The Cure of Church Divisions, Directions · Direction 3
DIRECT. III.
Overvalue not the common guift of utterance, nor a high Profession, as if the presence or absence of either of them, did prove the presence or absence of true saving grace.
YET I shall anon tell you, that neither of these must be undervalued, nor accounted needless useless things. But the overvaluing them, hath caused great distempers in the minds and affections, and communion and practise, of many very well meaning Christians. When God had first brought me from among the more ignorant sort of people, and when I first heard religious persons pray without forms, and speak affectionately and seriously of spiritual and heavenly things, I thought verily that they were all undoubted Saints; and the sudden apprehension of the difference of their guifts and speech from others, made me think confidently that the one sort had the mark of God upon them, and the other had nothing almost of God at all: Till ere long of those whom I so much honoured, one fell off to sensuality and to persecuting formality, and another fell to the foulest heresie; and another to disturb the Churches peace by turbulent animosities and divisions. But the experience of this Kingdom these twenty sixe yeares, hath done so much to convince the world what crimes may stand with high professions, that I know not that I ever met with the man, that would deny it: seeing every sect casteth it upon all the rest, however some of them would justifie themselves. But I greatly fear lest the generation which is now springing up and knew not those men, nor their miscarriages, will lose the benefit of these dreadful warnings, and scarce believe what high professours did turn the proudest overturners of all Government; and resisters and despisers of ministry and holy order in the Churches and the most railing Quakers, and the most filthy and blaspheming Ranters; to warn all the world to take heed of being Proud of superficial guifts and high professions▪ and that he that stanndeth in his own conceit… should take heed lest he fall.
When guifts▪ … utterance in prayer or talking are thus overvalued and high professions are taken to have more in them th…n they have, men presently moddle their …ffections, and then the Church according to these mis-conceivings: And … talkative person who by company and use hath got more of these guifts, than better Christians, shall be extolled and admired, when many a humble upright soul, that wanteth such utterance, shall be said to be no professor, and so to be unworthy of the Communion of Saints.
Mistake me not: I know that though profession may be without sincerity, yet sincerity cannot be without some profession, when there is opportunity to make it: And I know that Grace is a vital principle, and like fire which will work and seek a vent if you would restrain it: And that Gifts of utterance are great mercies of God for the Edification of the Church. But here lyeth your unhappy errour in this case. 1. You take the common profession of Christianity to be no profession at all, because there is wanting a profession of greater zeal and forwardness. When as the common sort of people in this Land, do profess to stand to their baptismal Covenant, in which they own the essential parts of Godliness and Christianity, and all that is of absolute necessity to Salvation. He that truly understandeth the baptismal Covenant, and Consenteth to it, doth perform all which is necessary to a state of grace: If he profess this, he professeth, both true faith and repentance, and sanctification and mortification, and all that is necessary to make a man a Christian. How then can you say that these are no Professors? I tell you (except a few Apostates) the common sort of people in this Land are Professors of true faith and godliness! Whether they are true Professors without dissembling is another question; but they are professors of the truth.
If you say, that Their ignorance and ungodly lives doth shew that they either understand not the baptismal Covenant, or Consent not to it. I answer, Mark well what you say your selves: For this doth but shew that they are Hypocrites: You cannot say then that they are no Professors, but that they are di…sembling professors. They profess the truth, they do not truly and uprightly profess it. I tell you, all the common sort of the people in England, are either Saints or Hypocrites: see how I have moved this to them in my Treatise called The formal Hypocrite. They all profess enough to save them if they sincerely professed it. He that is baptized and professeth himself a Christian, and yet is a drunkard, a swearer, a fornicator, or such like, is certainly an Hypocrite as going against his own profession: The very Creed, Lords Prayer and Ten Commandments have enough to condemn him as an hypocrite. And will you now come in, and justifie these men from their hypocrisie, by saying that they are no Professors? If they were no Professors, they could be no Hypocrites, but meer Atheists or Infidels. I know that those are the highest sort of Hypocrites, who counterfeit the highest zeal and piety, by the highest profession: But this is but a difference in degree. Who ever professeth to be a Christian, professeth true Repentance, faith and holiness, and is an Hypocrite if he be not a Saint.
And then Consider, that if you would exclude any of these from the Communion of the Church, it must not be because they are no professors, but because they are hypocrites, ignorant or scandalous? And if so, then no man must be shut out, but upon sufficient proof: An unproved hypocrite or sinner, is no hypocrite or sinner in the judgment of the Church: and therefore Hypocrites are always a great part of the visible Church. Otherwise Church-Communion would be founded on meer injustice and tyranny, if men shall be called Ignorant, Scandalous and Hypocrites without proof. And therefore to exclude baptized professors, by whole Parishes or Multitudes, without bringing proof against each person one by one, is quite to over-turn Christs rules and order, and Church Constitutions and all Church justice. I confess it is the thing which I have long lamented (and often written of especially in my Treatise of Confirmation) that those who are baptized in Infancy, are not called to a more explicite understanding profession of the Covenant then made, and have not a more solemn transition into the number of adult Communicants: And we are not out of hope that this may at last be brought to pass. But in the mean time, the same persons though less regularly do make profession of the same thing both at the Lords Table, and in their publick worship, and in their common claim to the faith and honour of Christianity, so that all such must be rejected as hypocrites upon acc…sation and proof of Impenitency in some gross sin, and not in the lamp as if they were no professors. For professors certainly they are.
And though I abhor their malignity who would vilisie Religion, by over-hasty accusing of higher Professors; and would flatter the wicked and ignorant, by making an indifferency and tepidity seem sufficient in the things of God; yet God would have me bear witness to this truth to cure some mens contrary extream: that as this age as is said, doth need no proof, how heinously high professors may miscarry; so in the place where I exercised my Ministry, I found some give me a satisfying evidence in their last sickness, that they had long lived a truly godly life, who were never noted by their Neighbours, for any extraordinary zeal at all. If you ask me, How can it stand with grace to be so much hid? I answer, They made the common profession of Christianity: they usually attended the publick worship: they lived blamelesly in their places: but they were of silent retired dispositions, and were inferiours who by their superiours were restrained from private meetings and some converse with more zealous persons which they desired. And for ought you know there may be very many such; who must not be rejected as no professors, nor without a particular accusation and proof: unless you would be used in the like kind your selves.