The Bloody Tenant Washed and Made White in the Blood of the Lamb, Part 2 · Chapters 17-19
To CHAP. XVII. XVIII. XIX.
HIs 17, 18, 19. Chapters are taken up, in Examining and Anſwering my Anſwers to his ſecond Objection, which he made to prove, a Neceſſitie lying upon Godly men, before they can be fit matter for Church fellowſhip, to ſee, bewaile, repent, and come out of falſe Churches, Miniſtery, Worſhip, and Government. To prove which, his firſt Objection, or Argument was taken from Iſaiah 52.11. 2 Cor. 6.14, 15, 16. Whereto we have returned a Reply in the former Chapters. His ſecond Objection was taken from the Confeſſion made by Johns Diſciples, and the Proſelyte Gentiles before admiſſion into Churchfellowſhip, Mat. 3.6. Act 19.18. Whence he gathered, That Chriſtian Churcher are conſtituted of ſuch members, as make open and plaine confeſſion of their ſinnes: and if any ſ…es be to be confeſſed and lamented (Jewiſh or Paganiſh) then Antichriſtian drunkenneſſe and whoredome much more, &c. Yea every ſipping of the Wh…res Cup.
To which Objection of his, (to paſſe by all verball velitations, for I love not to take up time about words) the ſubſtance of my Anſwer was two-fold.
1. That it was not neceſſary to the Admiſſion of members, that they ſhould ſee, and bewaile the ſinfulneſſe of every ſipping of the whores Cup, (as he called it) (though the Whores cup doe more intoxicate the minde, then the drunkards Cup doth the Body:) becauſe bodily drunkenneſſe and whoredome are ſuch notorious and groſſe ſinnes, that no man having true Repentance in him, cannot but be convinced of the ſinfulneſſe of them, and of the neceſſitie of repentance of them in particular, if he doe remember them. But the whores Cup being a myſtery of Iniquitie, the ſinfulneſſe of every ſipping of it, is nothing ſo evident and notorious, as that every repentant ſoule doth at firſt diſcerne it. And therefore as the 3000. Converts, Acts 2.37. to 47. were admitted into the firſt Chriſtian Church, upon the Profeſſion of their repentance of the murther of Chriſt, though they neither ſaw nor confeſſed all the ſuperſtitious leavenings wherewith the Phariſees had bewitched them: ſo here, &c. Yea and the Diſciples of John (whom he inſtanceth in) though they did confeſſe their ſinnes, (the Publicans theirs, the Souldiers theirs, the People theirs:) to wit, the notorious ſinnes incident to their callings: yet it doth not appeare that they confeſſed their Phariſaicall pollutions. And the Gentiles in Act. 19.18.19. Though they confeſſed their curious Arts, and burnt their conjuring Bookes, yet it doth not appeare, that they confeſſed all their deeds.
Whereunto the Examiner returneth a two-fold Anſwer.
1. That ſpirituall whoredome and drunkenneſſe is not indeed ſo eaſily diſcerned as corporall: but yet not the leſſe ſinfull, but infinitely tranſeendent, as much as ſpirituall ſobriety exceedeth corporall; and the bed of the moſt High God exceedeth the beds of men, who are but duſt and aſhes.
Reply. 1. It is an exorbitant Hyperbole to make every paſſage of ſpirituall whoredome, a ſinne infinitely tranſcendent above bodily whoredome. For ſpirituall whoredome is not infinite in the act of it, but onelyonly in reſpect of the object of it, to wit, in reſpect of the infinite God, againſt whom it is committed. And is not bodily whoredome infinite in that reſpect alſo? Can a man defile himſelfe with bodily whoredome, and not ſinne againſt the infinite God? What ſaith Joſeph? Gen. 39.9.
2. What if ſpirituall whoredome (though leſſe evident) be more ſinfull then bodily? The nature of true Evangelicall Repentance ſtandeth not in ſeeing and bewailing every ſinne, no nor alwayes of the greateſt, but of thoſe which are moſt evident and notorious. A Chriſtian man may more ſafely omit repentance of greater ſins, if unknowne, then of leſſe ſinnes knowne. I ſuppoſe the Iſraelites were guiltie of many Idolatries, and ſuperſtitions in the dayes of Samuel, yet their repentance was chiefly faſtned upon their asking of a King, of which they were then principally convinced, 1 Sam. 12.19. And ſuch Repentance was then accepted of the Lord, and of Samuel, ver. 22, 23.
The very truth is, the ground and roote of the Examiners Error in this caſe is, That he maketh Church-Covenant to be no better then a Covenant of workes: whereas indeed if Church-Covenant be not a branch of the Covenant of grace, the Churches of Chriſt are not built upon Chriſt. In a Covenant of workes, all ſinnes muſt be avoyded: or if not avoyded, yet repented of expreſly, and the greateſt ſinnes moſt. But in Evangelicall Repentance, God dealeth not with us after our ſinnes, nor rewardeth us according to our Iniquities, Pſal. 103.10. The Grace of Chriſt is not given either to his Church, or to any Chriſtian, upon the perfection of our Repentance, nor upon our Repentance of our greateſt ſinnes, in the greateſt meaſure. But if the heart be truly humbled for any knowne ſinne, as ſinne, though the ſinne knowne be often leſſe hainous, then others unknowne, yet God accepteth his own worke, and putteth away all ſinne in the acknowledgement of one. Yea in ſinnes that be knowne, the compunction of the heart is ſometimes more expreſſed for the occaſions and inducements of the ſinne, which are leſſe hainous; then for the greater ſinnes, which are more grievous and dangerous. Solomon in his ſolemne Repentance in the Booke of Eccleſiaſtes, doth more expreſly bewaile his entanglement with lewd women, Eccleſ. 7.27, 28. then all his Idolatrous Temples and worſhip, which were erected, and maintained at his charge. By the Examiners Doctrine, Solomon had never been received, and reſtored to the Church upon that Repentance.
His ſecond Anſwer is, That though the converted Jewes did not ſee all the leavenings of the Phariſees, yet they mourned for killing of Chriſt, and embraced him in his Worſhip, Miniſtery, Government, &c. and thereupon neceſſarily followeth a withdrawing from the Church, Miniſtery, and Worſhip of the falſe Chriſt, &c.
Reply. This anſwer doth not reach the defence of his cauſe, to wit, That it is abſolutely neceſſary unto Church-fellowſhip, to ſee and bewaile, not onelyonly actuall whoredomes, but alſo whoriſh ſpeeches, geſtures, appearances, provocations. Yet here he granteth, that the converted Jewes did not ſee all the leavenings of the Phariſees, which yet were ſuch, as in the end of that Paragraph, he implyeth they had deteined them under a falſe Chriſt.
But whereas he ſaith, that they by embracing Chriſt, in his Worſhip and Miniſtery, there neceſſarily followed a withdrawing from the Church, Miniſtery, and worſhip of the falſe Chriſt.
It may truely be Replyed, 1. That he will not grant us that liberty, that upon our embracing of Chriſt in his worſhip & Miniſtery, there neceſſarily followeth our withdrawing from the Church, Miniſtery, and Worſhip, wherein we had been formerly polluted in any ſort. Is not this to deteine the glorious Truth of our Lord Jeſus with reſpect of Perſons?
2. It is evident by the Story, that ſome of thoſe members of the Church of Hieruſalem, who had been leavened by the ſect of the Phariſees, they did neither ſee nor bewaile, nor did come off from fellowſhip with the Phariſees in their Miniſtery, and falſe Doctrine, which taught the neceſſitie of Circumciſion, and of the whole Law of Moſes to juſtification and ſalvation, Acts 15.1.5.
As for the confeſſion of ſinne by the Diſciples unto John Baptiſt, (Mat. 3.) and by the Gentiles unto Paul, (Act. 19.) though it be not ſaid, that the one ſort confeſſed their Phariſaicall pollutions, nor the other all their Deeds:
Yet (ſaith he) if both theſe confeſt their notorious ſinnes, (as Mr. Cotton confeſſeth) why not as well their notorious ſinnes againſt God, their Idolatries, ſuperſtitions, worſhips, &c? Surely throughout the whole Scripture, the matters of God, and his worſhip, are firſt and moſt tenderly handled, &c.
Anſw. It is not true, that the matters of Gods worſhip and defects there, are alwayes moſt tenderly acknowledged throughout the Confeſſions of the Saints in Scripture. Solomon in his Repentance was moſt ſparing of confeſſion of his Idolatrous Temples and worſhips. And the People in Samuel did more repent of asking a King, then of all their other ſinnes, and yet their Idolatries were then flagrant, 1 Sam. 12 9, 10, 11. Beſides, wee never reade of ſuch deepe Humiliation of David for carting the Arke after the manner of the Philiſtims, as of his bodily adultery with Bathſhebah, and murder of Ʋriah.
The ſubſtance of my other Anſwer to his former Objection, which was to prove a neceſſitie lying upon godly men to ſee and bewaile their pollutions in a former Church-fellowſhip, before they can be fit matter for a new.
It was to this purpoſe, that we have not been wanting (through the guidance of the grace of Chriſt) to performe that which he pleadeth for, ſo farre as God hath called us to it: the which I expreſſed in my Letter in two particulars:
1. That the body of our members doe in generall Profeſſe, that the reaſon of their coming over to us, was that they might be freed from the bondage of humane Inventions and Ordinances, under which as their ſoule groaned there, ſo they have profeſſed their ſorrow, ſo farre as through ignorance or infirmitie they have been defiled there.
2. That in our daily meetings, eſpecially in the times of our ſolemne Humiliations, we doe generally all of us bewaile all our former Pollutious, wherewith we have defiled our ſelves, and the holy things of God in our former Adminiſtrations, and Communions: the which we have rather choſen to doe, then to talke of, and therefore doe marvell, that he ſhould ſo reſolutely renounce us for that, which he knew not whether we had neglected or no, and before he had admoniſhed us of our ſinfulneſſe in ſuch neglect, if it had been found amongst us.
Whereto his Anſwer is; That we make no mention, what ſuch Inventions, and Ordinances, what ſuch Adminiſtrations and Communions were, which we confeſſed and bewailed.
Reply. And yet leſt he ſhould too much wound his own Conſcience with ſuch a generall charge, he acknowledgeth; That we have borne witneſſe againſt Biſhops, and Ceremonies, and doe conſtitute onelyonly particular and Independent Churches, and have therefore ſo farre at leaſt ſeene the evill of a Nationall Church. But I dare ſay further, that his own Conſcience beareth him witneſſe, that we have witneſſed alſo both in Profeſſion and Practiſe, againſt Preſcript Liturgies and mixt Communions, both in Church-fellowſhip, and at the Lords Table.
What hath been then wanting to us? That we doe not fully ſee the evill of a Nationall Church; How doth he make it to appeare?
By two Inſtances.
By our conſtant Practiſe in ſtill joyning with ſuch Churches and Miniſtery in the Ordinances of the Word and Prayer: and by our Perſecuting of him for his humble, faithfull, and conſtant admoniſhing of us for ſuch an uncleane walking, between a particular Church, and a Nationall.
Reply. Our joyning with the Miniſters of England in hearing of the Word and Prayer, doth not argue our Church-Communion with the Pariſh-Churches in England, much leſſe with the Nationall Church: as hath been ſhewed above in Chap. 14.
Beſides, when Jeroboam heard the word from the young Prophet of Judah, and joyned with him in Prayer, I demand whether in ſo doing, he joyned in Church-Communion with the Nationall Church of Judah? If yea, then was the Church of Judah pollutedly the uncleane Communion of Idolatrous Jeroboam: If not, then the Examiner may eaſily diſcerne, how weake an Argument it is to argue our Communion with the Nationall Church of England, from our members joyning in the Hearing of the Word, and Prayer in the Pariſh-Churches of England.
His ſecond Inſtance to make it appeare, That we ſee not the evill of a Nationall Church, from our Perſecuting of him, &c.
In this I chooſe rather to blame his memory then his conſcience. But the one of them is much to blame, in that it maketh him ſo farre forget himſelfe and the Truth, as boldly to avouch a notorious falſhood; That we Perſecuted him for his humble, and faithfull, and conſtant admoniſhing of us of ſuch uncleane walking, between a particular Church and a Nationall.
It is one notable falſhood to ſay, that he did conſtantly admoniſh, either our Elders or Churches of ſuch an offence; much leſſe, humbly, and faithfully. If he did ſo admoniſh us, where are his witneſſes? His Letters? his Meſſengers ſent to us?
Beſides, It is another falſhood, and no leſſe palpable, that we did perſecute him for ſuch admoniſhing of us. It hath been declared above, upon what grounds the ſentence of his Baniſhment did Proceed: whereof this Admonition (which he pretendeth) was none of them; neither did they perſecute him at all, who did ſo proceed againſt him.
Now whereas in that Paſſage of the Letter even now recited I ſaid, He knew not what Profeſſions we had made in our Churches of our Humiliations for former Pollutions, nor had he admoniſhed us of our defects therein: He demandeth how be could poſſibly be ignorant of our eſtate, who had been from firſt to laſt in fellowſhip with us, an Officer amongst us, had private and publique agitations concerning our eſtate and condition, and at laſt ſuffered for ſuch Admonition to us, the miſery of a Winters Baniſhment amongst the Barbarians?
Reply. As if every man in fellowſhip with us, an Officer amongſt us, one that had private and publique agitations with us, muſt needs know what our members profeſſed in their admiſſions to the Church, or what our Elders confeſſed in their dayes of ſolemne Humiliation, when himſelfe was generally abſent, both on the Lords dayes, and on the dayes of ſolemne faſting? Or as if the private and publique agitations that he had with us, were taken up about our Communion with a Nationall Church? I am yet to learne, what Arguments he did propound to us in that cauſe: what convictions he left upon us. When he is ſtill ſo full of the miſeries of his winters baniſhment amongſt the Barbarians, it maketh me call to minde a grave and godly ſpeech of a bleſſed Saint, now with God, (reverend Mr. Dod) Where ſinne lyeth heavy, afflictions lyeth light: where affliction lyeth heavy, ſinne lyeth light.