The Divine Institution of Congregational Churches, Chapter 1
CHAP. I. Of a Church in General.
Of the meaning of the Word Church: A Meeting-Place no Church: It's a ſpiritual Building, but it's God's, not Man's Building, ſuch are not God's Churches, many of which there are: Notes to diſcern true or falſe by: Chriſt the Head of a true Church: A Church the Body of Chriſt: How Chriſt's Body is underſtood: What a True Church is not made of: And what it is not: And what it is: What the remote and next genus of a Church.
Sect. 1. THE Word Church or Kirk, is moſt likely to be deſcended of the Greek words foreign contracted foreign, ſignifying the Houſe of God, a1 Tim. 3.15.. And hence the beſt Notation of it, is by this Interpretation, That a Church is domus dominica, or God's Houſe, wherein he dwells by a more than uſual Preſence in the World. Of old God choſe a Material Houſe to appear and manifeſt himſelf in to his Church of Iſrael bJud. 18.31-20.26 2 Chro. 3.3 & 4.19. & 24.5., but as thoſe Buildings were not the Church, but the Congregations were cAct 7.38: So in the New Teſtament days more eſpecially, God's Church is not a Houſe or Building artificially made by Man, but another Building, dHebr. 9.11.i. e. a ſpiritual Houſhold eEph. 2.19, or Building f1 Pet. 2.5..
§. 2. Tho ſome think a Place of meeting ordinarily for the Worſhip of God in Publick, may, by a Metonimy, be called a Church in an improper ſence; and ignorant People from ſuch Uſage take ſuch a Place to be ſo, yet it doth appear plainly, That there is no juſt grounds from Scripture to apply ſuch a Trope to an Houſe for a Publick Aſſembly. 1. Nothing is more evident by Scripture, than that an Artificial Building is not a Church; for the Apoſtle Paul wrote his Epiſtles to Churches, which could not be Dead-Walls, but to a People a1 Cor. 1.2. & 2 Ep. 1.1.. 2. God purchas'd his Church with his Bloud bAct 20.28., which is a People, not Artificial Houſes. 3. We are commanded to give no offence to the Church of God c1 Cor. 10.32., which cannot be meant of a Meeting-Houſe, not capable of offence. 4. Paul perſecuted the Church of God d1 Cor. 15.9. Gal. 1.13., which could not be the Meeting-Place, neither had the Church then any certain Meeting-Place. 5. There is no Houſe or artificial Building in Scripture called a Church.
§. 3. By way of Similitude, and Metaphorically, a Church is called an Houſe, a Temple, or Building, or City, it being ſuch in a ſpiritual ſenſe a1 Pet. 2.5 Heb. 3.5, 6, built of ſpiritual Materials, join'd and fram'd together in due connection and order bEph. 2.21, bearing Analogie to the Temple of old, a Type of the Goſpel-Church cib. v. 22., and is called Gods Houſe dHeb. 10.21., becauſe it is his Propriety eDeut. 32.19., it's of his framing and building f1 Cor. 3.9. Heb. 3.4.6 & 9.11, it's his choſen, purchaſed and peculiar inheritance in the World gDeut. 14.2. Pſ. 132.13 Tit. 2.14. Pſa. 135.4. 1 Pet. 2.9.: God dwells and appears therein in a ſpecial and gracious manner h2 Cor. 6.16. Eph. 2.22. Pſal. 87.2.; it is called by his Name i2 Chro. 7.14., it is called the Church of the living God k1 Tim. 3.15.; God is therein glorified lEph. 2.20 21..
§. 4. Churches therefore are not of humane fabrick or faſhion; nor to ſuit the carnal Minds and Intereſts of Men or States; Mens Laws cannot eſtabliſh Churches; they muſt be built after the Pattern which God hath ſhewed aExo. 26.30. Heb. 8.5.; it's not Gods Church which Man builds, and is after his inventions bPſa. 106.29.39. Matt. 15.6.: God never gave Commiſſion to the Pope, Eccleſiaſtick or Civil Powers to inſtitute Churches cIſa. 1.12.13, 14. & 42.8. & 48.11.; and as a Church is of God, ſo the whole form and faſhion is of Gods teaching only, dEze. 43.10.11..
§. 5. Hence it is that the Spirit of God in his Word hath witneſſed againſt, and renounced nothing more than falſe Churches; ſuch eſpecially (with all their appurtenances of Ordinances, Officers and Worſhip) which have apoſtatized from, and forſaken his own Pattern and Inſtitution aEze. 43.8., and faſhioned themſelves by their Humane Inventions bPſa. 106.29., to anſwer their own carnal Intereſts cHab. 1.26.and corrupt Ends dIſa. 1.12, 13.Eccleſiaſtical eHoſ. 5.1.3.or Civil f1 King 12.27., wherefore ſuch always are charged with ſpiritual Whoredoms gHoſ. 5.3., and treated as Harlots hHoſ. 2.2., moſt eſpecially the Catholick Viſible, that Mother of Harlots, with all her ſpurious brood of Subordinations, Hierarchical and Repreſentative; two eſpecially are laid before us as the moſt notorious Harlots: That of Jeroboam's, i2 Kings 17.21.22., and that of the Antichriſtian Apoſtacy k2 Theſ. 4.7.; by the latter the World is corrupted to this day, ſhe ſitting under the Name of the Catholick viſible Church with her Offspring, ruling over the Kingdoms of the Weſtern World as the Mother of Harlots lRev. 17.5.18., not only breeding, but nurſing up all Idolatry, Superſtition, Will-Worſhip, and all departure from the Pattern of Chriſt, which hath bin and is by Papists and un-illuminated or intereſted Protestants mRev. 18.2.3., Fathering all her ſpiritual Cheats (whereby both ſorts are intoxicated) on the Name of Chriſt, whence the Seven Women nEſa. 4.1.(Churches in the Prophetick Language) are ſaid to lay hold on one Man, i. e. the Lord Jeſus Chriſt, deſiring to be called by his Name, to take away the reproach of ſpurious and adulterine Churches, but yet feed on their own Inſtitutions, and are cloathed with their own righteouſneſs.
§. 6. Pretended Churches of Chriſt may be diſcerned to be true or falſe. 1. By the foundation, whether on the Perſon, Nature, Offices, and Word of Chriſt a1 Pet. 2.4. Ephe. 2.20. 2. By the viſible matter, whether living Stones b1 Pet. 2.4.. 3. By the Form, Faſhion and Frame, according to the order of the Goſpel cHeb. 8.5.6. & 3.3. Mat. 28.20. Ezek. 43.11. Col. 2.5.. Hence a Church is no Church of God, either of theſe being altogether wanting; or is but a faulty and deficient Church, ſo far as its defective in theſe, as to Faith or Order: Wherefore the more the Myſtery of iniquity comes to be diſcovered, and the true Woman, the Lambs Wife, comes out of her Wilderneſs-State, we may expect that the Churches will come to an higher degree of Purity and Order dIſa. 1.25 Rev. 19.7, 8..
§. 7. Wherefore to a true Church Chriſt is all and in all aEph. 1.22, he being the Head in all reſpects, and hath the Preheminence bCol. 1.18, 19., being before all things, and above all things, the Head of Principalities, in Dignity and Dominion, worſhipped by Angels cHeb. 1.6. Pſa. 89.27, higher than the Kings of the Earth. It hath pleaſed the Father, that there ſhould be a ſpecial relation, and mutual Fulneſs between Chriſt and the Church, Chriſt being ſo the Head of his Church as he is to none elſe, and as Chriſt filleth the Church, ſo the Church is the fulneſs of Chriſt d1 Cor. 12 12. Eph. 1.21, 22..
§. 8. This Headſhip of Chriſt is divers ways illuſtrated to us in Scripture by a Natural Man's Head and Body aCol. 1.18, by a Family or Conjugal Head bEph. 5.23, by a Root or Vegetable Head cJohn 15.1. Rom. 11.24, by an Head of an artificial Building, the Head Corner-Stone d1 Pet. 2.4.5., and hence it appears, That Chriſt is ſuch a Head as repreſents the whole Body, and tranſacts all things for it eIſa. 42.6. Heb. 10.9, 10., That Chriſt is the vital Head of his Church, the Spring and Fountain from whence all Life and Motion flows fJohn 1.14.16. Col. 2.3.. He is the Head Corner-Stone, the ſtrength and ſupport of all the Building gPſa. 118.22.. He is the Conjugal Head and Saviour of the Body hEph. 5.15., of whom all the Family is named iEph. 3.25. And laſtly, Chriſt is ſet forth by theſe ſimilitudes, and otherwiſe, unto to us as a graciouſly ruling and governing Head unto his Church, ſet on this holy Hill kPſalm 2., the Throne of David lLuke 1.32., he is the Political Head, the Apoſtle and High-Prieſt of our Profeſſion, mHeb. 3.1.
§. 9. As Chriſt ſtands in relation to the Church as the Head, ſo the Church is related to Chriſt as the Body aCol. 1.18.24. Eph. 1.23., being in that reſpect, his fulneſs, Chriſt and his Church making one Myſtically b1 Cor. 12.12.. The Body of Chriſt in Scripture is variouſly taken. 1. It is taken for the ſubſtance of the Myſtery of Chriſt, typified and ſhadowed forth by the Ceremonial Law cCol. 2.17. 2. It is taken for the Humane Nature of Chriſt, wherein he lived and ſuffered here dRom. 7.4 Heb. 10.5.10.. 3. It's uſed for the Sacramental or Symbolick Body of Chriſt eLuke 22.19.. 4. It's taken for a Church or People embodied or incorporated in Chriſt Jeſus, and is his Political Body fEph. 5.23 Col. 1.18.. 5. It's uſed in a proper ſenſe for the very Body of Chriſt, ſeparate and diſtinct from his Soul gMat. 27.58.. It is the fourth Acceptation that we are here concerned in.
§. 10. A Church of God (as to the moſt general conſideration) is the Body of Chriſt in a Spiritual and Political acceptation of a Body aCol. 1.24. in which reſpect, it's compared to a Family, and City, and Candleſtick. 1. It is a Company congregated, not one or two, in the Body are many Members b1 Cor. 12 12. Rev. 1.20.. 2. It's a Company of Men, not of Angels, for Angels are no where called a Church tho a Company cHeb. 12.22., but they ſurround the Church dRev. 5.11, and conſort in their Adorations with the Church. The Angels were not Redeemed by Chriſt's Blood, neither of the Nature of the Head, and therefore not the Body of Chriſt, as the Church is eHeb. 2.16. 3. It's a ſpiritual Company, in contra-diſtinction to humane and civil Societies or Companies gathered together occaſionally or ſtatedly fAct 19.39.. 4. It's ſeparated from the World, all the World is not a Church; but it's called and ſeparated out of the World gJohn 17.10. & 15.19. 2 Cor. 6.17.; as Chriſt the Head is ſeparate hHeb. 7.26. 2 Pet. 2.20. Deut. 14.2. Titus 2.14., ſo muſt the Body be. 5. They are not a company of ſcattered Sheep, but gathered into a Fold iJohn 10.16.. Stones not lying here and there, but brought into a building k1 Pet. 2.4.5.. 6. They are embodied or incorporated with the Corner-Stone, and to one another, and as Members are knit to the Head and one another l2 Theſ. 2.1. Eph. 4.16. Pſ. 122 3. 1 Theſ. 1 1.. Hence Union to Chriſt the Head, and to one another, is eſſentially neceſſary to the Church of God mJohn 15, to which Union is requiſite cutting off from the old Stock and Implantation into the new nRom. 11.24.; connection, knitting and coalition of Head and Members together, Members to the Head, and they to one another oEph. 2.21; and laſtly an aptitude, order and fitneſs to each other, to compleat the whole in uſefulneſs and comelineſs, p1 Cor. 12 11, 12, 13. Eph. 4.16. & 2.21..
§. 11. Hence it plainly appears what a Church of God is in the general Nature thereof:
It is a ſpiritual company of men, ſeparated from the world a2 Cor. 6.17., congregated and incorporated in Chriſt Jeſus b1 Cor. 12.12.. Congregation is a Genus to Church, it's a ſpiritual Congregatiion, and there is no Church but is ſo in ſome ſenſe or other; the words in the Old and New Teſtament always ſignifie ſo, Cohel and Eccleſia: But Congregation ſeems to be a remoter Genus than Corporation; for every Congregation is not incorporated, neither is every incorporated Congregation a ſpiritual Body cActs 19.39., and therefore a Church; but every Church is a Congregation incorporated, by the Union afore-mentioned, and it's for the end of him whoſe it is, viz. his Glory, in communion with him, and of one Member with another.