A Plain and Familiar Christian Conference, Chapter 4
Chap. IV. Of Officers extraordinary.
Phil.
I Deſire you will now acquaint me what are the Offices and Ordinances which Chriſt hath Inſtituted in his Church.
Chriſt.
The Officers Inſtituted by Chriſt are Paſtoral and Diaconal; viz. Biſhops and Deacons, Phil. 1.1.
Phil.
Are not Presbyters and Biſhops diſtinct Orders? Our Church makes them ſo.
Chriſt.
Nay, the Scripture make Preſbyters and Biſhops the ſame; there's no difference between them. For a Biſhop is but an Overſeer of the Church, ſo is every Preſbyter or Elder; ſee Acts 20.28. and there he is no more than an Elder to a Particular Congregation.
Phil.
How comes it to paſs that our Biſhops are exalted ſo far above Presbyters in Office and Benefice?
Chriſt.
From the corruptions of the pretended Church and Miniſtry; viz. through Ambition, Covetouſneſs, and Human Inventions, whereby alſo all Antichriſtian Abominations over-ſpread the whole face of the Chriſtian World.
Phil.
But did not Chriſt give other Miniſterial Officers to his Church?
Chriſt.
The Officers which Chriſt placed in his Church for Edification were Extraordinary or Ordinary, but both Paſtoral; for they that are called Elders, and ſet for Doctrine and Adminiſtration in ſeals and Government, I call juſtly Paſtoral; for feeding the Flock comprehends both in the true ſence of the Spirit of God.
Phil.
Who were the Extraordinary Officers?
Chriſt.
They were Apoſtolick, and ſuch who were not ſucceeded after the firſt Churches were planted, but by ordinary Paſtoral Officers, and theſe were Apoſtles, and Apoſtolick helps in the performance of their Office-charge, Eph. 4.11.and were Prophets and Evangeliſts, and were extraordinarily furniſhed with the gifts of the Holy Ghoſt, and Power, for the propagation of the Goſpel, and plantation of Churches, but at the diſpoſition and direction, for the moſt part, of the Apoſtles, as all other Church-Officers, as well as Churches were during their lives.
Phil.
And our Biſhops ſay they ſucceed the Apoſtles, and all other Miniſters are ſubordinate and ſubject to them.
Chriſt.
They may as well ſay, the Pope ſucceeds Peter; for it's plain, they were extraordinarily ſent and inſpired, and therefore could not be ſucceeded but by ſuch as were extraordinarily aſſiſted, as they were, which hath been none: or ordinarily, and ſuch are Presbyters, and no others.
The Charaſteriſtick Notes of the Apoſtles were, 1. That they were to be ſuch who were ear and eye-witneſſes of Chriſt, from the Baptiſm of John, to the time of his taking up, Acts 1.22. viz. of his Miniſtry, Miracles, Reſurrection and Aſcenſion. 2. That they ſhould be extraordinarily inſpired by the Holy Ghoſt for the revelation of the mind and will of Chriſt, ſince which none ever were. 3. To have the gifts of Tongues, and working Miracles. 4. That they ſhould have the charge of the Churches for the plantation, direction and government of them, every Apoſtle having the charge of all Churches, & in every Church, whatever power was afterward ordinarily in each Church. And though a Biſhop now in an Apiſh imitation by a pretended plea of Succeſſion would lay claim to power over many particular Congregations, yet each Biſhop is not allowed power in another mans Dioceſs. And as to the former characters where's the Biſhop can with a ſhew of any juſt pretence lay claim unto them.
Phil.
What were the Prophets that accompanied and aſſiſted the Apoſtles in their Miniſtry?
Chriſt.
Of this ſort it's ſaid, Acts 13.1. there were certain Prophets and Teachers, I ſuppoſe not much differing one from another in reſpect of the extraordinary Miſſion and Qualification, being Church-Members of the Church of Jeruſalem, on which the Holy Ghoſt fell in the appearance of fiery Tongues, whereby they were furniſhed with Preaching, Gifts, and thoſe of Tongues, in order to the propagation of the Goſpel in all Nations, and to whatſoever People they came, Jew or Gentile, and went forth for this end, in ſubordination to, and by direction of the Apoſtles. And the firſt time we read of the Travels, is Acts 11.19. occaſioned by Saul's perſecution; ſome of them men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who when they had paſſed through other places Preaching, came at laſt unto Antioch, and ſpake unto the Grecian Jews, Preaching the Lord Jeſus Chriſt, the effect of which was the believing and turning of many unto the Lord. Theſe, by the command of the Holy Ghoſt laid hands on Paul and Barnabas, but we read not that they baptized, or did perform any other Miniſterial Act, if that were one. Probably they might convey the Gifts of the Holy Ghoſt on others by impoſition of hands too.
Phil.
What were the Evangeliſts?
Chriſt.
They were extraordinarily called to aſſiſt the Apoſtles alſo in Preaching the Lord Jeſus, Baptiſm, and planting Churches, with Ordination of Officers in them. Philip Preached and Baptized, and wrought Miracles, Acts 8.5, 12, 39. But did not convey the extraordinary gifts of the Holy Ghoſt; they were beſtowed by the prayers of Peter and John, as the laying on of hands, verſe 15, 16. and Philip is called an Evangeliſt, Acts 21.8. Timothy was an Evangeliſt, 1 Tim. 4.5. and Aſſiſtant to Paul in his Apoſtolick Function, and he did lay on hands. Now as to this, that Philip did not, and Timothy did, I judge theſe ſecondary Apoſtolick men acted not as the Apoſtles, by a general Commiſſion, but by the immediate particular dictates of the Holy Ghoſt: or by the mediate Commands from time to time given to them by the Apoſtles to whom they were aſſiſtant and ſubordinate in their Actings; there were ſome which we call Evangeliſts, from their writing the Hiſtory of the Goſpel, two of which were primarily Apoſtles; viz. Matthew and John. Mark and Luke might be Evangeliſts in the other ſenſe.
Phil.
Who were left the Paſtoral Officers in the Church at Jeruſalem upon Chriſt's Aſcenſion?
Chriſt.
The whole Miniſterial Office in that Church was left and placed at firſt in the Apoſtles, both Paſtoral and Diaconal, and either of the Apoſtles might have preſided, but that by conſent (it may be) grounded on the words of our Saviour, Mat. 16.19. Peter took the Chair, viz. the orderly management of the Keys. That the diaconal Office was in the ſaid Apoſtles at firſt, is manifeſt from the account we have, Act. 2.4, 5. of the Members bringing their poſſeſſions, and laying them at their feet to diſpoſe of, as a Church ſtock, and from the reaſon given by the twelve to the multitude, for the choice of Deacons they finding the ſerving tables to be to great a Burthen to them upon ſuch increaſe of the Church Afterwards alſo, as the neceſſity and ſtate of the Church required, there were Elders or Presbyters choſen diſtinct from the Apoſtles, which appears from Act. 15.23. And it's moſt plain the increaſing and multiplying Officers, in the Church was according as the neceſſary reaſons thereof did ariſe from the increaſe or otherwiſe, which neceſſities by the Holy Ghoſt breathing through the Apoſtles were provided for and ſupplied.