a true Church nor the ground and pillar of truth when she is not built upon the foundation of Peter nor teacheth not the way of the truth and the life nor honoureth not Christ as her King Priest and Prophet nor continueth constantly in the doctrines of the holy Prophets and Apostles and in the which the Gospell of Jesus Christ is neither purely preached nor the Sacraments rightly administred and in the which there is not the true invocation of God nor the true religion that Christ the great Prophet of his Church hath taught us All which Mr. Montague I have as I hope so sufficiently proved in this discourse as I am most confident that there is not any rationall man but will easily perceive and you your selfe Master Montague if you have not resolved to shut your eyes at noone day will now clearely discerne which of the Churches believeth best and which of their faiths and beliefes is most orthodox concerning the Kingly Priestly and Propheticall Office of Christ Jesus and which of them giveth the Lord Jesus most honour either she that neither regardeth what Christ commandeth or forbiddeth or she that in all things heareth his voice and followeth the direction of his Word as it is set downe in the holy Scriptures which I have by Gods assistance proved to containe all things in it necessary to salvation and that wee have no need of humane traditions for the making of it a compleat rule and that this Word is onely the sole rule of our faith and manners and that all Christians to the end of the world are tied unto that to be the rule and square both of their faith and manners and that they ought not to swarve from it upon what termes soever And therefore now Mr. Montague I shall look for the performance of your promise viz. that if I could prove the Church of England to be a true Church and that the Word of God contained all things in it necessary to salvation and that it was the onely rule of our faith unto which all Christians were tied to the end of the world all which I conceive I have fully done that then you would be of our Religion and turne Protestant This was your promise Master Montague before all the Gentlemen and the performance of the which will be to the honour of God and your owne eternall comfort and will ever rejoyce the heart of him that wisheth you all happinesse here and hereafter But Master Montague before I shut up this discourse I shall in way of a corollary desire you to ponder and seriously consider not onely the vanity but the impiety of all those tenents you hold in the Church of Rome more than we have warrant for in the Word of God and that you would deale ingenuously betweene God and your owne conscience in the examination of a few Queries that I shall now before I finish my discourse propound unto you I desire you Master Montague to answer mee truely what you thinke of the condition of such a man as shall believe that Jesus Christ is the onely and sole King and head of his Church and Saviour of his body that infuseth life and spirituall motion into it and all saving graces and that guideth it by his holy Spirit and Word and believeth also that he and he onely is to be obeyed in whatsoever he commandeth or forbiddeth and that we are not in matters of faith and doctrine to follow or heare any voyce or word but what he the King of his Church hath made knowne unto us in his Lawes and heavenly Statutes as they are recorded in the holy Scriptures tell me I pray Master Montague candidly what you think of the condition of such a man living and dying in this faith Can this beliefe any waies prejudice his salvation though he never heareth of the Pope of Rome whom you and the other Romanists proclaime to be head of the Church and to be King of Kings and Lord of Lords whose oracles Lawes and Ordinances you affirme ought to be obeyed in all things as the commands of Christ I say if he never heares of so much as the name of the Pope or of any such creature as he is will not his faith in Jesus Christ alone whom hee believeth to be the onely King and head of the Church and Saviour of all such as trust in him save him eternally If you shall affirme that his thus believing will not save him you overthrow the Christian faith and destroy the true Christian religion which teacheth us thus to believe and assureth us that living and dying in so believing and in this faith we shall be saved Againe Master Montague I demand of you what you thinke of the condition of that Christian that shall peremptorily believe that the Pope of Rome is not the King and head of the Church militant but that hee is the enemy of Jesus Christ one guilty of blasphemy as assuming unto himselfe those glorious attributes and prerogatives that are peculiar to Christ alone the King of Saints and King of Kings and the onely head and sole governour of his Church Can this Master Montague his so believing prejudice his salvation or be any sinne against Almighty God If you shall answer that it may then I shall demand your reason why you conceive that it may be any way prejudiciall to his eternall happinesse for where there is no transgression there is no sinne for sinne is the transgression of the Law and what law I beseech you doth that Christian transgresse that believeth that Christ onely is the King and head of his Church and the Saviour of his body and that these incommunicable prerogatives peculiarly belong unto Christ and that they are not to be given to any mortall man and that it is a sinne in any to assume these titles or for any to give them to the Pope Master Montague let me tell you that except you will overthrow the faith of the Gospell you can never make either the ignorance or the contempt of your Romish doctrine concerning the Popes Supremacy any sinne but that a man may live and die in the detestation of it and be eternally saved if by a stedfast and lively faith and full perswasion hee cleaveth unto Christ Jesus the onely head and King of his Church and believes by his alone power to be delivered out of the hands of all his bodily and spirituall enemies Againe Master Montague I desire you to answer me ingenuously what you thinke of the condition of such a man as shall believe that Christ Jesus is the onely and sole Prophet of his Church and that he hath fully revealed the whole will and counsell of his Father concerning the redemption of man-kind and that all things necessary to salvation are fully and compleatly set downe in his holy Word by his command in the writings of the old and new Testament and that the sacred Scriptures are a perfect rule of themselves for
ought to be denyed And this is the language and opinion of many as their Pulpits can witnesse and their Pamphlets declare in the which they signifie unto us likewise that they have not spoke all they can plead for themselves and against us but that they doe keepe a reserve donee ad Triarios redierit res untill it come to a dead lift in case they shall be brought before Princes and Rulers to give an account of what they do or desire These are their formall words and farther adde that we put them upon too unreasonable a taske to satisfie us in all that they do and desire Whereas Saint Peter in his first Epistle chap. 3. commands all Christians to be ready to give a reason of their hope to every one that shall demand it of them And as by such expressions as these it doth evidently appeare they jugle and deale not candidly with their brethren and according to the revealed Will of God and the example of Paul who delivered unto the Ephesians the whole counsell of God and kept no reserve donee ad Triarios redierit res untill it came to a dead lift and that he was brought before Kings Rulers but publiquely and privately from house to house night and day taught them the whole counsell and will of God and withheld nothing that concerned them to know or practice nor never ketp any reserve Act. 20. So also they publish their uncharitablenesse and unchristian dealing towards their brethren whiles they not onely conceale from them and keepe a reserve of such things as they pretend are conducible to bring them to salvation and to a more perfect knowledge of Jesus Christ and of the good will pleasure and waies of God but whiles they un-Church un-Christian and un-Minister them likewise and make them all no better then the off-scouring of the earth and a company of cast-awaies which they doe in word and deed as their daily practice doth testifie and manifest to all men when they separate from our Congregations and assemblies and proclaime us all a false and an Antichristian Church and enemies of Jesus Christ and his Kingdome Now that I may manifest unto all the World that the Papists who accuse our Church to be hereticall doe most impiously and malignantly abuse us and that all other that deny the Church of England to be a true Church doe also most maliciously and falsely traduce us and belie the truth and for the convincing of both their errours and maintenance of the truth and in the just defence of the Church of England and for the proving of her a true Church and for the stopping also of the mouthes of all gainsayers I have published the following discourse which if thou Christian Reader shalt peruse without a prejudicate opinion I doubt not but thou wilt finde arguments sufficient to prove the Church of England a true Church and firme reasons also to continue constantly in the communion and fellowship of the same and to abhorre those unwarrantable waies of separation howsoever in their mildest and sweetest discourses they account of all such as now stand up in the defence of the truth against the errours of the times as of a company of Wolves Beares Lyons and Tygers for this is the language they give us and that in such bookes as in which they professe meekenesse of spirit with whom they ought to have no fellowship and brotherly communion And if thou through the blessing of God upon the reading of it shalt reape any benefit by it I shall desire thee to give the glory to God who hath used me as an instrument and to esteeme of him who as he is and ever shall be filius Ecclesiae Anglicanae so thy servant for our Masters sake JOHN BASTWICK THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND a true CHURCH By JOHN BASTWICK Doctor in Physick Master MOUNTAGUE AS there is nothing in the World I more wish and earnestly pray for than that God may be glorified his name and truth known amongst all men that they may be saved so there is no man that doth more fervently desire and shal more diligently endeavour to the uttermost of his abilities to bring men into the right way how they may come to the knowledge of God and of themselves wherein consists their eternall happinesse than my selfe And this I take to be not onely my duty but the duty indeed of all those that call upon the name of God in sincerity And I am most assured that no ingenuous man will misinterpret this my zeale or blame my love or condemne me that I wish the common salvation of mankind and that they may both know and constantly persevere in that faith that was once delivered to the Saints of old Jude vers 3. which all Christians are bound earnestly to contend for especially if they consider that in all this my care I seeke not my selfe or any private emolument by it but that men may live happily and comfortably in this world and be perennally blessed when mortality shall be swallowed up of life And this was the principall cause that made me so willing to seeke your acquaintance and gratifie your desire which was that I would come and conferre with you about points of Religion in controversie betweene the Church of Rome and us I confesse there were many thousands in the Kingdom fitter for that imployment and that might have given better satisfaction in those questions than my selfe yet because I heard you had been many moneths in prison and had earnestly wished to discourse with any of our religion and none came to you as you signified to Master Lieutenant from whom you received this answer that he never had any notice of any such thing before this time and understanding withall that you had a desire in particular to dispute with me it made me the more willing to imbrace the occasion and chiefly because there went a great fame of you to be a man both of candour learning and ingenuity Which worthy praise of yours shall never be impeached by me neither will any man endeavour in the least to diminish it as I hope if you shall stand to your resolution and solemne promise which was that if any man could prove unto you that the Protestant Church or the Church of England was a true Church that then you would come to our Church and be of our profession All which you did in the presence of the Lieutenant and many other Gentlemen then and there againe seriously protest Now I say if upon evident demonstration and infallible arguments it shall appeare to all men that the Church of England is a true Church and where salvation may be found if you stand to your promise you must renounce the Church of Rome and become a sonne of the Church of England a true Protestant and in so doing you shall bring glory to God comfort to your soule and have the praise of all men for your integrity and faithfulnesse in your
whole worship of God that the Scripture denyes that they feared the Lord vers 34. because they did after their former manners and did not according to the Statutes and Ordinances and after the Law and Commandements which the Lord commanded to the children of Jacob whom he named Israel and therefore our Saviour Christ pronounces them void of salvation affirming they worshiped they knew not what and the Iewes knowing what they did worship that salvation was of the Iewes Ioh. 4. So that the truth of what I asserted is manifest that humane inventions in Gods service and wil-worship adulterates a true Church and overthrowes Religion for God will indure no mixtures Now Mr. Montague if one should in every particular compare the Church of Rome with either the children of Jsrael in all their idolatries or with the Church of Samaria in all her superstitious and fained inventions and fee what ruin and calamity came upon them by it and how by their idolatries they deprived themselves of Gods favour and of salvation we shall finde that the Church of Rome doth as far exceede either of them in idolatry superstition and all manner of profanenesse and wil-worship as a giant in greatnesse doth a pygme and therefore Mr. Montague if the Church of Rome doth not repent and renounce all her will-worship and her humane inventions as the Church of England hath done shee will partake of the same plagues that the people of Israel and Samaria did in this world and finally be deprived of life eternall and all those that do partake with her in her sinnes must partake with her in her plagues therefore Mr. Montague follow Christs counsell come out of Babylon lest you partake with her in her punishment if you will continue in her sinnes Imitate in this the Church of England who obeying the voyce of Christ her head and husband and comming out of Babylon and flying all Idolatry and will-worship proves her selfe to be a true Church and built upon the foundation of Peter and to be the pillar of truth and where salvation may be had And this might suffice to have spoke of wil-worship but in way of a corollary and for direction to all Christans what order to take or what meanes to use for the triall of all Doctrines Disciplines Service or Ceremonies I shall adde a word or two more and so conclude this point Our Saviour in the 11 of Mat. vers 30. gives unto men a Rule of direction which if they follow it will preserve them from all error and keepe them in the right way of serving of God The Baptisme of John was it from Heaven or of men Answer mee saith he inferring if it were of men that then it ought not to be entertained in Gods worship and that the Jewes knew very well In the same manner ought all Christians to examine and try every doctrine either of service ceremony or discipline whether it be of God or of men according to this Rule of Christ and that of Saint Paul in the first of the Thess chap. the 5. v. the 21. Try all things and keepe that which is good Now then Mr. Montague if we examine whose image and superscription every Ordinance beares and carries with it whether Cesars or Gods that is whether it be prescribed by human or Divine authority all the controversy then would speedily be ended for if it be of God and warranted by his Word then all ready obedience is to be yeilded unto it without reluctation when under that notion it is prescribed and ordered by the Magistrate But if it be a meere humane invention and hath no warrant from God our Father we ought to reject it So saith St. Paul the first of the Cor. chap. 7. v. 24. Brethren yee are bought with a price be not servants of men And in the first Chap. of the Epistle to the Gal. v. 8.9 But though we or an Angel from Heaven preach unto you otherwise than that we have preached unto you let him be accursed As I said before so I say now againe if any man Preach unto you otherwise than that yee have received let him be accursed Here the Apostle doubles the curse upon all such as shall teach otherwise for Doctrine Service Discipline or Ceremonies than they were taught by him and the other Disciples And by his owne example in the verse following he teacheth us plainly that if we goe about to please men in receiving their Doctrines we cannot be the servants of God for we cannot serve two masters his words are these verse 10. For do I now perswade or preach mans doctrine or Gods or do I seeke to please men for if I yet pleased men I should not be the servant of Christ all therefore that intertaine and admit of humane inventions in Gods service and worship are proclaimed by the Apostle the servants of men and not of God A businesse of great concernment and worthy of due consideration And truly Mr. Montague if a man should run through all the new Doctrines for Service Discipline and Ceremonies in the Church of Rome and inquire whether they were from Heaven or of men we shall not in all Gods Word find any warrant for them for they are all the inventions of crafty men who imployed their wisdome and abilities of understanding to amuse the people with these outward performances and kept them from the glorious light of the Gospell that by this meanes having put out that shining and burning Candle of Truth they might better vent their Romish ware in the darke and lead the people into errors and by-wayes to the distraction and ruin of their poore soules for imposing upon them all their traditions and will-worship as the service of God and punishing the least neglect of their Ordinances with greater severity than the breach of all Gods Commandements it is manifest to all men that they are not onely the servants of men but lyable to the curse the Apostle here pronounces against all those that teach otherwise than they have received from him and make the poore people also subject to the same condemnation And therefore the Church of England in consideration of the great danger shee was in by reason of the prodigious idolatry and will-worship of the Church of Rome hath timely renounced all these inventions of men and serves God now in spirit and truth as all those that worship aright do John 4. and cleaves only to Jesus Christ and his teaching disavowing all humane inventions in Gods service and therefore is built upon the foundation of Peter and believes as it ought to believe And thus much I thought fit to speak concerning Will-worship And now I am come to the third part of my proposition viz. that the Church of England continueth stedfastly in the Doctrine of the Apostles and Prophets An infallible marke of a true Church By stedfastly continuing I understand such an adhering and cleaving to the Doctrine of the Prophets and Apostles
force of which argument you had thought by a glosse and flourish to have evaded but all the cunning of man cannot doe it as in its due place will appeare But after you had once got your head into this fort and refuge you uttered many things very erroneous equalizing your traditions yea preferring them before the written Word accusing the Scripture of imperfection and denying them that due honour which is to be the rule of our faith and manners and the square by which we must order our lives affirming further more that they were accidentally written and not on purpose to be the rule of our doctrine and manners and that for the making of the Scripture a compleat and absolute rule the unwritten word received and entertained in all ages by tradition ought to be added to it which when the Church of England did not observe and admit of it did not believe as Christ ordained and as it ought to believe for the speculative and practicall parts of Divinity for to believe in Christ effectually and sufficiently to salvation as you said was not enough to believe both the natures of Jesus Christ and all his Offices but it consisted in this that we conforme our selves to a beliefe speculative and to a religion that is practicall for the Church was determined in these two points that is to say without the Church of England would imbrace and entertaine your traditions and believe your unwritten verities as they are commonly termed it could not be a true Church Hereupon I then undertooke to maintaine and prove first that the written Word in it selfe without any unwritten verities or traditions contained all things necessary to salvation Secondly that all Christians were tied to make that and that only the rule of their faith and manners which you said if I could prove you would be a Protestant and after some debate of these businesses and that Sir John Gotherick had said unto you magnifying your unwritten verities that if you could make it appeare that you had as good warrant for your traditions as we could shew for the Scriptures that then he would receive and imbrace them to whom you replyed that you could prove them by better authority than he could prove the Scriptures to be the Word of God But I perceiving at that time that you grew something weary and seeing withall for want of a moderator that things began something disorderly to be handled I told you that I would by writing reduce all those things that were then agitated and bring them into good order and set downe such other arguments as should sufficiently prove the Church of England to be a true Church and send you them all in writing which you not onely liked well of but earnestly also desired me so to doe and I promised likewise in the same writing evidently to prove that the Scriptures of the old and new Testament without any traditions contained all things in them necessary to salvation and that they are the onely rule and square which we are tied unto for the ordering of our faith lives and manners which is now my taske that in the following discourse I have taken upon me and I doubt not by Gods assistance but to make good and maintaine what I have undertaken But before I come to that that all men may see the Church of England faileth in nothing necessary to salvation either in respect of theory or practice although I have formerly proved it yet I thought fit briefly againe to runne over and to declare what she teaches for her beliefe speculative and her religion practicall that I may make use of some of your expressions and wherein she differs from the Church of Rome that the Church of Englands tenent being set downe on the one side and the errours and idolatry of the Church of Rome on the other all men may learne to love and imbrace the Church of England and to abhorre and abandon the Church of Rome that mother of abomination and that you Mr. Montague that have formerly undutifully deserted and forsaken her may with the Prodigall returne and yeild unto her your mother Christian and wonted duty and obedience Which I am confident will be more to your true comfort and honour than ever any thing done by you in all your life And now to begin I affirm for beliefe speculative and religion practicall it is orthodoxly and and clearely taught in the Church of England in all points and to begin with the speculative part Whatsoever I say is required of us to be knowne concerning God is perspicuously taught in the Church of England both in respect of the divine essence and nature of God as also of the persons in the blessed Trinity as likewise of their names and workes and of all their glorious attributes As that there is but one onely true God distinguished into the Father Sonne and holy Ghost the al-sufficient Jehovah Creator and governour of all things which onely living God the Church of England with an unanimous consent doth honour serve and worship in spirit and truth as he himselfe commands John 4. vers 24. and as he hath in all ages been worshipped by all the family of the faithfull that call upon his name in sincerity since the glorious ascension of Christ into Heaven and teaches the people so to worship him The Church of England doth fully likewise instruct the people in what a happy and blessed condition man was created being made after Gods owne Image and likenesse Genes 1. v. 27. and into what misery he afterwards plunged himselfe and all his posterity by reason of his transgression disobedience and infidelity in listning unto the suggestion of the diâ—â—ll as it is at large described in Genes chap. 3. And as it doth daily acquaint them with the nature of sinne the danger of it and the evill consequences that insue upon it as all manner of miseries here and eternall damnation hereafter if by timely repentance they breake not off the course of them which duty they daily exhort them unto In like manner it teacheth the people that next to the eternall love of God who in Christ Jesus made choice of them before the foundation of the world Ephes 1. v. 3 4 5. that they owe the whole worke of their redemption unto Jesus Christ alone who taking humane nature upon him was made sinne for us that knew no sinne that we might be made the righteousnesse of God in him 2 Cor. 5. vers 21. So that if we consider the whole summe of our salvation and all the parts of it they are contained and comprehended in Christ to whom alone all the honour glory and praise of all our blessednesse both present and future is to be ascribed and not any parcell of it to be attributed to any creature in Heaven or earth So that if any desires to be saved and to be eternally blessed the Church of England instructs them there is no other meanes to
meanes of attaining this faith by which they may save their soules is the preaching and hearing of the Word and as this faith is attained to by hearing so it is dayly increased by the same as also by the right use and administration of the holy Sacraments and Prayers to all which duties they stir up the people with all sedulity and godly care And that they may the more deterre them from sinne and all manner of evill they do not onely declare unto them the horror of sinne and the present danger of it as that it is the cause of all miseries and calamities here but that it will also bring endlesse and eternall misery upon them hereafter and that they must all appeare at the last day before a dreadfull Judge there to give an accompt of whatsoever they have done in the body whether good or evill 2 Cor. chap. 5. vers 10. And that they should not deceive themselves for God is not mocked for whatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reape for hee that soweth unto the flesh shall of the flesh reape corruption but he that soweth unto the spirit shall of the spirit reape life everlasting Gal. 6. v. 7 8. So that if we run through all the Theoricall part of Divinity you shall not finde the Church of England failing or defective in any point of beliefe speculative that is required and necessary for salvation when it teacheth every thing that Christ himselfe requires at mens hands that they should know to make them blessed Now all the knowledge that makes men blessed and that Christ injoynes them is the knowledge of God and of Jesus Christ and self-deniall This is life eternall saith Christ Iohn 17. to know thee to be the only true God and whom thou hast sent Iesus Christ And Mat. 16. If any will be my Disciple let him deny himselfe and come after mee Now I say when the Church of England teacheth the people the knowledge of God in Jesus Christ and the knowledge of themselves it teacheth all things for beliefe speculative for all speculative Divinity is contained in these two poynts And this shall suffice to have spoke of the Theoricall part of Divinity wherein the Church of England doth her duty And now Mr. Montague I will as briefly as I can declare and prove that the Church of England fayleth nothing in teaching all things for Religion practicall for in that shee teacheth us our whole duty both towards God and towards our Neighbour what we should doe and what wee should not do in the whole course of our lives for the pleasing of God and avoyding of sin and misery she doth her duty also in the practicall part of Divinity perfectly and fully For as all speculative Divinity consists as I sayd before in the knowledge of God and of our selves so all practicall Religion consists in the performance of our duty towards God in giving him his due honour and such a worship and service as he requires of us in his Word and that is spirituall as wee see John 4. vers 24. God is a Spirit and they that worship him must worship him in Spirit and Truth And in performing all offices of love and charity to our Neighbour and carrying our selves unblamably in this present World Jam. 1. vers 27. Pure Religion and undefiled saith S. Iames before God and the Father is this to visit the fatherlesse and the Widow in their affliction and to keepe themselves unspotted from the World and in observing and fulfilling that royall Law chap. 2. vers 8. in loving our Neighbour as our selves In these two points consists all practicall Religion which is nothing else but a framing of our whole lives according to the Law of God considering that we are not at our owne disposing nor at our owne liberty but consecrated and dedicated unto God and therefore wee must deny our selves and forsake our owne reason and resigne our selves up to be guided and governed by the Word and Spirit of the Lord in all things belonging unto his worship And that wee ought not to seeke after those things that are our owne but those things that are according to the Will of God and tend to the advancement of his glory and Kingdom and in this does our practicall Religion concerning God consist and our love and duty towards our Neighbour is contained in these two things in being kindly affectioned one towards another with brotherly love in honour preferring one another Rom. 12. v. 10. In doing nothing through strife and vaine-glory but in lowlinesse of mind each esteeming others better than themselves Phil. 2. vers 3. And then in imploying our selves to the uttermost of our abilities with all sincerity and truth of affection and unfained love to procure their good and emolument in all things And under these two heads the love of God and of our Neighbour is comprised all the practicall Divinity or Religion the Word of God makes knowne unto men and requires at our hand Which when the Church of England doth dayly publish unto the people and teacheth all things concerning them fully it is aboundantly evident to any unpartiall man that she teachteh all things both for Theory and practice necessary for salvation and for the proving of her selfe to to be a true Church the ground and pillar of truth and to be built upon the foundation of Peter And as this conclusion doth necessarily issue upon the premises for the proofe of the truth of the Church of England so on the contrary this likewise will of necessity follow that that Church that neither teacheth those things that belong unto the beliefe speculative nor to the Religion practicall cannot be a true Church And I am confident Mr. Montague that you your selfe upon deliberation will not deny it And then also any man may inferre that the Church of Rome cannot be a true Church nor the ground and pillar of Truth when shee neither teacheth the people the true knowledge of God and of Jesus Christ nor the knowledge of themselves nor makes knowne unto them the spirituall way of worshipping him which he requires nor teacheth them their love and duty towards God and towards their Neighbour which God commands but with far greater reason they may conclude that the Church of Rome is not a true Church if they consider also that the Church of Rome not onely neglecteth her duty in not teaching the people the true knowledge of God and of themselves but also in that shee taketh away the Key of knowledge from them snatching the Word of God out of their hands and hindering the pure preaching of both Law and Gospel by which men might be saved and setting up an idolatricall worship and bringing in a new service of their owne devising and in that also that the Church of Rome doth not teach the people love towards their Neighbours the true servants of God but hatred and animates them to persecute them with fire and faggot
and all rabid cruelty and unheard of inhumanity and in that also the Church of Rome corrupteth yea annihilateth all the offices of Jesus Christ retayning onely his name but adulterating all true christian Religion and by consequence destroying the very humane nature of Jesus Christ making it present in many places at one and the same time and yet not visible a body and no body I say in all these respects a man may without any wrong done to the Church of Rome conclude that shee is no true Church nor the ground and pillar of Truth But to the end Mr. Montague that neither you or any other may think I do too highly prayse the Church of England for the purity of her Doctrine and worship and honouring of Christ or calumniate the Church of Rome when I charge her with all these things of adulterating all the true Christian Religion and annihilating all the offices of Jesus Christ c. I thought it very necessary here to parallell the Doctrine of the Church of England and that of the Church of Rome together that it may the more evidently appeare unto all men under one view as it were in a Table which of the two Churches believeth best concerning Christ his natures and offices and whether of these Religions is most sound and Orthodox touching all things necessary to be knowne and practised by all such as desire salvation by Jesus Christ And to begin with Christs Kingly office The Church of England believeth that Jesus Christ is the onely and sole King and governour of the whole Universe to whom all power in Heaven and Earth is given Mat. 28. but more especially of his Church who by God himselfe was set King over his holy mountaine Psal 2. v. 6. And that he is the King of Righteousnesse Heb. 7. The King eternall Jsa 9. The King of Kings and Lord of Lords Apoc. 17. and that he doth by his mighty power and wisdom uphold and governe all things but with a more peculiar care and in a more speciall manner preserve and defend his Church 1 Tim. 4. v. 10. as that which he hath purchased with his precious blood and by his power redeemed out of the captivity and slavery of Satan and that he is the head of his Church which is his body who infuseth life into it Righteousnesse Peace Joy Happinesse and all the graces of Wisdome and knowledge of God with certainty and assurance of his love and that his Kingdom and Empire is a spirituall and heavenly Kingdome no terrene and fading Monarchy John 18. vers 38. Luke 1. v. 33. And is uphold and governed onely by the scepter of his spirit and word and not by the authority virtue or wisdome of any humane power Shee also believeth that they are the impious and blasphemous inventions of frothy and windy ambition to affirme that Christ appointed any one to be a Vicar and Governour under him over his Church who by an infallible and unerring spirit should moderate and rule it to the end of the World and to assert that Peter was this monarch and Vicar generall and that the Pope is his successor the head and foundation of the Kingdome of Jesus Christ all these assertions and blasphemous titles the Church of England abominateth as derogatory to the honour and dignity of their Lord and King Jesus Christ and injurious and hurtfull to the salvation of mankind Shee also believeth that the Church of Christ which is his Spouse is onely to be governed and ordered by Christ her head and husbands command Will Word and Lawes as they are set downe in his holy Word and not by the decrees determinations authority and traditions either of Councels or Fathers no farther than they are consonant to his Lawes and blessed Word as they are written and set downe in the Bookes of the old and new Testament Shee believeth also that the pure Preaching of the Gospel and the right administration of the holy Sacraments and the true invocation of God are the infallible ensignes of a true Church and the never deceiving markes and notes of the same Withall shee believeth that such is the condition of the Church militant that by reason of persecutions and bloudy Tyranny and the cruelty of the enemies of it she may be brought to so low a condition and be so obscure that shee may be without any visible forme splendor and outward government and lie hid not only from publike view or the eyes of the common people but even from the sight of the dearest servants of God themselves as it hapned not onely in Elias his time but in many ages besides as the holy Scripture abundantly declareth and that the Church doth not alwaies come with observation as our Saviour said of the Kingdom of God in his time that it came not with appearance and magnificence And therefore the Church of England doth not believe that pompe state and outward worldly dignity and riches miracles multitude and grandeur are the markes and notes of a true Church but rather the very characters of the whore of Babylon who sitteth as Queen And this is the beliefe of the Church of England concerning the Kingly Office of Christ and his Kingdome the Church Now Mr. Montague let us see what the Church of Rome believes concerning Christs Kingly Office and Kingdome that both our tenents and beliefes being set downe together it may the better appeare which of our faiths is most orthodox and which of our Churches doth most glorifie and honour Christ their King and magnifie his Kingly dignity and absolute soveraignty The Church of Rome doth in words acknowledge that Christ is the King of his Church but in their workes and deeds they deny it For they make him a terrene Monarch and his Kingdome to be of this world neither doe they admit and allow him to be the sole alone and onely King of his Church but they joyne a Vicar with him and divide the care of governing his Kingdome between him and his Vicar-generall the Pope who they assert to be of an infallible and un-erring spirit and proclaime him to be King of Kings and Lord of Lords the foundation and head of the Church and Lord of all the Kingdomes of the earth that he may dispose of them as he pleaseth and give them to whom he lusteth and take them from any that hath not a desire to humour him all which are titles of blasphemy and unsufferable indignity to the King of Saints and King of Kings the Lord Jesus Christ The Church of Rome believeth and holdeth also that the Kingdome of Christ which is his Church ought to be governed not onely by the Lawes and Word of Christ but by the determinations and decrees of Fathers Councels and Synods and by the Popes Canons and the vaine and impious traditions of men which they doe not onely equalize but preferre before the holy Scriptures They also affirme that the markes and notes of Christs Kingdome are multitudes
is to a hireling and daily labourer and that their Priests can forgive sinnes as Judges by their owne authority This Master Montague you know is the doctrine and faith of the Church of Rome and a great deale more such stuffe Now I intreat you candidly to tell me whether in your opinion the faith of the Church of Rome or the beliefe of the Church of England concerning Christs Priestly Office be more orthodox and which of them giveth most honour to their Mediator she that ascribeth the whole worke of her redemption to him alone or she that robbeth him of all his Priestly honour and Mediatorship Truly Master Montague if you will but duely consider this businesse and weigh it as it ought to be weighed you will quickly perceive that the Church of Rome doth in word onely acknowledge Christ to be a Priest and Mediator but in deeds and workes overthrowes the right and power of his Priesthood And to speake the verity there can be nothing more blasphemously thought imagined or practised against the honour and dignity of the Lord of life the onely and sole Mediator and high Priest of the everlasting covenant then that the Church of Rome doth against him robbing him of his due glory and overthrowing indeed the whole worke of our redemption making our selves and others our owne saviours and mediators and not Christ alone to whom all the honour and praise of our redemption of due belongeth I could be very large Mr. Montague in aggravating of the impiety and blasphemies of the Church of Rome concerning this point but I will say no more of it for the present but this that it is a doctrine that overthroweth all Christian religion and destroyeth the very foundation of our faith And now I come to the Propheticall Office of Christ where we will briefly take notice whether the Church of England or the Church of Rome be most orthodox in their faith concerning Christs Propheticall Office and which of them more venerably believeth touching that or giveth most honour to Christ the onely Prophet of his Church The Church of England believeth that Jesus Christ was appointed by God himselfe to be the onely and sole Prophet Pastor and Teacher of his Church and that he hath fully and perfectly revealed the whole counsell and will of God concerning the redemption of mankind and preached the Gospell and glad tidings of peace unto the World the which Gospell he doth daily vegetate and quicken in the soules of his people by his holy Spirit and corroborate and confirme by the holy Sacraments And she believeth that he hath delivered all things unto the Church that God the Father commanded him necessary for our salvation and that we are onely to heare him in all things whatsoever he shall say unto us and that every soule that shall not heare that Prophet shall be destroyed from among the people Deut. 18. v. 18. Matth. 3. v. 17. Matth. 17. v. 5. Acts 3. v. 22 23. And the Church of England believeth also that Jesus Christ did not onely declare and preach the whole and perfect Will of God unto the Church but also that whatsoever was necessary to salvation was written and penned by his appointment and direction and especiall assistance and is all contained in the writings of the old and new Testament and that not in obscure and ambiguous words but in plaine and evident expressions as farre as is necessary to salvation all which in the sequell of this discourse will be made evident She also believeth that all the people ought according to Christs command read them and that the holy Scriptures are the onely Judge of all controversies and have no need of any humane traditions And she farther believeth that we are to serve and worship God onely as he hath appointed in his holy Word and in the divine Scriptures as Christ the Prophet of his Church hath commanded in them and that whatsoever doctrines not expressed and contained in the Scriptures and written Word or grounded upon it or evidently deduced from it are not to be entertained received or obeyed but to be cast out of the Church as abominable things such as are prejudiciall not onely to our salvation and comfort but injurious also and derogatory to the honour of our great Prophet Jesus Christ whom we are commanded only to heare and listen unto And therefore the Church of England doth reject all those doctrins of Will-worship Image and Crucifix worship Bead worship Bread worship Place worship and all Saint and Angell worship and all those doctrines of Service Letanies Ceremonies and indulgencies and those of Fast-daies and Feast-daies all doctrines of Masses and Sacrifices for soules in Purgatory and prayers for the dead with all their doctrines of Pilgrimages and Monkery with their doctrines of devils prohibiting meats and marriage and all those doctrines of the reall and corporall presence of Christ in their blasphemous sacrifices destructive to the humane nature of Jesus Christ making it present in numberlesse places at once and enervating and overthrowing the al-sufficiency of Christs sacrifice And all their doctrins of transubstantiation self-merit works of supererogation and all the other doctrins they teach in the Church of Rome which would both endlesse needlesse to recount the observing of the which is the onely imployment of the Church of Rome the Church of England doth detest as execrable abominations because our Prophet Christ Jesus hath no where taught them in his holy word which must be the only rule of our faith and worship to the end of the world But now let us heare what the Church of Rome believeth concerning the Propheticall office of Christ that we may see how honourably she esteemeth of it The Church of Rome in word acknowledgeth that Christ was by God appointed to be the Prophet of his Church notwithstanding in deeds they deny that Christ did reveale the whole will of God unto the Church in the holy Scriptures and affirmes that the Scriptures were accidentally written and not purposely to be the rule of faith which by its clarity and brightnesse should determine the controversies in Religion they affirme also that the holy Scriptures are darke and obscure and very dangerous for lay-men and therefore that they are to be taken from them and that the Church hath need of the authority of Fathers and Councels and the helpe of Traditions for the compleating of the holy Scriptures and the making of them a perfect and absolute rule both of our faith and worship whereupon they bring in all those abominable doctrins and traditions I even now made mention of many more and thrust them upon the people as the worship and service of God and by the observation of the which they may merit Heaven as they say when neverthelesse there is not one word in all the booke of God concerning any one of them or any thing delivered by our Prophet Christ Jesus touching them all which things are as
THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND A true Church PROVED In a Disputation held by JOHN BASTWICK Doctor in Physick AGAINST Mr. WALTER MONTAGUE in the TOWER Buy the truth and sell it not also wisdom instruction and understanding Prov. 23. v. 23. Where there is no vision the people perish but he that keepeth the Law happy is he Prov. 29. v. 16. Published by Authority LONDON Printed for A. Crooke and I. Rothwell and are to be sold at their shops in Pauls Church-yard 1645. To the Reader Christian Reader IF thou desire to know the occasion of the ensuing discourse betweene mee and Master Montague of whom I may say this although he be an enemy that hee is both generosus doctus adversarius thou shalt not onely be fully satisfied of the necessity of the publishing of it but mayst also finde the true Church by the essentiall and undeceivable notes of the same the which wheresoever they appeare doe abundantly prove and delucidate it to be a true Church Now when they are to be found in the Church of England as in all the reformed Churches it may truely be concluded of them all that they are true Churches from the which there is no just ground and cause of separation As for the Church of England I may ever affirme this as I have in the following Treatise evinced that since the Apostles times the Gospell and the saving truths thereof have never been more purely preached and more chearfully received imbraced and believed and the Sacraments more duely administred and the Name of God more truly invocated and called upon then now in the Church of England that all those that live in it owe their conversion to the Ministery of the same so that with all good reason wee may infer that that Church that teacheth the knowledge of the onely true God and whom hee hath sent Jesus Christ John 17. and is able to build them up in their most holy faith is a true Church and where salvation may be found And therefore not onely those of the Church of Rome that do calumniate her and all the reformed Churches for hereticall are in a great errour and blame-worthy but more especially those that had the worke of regeneration wrought in their hearts by her ministery and owe their conversion to her and yet doe asperse her with odious tearmes absolutely denying her to be a true Church all such I say are likewise to be reproved and have for this their temerity a great deale to answer for before God and all good men for by these their expressions they doe not onely proclaime their owne unthankefulnesse unto Almighty God but their undutifulnesse and ingratitude unto their mother and their uncharitablenesse towards their brethren whom they account of as a company of Insidels denying communion with them in holy things though every way as good and as holy as themselves by all which their proceedings they doe not onely cast filth in all their faces and expose themselves to the ludibree of the world and bring an odium upon the whole Church but are a cause of division and schisme in the seamlesse garment of Christ and give a great scandall to the enemies of the Gospell and to all such as love the truth in sincerity without faction contrary to the Apostles rule who exhorts all Christians to take heed that they give no offence to the Jew nor to the Gentile nor to the Church of God But that all men may see I charge none falsly nor wrong them not in any thing I shall here recite some expressions of their principall leaders and teachers for to enumerate them all would be an endlesse worke as I had them from their owne mouthes in the presence of others and as I finde them in their printed bookes By word of mouth they say That the Church of England is an arrant Whore and Strumpet and that she that was once a Whore can never be presented unto Christ as a chaste Spouse then the which what could be more contumeliosly disgracefully and untruly spoken especially when it is uttered by such as had the worke of grace and conversion wrought in their hearts by the ministery of the Church if they have any grace or were ever truely converted though now they have disobediently deserted and forsaken her In print thus they declare themselves concerning the Church of England and all believers and their fellow brethren in it That the Church of England is a true whorish mother and that they that are of her are base begotten and bastardly children and that she neither is nor never was truely married joyned or united unto Jesus Christ in that espousall band which his true Churches are and ought to be but is one of Antichrists Nationall whorish Churches and Cities spoken of Revel 16.19 c. That the Church of England is false and Antichristian and as shee is a false and Antichristian Church shee can never make true Officers and Ministers of Jesus Christ and absolutely deny that conversion and confirmation and building up in the waies of God are wrought by the Ministery of the Church of England for how say they can they build them up in that which they themselves are ignorant of and enemies unto For as Jannes and Jambres with stood Moses so doe these men also resist the truth being men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth c. This is their Dialect and further they assert That as they have taken paines by the Word of God and demonstrable arguments grounded thereupon to prove the Church of England Antichristian so they promise to all the world that they will in the strength of the Lord of Hosts for ever seperate from Cuurch Ministery and worship of England and all and every one of them as Antichristian and false And conclude that all the Ministers of the Church of England are not true Ministers of Christ but false and Antichristian Ministers and that our Religion neither is the true Religion nor that it leads men the true way to salvation and they affirme that they groundedly and absolutely deny that either the Church of England is or ever was a true Church And from many such premises as these they exhort all good people that are in the bosome of the Church of England as they love their owne inward peace and spirituall joy to withdraw their spirituall obedience and subjection from her Others of them esteem no better of their brethren then of Insidels Vnbelievers and Heathens and proclaime them in their writings published by authority to be men who deny disclaime and preach against Christs Kingly government over his Churches men unconverted or at least converted but in part wanting the maine thing to wit Christs Kingly Office men visibly out of the Covenant of grace who have not so much as an outward profession of faith who deny Christ to be their King to whose persons and infants the very Sacraments and Seales of grace with all Church-communion may and
they were certainly assured So we read Luke 1. vers 1. Whereof we are fully perswaded c. and Heb. 10. vers 34. And yee tooke the spoyling of your goods with joy knowing in your selves you had in Heaven a better and induring substance So in the first Epistle of St. John chap. 3. vers 2. Behold now are we the sonnes of God and it doth not yet appeare what we shall be but we know that when he shall appeare we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is In all the Saints we finde an infallible assurance and an undaunted and unremoveable confidence in Jesus Christ who they believed was delivered for their offences and raised againe for their justification knowing there was no other name under Heaven given amongst men whereby we must be saved Acts 4 ver 11. And this faith in Jesus Christ is that that will support us in all tribulations and finally save us according to that in St. John chap. 3. ver 14 15 16. As Moses lifted up the Serpent in the wildernesse even so must the Sonne of man be lifted up that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life For God so loved the world that be gave his onely begotten Sonne that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life And vers 18. He that believeth on him is not condemned butâ—â— that believeth not is condemned already because he hath not believed in the name of the onely begotten Sonne of God And in Chap. 5. ver 24. Verily verily I say unto you he that believeth my word and believeth on him that sent me hath everlasting life and shall not come into condemnation but is passed from death to life Numberlesse testimonies might be accumulated out of the holy Scripture to prove that only to be the true faith and knowledge of Christ when we do conceive him in such sort as he is offered of the Father that is to say clothed with the Gospell for faith hath a mutuall relation to the word and the word to faith because the word is the fountaine of faith and the ground of faith and the mirrour in which faith beholdeth God as Christ saith here He that believeth my word and believeth on him that sent me hath everlasting life and shall not come into condemnation but is passed from death to life This that I have now said Mr. Montague will I hope give satisfaction to any rationall man if not to your selfe that the Church of England believeth as it ought to believe because it regulates the faith of all Christians according to the word of God and Christ their onely Prophet and therefore it is an unanswerable argument that the Church of England is a true Church and built upon the foundation of Peter when it joyneth the knowledge of God in Jesus Christ and faith in him alone together Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood to declare his righteousnesse that he might be just and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus Rom. 3. v. 25 26. When therefore I say the Church of England joyneth the knowledge of God and Christ and faith in them both inseparably together and makes daily publication of this same doctrine it is evident that it is a true Church and built upon the foundation of Peter the ground and pillar of truth and where salvation may be attained unto for that Church which shall confesse with the mouth the Lord Jesus and shall believe in their heart that God hath raised him from the dead shall be saved for with the heart men believe unto righteousnesse and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation Rom. 10. But the Church of England doth all this Ergo it believeth as it should believe and is a Church where salvation may be found And had the Church of England Mr. Montague but this marke alone it were enough for ever to stop the mouthes of all gainsayers and prove that it is a true Church and built upon the foundation of Peter and believes as it ought to believe And now I come to the qualification viz. That the Church of England doth renounce all self-merit in matter of salvation and all will-worship and humane inventions in Gods service which are requisites in any Church to make it a true Church and without which it cannot be a true Church You may remember Mr. Montague when you heard the name of merit and will-worship you began to bestir your selfe as if it had something troubled you and it doth indeed highly concerne you to looke about you lest falling upon the rocke of your owne merits you dash your selfe in pieces and destroy your owne soule And you affirmed that if you should speake of the doctrine of merits it would last you a weeke Truely Mr. Montague if you should speake a moneth or a yeere together of Christs merits and what he hath done and suffered for the redemption of mankind I should willingly be your anditor and think that nothing sufficient enough could be uttered or expressed to magnifie Gods and Christs love and to stirre up thankfulnesse obedience and love to God and Christ againe for their infinite mercy towards us such miserable creatures as we poore men are But Mr. Montague if you shall speake but one minute of an houre to extoll mans merit or to preach that men by their good workes can or may merit Heaven or if you goe about to establish that blasphemous doctrin for it is no better you shall have just cause to repent all the daies of your life for your so doing for this doctrine tends to overthrow the glorious Gospell and the whole worke of our redemption and Christs sufferings and opens an other way to Heaven than any of the Saints of old knew of who ever taught that Christ onely was the way the truth and the life and not mens merits and workes of supererogation Therefore Mr. Montague that Church that teacheth the free grace and eternall love of God in Jesus Christ unto the people when we were dead in our sinnes and trespasses and that inculcates self-deniall upon all men and urges them in matter of salvation to rely onely upon Christ and his obedience and passion with all his merits and to follow the guidance of his word for the manner of his service and teaches them to reject all will-worship and humane inventions in honouring God that Church believes as it ought to believe and teacheth the true way to Heaven and is built upon the foundation of Peter for all these things are the necessary requisites for the making of a true Church as I shall God willing speedily shew But if I shall be more large upon this point I desire your pardon for in my opinion it is a doctrine of as great concernment as any in Religion and where it is taught it is a sure evidence of a true Church In the handling of the which I will
Church where either open idolatry or notorious superstition or mens traditions and devices domineere and are set up and countenanced for Gods service by what authority soever it be all which I understand by will-worship and humane inventions in Gods service so that that Church is reputed the true Church that serves God according to his will revealed in his Word and continues in its native purity and primitive simplicity and whose eares are not hanged with the Jewels of Jewish Paganish or Popish ceremonies and humane inventions for true religion doth not consist in the observation of the traditions of men and their pompous ceremonies but in the obeying of Gods Commandements that is in righteousnesse peace and joy of the holy Ghost proceeding all from a pure heart and conscience purged from dead works and faith unfeigned And thus much shall suffice to have spoken concerning my meaning of will-worship and humane inventions in Gods service all which are against his expresse word and adulterate his worship and annihilate a Church which things I will prove in order Moses the servant of the Lord as we read in Exod. 25. vers 40. had an expresse command when he was to make the Tabernacle that he should doe all according to the patterne he had seen in the mount So that if Moses that saw God face to face might not adde or put so much as a Law to the Tabernacle that God had not commanded him what boldnesse and impudence then is it in any man to dare to introduce any thing in Religion either for Doctrine Service Discipline or Ceremony that neither Christ nor his Apostles have taught or commanded especially when God in his holy Word hath commanded the contrary For in Deut. 4. ver 2. the Lord saith Ye shall not adde to the word which I command you neither shall ye diminish from it that you may keepe the commandements of God which I command you Now if the Church of the Jewes ought not to joyne or adde any thing to that which God commanded by Moses how much lesse ought the Christian Church to adde any thing to that which Christ and his Apostles and Evangelists have taught in the Gospell when they have so fully declared the will of God therein and in the fist chapter of the same booke verse 32. the Lord saith Ye shall observe to doe therefore as the Lord your God hath commanded you ye shall not turne aside to the right hand or to the left Here observe that God forbids not onely to turn unto the left hand which is to say to doctrines manifestly wicked and abominable but he forbids them also to turne to the right hand which is of purpose spoke to prevent all mens inventions under what pretence or appearance soever of devotion or religion as of more cleanly neatly or decently serving God And in the 12. chapter vers 32. as if the Lord could never sufficiently enough have inculcated this precept upon them he saith Whatsoever I command you observe to doe it thou shalt not adde thereto nor diminish from it How then dare any either receive or admit the traditions and ordinances of men and joyn them with the Commandements of God when notwithstanding God enjoynes us onely to observe and doe what he commands without adding thereto or detracting from it And Prov. 24. ver 21. My sonne saith Solomon feare thou the Lord and the King and meddle not with them that are given to change for their calamity shall rise suddenly and who knoweth the ruine of them both In these words there is a command and in it a direction to all Israel teaching them what they should do and what they should not doe in Gods matters a precept both imperative and prohibitive and every word of it deserving due consideration and serious thoughts For howsoever this command was peculiarly given to the Israelites and especially concerned that government yet in the generall equity of obedience it concernes all Christians and bridleth them likewise from making any alteration or innovation in Gods ordinances and in his government established in his Church and prohibits all Christians to meddle with or have any communion with such as are given to change The principall observables in these words not accurately to handle them are briefly these First a duty enjoyned feare and that twofold towards God and towards the King and in the word feare synecdochically we are to understand all reverence towards God and indeed his whole worship which is to give him his due honour as in the same word is included all civill obedience and honour to those that are set over us in authority and that specified in expresse tearmes Feare God and the King The second observable implicitly set downe is the rule by which they should regulate their feare and obedience both towards God and the King and that was the whole Law both morall judiciall and ceremoniall and all that setled government as it was then by God himselfe established in the daies of David and Solomon by Gods owne commandment according unto the pattern the Lord delivered to David in writing and David to his sonne Solomon both for the place and manner of Gods worship and the ordering of the Kingdome which was to be perpetuated and continued without alteration or innovation till the comming of the Messiah without a speciall command and warrant from God himselfe and this Law and Word of God is that rule implicitly here set down from which they were not to vary or make any change but to observe that in ordering their feare and obedience both to God and the King For that feare and reverence only is pleasing unto God that is according to his owne command not that which we out of our owne braine imagine or what men conceive for the Lord abhors all such feare as is taught by the precepts of men Isaiah 29. ver 13. saying The feare towards me is taught by the Precepts of men And in the 15. of Matth. 9. our Saviour saith of such feare In vaine doe they worship me teaching for doctrine the commandements of men So that all that feare reverence and obedience that we desire or endeavour to honour God by if it have not a warrant our of his word it is displeasing unto him being will-worship And as our feare towards God must be warranted by his word so all our obedience to civill authority must be in the Lord for Magistrates and Governours in Israel and all Christian Governours at this day are commanded to rule and order their Kingdomes according to Gods Word as we may see Deut. 17. vers 18 19 20. and Joshua 1. And those Kings and Princes that rule not by Gods Word use not nor manage not a Kingdome but a robbery when they reigne not to this end that God may be glorified and his name honoured in their dominions Neither may they thinke them selves exempted for their greatnesse for St Paul saith Rom. 3. ver 19. Now we know
in that you neither denied major nor minor nor any part of it directly as you had done in your former replies and answers for that indeed you could not now doe the truth was so cleare but in regard also of the obscurity of your expressions and your often affirming and denying the same thing of which you could give no reason to those Gentlemen that were present although they often desired it I will therefore first set downe as well as I can the sum of your answer and bring that into order that was confusedly by you delivered and then relate the severall arguments and reasons I then made to your evasions Your first evasion was That to acknowledge both the natures of Jesus Christ and all his Offices and to believe in him as he was set forth and qualified in the holy Scripture was not sufficient enough to make a Church to be built upon the foundation of Peter And your reason as you said was because to believe in Jesus Christ effectually and sufficiently to salvation consisted in that we conformed our selves to a beliefe which is speculative and to a religion that is practicall in that the Church of Christ was determined in these two points to believe what was rightly delivered to us for speculative and then the externall practice of religion I have set downe your answer as I finde it taken by those that writ it verbatim not trusting wholly to my owne memory But before I relate the answer I then gave you I will first discover the danger and obscurity yea confusion that is in your language and words by which you thought to evade the dint of my argument the truth of which all the force and wit of man can never prevaile against You first affirmed that it was not enough to be built upon the foundation of Peter to acknowledge both the natures of Jesus Christ and all his Offices and to believe in him as he was set forth and qualified in holy Scripture for otherwise to what end were these your words uttered to evade the force and dint of my argument And this is as much as to overthrow all Christian religion and to deny the holy Scripture which offers salvation upon the termes of believing Jesus Christ as he is declared and made knowne in the Gospell for Paul in his first Epistle to the Corinthians chap. 2. v. 2. I determined not saith he to know any thing among you save Jesus Christ and him crucified A sublimer knowledge and a more excellent learning Paul aspired not unto than to the knowledge of Christ and him crucified and that indeed is a knowledge surpassing all knowledge having both the promise of this life and of that which is to come and brings a man to eternall happinesse For this is life eternall saith Christ John 17. to know thee to be the onely true God and whom thou hast sent Jesus Christ Now Mr. Montague tell me I beseech you wherein doth the knowledge of Christ consist but in understanding this that when he was in the form of God and thought it no robbery to be equall with God he made himselfe of no reputation and tooke upon him the forme of a servant and was made in the likenesse of men Phil. 2. ver 6 7. So that being both God and man he became our Mediator and hath visited and redeemed his people and is the horne of our salvation as he is described in the first of Luke v. 68 69. that hath overcome and vanquished all our enemies by his power as he was our King and has made our atonement with God as he was our Priest being our Mediator both of satisfaction and intercession and in that as our Prophet the wisdome of the Father he hath fully declared the will of his heavenly Father in his holy Word according to the which we ought to square and order our lives in the distinct knowledge of all which things and believing and practising what is declared in the holy Scripture is the whole worke of a Christian and the onely cause of building any upon the foundation of Peter And yet in your dialect Mr. Montague there is more required in a Christian to make him believe aright than to acknowledge both the natures of Jesus Christ and all his Offices and to believe in him as he is set forth unto us and declared in his holy Word which is indeed to overthrow all Christian religion though perhaps you intended no such thing But they Master Montague that will oppose the truth many times expose themselves to great danger running into many errours But let us heare the reason of that your assertion Because say you to believe in Jesus Christ effectually and sufficiently to salvation consists in this that we conforme our selves to a beliefe which is speculative and to a religion that is practicall in regard that the Church of Christ was determined in these two points to believe what is rightly delivered to us for speculative and then the externall practice of Religion By all which if you had understood that in true Religion theory and practice must alwaies goe together and that they were inseparable there had been no controversie between you and me but the very truth is there is a mystery of iniquity in your expressions For what can any man understand by your words when you say to believe in Christ Jesus effectually and sufficiently to salvation consists in that we conforme our selves to a beliefe which is speculative and to a religion which is practicall if you meane not by your beliefe speculative and your religion practicall the knowledge of both the natures of Jesus Christ and all his Offices and to believe in him as he is qualified and set downe to us in his holy Word and the ordering of our lives according to the rule and direction of the same which is all that true religion consists in Now I say if you make your beliefe speculative and your religion practicall a thing divers and different from the knowledge of both the natures of Jesus Christ and all his Offices and relying onely upon him for salvation and believing in him as he is qualified and declared to us in the Gospell and living according to the rule of his holy Word then of necessity you bring in a new religion of your owne altogether unknowne to the Christian world a speculative beliefe and a practicall religion which doth not consist in the knowledge of God in Jesus Christ and the knowledge of our selves in which onely consisteth life eternall So that to speake the truth you are in Babylon and confusion it selfe And now Mr. Montague I come to the answers I then made and gave to your evasions but by the way I cannot but put you in mind of a promise you made me upon my demand which was this if I should clearely and evidently prove unto you that the Church of England taught all those things for speculation and practice that made us believe effectually
set down all the things distinctly plainly and orderly that there may be no difficulty in reading of them the third thing observable is the reason why they were written and not left to Tradition because saith the Evangelist thou maist know the certainty of those things wherein thou hast beene instructed So that the Lord declares by these words that the Pen-men of the holy Scripture did not write accidentally and upon any slight occasion and of their own wills and peculiar motion but that they were moved unto it by God himselfe and that all Scripture was given by Gods inspiration and command and for this end that they may know the certainty of the things wherein they have beene instructed which otherwise they could not have knowne by reason of the great variety and difference that would have beene in them if they had beene delivered by Tradition for every one would have added and detracted as had seemed best unto him unto the story as we see it dayly in all matters and occurrences out of a mans owne sight and beholding with what variety these things many times are related so that no man can tell the truth of them till the eye-witnesses or standers by give the true relation of them by writing to the World which men ordinarily use to believe especially if these men be of credit and reputation that pen them So for the very same end that the certainty of these things might bee knowne that Christ both taught did and suffered for the Redemption of mankind and for the good of the Church to the end of the World the Lord moved holy men to both speake and write what was spoke and written in the old and new Testament for the learning of his people and the teaching of them Patience Comfort Hope Faith and all other graces and that they might indeed have the certainty of his will and pleasure what to cleave and stick to and from which they may not be moved though they should be taught otherwise by an Angell from Heaven Gal. 1. vers 8. And this I say was the end of the writing of the holy Word of God and that by Gods inspiration dictate and command and not accidentally as the Church of Rome blasphemously affirmeth for the enervating of the authority of the holy Scriptures and indeed for the overthrowing of the honour and dignity of our great Prophet Christ Jesus who otherwise should not be as faithful as Moses in the house of God if he had not commanded all things to be writ that he would have taught to his people which is blasphemy to thinke And thus much shall suffice to have spoke for proofe of my first argument that the holy Scriptures were written by Divine inspiration and Gods command and of set purpose and not accidentally and by the Will of men My second Argument is this That which was written for the safety of the people and for the preserving of them in the true Religion that was not accidentally written or by the will of man but by Gods appointment and of set purpose and for the good of all the Church but the holy Scriptures were written for the safety of the people and for the preserving of them in the true Religion Ergo they were not accidentally written or by the will of man but by Gods appointment and of set purpose For proofe of this heare what Paul saith Phil. 3. vers 1. Finally my Brethren saith he rejoyce in the Lord. To write the same things to you to mee indeed is not grievous but for you it is safe Beware of doggs beware of evill workers c. He had preached unto them and taught them the Truth formerly and given them also caveats to take heede of and beware of doggs and of evill workers that is of false Teachers but he did not thinke that sufficent for their safety and for the preserving of them in the Truth unlesse he did set downe in writing the sum of what he had taught and send it unto them with a command also that they should walke and order their faith and manners their lives and conversations according to that they were instructed in by him both in word and example vers 16. Saying let us walke by the same rule I then gave you and now in writing send unto you and see yee swarve not from it and from our example for it is safe for you so to do and by that you shall be preserved from the errors of false Teachers But take notice I pray of the Apostles expression he doth not say only that it was for their safety that he wrote unto them but that it was for their safety that he wrote the same things hee had taught them before to shew unto all men their weakenesse how soon they are ready to forget the things that are taught them of God and how frayle they are and ready to be seduced from the true Religion if they had not the Scripture to guide and direct them and if the Christians in the Apostles time had need of the written word for their safety and that they might be preserved from the errors of the times and they were then tyed to be ruled and governed by them how much more neede have we of the holy Scriptures now when wee have not the holy Apostles amongst us and with how much care and diligence ought we constantly to reade and cleave unto the holy Scriptures seeing that they were by Gods appointment and inspiration and not accidentally written for this very purpose that they might be a rule of direction to us for the preserving of us in the true Religion S. Peter likewise in his second Epistle chap. 1. confirmeth the same truth in these words vers 12. Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you alwayes in remembrance of these things though yee know them and be established in the present truth 13. Yea I thinke it meete as long as I am in this Tabernacle to stir you up by putting you in remembrance vers 15. Moreover I will indeavour that yee may be able after my decease to have these things alwayes in remembrance In these words we may take notice of these particulars first that those S. Peter wrote unto were not ignorant people but knowing and understanding people and such as were grounded and established in the Truth the second particular that S. Peter neverthelesse thought it meete to stirre them up and put them in remembrance whiles he lived and that they might also be able after his decease to have these things alwayes in remembrance and that the Scriptures might be the everlasting rule to all sorts and degrees of people yea the most learned and knowing men and the most established in the Truth have need of the Scriptures for their still direction and that not for a time but alwayes and this was the end for which the holy Scriptures were pend and that by Gods own appointment who inspired the holy Prophets and Apostles
Scriptures of Moses and the Prophets containe all things in them that pertaine unto the old Testament and in expresse words call it a Covenant or Testament and the bookes of the new Testament doe not comprehend all those things that belong unto the new Testament which is also called a Covenant in those Divine writings then the Scripture of the old Testament is perfecter than the Scripture of the new Testament or neither of them both answer to their inscription but the consequent is most false impious and blasphemous false likewise and impious must the antecedent needs be For the consequence Mr. Montague of this hypotheticall connexion it is manifest from the very inscriptions of both the old and new Testament who are called Covenants or Testaments For Saint Paul in the second of Corinth chap. 3. ver 14. speaking there of the Scriptures of Moses and the Prophets cals them a Covenant or Testament in these words For saith he untill this day remaineth the same vaile untaken away in the reading of the old Testament which vaile is done away in Christ And Moses in the 29. of Deut. v. 21. According saith he to all the curses of the covenant that are written in this booke of the Law And in the second of the Kings chap. 23. ver 21. it is called the booke of the Covenant The holy Scriptures of the new Testament also are in many places called a Covenant or Testament as in that place Gal. 3. v. 15. Heb. 12. ver 20. And it is most certaine that the Scriptures both of the old and new Testament answer unto their inscription and title neither can there any thing be produced that is not contained in the writings of the holy Prophets that can truly be said to belong unto the old Testament and the knowledge and faith of which thought necessary to the salvation of those that lived under the old Testament Now if the same be not concluded or granted concerning the new Testament who will not easily from thence inferre that the Scripture of the old Testament is perfecter then that of the new and that the Scriptures of the holy Apostles and Evangelists doe not answer to their inscription and title and this title or inscription the new Testament should be interpreted something belonging unto the new Testament which how absurd it is Master Montague you your selfe will easily perceive and therefore that has no need of any farther proofe But for any man to thinke or say that the Scripture of the new Testament is lesse perfect than that of the old is to give the Spirit of God the lie and to overthrow all the doctrine of the holy Apostles and to deny their expresse words as those of Paul in the second of the Corinth chap. 3. ver 8. and ver 18. and them of 2. Peter chap. 1. ver 19. where the Apostle Peter comparing the Scriptures of the old Testament and the new together he compares the old to a candle and the new to a Day-starre Neither yet Master Montague have I ever seene that Christian that durst affirme the Scriptures of the old Testament to be more perfect than them of the new so that this may suffice to have spoke for proofe of my Assumption and from the proofe of it I conclude that the Scriptures of the old and new Testament as they answer to their title and inscription so no man ought under paine and danger of execration to adde unto them or detract from them therefore they have all things in them necessary for the salvation of the Church without the Traditions of men or their unwritten verities Much more Master Montague could I speake for proofe of this truth and to the which you should never be able to answer but that I would not weary you or trouble your patience but lesse than this I could not speake And all that I have here set down doth evidently declare unto you these two things First that the Church of Rome doth onely in word acknowledge Christs Prophetical Office allow him to be a Prophet but in deeds and workes deny it when they heare him in nothing and not onely take away the Scriptures out of the hands of the people for whose cause they were written with a speciall command also that they should read them with a blessing added unto the command but affirm that they were accidentally written and not by the command of God and that they are obscure and darke and that they are not perfect and compleat in themselves without the Traditions of the Church Councels Fathers and the decrees of Synods be joyned to them all which are not onely impious and blasphemous tenents but as I said before overthrow the whole Propheticall Office of Christ and all Christian Religion and bring in other Prophets and another Law and Religion for the serving of God which they themselves have devised by all which they prove themselves to be no true Church and not to be the pillar and ground of truth but the very basis of all errour and abomination and this is the first thing that resulteth from the conclusion of this discourse The second is this that when the Church of England holdeth and believeth all these things viz. that Christ is the onely Prophet of his Church and onely to be heard that he hath fully revealed the will of God to his Church and that the Scriptures were written by the command of God himselfe and that they are not obscure but cleare and perspicuous and that they ought to be read of the people and that they containe all things in them necessary to salvation without the addition of any Traditions of men it followeth that she thinketh and believeth farre more honourably of the Propheticall Office of Christ than the Church of Rome and that she believeth as she ought to believe and is built upon the foundation of Peter and is the ground and pillar of truth and onely dependeth upon the Word and voice of Christ her true sole and alone Prophet And now Mr. Montague I am come to the last thing I undertooke to prove viz. that all Christians are tied to the written Word of God to the end of the world as we finde it penned in the holy Scriptures of the old and new Testament and that the written Word of God and that onely is to be the rule of our faith and manners and that we are not to swarve or to depart from it or to listen to any doctrines whatsoever that are not either grounded upon the expresse words of the Scripture or necessarily and infallibly deduced from them or to admit in matters of faith of any Traditions Councels or Fathers no farther than they are consentany and agreeable to the holy Scriptures yea that wee ought not to listen to any doctrines whatsoever are contrary to the revealed Will of God in the Scriptures though the Apostles themselves should rise from the dead to teach us otherwaies than we have been taught or
to the salvation of the sonnes of men But I will not now Mr. Montague discover all the errors and abominations of this Idoll onely I shall desire you to take notice of the great impiety and absurdities of this your doctrine The Church of Rome affirmeth Mr. Montague that the sacrifice of this idoll Masse is the very same sacrifice that Christ himselfe offered upon the crosse Against which I thus argue That Sacrifice which differeth from the Sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ both in the efficient materiall formall and finall cause that is not the same sacrifice that Christ offered upon the crosse but the sacrifice of the Masse differeth from the sacrifice of the Lord Iesus Christ both in the efficient materiall formall and finall cause Ergo it is not the same sacrifice but a detestable Idoll For the Major Mr. Montague no man will deny it for that that doth re ratione dissentire from any thing that is not the same as all men know The Minor I will prove with its severall parts And thus I dispute The sacrifice of the crosse was offered up by that high-Priest who is the eternall Sonne of the eternall Father who is holy harmlesse undifiled separate from sinners and made higher than the Heavens Heb. 7. vers 28. Who through the eternall Spirit offered himselfe without spot to God Heb. 9 vers 14. But the Sacrifice of the masse is not offered up by this Priest nor through the eternall Spirit but by a most polluted Priest and through the Spirit of Antichrist Ergo the sacrifice of the Masse is not the same sacrifice of Iesus Christ it differing from it in the efficient cause but a most detestable Idoll The Major of this Syllogisme you cannot deny Mr. Montague neither will any man gainsay or deny the Minor and you know then the conclusion necessarily followeth that the Sacrifice of Christ and the sacrifice of the Masse are not one and the same Sacrifice and therefore to give that honour to the Masse that is onely due to Christ himselfe is the most abominable Idolatry that the World ever heard of for it giveth the same honour to a creature of mans making that is due to the Creator blessed for ever And that shall suffice to have spoke of the first difference and now I come to speake of the second discrepancy in respect of the matteriall cause The matter of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ was the humane nature very man that that was borne of the Virgin Mary that was of the seede of Abraham of the Tribe of Judah that suffered under Pontius Pilate that was crucified dead and buried and is now at the right Hand of God and made higher than the Heavens But the matter of the sacrifice of the Masse is not the humane nature very man and that that was borne of the Virgin Mary that was of the seede of Abraham of the Tribe of Judah that suffered under Pontius Pilate that was crucified dead and buried and is now at the right hand of God and made higher than the Heavens Ergo the sacrifice of the Masse is not the same sacrifice of Iesus Christ that was offered upon the Crosse but a most prodigious Idoll that ought of all men to be abominated For the Major Mr. Montague you cannot deny it and for the Minor no man unlesse he be bereaved of his senses will deny it and unlesse he be unable to distinguish a peece of Bread from the humane nature for Christ retaines his humane nature still wheresoever hee is and he bade Thomas for the confirmation of his weake faith to put his fingers into his side and to prove the reality of his Resurrection and that hee was not a Spirit hee said unto his Disciples Luke 24. vers 39. Behold my hands and my Feete for it is I my selfe handle mee and see for a Spirit hath not flesh and bones as yee see mee have So that Mr. Montague except a man have lost all his senses hee will easily perceive the Sacrifice of the Masse and the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ are two different things for the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ had Flesh Bloud and Bones the Sacrifice of the Masse is neither flesh nor fish nor good read Herring it is neither Man nor Beast I pray Mr. Montague answer mee ingenuously do you really and indeed believe that that Breaden Wafer the Priest holdeth up in his hands or that lieth upon the Altar that Dagon of Ginger-bread is the very Christ the Saviour of the World who is now at the right Hand of God doe you believe a peece of Bread to be God-man doe you I say believe that which is betweene the Priests hands ever to have beene in the wombe of the Virgin to be of the seede of Abraham of the Tribe of Iudah and to have suffered under Pontius Pilate I am confident your conscience telleth you the contrary when you know that it is a meere peece of dow How then dare you Master Montague give that honour to a peece of bread that is due to the Lord of life Was there ever in the world a more unheard of Idolatry And yet this Master Montague is the dayly service of the Church of Rome which is worse than the worshiping of Molecke Rimmon or the God of Ekron and exceedeth all either heathenish or Iewish superstition But now I come to shew the difference betweene them in respect of the formall cause The Sacrifice of Iesus Christ was the giving up of his Spirit into the hands of God his Father the laying down of his life the separation of the humane soule from his body and the effusion of his bloud and the wounding and piercing of his glorious Body but in the sacrifice of the Masse there is none of all this you your selves calling it an unbloudy sacrifice and by virtue of your concomitancy as you tearme it you joyne flesh and bloud soule and body together and make that whole which on the Crosse was in all respects separated Ergo the Sacrifice of the Masse is not the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ but a monster to be abominated of all men as that that robs Christ the Lord of his due honour and all the adorers and worshippers of it of eternall happinesse who worship a peece of Bread for very God and in that perpetrate the greatest Idolatry that ever was committed And so exclude themselves out of Heaven for no Idolater shall enter into the Kingdome of Heaven Revel 21. vers 8. But the Fearfull and Vnbelievers and Idolaters shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and which is the second death And therefore M. Montague it highly concerneth you to looke about you and to consider well what you do when you goe to Masse But now I come to the last cause of difference The Sacrifice of Jesus Christ was of that virtue and efficacy and offered up to this very end that it might be a ransome for all believers 1 Tim. chap. 2. vers 6. And Heb. 10.14 For by once offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified But the sacrifice of the Masse is neither of any power or efficacy nor never yet perfected any and by the confession of the Papists themselves must many times be reiterated to bring one poore soule out of their fained Purgatory therefore in regard also of the end it is not the same but differeth from the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and ought to be cast out of the World as a beastly Idoll and an abomination and as a thing of no efficacy and power to save any man from misery but all-sufficient to damn soules and send them to perdition and to bring downe the judgements of God upon the Nations and Kingdomes where it is set up as all Idolatry doth for the Lord will judge those Nations with all manner of plagues that provoke him by their Idolatries and after cast them into the lake that burneth with Fire and Brimstone which is the second death Which that Mr. Montague you and all men may shun it deeply concerneth you to consult what a fearfull condition you yet are in and all those that are of the Faith and Religion of the Church of Rome which is the Mother of all abomination and duly also to weigh the haynousnesse of your offence who causlesly so separated your selfe from your Mother the Church of England whom I have as I conceive sufficiently in my foregoing discourse proved to be a true Church and built upon the foundation of Peter the ground and Pillar of Truth Mr. Montague That which I have now to say unto you is this God hath given you excellent parts and bestowed many mercies and favours on you and his long suffering and patience towards you has beene great in all respects who have hitherto imployed your gifts to wrong your own soule and mislead others let it be enough that you have gone so farre and have hither so abused Gods loving kindnesse towards you knowing that the goodnesse of God leadeth you to Repentance and therefore take heâ—d lest persevering in these erroneous and damnable Idolatries and sacrilegious impious opinions you treature not up unto your selfe wrath against the day of wrath and the revelation of the righteous judgement of God which that you may not do it shall ever be the Prayer of him that wisheth no lesse happinesse to your soule and body than to himselfe and who shall alwayes remaine Sir Yours in the Lord JOHN BASTVVICK FINIS