The Principles of the Protestant Religion Maintained, Introduction · Reflections 9
Reflections on Cap. 9th of the Viſible Church.
We have already ſeen what little Reaſon there is to indulge the Doctrine of Immedia…e Revelation: Allow but a Quaker this Engine, and he will do wonders with it: beat down the foundations of many generations, un-Church all Chriſtendom, make the Scriptur… to intend juſt contrary to what it ſpeaks; & who ſhall queſtion him, if he tells us he ſees all this in the Light, & hath it immediately revealed? G. K. hath hitherto diſcharged this againſt the fundamental Articles of Salvation; endeavouring to ſet GOD againſ… Himſelf, and ſhamm us out of our faith: Nor hath he don… yet, but will a freſh eſſay to remove all that is viſible of Chriſtianity … the world, and if he can blow up Churches, take away Sacraments, and wreſt our Sabbat… out of our hands, what would Beelzebub himſelf have deſired more? But the Church is built upon a Rock, and the gates of hell ſhall not prevail againſt it.
Sect. 1. His firſt Eſſay is againſt the Church conſidered as viſible: and here he cavils at the deſcription of the viſible Church given by the Aſſembly; Viz. That it conſiſts of all thoſe throughout the world that profeſs the true Religion, together with their Children: inſinuating that we hold that nothing of grace, or of the power of godlineſs is requiſ…e to conſtitute a member of our viſible Church: but this is all Rail…ng, not underſtanding what we mean by Viſible nor what by Profeſſion.
1. It is the viſible Church they ſpeak of; and he alſo after grants that there is ſuch a thing: and what is it that makes it viſible? it muſt be ſomething that makes it diſcernible to others: Here then obſerve, 1. That there is inward Grace required abſolutely to make any one a living member of Chriſt, & …o of the church of the firſt-born. 2. That this ſincerity of heart is to give its evidence to others by an anſwerable life and converſation: There is a confeſſion of the mouth, as well as a beleeving in the heart, Rom. 10.9. 3. Theſe Fruits are they by which others are to judge of mens Sincerity, and accordingly to declare them to be viſible members of the Church: this rule the Apoſtles themſelves followed in their owning of men. 4. That ſuch a profeſſion may be, where ſincerity is not; and thus Hypocrites may belong to the viſible Church; there were ſuch in the primitive times, Simon Magus, Demas, & thoſe, 1. Joh. 2.19. were ſuch. 5. There may be many Irregularities in the Converſation of ſuch, which yet do not preſently unchurch them; ſuch there were in the Churches of Corinth & Galatia. 6. That when ſuch are become ſcandalous, there are Church-cenſures appointed by Chriſt; and theſe can be adminiſtred to none but under the conſideration of their being Members of the Church viſible: thus Paul delivered Hymeneus &c. to ſatan.
2. Profeſſion, as it is underſtood by the Aſſembly, is not a meer verbal thing, but practical too: it containes in it an Orthodoxy in the principles profeſſed, and a Converſation framed thereto, a profeſſing in words, & a not-denying in works, elſe men are not viſible Chriſtians, but to be turned from. 2. Tim. 3.5. and yet we believe that men may do all this, and be cloſe Hypocrites; and that they may afterwards fall away, G. K. himſelf confeſſeth: and now let us trace him.
He infers, that Notoriouſly-ſcandalous perſons, liars, deceivers, drunkards, &c. are qualified members of our Church; but without reaſon; if he ſhould eſſay, he would find is to reject him for ſome of the qualifications he mentions: We acknowledge not ſuch for profeſſors; and if any in our Churches afterward prove ſo, we cenſure them.
And it is groſly untrue, that Independents require no more than ſuch a profeſſion as he talks of, to make them members of their church: for they whom he calls Independents, diſtinguiſh between the Church viſible, or Chriſtianity at large, & Memberſhip, or Fellowſhip in a congregational Church, and have not been won… to be charged for their Laxneſs, but rather Strictneſs in Admiſſion. Nor doth it argu… them of Hypocriſy, or contradiction, becauſ… they ſeparated from another Church, viz the Epiſcopal, it being well known that they did it mainly becauſe their terms of Communion were ſuch as they could not in Conſcience comply with; tho' alſo their promiſcuous Admiſſion of all ſorts of ignorant & ſcandalous perſons to the Lords Table, added to the incitement: as for the Presbiterian Churches, we did not ſeparate from them but have held Communion with them, and have admitted their members to Communion with us; although by reaſon of ſome points of Church Adminiſtration, which they differ from them in, in principle, they thought they might without any juſt offence do ſo in practice too.
Sect. 2. How daringly doth he here aſſert that we find no ſuch Church in all the Scripture, owned to be the church of Chriſt, that the outward form or profeſſion of religion makes ſuch; when the whole New Teſtament acquaints us with no other, if he keep to his ſubject, viz. a viſible Church? For indeed it is nothing elſe but ſuch a profeſſion as we have deſcribed, that can make them ſo; nothing elſe can give them the viſibility of a Church: and how ſtrangely do's he talk, when he ſaies, We nowhere find in ſcripture any ſociety called …he church of Chriſt, that had nothing but the profeſſon of the true religion? who ever ſaid …hat they had nothing but ſo? We ſay, if …he profeſſion be right, its a making ſincerity viſible as far as may be: but yet let us tell him, there are ſuch owned for Churches, in which the major part were ſuch as he mentions, Sardis was ſo, had a name to live, & was dead, had but a few names, Rev. 3.2. and La…dicea was ſo, verſ. 15. But the truth is, he aequivocates about the word [True]: If by a true Church he intends ſuch as are united to Chriſt in truth & ſincerity, we plead it not: but the word alſo ſignifies that there is really ſuch a thing; and that there is really ſuch a thing, is viſible: there may be a true viſible Church, tho many in it are not of the true inviſible Church.
Sect. 3. Men that talk of two things, may thwart one another ſtrangely, but we thought he had been diſcourſing of the viſible Church: and if ſo, then he is deceived when he ſaith, that every member of Chriſt is a living member▪ Chriſt hath ſaid otherwiſe, ſee Joh. 15.2. & how in Chriſt but by profeſſion? their being fruitleſs proves them dead: and they might be taken away, which they could not be if they were not firſt in him: and he did well to inſtance in the Church of Corinth, 1. Cor. 3.6. there was the old Leaven in this Church which was to be purged out; there were fearful diviſions, there were that would eat in the Idols Temples, that horridly profaned the Lord's Table, that denied the reſurrection of the body, &c. Such a mixture there was in this Church, & yet ſee what a glorious Encomium Paul gives them, on the account o… their being a viſible Church cap. 1. begin.
His finding fault with us for uſing an Hourglaſs, to know how the time ſpends, and a Bell to gather our Aſſemblies together orderly, is worſe than ridiculous: That God's people ſhould have their Meetings to worſhip GOD, is undeniable, to neglect it is a ſin, Heb. 10.25. as for his inward ſpiritual Bell (which he calls the Goſpel-bell, ringing in their hearts) ſerving for ſuch a uſe, it is a Fancy more fabulous than any thing in Aeſop: as if the Light-within were a Clock to tell the hour of the day. Beſides, it is certain that God's people in all ages have had a known time of meeting, and ſome civil ſign to give notice, that they might meet together, as in one place, ſo at one Time: and he knows that we place no holineſs in Bells: yea, the very Scripture which he abuſeth, to prove a Goſpel bell, is directly againſt him, Pſal. 89.15. which intends the Silver Trumpets which God appointed for ſuch an end, as ancient & modern interpreters agree: yea the Quakers themſelves give notice of their meetings.
Sect. 4. He makes The work of converſion wrought by the Spirit in the hearts of God's Elect, to be the true gathering of a viſible Church (for of that he muſt ſpeak or he is diſtracted) and let any man of ſenſe judge, whether this be any gathering of a viſible Church at all; or whether this makes a man ſo much as a viſible Chriſtian; it being a thing ſecret, and that which no man knows but he in whom it is wrought. As for his Banter here about new-made things, it is but a ſecond Diſgorging of the vomit, which he hath licked up after he had once before ſpewed it, in p. 36. where he is animadverted upon, & once is too much.
Sect. 5. Here he agen confounds the myſtical inviſible Church, which the viſible, and gives the encomiums proper to the one, unadviſedly to the other: which miſtake led him to draw that blaſphemous Inference (p. 172.) that the Religion which we profeſs is not the Religion of Jeſus Chriſt, and that in the foundation it ſelf which is Jeſus Chriſt: hence we do (without any breach of charity) infer that G. K. bids the world to take notice that he utterly renounceth the religion we profeſs, even in the very foundation of it, which is JESUS CHRIST, and of which he himſelf (if we are not misinform'd) once made no mean profeſſion in the Univerſity of Aberdeen; and ſay if Julian the Apoſtate did worſe!
Sect. 6. He contradicts himſelf here in the ſame Paragraph; at the beginning he ſaith, that Chriſt is but one both in heaven. and in us; and before the end he tells us, that by the Spirit the man is joined both to Chriſt in him, & to Chriſt in Heaven: and if two Unions, then two Chriſts.
Sect. 7 Now he afreſh ſets upon us for our Qualifications required in our Miniſtry; but it hath been already canvaſſ'd in cap. 4. Only towards the latter end of this Section, he tells us of Two ſpirits that guid men on earth, the Spirit of God, and of the devil, & he gives three Criteria of men's being guided by the latter; Viz. he is fallible, falſe, & continually given to Errors, by which he clearly detects himſelf to be under the devil's leading; for he hath before acknowledged himſelf to be falliBle; and we have proved him to be falſe, and continually leading into Error.
Sect. 8. The fault which (in this paragraph) he finds with our Miniſtry is, that they are not itinerary, as the Apoſtles, whoſe Succeſſors they pretend themſelves to be; [truly better ſit ſtill in a place; than go up & down, ſeeking whom to devour] But may we not ſucceed the Apoſtles in their Miniſtry, tho' not in their Apoſtleſhip: And do we not find, that though they went about to gather Churches, where there was none, yet when they had gathered them, they ordeined Elders among them to he ſettled Miniſters, ſuch as were Overſeers of particular Churches, ſee Act. 14.23.20.27. with 28.
The Scandal he reflects upon us, in reſpect of the Endeavours for the Converſion of the Indians, is ſufficiently confuted by the printed accounts that are publiſhed to the world of this affair; and what if they he not all ſincere? i…s God s work, and not in our power to make any ſo: We ſay of our ſelves as Paul, 1. Cor. 3.5.6.
Sect. 9. It ſeems ſtrange to us, that ſomething inviſible ſhould make a Church viſible, as having alwaies thought, that a thing was viſible when it might be ſeen. The Inward Light in a man then cannot be the viſibility of a Church to men. But we find no end of ſuch fooliſh Contradictions.