The Reviler Rebuked, Treatise · Part 1 · Head 18
(18. Head of their Scripture-contradiction.) Concerning Immediate Calling.
Section 45.
THey pretend, as I noted, to an infallible judgement, and to a calling, not by man, but Immediate; Whom God ſends, he ſends forth immediately. This, ſpoken indefinitely, and meant univerſally, of all that God ſendeth, is contrary, as I hinted, to Gal. 1. 1. whereCall to the Miniſtery, either, 1. Vnlawful, of man meerly 2. Lawful, and of God. Paul ſpeaks of a ſending of man, and by man, and by Jeſus Chriſt. The ſending of man, is unlawful, when one man ſends another who hath no power to ſend, or the man runs of his own head, upon his own errand; and either knows he is a deceiver, or is deluded by Satan, and thinks himſelf immediately called, when 'tis onelyonly the voice of his Fancy and Imagination. The ſending of God is two-fold, either mediate,1. By man. 2. Immediate. Gal. 1. 1. cleared. or immediate; both lawful; God ſends by mans miniſtery, that is mediate; or he ſends, at leaſt, at firſt, without it: Now Pauls call, as it was not of man, ſo, at the firſt, it was not of God, by man, but immediately, by Jeſus Chriſt, Acts 9.
R. F. *Page 22.is not herewith pleaſed, but thinketh Gal. 1. Chap. will witneſs againſt what I ſay; and why ſo? becauſe, He that was immediately called and ſent, doth there witneſs the ſame.
Rep. I affirm that Paul, at the firſt, was immediately called, ſo was he immediately converted; were R. F. Ed. Burroughs, J. Nayler, J. Parnel, and others, therefore immediately ſent, becauſe Paul was? We have a Proverb, I would not have it offend, if I remember and mention it aptly, ſeaſonably, and juſtly; As the Bell tinketh, ſo the Fool thinketh.
[As for pretences, we do not pretend to be immediately called (ſaith R. F.) and ſent, but we witneſs that we are.
Rep. But who will believe them that witneſs of themſelves, and have not the ſigns of ſuch a Calling upon them, but claſh, and interfere with the Prophets and Apoſtles Doctrine, at every turn almoſt? This is our preſent inſtance, all mediate calls are cryed down, and the immediate onelyonly cryed up, and miſ-repreſented, miſ-applyed, when as the Apoſtles, who had the moſt immediate calls, were not againſt the other way of Gods calling men, by the Church, and their own aſſiſtance of the Church in that work: But the holy Ghoſt hath left their practice with his Rule obligatory to us, 1 Tim. 5. 22. and 6. 14. with Titus 1. 5. yet will R. F. proceed to ſay *Page 22., We witneſs with him that thou accuſeſt; and that is Ed. Burroughs, whoſe words in my former piece I onelyonly hinted at; now take them as largely (though he hath much more to the ſame purpoſe) as is needful. *Warning to Underbarrow, by E. B. p. 16.The Miniſtery called by the earthly powers, by earthly Magiſtrates, or at Oxford, Cambridge, or Newcaſtle, all this Miniſtery, who is here called, is by man, and their Goſpel is of man, which the true Goſpel is not; and he that hath the word of God, to declare from God, his call is not by man, neither doth he go to man to be approved; for he that preached the true Goſpel, conſulted not with fleſh and blood; and ſo it is now, the ſame thing do we witneſs, and to be Miniſters of the everlaſting Goſpel, called not by man, but by God. Thus far E. B. Let the light in R. F. his natural conſcience judge, whether I ſaid not truly, when I referred to E. B. his Book, as pleading onelyonly for an immediate call; and that none preach the true Goſpel, but ſuch as have that call; and then let the light of the Scriptures (above cited) to Timothy and Titus, judge, whether ſuch, as they laid hands on, were Miniſters or no; and whether the Goſpel they preached was true Goſpel or not. By Ed. Burroughs verdict ſuch were not called of God, becauſe they had a hand in their call; nor could they preach true Goſpel, becauſe their call; nor could they preach true Goſpel, becauſe their call was but mediate: But praiſed be God, we neither ſtand nor fall to theſe mens verdicts; the Lord himſelf, by the Scripture, ſhall judge them and us. And as toAll have not call to office, who have outward liberty of preaching. that which E. Burroughs ſaith, about the Miniſtery called by earthly powers, or at Oxford, &c. according to Scripture, I diſtinguiſh between their outward encouragement, and call to office: Earthly powers are to give outward liberty to ſuch as by the Godly-learned are tryed and approved, as men fit to have publique liberty, and encouragement, 2 Chro. 17. 7, 8, 9. The call to office, in the Church, is by the Church. Again, we muſt diſtinguiſh between Pauls not conſulting with fleſh and blood, whether he had a true call, or the true Goſpel, (being immediately called and taught byProbation an▪ approbation requiſite for whom? Jeſus Chriſt) and ordinary mens refuſal to be tryed, and approved, either for the obtaining of outward liberty or office; for the Rule is clear as to ordinary officers, 1 Tim. 3. 10. Let theſe alſo firſt be proved; which [alſo] preſuppoſeth the Biſhops and Elders, to be under the command of Chriſt, for ſubmiſſion to a tryal, (as the Deacons) firſt, and before they be choſen to the work. And as concerning thoſe who aſſume liberty to teach, it is commended in Hezekiah, 2 Chron. 30. 22. that he ſpake comfortably unto all the Levites, that taught the good knowledge of the Lord: And in the Angel of the Church of Epheſus, Rev. 2. 2. that he had tryed them which ſaid they were Apoſtles, and were not, and had found them lyars; which is the plain caſe now in controverſie between us and the Quakers; whether they be Apoſtles, ſeeing they pretend to immediate calling; and whether we are Paſtors and Teachers, who are called by the Church: or, whether they are not lyars, who ſay they are Apoſtles, and bring not the doctrine and zeal of true Apoſtleſhip. Till the Lord doth more diſcover them, and all pretenders to one call or other, I muſt attend R. F. and examine what he further offereth.
All thy mediate calls and ſendings will not prove thee to be as Paul and Timothy was, that had the gift within him, and the teſtimony by the holy Ghoſt, as they had.
Rep. 1. I pretend to no ſuch call of an Apoſtle, an officer in every Church, as was Paul: or of an Evangeliſt, an aſſiſting officer to the Apoſtles, where they ſaw fit to ſend him, as was Timothy, Titus, and others.
2. All that R. F. ſaith of his immediate call, will not prove him to be called as Paul was, by a voice from heaven; for then, haply, he might have heard ſounding in his ears, Richard, Richard, why doſt perſecute me, with thy calumnies and reproaches? Or, Farnworth, Farnworth, why doſt throw dirt upon my face, by pretending to honor me as the word of God, and owneſt not my Scriptures to be my word? Why doſt deny my Spirit to be what he is, &c.
3. I acknowledge the gift within, and teſtimony by the holy Ghoſt, when they are found in us, to be the beſt LettersInward call to be tried by the outward fruits. teſtimonial, as to an inward call; but theſe ſuffice not to prove the outward call, unleſs the fruits of that inward gift and teſtimonial appear. If the gift and teſtimony within would carry it before men (as to the man himſelf that hath them) and that R. F. did know it in thoſe that he diſ-owns for the Miniſters of Chriſt, I think, he would not crucifie them ſo often with the ignominious title, of Romiſh Prieſts and Hirelings: but how ſhall he, or we, be known among men, if our words and works without, be not called forth, to bear witneſs of what is within? By thy words thou R. F. ſhalt be juſtified, and by thy words thou ſhalt be condemned, Mat. 12. 37. I am to anſwer at the ſame Bar, and to be tryed the ſame way. Our words muſt be tryed by Gods word, and our works alſo by the ſame Rule. If Scripture of Old and New Teſtament be the Scripture of God, there have been counterfeits of an immediate call; and ſome mediately ſent of God, by man, who with their mediate call have been and ſtill are approved of the Lord.
Section 46.
TO this Section R. F. ſaith nothing (in his wonted ſhew of words, but is wholly ſilent) where I had noted, that (as they cry up their own pretended immediate Call, ſo) they condemn any mediate call as carnal; for mediate (ſay *Glory of the Lord, &c. pag. 6, 7.they) is carnal and natural. I granted there is a call of man, by man, which is carnal; and I inſtanced in ſuch people, as make choice of carnal men, by the hands of a carnal, common, forein Elderſhip; But this is not our Queſtion: they fightAll mediate calls not carnal. againſt the moſt orderly call, if man hath any hand, or voice, or conſent teſtified about it: Hence it is that R. F. will not vouchſafe with patience, to take notice of the two Scriptures which I deſired the Reader to compare, viz. Acts 14. 23. with chap. 20. 28. where the Elders, called by the Churches, and ſet apart by their and the Apoſtles faſting and prayer, are ſaid to be the Holy Ghoſt's Biſhops; ſuch as He made Overſeers. Accordingly are all Elders, Paſtors and Teachers called; if called of God: Even Evangeliſts were called of God, by man: Mark by Barnabas and Paul *Acts 13 5., Timothy, Titus, Silas, or Sylvanus, and others by *Acts 16. 3. Titus 1. 5 Acts 15. 40.Paul; much more fixed Officers, ſet in every Congregational Society. As the Apoſtles had a power Paramount under Chriſt, to call and take Evangeliſts to their aſſiſtance, ſo the Churches had a power from Chriſt to chuſe their Paſtors, Teachers, Elders, Deacons, and to ſet them apart by prayer and faſting: and what power they had then, they have ſtill who are Churches, or companies of viſible Saints, called out, and diſtinguiſhed from the wicked, ignorant and untoward multitude, by their free conſents, and profeſſed ſubjection to Chriſt, and his Laws of Worſhip and Government. Let theſe daring men calumniate all Goſpel-adminiſtrations, with the term of mediate ſtuff, and think by their high ſwelling words of vanity all mediate call's are razed out in the full, as their phraſe is, the Scripture will ſtand, and the means of the new Teſtament worſhip, and order, will ſtand immutable, to the Lord his appearing in glory, at his ſecond coming: according to the charge of Paul to Timothy, 1 Ep. Chap. 6. ver. 13, 14. And as the command of Chriſt for Church-order is perpetual, ſo the call of God, by the Church, is ſpiritual. TheThe Churches call Spiritual. holy Ghoſt in the Scripture lays down ſpiritual Rules, 1 Tim. 3. He confers ſpiritual gifts according to his Rules; and the Church, a ſpiritual Corporation, gives the outward call, where they finde ſuch ſpiritual characters and qualifications: God owns this choice, while the Quakers with carnal Pariſhioners, diſ-own it; who will have the worſt of it in concluſion, the day ſhall declare.