The Cure of Church Divisions, Directions to pastors 2 · Direction 13 – Direction 14
DIRECT. XIII.
When you have thought of all the evils that will be uncured, when Love and evidence have done their part; yet reject not this way till you have found out a better; which will do the work that is to be done, and that with fewer inconveniences.
I Am not now about to state the bounds of Liberty in matters of Religion; (It requireth a full Treatise by it self; and many tediously dispute the case before they ever truly stated it.) Much less am I perswading Magistrates, that they must permit every deceiver to do his worst, to dra… the people from God, or from Christ Iesus the Mediator, from faith… and godliness, any more than from Loyalty, Peace and Honesty. But I am speaking only against that partial, factio…s, needless, dividing and pernicious violence; which is pretended to be the chief, if not the only cure of all the errours or disagreements in the Churches, by those that know no part of Chyrurgery but amputation.
Some speak much of the many disorders which will be uncured, if Violence do not more than Teaching and Love: But I humbly ask of them: First, are those disorders such as are curable in this life; or such as are the unavoidable miseries of our corrupt and imperfect state? Secondly, will force cure them better than evidence of truth, and Love will do? Thirdly, will they be so cured without a greater mischief! God telleth the Sabbath-breakers of Israel, that when they were rooted out, the land should keep her Sabbaths: Was that a mercy or a judgement? Would you so cure Sabbath-breaking and disorder? and take a solitude for Peace? Fourthly, is not the work to be done, the saving of mens souls? And shall any be saved against his will? And then should not all force be meerly such as is subservient to the ends of Love? Fifthly, will stripes change the judgement in matters of Religion? Sixthly, is he any better than a Knave or an hypocrite, who will say or swear or do that through fear, which he verily thinketh God forbiddeth him, and is disple…sed for, and feareth it may damn his soul? Seventhly, Is it the honour and felicity of so…ls to be such? or of Church or Kingdome to be composed of such? Eighthly, is not a conscientious fear of sinning against God, a thing well pleasing to him, and necessary to mens salvation, and to the Churches welfare, and to the safety of the lives of Kings, and of the Kingdoms peace? And is there not then great cause to cherish it (though not the errours that abuse it.) And should not all care be used to cure the ungodly world, of impiety and …earedness of conscience, which makes them make a mock of sin. And if conscience were once debauched and mastered by fear, and the people be brought to prefer their their fleshly interest before their spiritual, and to fear mens punishment more than Gods, would not such debauched consciences have a great advantage, to make such men the masters of the estates and lives of others? And are the lives of Kings, and the estates of neighbours, and the peac… of Kingdomes, competently secured, where God is not feared more than fines or corporal penalties? Ninthly, if force be so far followed till it have changed mens judgements or conquered conscience, or exterminated and destroyed all that will not be thus changed or conquered, who differ from superiors in unnecessary things, will it not (all things well considered) prove a dear price for that which might be had at much cheaper rates? Are not the most conscientious, necessary helpers of the Ministery, by their example, to cure the unconscionableness of the rest? And therefore should be countenanced & encouraged? Tenthly, would not the cessation of unnecessary impositions, cast out the most of the scruples of conscientious people, and cease the saddest divisions of the Churches? If Rome could have been content with a Religion of no more Articles than the Apostles was, and would on those terms have held Communion with other Churches? O what rends and ruines had it prevented in the Christian world? Are not the old Apostolical rules and terms sufficient to the safety and peace of Christians? Were those worthy persons. B. Vsher, B. Hall, B. Davenant, B. Morton, with the Bergii, the Crocii, and all the great pacificators deceived, who wrote and preached and cried out to the world that [so much as all Christians are agreed in, is sufficient matter for their concord; if they would lay it upon no more] vid. Vsh. serm. before King Iames at Wansted. Or do you think it was their meaning [Let all Rulers multiply unnecessary scrupled impositions in their own dominion, and for scrupling them, let them silence, imprison and banish at home; And then let them send to their neighbour Churches for Unity, Peace and Concord, and tell them that the subscribing to the Scriptures generally, and to the Creed, Lords Prayer, and Decalogue and Sacraments particularly, are terms sufficient to this end. (Supposing that good order, deconcy and peace be kept up by suitable discipline both Ecclesiastical and Civil.) And why would not this serve for all the world? Or why should more scrupled things be called necessary to order and decency than indeed are so? My desire of the Churches peace which caused me to write all the rest, provoketh me to touch this subject briefly, which will scarce endure to be touched.
DIRECT. XIV.
When you reprove those weak Christians, who are subject to errours, disorders or divisions, reflect not any disgrace or contempt upon Religion, and conscientious strictness; but be the more careful to proclaim the innocency and honour of serious Godliness, lest the prophane and ungodly take occasion to despise it, by your opening the faults of such as are taken for the zealous Professours of it.
HOnest hearers take most notice, what is the main scope which the Preacher aimeth at, and the business which he driveth on. Some men take occasion by the errours and faults of such as have seemed seriously religious, to make all seriousness and diligence for our salvation, to seem to the hearers to be meer hypocrisie, and not only a needless, but a hurtful thing; and to perswade the people that an ignorant carelesness of their souls, with good neighbour-hood, quietness and mirth, is better than all this ado. Which is no more or less than to preach for Atheism and Ungodliness in practise, so it be veiled with the hypocritical profession of the Christian faith. And this unhappy sort of Preachers do seldome miss to fall upon the real and supposed miscarriages of men that are or seem religious, in some part of their sermons and familiar discourse; which being done to so odious an end, as to bring seriou… Religiousness it self into dislike, it maketh the best of the hearers abhor such reflections, because they abhor the scope of them; Believing that Holiness need not to be preached against in the world, till mens hearts are more enclined to it, and till all its enemies abate their opposition▪ And if it were to be done, yet not by a Minister of Christ: He that preacheth against Holiness (how covertly soever) preacheth against God. Whereas if a mans designe be to promote Religion, the sober hearers (though partly guilty) will bear his reproof of the faults of professours, with much more patience, when they see it is for God and godliness that he doth it. I speak by experience, and must give them this testimony, that I have many and many a time poured out my soul in earnest reprehensions of the errours and disorders of rash-dividing zeal; and the hearers have taken all with patience: when the same persons could not bear the tenth part so much, from some preachers whom they imagined to aim in it at the depressing of the honour of true and serious religion. Therefore be sure what sort of men soever you are reproving, that you say nothing which tendeth to make the ignorant or ungodly sort of your auditors think, that it is zeal, or strictness, or careful diligence about their souls, which you condemn: But still put in sufficient caution for the necessity of a holy heart and life.