Selected quad for the lemma: scripture_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
scripture_n	apostle_n	church_n	true_a	7,658	5	5.2374	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A17981	A thankfull remembrance of Gods mercy In an historicall collection of the great and mercifull deliverances of the Church and state of England, since the Gospell began here to flourish, from the beginning of Queene Elizabeth. Collected by Geo: Carleton, Doctor of Divinitie, and Bishop of Chichester.	Carleton, George, 1559-1628.; Passe, Willem van de, 1598-ca. 1637, engraver.	1624 (1624)	STC 4640; ESTC S107513	118,127	246

the sacred canonicall Scriptures that this onely rule of faith was held in the Church till the Councell of Tr●nt it is euidently proued by the full consent of the ancient Fathers and moreouer by the confession of all Writers in the Church of Rome before the Councell of Trent such as were Bernard Peter Lumbard Thomas Aquin●s Iohann●s Scotus Durandus Clemens 1. Pope Cardinalis Cameracensis Iohn Gerson C●nradus Clingius Ios. Acosta Alfonsus de castre and many others To repeat the testim●n●es of al● would bee tedious Let it suffice to repeate one testimonie of Aquinas wherein all the rest agree Aquinas in the first place cited saith Prophetarum Apostolorum doctr●na dicitur canonica quia est regula intellectus nostri ideo nullus aliter debet docere that is the Doctrine of the Prophets and Apostles is called canonicall because it is the rule of our vnderstanding and therefore no man ought to teach otherwise And in the second place cited he saith Innititur fides nostra reuelationi Apostolis Prophetis factae that is our faith resteth vpon the reuelation made to the Apos●les and Prophets Then traditions was neuer accounted the rule of our vnderstanding or that whereupon our faith must rest though the same be more fully pr●ued out of the Scriptures themselues and from a full consent of the ancient Fathers as is otherwhere manifested yet this I thought here might suffice to declare the opinions of them that liued in the Church of Rome next before the Councell of Trent as many of these did which I haue before named So that this is euident the rule of faith was neuer altered in the Church of Rome before the Councell of Trent Then did they alter this rule by putting traditions of their Church into the rule of faith and Lucifer-like matching equalizing and mating the wisedome of God with their owne follies Then all is changed when the manners of the Church the doctrines of the Church and the very rule of faith is changed What greater change may be looked for hereafter in the Church of Antichrist I know not but this is sufficient to moue vs to forsake them as the congregation of the impious the Church of the malignant And because they haue forsaken God and his truth therefore by the iust iudgement of God are they permitted to runne into so many foule errors and such wicked and execrable practises that neither Christians nor heathen guided onely by the light of nature could euer approue If they say that we also haue our faults and sinnes I answere that when w● turne our selues to consider our sinnes against God wee all finde our selues guilty and not able to answere one of a thousand that he ma● iustly charge vs withall Our vnthankefulnesse to him is so great for his manifold blessings and wonderfull protection our sinnes we conceale not from him wee acknowledge vnto God that if he lay his rod vpon vs as we haue deserued if he should cast our l●nd ba●ke againe into that former blindnesse wherein it lay in popery God is iust wee haue d●serued great punishments But if wee turne our selues vnto another consideration comparing our religion with theirs our practises with theirs then I say though we cannot iustifie our selues before God yet are we able to iustifie our selues in respect of them Let our enemies be our iudges When euill is committed among vs it is punished and therein we reioyce that euill is punished It was neuer found that execrable practises were approued by vs for that were to forsake religion but the most wicked practises that haue beene heard of are not onely committed by them but approued yea and commended as the killing of Henry 3. of France was practised by a Fryer and commended by the Pope These bee the sinnes that doe ripen them for Gods iudgements For the time will come when great Babylon shall come in remembrance before the Lord to giue vnto her the cup of Wine of the fiercenesse of his wrath and againe therefore shall her plagues come at one day death and sorrow and famine and she shall bee burnt with fire for strong is the Lord God which will condemne her In the meane time we wait vpon God and we doe in humblenesse of heart offer vp to God the sacrifice of praise and thanksgiuing that it pleased him of his goodnesse and vnsearchable mercies towards vs to call vs out of Babylon to giue vs hearts to obey his calling to make choise of this Church which himselfe hath planted in Great Britaine to inable it to stand against all the furious rage and wicked practises of the Pope and his adherents The Conclusion Some Considerations proposed to such as are not well affected to Religion 1 KIngs and States when they are miraculously protected by the hand of God and deliuered from great dangers may vnderstand what blessing they haue by a Church planted in their State The Church bringeth the blessing to the State because God regardeth them that are faithfull to him and for their fakes blesseth the whole 2 This Church that bringeth such a blessing to States is much questioned now where it is and how to finde it for diuers striue for it and the true Church is but One. 3 That is t●e true Church that hath h●●d the ru●e of Fa●th from the Apostles time That is the false Church that ha●h changed that ru●e 4 Who hold this rule and who n●t may be knowne by the holy Doctrines contained in the Scripture ex consanguinitate doctrinae 5 Learni●g is nec●ssary to inable a man to iudge aright of these th●●gs but Learning may be also in men that are corrupt and vng●dly And therefore a man can neuer be we●l ●nabled to iudge of these things without the Spirit of God directing his Learning 6 Th● true Church is ruled by the Spirit of God and preserued from errours and heresies against which the gates of hell shall not preuaile 7 A lay man that hath the Spirit of God is better able to iudge of the Church and of the members thereof then a man in Ecclesiasticall function that hath not the Spirit of God 8 They that are contentious seditious cruel● m●licious vncle●ne adulterers idolaters murt●er●rs or such like haue not the Spirit of God The reason is euident because these and such like are the fr●its of the flesh contrary to the fruits of the spirit 9 From these principles if the Princes that are of the Romish religion wou●d be pleased to ex●m●ne Themselues their Religion their best learned and religious men their Doctrines their Pr●ctis●s ●hey might b● a ●enerous search easily finde w●ere is Gods Church and where is Gods Spirit 10 Withall they may be pleased to consider the Workes of God his protection and miraculous defence of his Church which miraculous defence hath appeared here ouer the Church of England as also elsewhere but more conspicuous here more

whatsoeuer haue beene attempted against vs the Pope is firme on their side God hath manifested himselfe many waies to be on our side What cause haue we then how many waies are we prouoked to trust in God to loue him to worship him that so miraculously hath defended vs to cleaue with all singlenes of heart to that cause that hath bin so mightily maintayned by Gods hand and power And what cause haue our adu●rsaries to examine themselues and more narrowly to examine the cause which God by so many iudgements hath condemned The people of Israel were mightily protected by the hand of God so long as they truely serued God al their aduersaries could neuer preuaile against them they were defended by power from aboue God did watch ouer them but when they fell from God God did suffer them to fall into the hands of their enemies There will hardly be found any president euen among the people of God that for so many yeeres together they haue bin continually deliuered from so many so cruelly intended so dangerous assaults The deepest deuises of malice reaching euen from hell vnto hellish men vpon earth haue beene practised against vs as this last which came from the deepenesse of Satan wherein without sword or speare without any shew of warlike preparations their hellish deuise was at one blow to root out religion to destroy the state the head with the body the King with the stat● the Father of our Country the Mother of our Country the oliue branches the hopefull succession of our King the Reuerend Clergy the Honourable Nobility the faithfull Councellors the graue Iudges the greatest part of our Knights and Gentry the choisest Burgesses the Officers of the Crowne Councell Signet S●ales and of other seates of iudgement the learned Lawyers with an infinite number of common people the Hall of iustice the houses of Parliament the Church vsed for the Coronation of our Kings the monuments of our former Princes all Records of Parliament and of euery particular mans right with a great number of charters and other things of this nature all these things had the diuell by his agents deuised at one secret blow to destroy If the Lord had not beene on our side may Israel now say if the Lord had not beene on our side when men rose vp against vs they had then swallowed vs vp quicke when their wrath was kindled against vs praised be the Lord which hath not giuen vs vp a prey to their teeth our soule is escaped as a Bird out of the snare of the Fowlers the snare is broken and we are deliuered our helpe is in the name of the Lord which hath made heauen and earth We labour against the Papists to proue our Church a true Church of God They on the other side labour to proue themselues the onely Catholike Church and our assemblies to be as they call them assemblies of Heretikes God hath determined this controuersie most euiden●ly by his word and most powerfully from heauen by his continuall protection of vs and destruction of all the wicked practises which they haue attempted against vs. Was there euer any cause in the world so strongly ma●ntained on the one side as our cause hath beene was there euer any execrable practises in the world so pow●rfu●ly condemned from heauen as their practises haue beene God open their eyes that they may see and vnderstand that they fight against God The Church of Rome so long as it stood the Church of God did neuer practise either by open warres or by secret conspiracies to destroy Kings and subuert Kingdomes but by the preaching of Gods word by examples of piety and sanctimony laboured to draw the ignorant vnto the knowledge and obedience of the truth that course is now vtterly forsaken of them for how can they teach the truth to others that are themselues in ignorance and in the shadow of death or how can they giue examples of an holy life whose whole practise and conuersation is in bloud in malice in wicked and wretched actions And will they neuer vnderstand that they who practise such things can not inherit the Kingdome of God cannot be the Church of God cannot pray to God or expect any blessing from him vpon their execrable practises there is a manifest change of their Church and they will not see it They aske vs when was this change vnder what King vnder what Emperour vnder what Pope But if they were wise they would first inquire whether there be a change or no and then inquire further of the time and manner of it We say that which no man can deny that there is a notorious change this is euident for the Church of old neuer allowed the cruelty the impiety the execrable wickednesse which is daily practised by the great Masters of the Church of Rome and allowed and approued by the Pope Then there is a change it is euident to all But this is a change of manners of the Church not of the doctrines If therefore they demand of vs how a change of the doctrines may be proued We are able to point out from time to time that the doctrines which they haue inuented were neuer heard of in the Church before such times as wee are able to point at Master Iewell the reuerend Bishop of Salisbury for piety and learning the mirrour of his time hath made full and faire proofe that of those Articles wherein he challenged all the Learne● of the Church of Rome not one of them was euer taught in the Church before the 〈◊〉 of Christ 600. his proofes stand vnanswered to this day Though Master 〈◊〉 ha●● done his best to examine them who wanted neither learning nor eloquence bu● onely trut● wanting on his side the challenge is still made good We are also able to point to another time before the year of Christ 1000. many of the gr●atest grossest errors in popery was neuer taught or heard ●n the Church as the doctrines of transubstantiatio● of the reall presence as it is vnderstood in the Church of Rome of the Popes power to depose Kings and absolue their subiects f●o● their allegeance or to war●ant their subiects to rebell ●gainst them of he doctrines of Grace and iustification as now they are taught in the Church of Rome of the doctrine of merits whether ex congruo or condigro of the seauen sacraments and many other of this nature of which we are assured that not one of them can be proued euer to haue beene taught or heard of in the Church before the yeare of Christ one thousand Wee are further able to point to another time before which the rule of faith was neuer changed in the Church this was their last attempt in the points of Doctrine a desperate attempt against the truth For from the Apostles time till the Councell of Trent the rule of faith was euer held in the Church one and the same that is the doctrine contained in