Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	civil_a	magistrate_n	matter_n	3,433	5	6.0251	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A52476	Three choice and profitable sermons upon severall texts of Scripture viz. Jer. 30. 17, John 14. 3, Heb. 8. 5 : the first of them being the last sermon which he preached at the court of election at Boston, the second was the last which he preached on the Lords-Day, the third was the last which he preached on his weekly-lecture-day : wherein (beside many other excellent and seasonable truths) is shewed, the Lords soveraignty over, and care for his church and people, in order to both their militant and triumphant condition, and their fidelity and good affection towards himself / by that reverend servant of Christ, Mr. John Norton ...	Norton, John, 1606-1663.; Norton, John, 1606-1663. Copy of the letter returned by the ministers of New-England to Mr. John Dury about his pacification.	1664 (1664)	Wing N1324; ESTC R40050	44,511	76

man and calamity will not remove it The hard-heartedness of good people is very strange Heb. 3.8 Harden not your hearts Oh! provoke him not as at Meribah what doth Paul cry out against and so David and Moses Meribah Meribah this this lyeth at the hearts of such the inseparable the insuperable invincible non-subjection of Israel to the wayes of God this is not cureable with calamity Instr 4. Though Sions malady be such as that lookt at in it self it cannot be cured yet lookt at in Gods promise and it cannot want a cure Look upon it in it self and it seems incurable look't at in the Physician and it cannot but be cured Ieremiah looking at his sufferings he will speak no more but looking at Gods promise and it is as fire in his bones he cannot but speak 2 King 8.10 there is a quaerie put to the Prophet whether Benhadad shall live the prophet answers He may certainly recover howbeit the Lord hath shewed me he shall surely dye i. e. the disease was not such but he might have recovered so may I by allusion invert and say Sions disease is incurable but yet she shall certainly recover Look at Sion in the glass of Providence and she is as a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit Isai 54.5 6. 66.4 husbandless as to reproach and yet at the same time thy Maker is thy husband if we look at Sion in the glass of the Promise this Out-cast is both Marah and Hephzibah both a Widow and Beulah Look at the Out-casts tears as an effect of mans not caring for her but as an occasion and demonstration of Gods care for her Psal 126.5 6. that Sion sheddeth tears denominateth her Marah that Sions tears are seed denominateth her Hephzibah Psal 56 8. that tears fall from Davids cheeks this is matter of sorrow that Davids tears fall into Gods bottle is matter of joy Instr 5. Gods touching an impenitent Out-cast with repentance is a signal of Gods having mercy thereon Sions recovery by repentance from her backsliding is an effect of grace and a fore-runner of the set time of Stons mercy Sions impenitency is the life and strength of Sions of the Out-casts calamity Repentance doth break the yoke of Babylon Impenitency doth lay on the yoke of Babylon You may truly say the date of the Out-casts captivity and the date of their impenitency is the same The enemy is never harder-hearted to Sion then when Sion is hard-hearted to her God Their affliction was not the bardness of the Babylonians hearts but Lord why hast thou hardned our hearts Isai 63.17 when the Out-casts return to Ston they shall goe weeping with their faces thitherward Ier. 50.4 5. Vse 2. Exhortation The text openeth my mouth to call upon Gods Outcasts to accept of Gods plaister God proposeth to us Remedy or Calamity we have our option whether that of the plaister or of the sore make we our choice If we accept the plaister the time of mercy even the set time is come if you do not accept it you may look at it as the beginning of sorrow That we are Out-casts this doth speak us sick but our not accepting the remedy speaks our sickness incurable To be Out-casts this argues that we are cast off by men but our not accepting the remedy speaketh us cast off by God the condition of an Out-cast supposeth us sinners but the rejection of the remedy doth say that we are castawayes for an Out-cast to need a medicine is common to good and bad to accept it is proper to the good Let us then accept the Lords Plaister As an Ingredient thereto I shall propose this Direction viz. 1. Learn we to judge aright of Liberty Scripture-liberty Gal. 5.1 Paul biddeth us stand fast in our liberty and those accursed ones he looks unto Chap. 1. who also pleaded for liberty and whom the Assertors of true Liberty should accordingly pronounce accursed Blessed men plead for liberty and cursed men plead for liberty The Gnostick in 2 Pet. 2.19 doth plead for liberty Good men plead for liberty and bad men plead for liberty the best men plead for liberty and the worst men plead for liberty If you ask what Liberty is you may look at it as a Power as to any external restraint or obstruction-on mans part to walk in the Faith Worship Doctrine and Discipline of the Gospel according to the Order of the Gospel When you hear men plead for Liberty see that it be not Liberty falsly so called 2. Acknowledge Order Divine and in particular in that great Point of a Ministerial Judge There are that make little of Order and yet we may think not any made so little as Paul made much of it Let All things be done in Order 1 Cor. 14.40 it seemeth an Apostolical spirit doth conclude that sometimes better such a thing not done then not orderly done There is a judgement Discretive which belongeth to every Believer there is a judgement Authoritative that belongs unto the Church and is set therein by God and also there is a judgement Decisive which belongs unto the Council Onely remember that the Supreme Judge is either 1. Authentick i. e. Jesus Christ or 2. Regulative i. e. the Scripture or 3. Ministerial i. e. the Council This Question concerning a Ministerial Judge in matters of Religion is that which hath greatly exercised the Christian world insomuch that both Protestants and Papists agree That the Resolution of this Controversie is of so great moment as that hereupon depends the Resolution of all Controversies When a Controversie ariseth in a Church differences must not alwayes continue what shall resolve the same if a Ministerial Judge be not admitted Take away this Order and how shall Peace or the Society continue This truth of a Ministerial Judge is reckoned among the Fundamentals Secundarily because it doth tend to the 〈…〉 finde preservation of all that else is of the Foundation You shall finde this Truth impleaded throughout all generations since the Primitive times and pleaded for by all the Orthodox in all the Centuries Deut. 17.12 Standum sententiae summi judicis Israel must stand to this if it be in matters of Religion there is the Priest if in matters Civil there is the Magistrate and he that stands not or submits not to the Sentence of these let him be cut off from Israel so requisite a thing is Order Acts 15. there is no rest in such a case what now do they but refer it to a Council and that doth determine it 1 Cor. 14.32 The Spirit of the Prophets is subject to the Prophets I will not acknowledge him a Prophet that is not subject to the Prophets Let not any one therefore under pretence of a Prophet or whatever Inspiration or Perswasion soever exempt themselves from subjection to Order Obj. The major part may erre and is not alwayes the melior part Councils and Churches may erre and have erred Answ 1. But is it not true that the

religious then so to carry it that they should no sooner see a Congregational-man then to have cause to say They see an Enemy to the Crown Prov. 24.21 My son fear thou the Lord and the King and meddle not with them that are given to change Eccles 10.20 Curse not the King no not in thy thought Dan. 6.22 Innocency was found in me saith Daniel and also before thee O King have I done no hurt Is this thy voice my son David 1 Sam. 26.17 really so not hypocritically We have severe Observers Tongues are not untaught to inform against us It is but wisdome to give no cause especially such as our own Consciences cannot testifie for and such as all Orthodox Churches in the Protestant world will testifie against In matters of the state-State-Civil and of the Church let it be shewn that we are his Disciples who Matth. 22.21 said Give unto Cesar the things that are Cesars and unto God the things that are Gods and in matters of Religion let it be known that we are for Reformation and not for Separation 6. Lastly Take care thar the Order of the Gospel may have a free passage in the Churches I mean that our Practice may effectually answer our Doctrine in that Book entituled The Platform of Church-Discipline 'T is that for which we are Out-casts at this day that for the substance of it is it that sheweth what New-England is I would I might say that there are none among our selves that are against it There was a time when the General Court did approve of it and when the Members of that Synod pleaded for it Our reality herein will be in no small degree critical of our Integrity in this Undertaking and our Actions must be the demonstrations of our Sincerity This is a principal Ingredient of this healing Plaister and for the defect-hereof are such frequent and scandalous Breaches in our Churches so many Administrations in vain and such sad Non-administration and Remora's occasioning that sad Quaerie of Spectators Whether the Congregational-way be practicable yea or not I beseech you consider whom it is that it doth concern to answer this Objection you that are conscientious do not forget it at whom the stick lyes in one order or another If we cannot build without the noise of Hammers yield that we are not Temple-workmen yield we must either that the Congregational-way is not the way of God or that We are unfit for the behaviour of the House of God As concerning the Church-government according to the Platform of Discipline the practice of which doctrine who careth for is not this that truth which the Synod Churches the General Court sometime made a good Confession of and that now no man comparatively careth for Ezra 4.8 Rehum cares not for it ver 23. Artaxerxes careth not for it Nehem. 4. Sanballat and Tobiah care not for it the Episcopal man the Presbyterian care not for it the Morellian careth not for it the Merchant the Souldier the Husbandman the Labourer careth not for it Haggai 1. The people of Jerusalem the Church-members care not for it I am apt sometimes to think that Aaron may be under a temptation of irregular complyance but minde Ier. 15.19 Let them return unto thee but return not thou unto them I may say thus much and pardon my speech A more yeilding Ministry unto the People I believe is not in the World I beseech you let not Cesar be killed in the Senate after he hath fought it out and conquered in the Field let us acknowledge the Order of the Eldership in our Churches in their way and the Order of Councils in their way duely back'd and encouraged without which Experience will witness that these Churches cannot long consist God hath opened the mouth of the Speaker to you this day it being a day wherein after so many attempts and feares you are betrusted with your Liberties for another year You have this years oportunity and at such a time and blessed be the Lord God of our Fathers who hath put such a thing in the Kings heart so farre to accept your Application to his Majesty as not onely to give you the oportunity of the year present but also encouragement for many years to come Let all of us be stirred up by the Lord and at such a time to strengthen the hand of Zerubbabel and Jehoshua by your professed subjection to the Gospel of Christ Do not betray liberty under the pretence of liberty You that are in the honoured Magistracy remember Davids troubles Psal 132.1 5. he could not rest till the Ark had rest And those that are in the Ministry remember Paul's troubles and what his cares were 1 Cor. 11.28 Let us all minde what were the troubles and thoughts of heart that were in them that lived in the dayes of Malachi Chap 3.16 But are there not many that minde onely their cieled houses c and how much doth the work of the Out-cast lye unattempted witness the sick estate of the Churches and how can it be remedied if we will not acknowledge Order and shall I say that we are real therein You have brought upon your selves real troubles and likewise upon your Relations and Friends in England and those here that suffer with you in this Exile See then that you be not hypocritical but real to the Truth which you have professed I could tell you and you must not forget it That there have been Men of Renown as they are called Numb 16.2 Famous in the Congregation of Israel that did go out of Egypt but yet could not endure the Order of God in the Wilderness Let us shew it that we mistook not our selves pretending to come into this Wilderness to live under the Order of the Gospel We are Out-casts indeed and reproached but let us be such Out-casts as are caring for the Truth and therefore not to neglect an Apologie it doth become and greatly concern Gods Out-casts to minde it You know there are those who represent you as disaffected to Government and as Sectaries and Schismaticks and as Fanaticks you see cause to Apologize therein And for that term of Fanatick you must remember it is not of yesterday however it be now used or abused You may learn the original use of it from that distribution of Professors in relation to Church government in former times into four sorts viz. Orthodoxt Pontificii Rationales and Fanatici But I trust that God doth and Angels and Men shall know that we are Orthodox Gods Out-casts are not Fanaticks The Woman in the wilderness may have the vomit of the Dragon cast in her face if you let it lye on you will suffer wash it off therefore by an Apologie Thus did Justin Martyr Tertullian Iuel and others in their time Give not the advantage of interpreting Silence as Consent nor think it labour lost if an Apologie will wash your face And though we may be cast out by men yet may we hope that God will