Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	false_a	true_a	worship_n	4,780	5	7.8086	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A47050	The grand case of subjection to the higher powers in matters of religion resolved to which is added an appendix to a late book intituled A plea for liberty of conscience, wherein the kings supream power in ecclesiastical matters is asserted ... / by James Jones, a Protestant-dissenter, and now a prisoner in Woodstreet-compter for nonconformity.	Jones, James, fl. 1683-1684.	1684 (1684)	Wing J956A; ESTC R36209	11,281	12

Commandments of Men. Question II. But must not or may not the Higher Powers be AT ALL Concerned in Establishing Religion in their several Dominions for their Subjects to Conform thereunto Answer First Such of the Higher Powers as are without the Knowledge and Profession of Christianity are not capable to Establish Religion so as to agree with the Will and Word of the Holy God but they will be ready to Establish a Worship to a false God as the poor ignorant Indians do or else Establish the Worshipping of the true God in a false manner as the Jews and Turks do and I hope that none will Plead for the Conformity of Christians to such Established Worship Secondly Such of the Higher Powers as are Christians yea and such as are most Right in the Christian Religion have not Received any Authority from Jesus Christ to establish his own Worship in their Dominions so as to Exercise Outward Force or by Punishments to Compel their Subjects to come to Christs Divine Service Objection But some will now be ready to say that Christ hath Required the COMPELLING of Persons to be brought to his Gospel-Feast See Luke 14.23 And the Lord said unto the Servant Go out into the High-ways and Hedges and COMPEL them to come in that my House may be filled ANSWER That we may Rightly understand these words of Christ we must consider what kind of Compelling is intended by Christ whether it be Magisterial or Ministerial Compelling First It cannot be Magisterial so as to Compel by Penal Laws Because Jesus Christ had not then given any such Power to the Magistrates of that time for they were Opposers of Christ his Doctrine and his Ministers and did what they could to Compel the Professors of Christ to Conform to them in Renouncing Christianity Thus speaketh Paul when he acted by their Authority Act. 26.10 11. Which thing I also did in Jerusalem and many of the Saints did I shut in Prison having Received Authority from the Chief Priest and when they were put to Death I gave my Voice against them and I punished them oft in every Synagogue and COMPELLED them to Blaspheme and being exceedingly mad against them I Persecuted them unto strange Cities And since that time Christ hath not given any Law to any of the Higher Powers to Compel any of their Subjects to come to his Divine Service by Inflicting the Penalties of Imprisonment and Forfeitures of great or small Sums of Money for their Neglect Secondly I do Humbly conceive that the Compelling which Christ intended is to be understood Ministerially Viz. That his Gospel-Ministers should take great Pains in the Ministry of the Word so as to Inform Persons Judgments Convinces their Consciences and to Convert their Souls that so they may from a Principle of Love to Christ and his Worship Conform themselves thereunto And if after all such Spiritual Means Persons are not brought to Conform to the Doctrine and Ordinances of Christ they must be left to those Punishments that Christ will inflict upon them for their Disobedience 2 Thes 1.8 9. Taking Vengeance on them that know not God and that Obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ who shall be Punished with Everlasting Destruction from the Presence of the Lord and from the Glory of his Power But thirdly I do Humbly conceive that the best of Christian Magistrates are and ought to be much concerned to promote the Christian Religion in the Purity of it according to the best of their Knowledge briefly thus First By being good Patterns themselves in their own Profession and Practice of Godliness 2. By Encouraging a Pious and Painful Ministry to work upon Ignorant and Obstinate Persons by Sweet Intreaties and Strong Arguments But not at all to Compel Persons to Comply with Spiritual Matters by outward Punishments because that is the ready way to make men Hypocrites and such cannot be true Members though they should Conform to the Best of Churches Question III. But What kind of Subjection is intended unto the Higher Powers by those Words of the Apostle Paul Rom. 13.1 Let every Soul be Subject to the Higher Powers Answer Having already shewed that Gods Servants are not bound to be subject unto the Higher Powers in Conforming to their Established Religion it is now meet that we should know what kind of Subjection the Apostle doth Require that so we may not come short of our Duty to those that God hath set in Authority which I shall endeavour to Resolve as followeth First By Subjecting to the Higher Powers in the meaning of the Holy Apostle we are to understand not Resisting the Higher Powers Considered as the Ordinance of God whose place and Office is to be a Terror to Evil Doers and a Praise to them that do well And if at any time these Higher Powers should miss of the Right Vsing of their Authority and deal hardly with the Servants of God then it is the Duty of Gods Servants to Exercise Patience and not Resist by seeking to Avenge themselves see verse 2 3. And this is the Doctrine of the same Apostle in Rom. 12.18 19. If it be possible live Peaceably with all men Dearly Beloved Avenge not your selves but rather give place unto Wrath for it is written Vengeance is mine I will Repay saith the Lord. And in verse 21. he saith Be not overcome of evil but overcome evil with good and then cometh in these Words Let every Soul be subject to the Higher Powers And thus to be truely subject is not to Avenge our selves but to be Peaceable under Authority patiently Suffering for the Cause of Christianity and unto this agrees the Counsel of Paul Tit. 3.1 2. Put them in Mind to be subject to Principalities and Powers to Obey Magistrates to be ready to every good Work To speak Evil of no man to be no Brawlers or Fighters but gentle shewing all meekness unto all Men. Secondly To be subject to the Higher Powers in the true meaning of the Apostle is Paying them their Tributes and giving them such Reverence as is their due see verse 5 6. Wherefore ye must needs be subject not only for Wrath but for Conscience sake for this Cause Pay you Tribute for they are Gods Ministers Attending continually upon this very thing Render therefore to all their dues Tribute to whom Tribute is due Custom to whom Custom Fear to whom Fear Honour to whom Honour And to this agreeth the Words of the Apostle Peter 1 Pet. 2.13 14. Submit your selves to every Ordinance of Man for the Lords sake whether it be to the King as Supream or unto Governours as sent by him for the Punishment of Evil Doers and for the Praise of them that do well Now from these words of Peter let these Particulars be considered concerning Submitting to those in Authority 1. It cannot fairly be understood to be the meaning of the Apostle that the Servants of Christ should submit to every Ordinance of Man considered as Decrees

The Grand CASE OF SUBJECTION TO THE Higher Powers IN MATTERS of RELIGION RESOLVED To which is Added An APPENDIX To a Late Book Intituled A PLEA for LIBERTY of CONSCIENCE WHEREIN The Kings Supream Power in Ecclesiastical Matters Is Asserted Humbly Shewing that the Kings Majesty hath Royal Power Sufficient to Perform his Royal Promise for Liberty of Conscience By JAMES JONES a Protestant-Dissenter and now a Prisoner in Woodstreet-Compter for Nonconformity PSAL. 105.20 The King sent and loosed him Even the Ruler of the People and let him go free ECCLES 1.9 The thing that hath been it is that which shall be and that which is done is that which shall be done and there is no New thing under the Sun LONDON Printed by George Larkin at the lower End of Broadstreet next to London-Wall 1684. THE Grand Case OF SUBJECTION TO The Higher Powers IN MATTERS of RELIGION Resolved FOrasmuch as great Contention hath been and still is among Christians Concerning a Right Subjection to the higher Powers in Matters of Religion All those Princes and States who by the Divine Providence have the Supream Government in their Respective Dominions making such Demands of Subjection from their Subjects in Matters of Religion as they cannot conscientiously Conform unto in which they do not only Plead the Power of their own Laws but would fain urge something from Divine Authority that so Persons may yield Obedience unto them in their Established Worship as a bounden Duty unto God Therefore the following Discourse upon this Subject is Humbly Offered to the Consideration of all Rational and Conscientious Persons of whatsoever sort or degree amongst Mankind which shall be endeavoured in a Satisfactory Answer to the following Questions Quest I. Whether all sorts of Persons whatsoever are bound to Conform to whatsoever Worship is or may be Established by the higher Powers in their several Dominions Because the Holy Apostle Paul in Rom. 13.1 saith thus Let every Soul be subject to the Higher Powers for there is no Power but of God the Powers that be are Ordained of God Answer To which I Answer Conformity to Every Established Worship cannot be the meaning of the Apostle in this Text as shall be soberly demonstrated by the Reasons following First Because then the Christian Religion would utterly cease in all those Countreys in which the contrary Religion is Established and that by the Consent of the Christians themselves who in Point of duty must relinquish the Profession and Practice of the Christian Religion and imbrace a Religion Contrary to it because it is Required by Authority Secondly Because then Every Sort of Established Worship would be Esteemed and Accounted the true Worship of God how much soever such Worships may differ from and be Contradictory to each other whether it be Mahometan-Worship Indian-Worship Jewish-Worship or Popish-Worship as well as Protestant-Worship if it have but the Broad Seal of Humane Authority affixed unto it Thirdly Because such a sence of that Scripture Condemns both the Profession Practice and Holy Zeal of Peter and John who Refused to be subject to the Authority of the Jews when they Commanded them to preach no more in the Name of Jesus for Peter and John said Whether it be Right in the Sight of God to Hearken unto you more then unto God judge ye For we cannot but speak the things that we have seen and heard Fourthly Because this Sence of the fore-mentioned Scripture will Condemn the Profession and Practice of Paul himself for he was not a Conformist to the Established Worship of those times but was a great Sufferer under those that then were the higher Powers Objection But some will be ready to say That this was the Nonconformity of Christians in not Submitting to the Idolatrous VVorship Established by Heathen Powers But the present Nonconformity is a not Subjecting to Christian Powers To which I Answer First Consider that the words of Paul in the forementioned Text did Require Subjection to those that then were the higher Powers and they were Heathen Powers maintaining Idolatry and punishing the Professors of Christianity And therefore if Subjection to Established VVorship be at all Required in this Text then it may be fairly Argued that it was Required unto those that then were the Heathen Powers But Secondly Consider that the Primitive Christians did not only Refuse Conformity in Matters of Religion to Heathenish Powers but also to the Higher Powers of the Jews who were a People that did Profess the Law of Moses and the Doctrine of the Prophets but they had mingled their own Inventions and Traditions with Gods Commandments and were more zealous of their own ways then of Gods ways as it was Revealed to them by the Prophets and also by Christ and the Holy Apostles and therefore the Christians of the Primitive time did Refuse to Conform to them in matters of VVorship and chose rather to suffer under their Authority Thirdly Consider that since those times the Christians in many Countreys have not Subjected so as to Conform to the Higher Powers in matters of Religion though Established by Christian Powers as for instance the Protestants in Italy Germany Bohemia Spain France and in these Kingdoms of England Scotland and Ireland they did not subject so as to Conform to Popery when it was Established by Those that were in Authority Fourthly Consider That to allow of such a Sence of Pauls words viz. Subjection to the Higher Powers in Conforming to their Established Worship is highly to Condemn the generation of the Righteous viz. the Faithful Suffering Servants of Christ who under-went Cruel Deaths for not Subjecting to such matters of Religion as were imposed upon them because this would render their Suffering to be rather Folly then Faithfulness And then Fifthly Consider that such a Sense of Pauls words as aforesaid will lead Christians to be of any Religion that is or shall be Imposed upon them viz. if Authority should impose Popery as in Queen Maries days then they must be Papists and if Authority should impose Episcopal Protestancy as in Queen Elizabeth's and now in our days then they must turn such Protestants and if Authority should like any of the ways of Worship now among the Dissenters and so Establish that then the People must Conform thereunto viz. If Authority should like Presbytery better then Episcopacy then the People must turn Presbyterians and if Authority should like and Establish the way of such as are called Independants Anabaptists or Quakers then the People must turn such also and thus Religion would be always a changing according to the differing Minds of such as may be in Authority and so the Laws of men instead of the Laws of God would be the Rule for Worshiping of God and this is the way to have the Commandments of men taught as if they were Divine Doctrines and so bring men to Worship God in Vain as Christ hath said Mat. 15.9 But in Vain do they Worship me Teaching for Doctrines the