The Badges of Christianity, Book 1 · Chapter 4
CHAP. 4. Of the first outward part of a Sacrament.
THe outward parts of a Sacrament are such things, as aWhat … parts are.vnderunder a certain similitude & likenes do represent and signifie heauenly things, to assure vsus they are as truely present and offred vsus, as we beholde with our cies, and receiue with our hands the earthly things giuen vntounto vsus. The outward parts of a Sacrament are in number bFoure outward parts of a Sacrament.foure. First the Minister: Secondly, the word of institution. Thirdly the element. Fourthly, the receiuer. All these and eueryevery one of them are needfull to the being and nature of a Sacrament: take them away or any of them, and you take away the substance and bring in a nullity of the Sacrament. If ther be no minister, no word, no element, no receiuer: there is no Sacrament. If there be wanting either minister to deliuer it, or word to … it, or element to represent it, or receiuer to take it: we cannot assure our selues to hauehave any sacrament of God, but rather a tradition and inuention of our owne.
First then, cThe minister is the first outward part of a sacram.there is required a Minister lawfully called, chosen, and ordained, hauing at the least the approbation and alowance of the church to pronounce the words of institution, and to deliuer the outward signs to the receiuers. They are not makers of the Sacrament, but ministers: not autors, but administators: not deuisors, but deliuerers. Earthly princes hauehave their letters patents, & their great seals, & keepers of the same: if another shal set to the seal that is not appointed the keeper thereof, is it not made an heinons crime worthy of heauy punishment? So the Lord is a mightye Prince, king of kings, and Lord of Lords: he hath appointed his seales, to seale vp his promises of forgiuenes of sinnes and eternal life: and he hath ordained his Officers as it were keepers of his great seals. God publisheth saluation and pardon to all beleeuers by his word as by his letters pattents, and he addeth baptisme and the Lords Supper as two broad seales for greater assurance and confirmation, and appointeth the Ministers to be keepers thereof. Whosoeuer therfore shall presume to … to any of these seals without warrant, without a caling, without a function and direction from God, himselfe being no officer, no Minister, no keeper of them, prophaneth these seales, and setteth to a counterfet stampe. For as no man may preach dRom 10. 15.except he be sent: so no man may administer the Sacrament, except he be called. This is it the eHeb 5. 4. 5.Apostle teacheth. No man taketh this honor vntounto himself but he that is called of God as was Aron: and Christ tooke not to himselfe this honor to be made the high Priest but he that … vntounto him, thou art my sonne, this day begat I thee, gaue it to him. Now, to minister the sacraments, is an honour in the Church, which none can take to himselfe at his owne pleasure, but God must giuegive it. They should hauehave in their owne consciences a witnesse of Gods calling them to this office and honour. Wherefore the sacred functions ordained of God must not be prophaned by voluntary officers and vsurped offices: no man must take vponupon him without a lawful calling to teach hese holy misteries. Of these fIer. 23. 21.the Lord complaineh, I hauehave not sent these prophets, yet they ranne: I hauehave not spoken to them, and yet they prophesied. Thus these intruders did thrust their sickle into other mens corne.
The reasons, gReasons why the ministers onelyonly are to administer the Sacraments.why the ministers and no others are to intermedle with the Sacraments, are very apparant. First, because eueryevery part and member of the church hath his especiall office and his proper guifts to execute his …: we see in a campe, the Souldiers in Warre hauehave their standing-place in sight of their captaine who hath chosen them to be Warriors: so in the Church … eueryevery one keepe his seuerall calling in the presence of God, who hath in wisdome and mercy called him thereunto. We see in the natural dispositiō of the body, hSee Book. 2. cap. 3.eueryevery member hath his speciall vse, the eye to see, the hand to handle, the foote to walke, the eare to heare, and if one member should incroch vponupon the office of another, it must needes tend to the destruction of the body. We see in the gouernment of an house and famely, the husband and wife, the father and sonne, the master and seruant know and acknowledge their places to rule, to obey, to commaund, to be commaunded, without intruding themselues, and incroching vponupon the function, as it were vponupon the free-hold, of an other. If we would ascend a step higher, we obserue in the affaires of state icicer. Philip. 13. est asinius quidam senator voluntarius, lectus ….and matters of the cōmon-wealth, eueryevery man doth keepe within his owne listes and limits, and no man dare presume to charge any man or enterprise any thing in the princes name and authority, without a sufficient warrant, from the prince himselfe: so may no man take vponupon him any functions in the church, vnlesse hee hauehave a commission and commaundement from the Lord. For, as the prince appointeth by what officers he will be serued: so is it in the offices and officers of the Church, God hath placed and ordained the Apostle to plant, the Euangelist to second and assist, the prophet to prophesie, the pastor to feede, and hath set eueryevery one k1 Cor. 12. 12. 14.in his proper place and standing as i were in his watch-tower, out of which he must not wander and depart, Let eueryevery man abide in the same vocation wherein he Rom. 12. 4. 5.was called: and afterward, Let eueryevery man wherein he was called, therein abide with God. Whosoeuer therefore medleth without a lawfull vocation, as it were violently inuadeth another mans possession, and cannot do it without the check and controlment of Christ Iesu, who is the lIosh. 5. 14.captaine of his own host, the mEph. 4. 15.head of his own body, the nHeb. 3. 5. 6.Lord of his own house, and the oReuel. 12. 5great king of his owne church. Againe, Christ the prophet and teacher of his church and the prince of pastors, hath committed the office of administration of the Sacraments to those alone to whom he hath committed the dispensation of his word and preaching of the Gospell: therefore if any other … set to the seale, it is no true seale but a counterfait stamp. The truth of this appeareth Indeede I haptize pMath. 3. 11.with water, that is, I that am apointed a techer in the church, to make ready a people prepard for the Lord. And Paule being conuerted and called to preach, & to beare the name of God to the gentiles, did without further word, warrant, or commaundement, minister the Sacraments.
Now then as we hauehave seene the truth of the doctrine, let Vse. 1.vsus consider the vses thereof. First, is the minister of the substance of the Sacrament, and a principall part of Christs institution? Then he must consider, it is his duty, being authorised from God and by his church, to sanctifie the outward elementes and administer the same, to deliuer the outward signes and offer them to the receiuers. His workes therefore are to put a part and consecrate the signes to an holy vse, to open and declare the couenaut of God, to pray for his blessing promised vponupon his owne ordinance, to giuegive thankes for the blessed worke of our redemption, to offer, giuegive and deliuer a right the creatures so sanctified, in baptisme to sprinkle with water and washe the body to be baptized, and in the Lords Supper to deliuer the bread to be eaten and the wine to be drunke to the spirituall nourishment of the Church. So then the minister ought not to refuse to baptize such as are brought vntounto him. Shall the seruant refuse to do the worke of his maister? Or if the Lord keeper of the kings broad seale should proudly and presumpteously disdame to set the seale to the Princes letters patents, were he not well worthy to be displaced and remoued? So if the minister, through enuy, or hatred, or any other sinister affection, shall refuse to put the seale to the Lords Couenant, and hinder little children from comming to Christ, he deserueth iustly to be displaced and to beare office no longer in the citty of God, but to be remoued for his contempt, q1. king. 2. 35.as Salomon put downe Abiathar.
Secondly, is it a necessary point of the Sacrament that it Vse. 2.be ministred by a minister? Then, it condemneth … those that put these seales into a wrong hand, and all … persons that violently rush vponupon this calling, and take vp on them to meddle with the administration of the Sacraments with vnwashen hands seeing the dispensation of the word and Sacraments is so linked, annexed, and ioyned together by God, that a deniall of licence to do the one is a deniall to do the other, and contrary wise the license to one is license to the other. Christ neuer gaue to priuate persons any such commaundement, he neuer committed to them any such ossice, hee neuer commended to their care these holy actions, he neuer called them to this honor, he neuer laid vponupon them this charge, and therefore they hauehave no parte nor fellowship in this businesse. If, notwithstanding these restrainings of authority from them, they wil runne and rush forward, where they should hang backward, their sinne lieth at the doore, their punishment hastneth and their iudgement sleepeth not.
Lastly, if the minister be an outward part of the Sacrament, Vse. 3.we must beware and take heed we ascribe not to the minister that which is proper to Christ, and so rob him of the honour due vntounto his name. The minister may offer the signe, he cannot bestow the thing signified: he may baptize the body, he cannot clense the soule: he may deliuer the bread and wine, he cannot giuegive the body and blood of Christ: Iohn may wash with water, he cannot giuegive the spirit. Man indeede pronounceth the word, but God sealeth vp his grace in the heart: man sprinkleth the body with water, but God maketh cleane the soule by the blood of Christ: man may take away the filth of the flesh, but Christ must purge the conscience from dead workes, who is that blessed lambe of God that rIoh. 1. 29.taketh away the sinnes of the world. For as Paule s1 Cor. 3. 6.planteth and Apollos watereth, but God … the increase: so the minister offereth the element and outward signe, but God giueth the heauenly grace. It belongeth to the minister to handle the external part: it belongeth as a peculiar dignity to Christ to bestow grace, to giuegive saith, regeneration, tMath. 3. 11.and forgiuenesse of sinnes, and to baptize with the Holy-ghost. This truth Iohn …, I baptize with water, but one commeth after me, who is mightier then I, he shall baptize you with the Holy-ghost. Where we see he maketh a flat opposition betweene himselfe and Christ, betweene his baptisme and the baptisme of Christ. As on the one side we must take heede, of the contempt of him that teacheth and ministreth the Sacramentes, because the contempt of the word and Sacraments doth necessarily follow the contempt of his person: so we must beware we attribute or giuegive not to him more then his right, least the power of the word and force of the Sacramentes be attributed to his person, wherby men spoile themselues of the fruite of them both. This was it wherein the u1 Cor. 3. 22.Corinthians offended, when they said, I am Pauls, I am Apollos, I am Cephas, I am Christs. Wherefore, to keepe a golden meane between too much and too little, we must do as if a prince should send vsus some present by one of the meanest messengers of his house, we would receiue him fauorably and entertaine him honorably for the gifts sake which he bringeth vntounto vsus: but the guift it selfe we would receiue for the kings sake, from whom it was sent. So it becommeth eueryevery one of vsus to do, God hath committed to his messengers and ministers the word of reconciliation, we must hauehave them in singular louelove for a1 Thess. 5. 13their workes sake that labour among vsus, but the word and Sacramentes we must receiue for the Lords sake from whom they come. Thus much of the first outward part, to wit, theminister.