Questions of Religion, Commonplaces · Commonplace 17
The seuententh Common place. Of the Magistrate, and lawful obedience.
The. lx. Question.
Whether the spirituall and ciuill magistrate ought not to be obeyed, chiefly when the things that they commaund are not agaynst God?
The Answere.
WE wyll héere make aThe spiritual Magistrates. difference betwene the Ciuill and the spirituall Magistrates. For the teachers and gouernors of the Church are ministers, and not Lords to exercise a gouernement lyke kings, prynces or noble men, and we ought to obey them as the Ministers of Chryste, so long as they bée hys, preache hys worde, and execute the Christian ministerie. And so Paule teacheth with these wordes: VVee beseeche you brethren, that you1. Thessa. 5 will know them which labour amongest you, and take the charge ouer you in the Lorde, and instruct you, that you honor them throgh louelove for their works sake, and hauehave peace with them. And againe:Hebr. 13. Obey those which hauehave the ouersight of you, and submyt your selues: for they watch for your soules, as they that must giuegive accountes, that they may do it with ioy. Likewyse Chryst sayth to his Apostles: He that heareth you, heareth me. Luke. 10.And he manyfestly forbiddeth his Apostles to rule as Ciuill Magistrates, John. 13. Reade more of this, Math. 18. and. 20. Luke. 22. where you shall manyfestly finde, that our Lorde saythe: The kings of the Nations reigne ouer them: and those which exercise authoritie ouer them are called gracious lords: but it shal not be so with you. And therfore the ciuil power which the Bishops and gouernors of the Churche exercise, hath no groūd or authoritie in the word of god, neither hath Chryst at any time commaunded them to vse bothe the swordes. Saint Peter in the sixt of the Actes speaketh of him self and the other Apostles thus: It is not conuenient that we should leaue the worde of God, and serue Tables, that is to say, giuegive ourselues to the féeding of the poore. &c. And yet it is more lyke that the Apostles woulde take charge & care for the poore, than to take vponupon them gouernemente and ciuill authoritie, onlesse they had knowen the same to bée agaynst the commaundement of God. And therfore doubtlesse if suche power had ben offered vntounto them, they would neuer hauehave receiued it. And besides this experience teacheth vsus nowe in our age, that these two can not be ioyned togither. Yet let the christians submit thēselues to these magistrates, so long as they cōmaunde not things contrary to god, & yet if they do, they may not therfore stir cōmotiōs, but do that which god hath cōmaunded.
Touching the Ciuil power, as kingsThe ciuill Magistrate. Emperours, Princes, Counsellors, Magistrates, and all other lyke, which exercise any publique office, by what name soeuer they bée called, wée are bound to obey them by the worde of God in all things that are not contrarie to God: yea God threatneth vengeaunce agaynst all those that are disobedient, stubborne, and rebellious agaynst the Magistrates. Moreouer wée are taughte by Gods worde, that the Magistrate is ordeyned of God, and is for hys sake to be honored, and to be acknowledged in hys Ministers, ordeined for the wealth of good men, but for the punishment of euill men: and that wée muste louelove them as fathers, geuing vntounto them their due honor, tribute loyaltie, faythfulnesse, and other bodily seruices which appertayne vntounto thē, and that with a good hart and wil faithfully. And thus are we taughte by the worde of God, Math. 17. and 22. and 1. Peter. 2. Romanes. 13. and Titus. 1. And in the Epistle to Timothe Paule commaundeth that wée make faythfull prayers vntounto God for those which hauehave the gouernemente ouer vsus. And euen as the Apostles for Gods cause were obediente vntounto the Magistrates, so is it méete that Byshoppes and those which gouerne in the Churche, as teachers and preachers, bée obedient to the Ciuill Magistrate also, like as Jeremie in his firste Chapter teacheth: but yet in suche sorte as they teache the worde of God fréely, But if any wyll not thus doo, then let them reade the seconde Epistle of Sainct Peter, the seconde Chapter, and the Epistle of S. Jude, and sée what the Apostles doo thinke and iudge of suche. And agaynst those which resiste their Magistrates, and so become worse than théeues or murtherers, many sharpe thinges are written in the holy Scripture, and in the Prouerbes of Salomon.
The. Lxj. Question.
Whether the magistrat ought to bee obeyed if he publishe, set foorth, or commaund any thing contrary to the vniuersal church of Chryst?
The Answere.
WE muste héere agayneThe magistrate can cō maunde nothing contrarie to the churche of Chryst. make a difference betwéene the true Christian Churche, and the false, bearing onelyonly the name and tytle therof. For that Churche which is called, and is in very déede the true vniuersall Church of Chryst, is that company of the faythfull whiche rightly beléeue in Chryste, putting all their trust in God, throughe Chryste, geuing eare onelyonly to him in his holy worde, séeking all things in hym, and seruing him in holynesse and righteousnesse. And agaynst this Churche can no Magistrate decrée any thing, but if they chaunce to doo, then doo the faythfull knowe, that it is better to obey God than man. In déede at the beginning, and in the tyme of the Primatiue Churche Kinges and Emperours concluded & set foorth many gréeuous things against the Christians, but thē they which otherwise in al bodily seruices were contente to bée obedient vntounto their Magistrates, dyd in déede disobey them in the things which appertayned to their faythe, for they would neither woorshippe their Idols, nor doo sacrifice in their Temples, or communicate with them in their Religion: and for thys cause many of them were put to death. Yet GOD in the ende maruellouslye punyshed those Magistrates, as Eusebius and Orosius doo testifie in their Histories. And wée hauehave a manifest and an excellent example of this matter in the seconde, thirde and sixte Chapters of Daniell. And in the Historie of the Machabées, and theThe godly… Magistrate may make lawes and decrees against the false church▪ Actes of the Apostles.
Furthermore the Churche which is called Chrystes Churche, and is not so in déede, hathe in it none of those things whiche it oughte for to hauehave, for they neither truste in God, nor in Chryste, nor in his woorde, but put their confidence in other matters, and make diuerse Lawes and Customes of Religion, and the seruice of GOD contrary to Gods woorde, and hauing among themselues insimte Sectes, yet wyll they bée called the Catholyke Churche. And in thys Churche the godly Magistrate hathe power and authoritie to make and ordeyne Lawes and Statutes for the abolyshing and taking away of those thinges whiche are ordeyned contrary to the wyll and woorde of almightie GOD. For Dauid, Salomon, Josaphat, Ezechias, Josias, Constantinus, and other godly Princes are euident examples héereof. Therfore when the Magistrate for the profite and reformation of the Church, dothe ordeyne Statutes and Lawes agreable to the woorde of GOD, they ought moste diligently to bée obeyed of al men, yea and if nede require, the magistrate must bée assisted in them: and those which will not so doo, but resiste their Magistrates, shall bée most sharply punished of GOD. But the Popes and Prelates of the Romish Church, to the ende they may defend and maintayne their honours, pryde, ryches, pleasures, and horrible wyckednesse, hauehave hither vntounto persuaded with Princes, Noble men, and Magistrates, yea and by force hauehave héerevnto constrayned them, that they shoulde beléeue, that the lawes and reformations whiche touched their Pontificall state, were cleane contrary to the holy churche, God himselfe, and all equitie and Justice. And by this meanes they dyd not onelyonly mayntayne their pompe and pryde, but dyd also dayly encrease the same, when as yet rather it had béene their partes to hauehave called them selues to accountes, and to hauehave considered diligently the state of the Churche, and of the afflicted Christendome, and so to prouyde for the same, and not onelyonly to exhorte the Magistrates, but also to helpe them, and further them in the reformation hereof, and for the spéedier redresse to beginne euen wyth themselues. For these are the laste tymes, and the indgemente of the Lorde, (in the whiche they …. all render a moste sharpe accounte,) is not farre off. And blessed are those whome the corruptible trashe of thys lyfe dothe not lette, but that they may readily prepare them selues agaynst his comming, when he shal iudge bothe the quicke and the deade.