in our Case to preserve our liberty Paul hath here shewed you another way 1. By doctrinal defence to defend it against false Teachers that would doctrinally brings us into bondage To maintain against such as you who add to Gods Laws that we are not bound to do that which is not commanded or to forbear that which is not by God forbidden though you say we are 2. To use our Liberty as it tendeth to Gods glory and mans good and disuse it when it crosseth these but not deny our right This is the Scripture way of preserving it and not to think that we have no way to preserve it but by doing hurt or crossing Love by Church-divisions 3. No falshood is a just defence of our Christian liberty But to say that a true Church is no true Church or true Worship is no true Worship or that it is not Lawful to communicate where it is lawful is a falshood Therefore it is no just defence of our Liberty Sect. 44. E. B. p. 12. 2. Being present where those things are used in the Worship of God which God hath not commanded this would involve us in the guilt and contagion of them nor do we believe however we have your word for the contrary the Lord will otherwise interpret it since he hath so strictly charged us to keep far from a false matter and not to partake in other mens sins R. B. Here are two more false doctrines intimated 1. That to use things in the