Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	church_n	government_n	worship_n	3,428	5	7.3798	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A78018	Conformitie's deformity. In a dialogue between conformity, and conscience. Wherein the main head of all the controversies in these times, concerning church-government, is asserted and maintained; as without which, all reformation is headlesse, and all reconciliation hopelesse. Dedicated by Henry Burton, to the honour of Jesus Christ, as the first-fruits of his late recovery from death to life; as a testimony of his humble and thankfull acknowledgement of so great a mercy: and published for the service of all those, that love the Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity ...	Burton, Henry, 1578-1648.	1646 (1646)	Wing B6160; Thomason E358_20; ESTC R201164	26,532	40

be heard but when among other their practises they binde heavy burthens then and there he saith Call no man Father upon earth that is therein obey them not that 's for the multitude And for the Disciples Re ye not called Rabbi for one is your Master even Christ And that no man hath power over anothers conscience the Apostle sheweth speaking to the very same purpose Who art thou that judgest another mans servant How much more then Christs servant And this in things indifferent how much lesse in things forbidden in the Scripture must we force our brothers conscience or labour to perswade him The Chapter is full of arguments to this purpose Conf. But sir if the Scripture be so clear for that which you affirm then hath the whole Church of God for many Ages even almost from the very Apostles continued in a foul errour Consc Nay more then almost For this mystery of iniquity had its first rise even in the Apostles times it began then to work And what was this mystery of iniquity but an exaltation of mans power above all that is called God or that is worshipped so as to sit upon or over or in the Temple of God over the consciences of Gods people and over the Church as God himself And note there also it is called an Apostasie or as Tit. 1. 14. a turning away from or of the truth as afore and such are adversaries too and all Antichristian Such an one was * Diotrephes that {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} who loved the preeminence the very spawn of this mystery which sets him a work to raise himself 1. In not receiving the Apostle John 2 In prating against him with malitious words 3. In not receiving the brethren 4. In forbidding those that would And 5. In casting them out of the Church Thus also did this mysterie begin to work as the Apostle intimates both in Tit. 1. 14. and in Col. 2. 8. 17. 18. 28. 22 23. But then this mystery was but in the swadling clouts which afterward growing by degrees to the full stature was so bedecked with infinite varieties of ceremonies and daily new fashions in Religion as the Crow with every birds feather that getting an unlimited usurped power and that under the colour of Jure Divino all mens consciences Churches must conform to the present fashion of worship and church-Church-government Thus by degrees this Mystery of iniquity mounted to its height and hath now obtained such a prescription of antiquity as is equivalent to a law And not only the Pope claimeth and exerciseth this power over his whole Popedome and Hierarchy but from him our late Prelates And whence or from whom you derive this very power unlesse immediately either from the Pope or from our late Prelates whose personall Prelacy you have abandoned saving their Prelaticall spirit and usurped power or else from the antiquity of this mystery you may do well to inform us And in truth this was that very sluice which when first opened did let in that inundation and deluge not only of will-worship in all kinde of ceremonies and superstitions but also of humane forms and frames of Church-government and in all of them such a tyrannicall power over all consciences and Churches as hath wholly drowned all so as Christs Dove can no where finde where to set her foot And therefore in this time of pretended Reformation to erect this great Idol to wit a power in man to prescribe laws and to legitimate commandements for worship and Church government and to presse them upon every mans conscience what is it but with Nebuchadnezzar to erect his golden Image and with an immortall Law of the Medes and Persians to binde all men to fall down and worship it Or what is it but with Ieroboam and his counsel and so in every alteration of the State to set up the golden Calves with a strict commandement of universall conformity none daring among all those ten Tribes * openly to professe the pure worship of God saving the Prophet Eliah to whom those seven thousand were not known And therefore God rooted out Ieroboams house and did the Tribes escape scot-free for their yielding willing obedience to the commandment of the * King his counsel though it were a publick act of State Was not * Ephraim oppressed and broken in judgement because he willingly walked after the commandement For God set wicked Kings over them who oppressed and brake them in judgement tyrannizing at their pleasure As alwayes where a people is brought under the spirituall yoak of bondage they are never free from the temporall Nor only this but they were carried into perpetuall captivity and never returned unto this day An example to be laid to heart both of Rulers and people Remember Ephraim therefore the horriblenesse of whose sin appeareth by the horriblenesse of the punishment And like to this is that of Jerusalem and of the Jews They said indeed * If we thus let him alone all men will believe in him and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation No blinde Jews because ye did renounce your King Christ and so envie the peoples salvation therefore the Romans came and took away both your place and nation And how did the Jews reject this their King Christ tels us in a Parable of a Noble man Luke 19. saying v. 14. But his Citizens hated him and sent a message after him saying we will not have this man to reign over us Where note First they were such as professed to be the people of God His Citizens Secondly the ground of their refusall of him to be their King was hatred of him and so to refuse him is to hate him Thirdly the manner of their refusall 1. They sent a message after him as the vulgar Translation renders it but the Originall is They sent {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} an ambassage after him which is more then a message It must be done by a publick act of State to make all cock sure And 2. the matter of the Ambassage We will not have this man or this follow * {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} this noting their contempt of him And the reason hereof was their will We will not But what was the issue read and mark it v. 27. Where Christ not long after returns in judgement against them wch he executes by those very Romans whom they so feared to whom he gives this commission But those mine enemies that would not that I should reign over them bring hither and slay them c. Which was done accordingly Conf. But good sir neither are we as those ten Tribes under an idolatrous government nor as those Jews under a Roman Governour with a Synedrion or Counsel of Priests Scribes and Pharisees but we live in a happy time under a Protestant Government a Protestant Parliament a Protestant Synod and therefore there is

no such danger by allowing such a power to men as you pretend Consc Although the present State be Protestant yet you are not sure it will be alwayes so What if a Marian reign come about again with a Popish Parliament and Convocation And if it be true that Christ hath left such a power to any State as afore without limitation then it is left as well to a Popish State as to a Protestant In this respect there is no difference And then it must follow that a Popish power making a law for the setting up of the Masse as Qu. Mary with her Parliament and Clergy did and for which they want not pretext of Scripture and Iure Divino if bold words and false glosses will do it then al the subjects of England must either conforme or else to the stake So as the very admitting and crying up of such a power left to men as it is most false and groundlesse and as before a Grandmother Horesic and introducer of the most direfull tyranny over soul and all so far is it from ever proving to be Iure Divino as being Ludibrium Synodorum so it is the next way and much more in this present juncture of time as things now stand to make us as miserable a Nation as both the ten Tribes and the Jews And as we touched before if the wisdom of God would not entrust his servant Moses nor David nor the Apostles with a power in setting up what forms of worship frames of government they pleased though they were both wise and faithfull and free from all private interests in seeking themselves to become Lords Paramount Car we finde in any age of the world trow you either a Parliament or Synod whereof all the Members yea or the greater part are such as Moses David and the Apostles were so as to be entrusted with such a power And in case this State should assume to it self such a power as we speak of so as to enact a law to binde all to conformity either you must produce some Scripture authority for it that the Parliament may be satisfied quo jure and that it is Iure Divino as they require of you and which you have promised but have not performed it Or in the mean time give me leave to put it unto you or to the soundest judgements how you can clear your self from falling under that marvellous judgement of God which we finde in Esay 29. The matter was v. 13. That their fear towards God was taught by the precept of men They had set up a worship of God according to the precept of men This was all And is this in your judgement nothing But what They were they that did this Surely the Prophets Rulers and Seers What the Guides and Leaders of the People How came it to passe The Lord saith there as a matter of wonder and to be proclaimed by a lowd cry that they were drunken but not with wine and staggered but not with strong drink and that the Lord had closed their eyes and poured upon them the spirit of deep sleep v. 9 10. So as neither the learned nor unlearned could understand the vision v. 11 12. And all their religion is turned into hypocrisie v. 23. Forasmuch as their fear towards God was taught by the precept of men For a religion of humane institution is hypocrisie while pretending to worship and fear God they fear and worship men which is both hypocrisie and idolatry And what 's the issue of all this v. 14. Therefore behold saith the Lord I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people even a marvellous work and a wonder For the wisdom of their wise men shall perish and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid Conf. And what of all this Consc What think you of it Mr. Conformity Is here nothing that concerns you Conf. Nothing that I see Consc See ye nothing of all this And are you not then in the number of those whose eyes are closed and on whom the Lord hath powred the spirit of deep sleep Conf. But do ye not know that this was a Prophesie fulfilled many hundred years agoe even in Esay's time by those of Jerusalem How then can you apply it to these times Consc Though it was then fulfilled yet it is written for our learning and to admonish us upon whom the ends of the world are come And the same Prophesies may have sundry fulfillings upon the like occasions And for application of it I only made it a Quere how you could acquit your self from having it verified of you in these times Conf. But the Prophesie making mention of the Prophets Rulers Seers of Jerusalem as drunken and blinde all that I can apprehend hereof is that you thereby mean the Prophits Rulers Seers of this famous City and perhaps also to speak more plainly the Parliament Synod Sion-Colledge the Common-counsel c. For who are the Prophets or Rulers or Seers or who are the learned and wise men but these Therefore Mr. Conscience deale ingenuously with us and speak no more in the clouds Consc What Mr. Conformity would you have me to doe here as you do with your Parish people when vou mingle all together at your Sacrament What good and bad those of the Militant and others of the Malignant hurch together I would have you to know that I put a difference between the Parliament on the one side and the synod Sion-Colledge Common-counsel on the other And Secondly among all these I put no small odds between the truly wise and prudent that truly fear God and those that are self-wise or worldly-wise And thirdly I put a difference between Sion-Colledge and Common counsell as between Seers and not Seers between the leaders and the led Nor fourthly do I apply the foresaid Scripture to any one in particular but my desire is that every one in all these Companies would by due examination of himself make the application For it is a mater of high concernment And for their better direction herein First Let all those that by Letters Petitions Remonstrances Compliances Confederacies Counsels secret and open nocturnall and diurnall do wring blood out of the late Covenant by pressing importuning and plotting the setting up and establishing by a law such a form of Church-government Worship Discipline as not only is the highest affront and dishonour to Christ but necessarily tends not only to the enslaving of the peoples consciences but to the undoing of this whole English Nation by vassallizing it to vilest of men apply it Secondly Let all those who would have our victorious Army in all the haste disbanded before our peace be well setled and our land cleared from the one end to the other of all those dangers which do threaten it by the treacheries of so many malignant enemies who carry two faces under one hood and do but watch for such an opportunity to wreck their envie and malice upon

truth as to censure or restrain either heresie or schisme or apostacie And Christs government is sufficient in all Church-cases whatsoever Conf. But who in a Christian civil State do not acknowledge Christ as superior Consc This is sufficiently resolved before Such as conform to a State religion or a State church-church-government make that the supreme law and lord over their conscience and so exclude Christs supremacie Enough is said of that But you cut me off from what I was about to adde Mans nature is too prone to idolize the Power so as to make it as the shadow of the bramble in Jothams parable under which to ease themselves of the labour to search into the Scriptures and so to come to know what they believe most men pinning their Religion upon the sleeve either of the Priest as the Papists do or also of the Magistrate as our common Protestants do wrapping all up in an implicite faith and blind obedience according to your Remonstrance that urgeth conformity to the religion and government of Christ already established or which shall be set up Thus it was enough for the Pharisees to say * We have a law and by that law Christ ought to dye Thus Christ must not be God because the Roman Senate according to their law formerly made had not first motion'd it or passed their vote for it before Tiberius Caesar had commended it to them namely to admit of Christ into their Pantheon to take place among their gods And is it not even so with us Must not Christ be King of the Jews only because by an act of State as before they will not have this man to reign over them And Christ must not be God because the Roman Senate had not pre-resolved it And so Christ must not be sole Lord over the conscience nor sole Law giver of his Church nor his Word the sole rule of worship of Christs Kingly government of his spiritual kingdom in the conscience and Churches of the Saints nor indeed Christs kingdom spiritual because the Sate hath made a law which must rule the conscience in point of forms of worship and of Church-government that Christs kingdom must be worldly perpetually entaild to a whole Nation making up one Nationall Church the form whereof worldly and the materials worldly as either no Saints at all or else all Saints because all nominall Christians and all this and much more because the civill State by the instigation of men Ecclesiasticall or Civill domesticall or forein hath so ordaind it Conf. Well Conscieuce I now perceive that fame is no lyar I have now heard thee my self and much more then ever I heard before and such things as my stomack is no way able to digest but that I must needs go ease it by acquainting those whom it specially concerns with what thou hast here delivered And so farewell Consc Nay stay Conformity and this withall take with thee First I would have thee know that speaking so freely to thee I was not so simple as not to imagine thou wouldst divulge all nay in truth I have spoken all this to thee to that very purpose that thou shouldst communicate it if possible so far as the Sun shines but first to thine at home as thou sayest But thus much let me intreat of thee 1. That thou wouldst not do any thing this way in malice lest thou adde to thy sin Secondly that thou wouldst speak nothing but truth and the whole truth and that without aggravations whereof there is no need especially when thou speakest to thy friends of Conscience and much more of things of this nature too harsh for delicate ears And thirdly assure them from Conscience that what I have here spoken to thee it is out of pure zeale for the honour of Christ out of pure charity to the persons concerned out of pure piety to see my native country in such a perishing estate and the honour of England to lie in the dust out of pure hatred of hypocrisie idolatry pride covetousnes ambition treachery and treason walking up and down in long robes And in a word to deliver if no more yet mine own soul in discharge of my duty to God and my country as a poor Minister of Christ by witnessing the truth and convincing error And for a close of all Conformity If thou desirest Peace with Truth as we all should do If thou wouldest have me to hold correspondence with thee and to give thee the right hand of fellowship If thou desirest that desirable reconciliation of our differences First renounce thy name of Conformity in thy sense and conform not to this world but to Gods word let that be the Cynosure or Pole-star of that Vniformity of Churches ACCORDING TO THE WORD OF GOD as in our late Covenant And this thou shalt do if I say not if thou dost shake off the fear and favour of men the love of the world of honours pleasures riches preferments ambition of greatnesse of domination over Gods people Nor if thou castest out that old spirit of bondage under the Prelates lest it turn into a more dangerous tyrannie then that of the Prelacie as being more refined and going under the plausible name of Reformation Nor do I say if thou becommest a self denying man taking up thy crosse daily to follow Christ without all which notwithstanding thou canst not be his true disciple follower or enjoy true fellowship with him But this I say and urge as being the main Fundamental and Essential of a true right visible church of Christ If thou confessest Christ in all that he is If thou givest him his due honour in submitting thy conscience only and wholly to him with profession thereof and not to any humane power and as to the only Lawgiver of his church and kingdom to order and establish it with judgement and justice for ever and to his Word as the only law and rule of the government of that kingdom and the only Judge to appeale unto in all doubts and controversies of faith And if thou shalt confesse every church and congregation of Christ to be only and immediately under Christs jurisdiction and not subject to any other church or churches which are so many Sisters not Mistresses lest otherwise we set up the Spouse above or in stead of her husband Christ If I say thou wilt confesse and hold forth this in thy publike profession preaching and practice of it Then though thy Churches have many other defects yet if they have the beeing and constitution of true churches of Christ for matter and form I shall not scruple to hold communion with thee But otherwise so long as thou walkest not up to Christ in not acknowledging and avowing all that he is in not giving him his due honour in all things and especially in not setting him up in his Royal throne without a consort How can we entertain communion with you For * Farewell Religion where

they give to their General or National Assembly supreme power not only over their Parochial Classical and Provincial assemblies but even over the Parliament it self For not only they take the power to appoint both time and place for the convening of their Ecclesiastical assemblies as 2. Book of Discipline chap. 7. But they say moreover in the same chap. For this Orders cause they may make certain Rules and Constitutions appertaining to the good behaviour of all the members of the Kirk in their vocation And this they do without the Civil Magistrate Nay more chap. ibid. They have power also to abrogate and abolish all Statutes and Ordinances concerning Ecclesiastical matters that are found noysome and unprofitable and agree not with the time or are abused by the people And again in the same book chap. 12. The National Assemblies of this Country called commonly the General Assemblies ought alwayes to be retained in their own liberty and have their own place with power to the Kirk to appoint times and places convenient for the same And all men as well Magistrates as Inferiors to be subject to the Judgement of the same in Ecclesiastical causes without any reclamation or appellation to any Judge civil or Ecclesiastical within the Realm Thus in reference to the Spiritualty or the Church they make no bones to set up in their National Assembly the same Papal power which the Pope himself claimeth over Kings Princes States Kingdoms Commonweals And Mr. Rutherford in his * Government of the church of Scotland chap. 20. p. 312. tels us That though none in this grand assembly have decisive voyces save only Commissioners yet the Acts of the Assembly oblige all the absents not present in all their members and that because whatsoever is by those Commissioners determined and concluded is matter necessary and agreeable to Gods word as being no lesse infallible then those decisions of the Apostles Act. 15. All which Conformity I commend to thee when in thy best senses And because thou art apt to be overtaken with a supine drowsines pleasing thy self with thy dreams of becomming a King when once thou art gotten up into the saddle or throne of a Kirk National-Assembly let me awaken thee by pricking thy dull sides that thou mayest be at least convinced of that spirit of Antichristian pride and tyranny of rebellion and treason in lifting up a Papal throne above the Kings and Kesars above Kingdoms and Commonweals to the enslaving of the whole Nation in their souls bodies and estates For whosoever shall not in all things conform to the constitutions of that generall Kirk assembly when once the horn is blown then ipso facto imprisonment confiscation of goods banishment and what not Now Conformity doth Gods word hold forth any such Kirk fashions What To overrule Civil States and Kingdoms What That all Kirk laws and constitutions mustneeds be such as are both necessary and agreeable to the Word of God What To set up in the Kirk an Oracle of Infallibility and a Pontifician supremacy and Antichristian tyrannie and all under the name of a Christian Presbyterian Kirk-government But because this perhaps moves thee not I will remit thee to the supreme Bar of this Kingdom there to receive thy doom in case thou dost obstinately and madly persist in thy importunate clamours to have that Presbyterian government set up and thereby our fundamental lawes priviledges and power of Parliaments liberties and freedom of all true bred English subjects brought under perpetual bondage worse then that either of Egypt or Babylon But I passe on 2. For us You may know Conformity that we are not the setters up of that Religion you charge us with but it is that which we find to be set up by Christ and his Apostles which they did without leave from the Civil power or from the Ecclesiastical or mixt Synedrion as before Secondly though the Kingdom of Christ be indeed over all the kingdoms of the world yet all the subjects of this kingdom as they are the subjects of this or that civill State so they owe civill obedience thereunto but as they belong to Christs kingdome they are free from the civil power in point of religion owing subjection only to Christ and if the civil power usurp over any of them they yield themselves to suffer with patience without resistance Conf. Conscience I like thee well for this yet But you tell us strange things of Church-assemblies Consc Not more strange then true Read their books and be wise And for our suffering which thou likest so well it is no more then what Christ and his Apostles both taught practised and wherein all the Martyrs followed them Conf. I will better consider of what you say But do you not condemn the Magistrate when you say he usurps over you Consc No I condemn him not that is for God to do who is the supreme Judge of the world Conf. Why what limits hath God set to the Magistrate Consc Read Deut. 17. 18 19. and that from v. 13. to the end of the chap. to wit the whole law of God So also what bonds and bounds their own conscience and the terror of the great Judge and their sacred oath and solemn covenant and stipulation with the people and not only Gods law but the civil lawes of the kingdome do put upon them you cannot be ignorant Conf. But what if the Civil state hath made a-law to inhibi● and restrain all men and that under severe penalty from the observation of any other form of Religion and Church government then that which it hath established by law with a necessity of uniformity and conformity thereunto imposed upon all the subjects of the kingdom Doth the Magistrate sin in seeing this law executed And without such a government what Order will you have in your Churches or what coercive power in the case either of heresie or schisme Consc Do you question the Magistrates sin when his law is against the law of God and the liberty of a Christian who is the subject of Christs kingdom For here we are to distinguish between a subject of Christs spiritual kingdom and a meer subject of the civil State He that is a meer subject of the civil state acknowledging no superior power above it his conscience though blind bids and binds him to obey but he that is a true subject of Christs kingdom being also a subject of the civil State owes a twofold obedience one to the Civil State another to Christ According to that of Christ Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesars and unto God the things that are Gods Nor doth the order or disorder in churches as churches put any difference between the having or not having of a civil power In the Apostolick churches there were both heresies and schismes 1 Cor. 11. 18 19. 1 Joh. 2. 19. whith the civil power took no cognisance of Nay it was and may be as apt to persecute the