Church Members Set in Joint, Title page – Imprimatur
Church-Members SET IN JOYNT.
OR, A Diſcovery of the unwarrantable and diſorderly practice of private chriſtians, in uſurping the peculiar Office and work of Chriſts own Paſtours, namely PUBLIKE PREACHING.
In way of Anſwer to a Book printed under the name of Lieutenant Edmund Chillenden (but indeed none of his) entituled Preaching without Ordination.
Wherein all the Arguments by him produced, are fully Anſwered and diſproved, the truth of the contrary evidenced, and the Office forementioned, thereby returned into the hands of the right owners.
By Filodexter Tranſilvanus.
Heb. 5. 4. No man taketh this honour to himſelf, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.
Jer. 23. 21. I have not ſent theſe Prophets, yet they ran: I have not ſpoken to them, yet they propheſied.
Matth. 7. 15. Beware of falſe Prophets, which come to you in Sheeps clothing, but inwardly they are ravening Wolves.
London, Printed for EDMUND PAXTON, and are to be ſold at his Shop in Pauls chain, over againſt the Caſtle Tavern neer to the Doctors Commons. 1648.
To all the faithfull in Chriſt Jeſus, and all other my Country-men, who may chance at any time to be Readers of this Book.
BRETHREN,
MY hearts deſire and prayer to God for you all is, that you may be ſaved, and that you may bee rooted and eſtabliſhed in the faith of that Chriſt and Goſpel which you have received, and by which alſo you are ſaved, if you continue ſtedfaſt unto the end, & be not removed from him that hath called you into the grace of Chriſt, to give ear to ſeducers and falſe prophets, who pervert the Goſpel of Chriſt, and ſubvert the faith of many. Queſtionleſſe the dayes are come upon us, of which our Saviour hath foretold us long ago, that many falſe prophets ſhall ariſe, and deceive many; yea (if it were poſſible) the very elect themſeles: who may therefore the more abundantly rejoyce in this confidence that God will keep them by his owne power through faith unto ſalvation; when they ſhall perceive themſelves planted upon a rock that is higher then the gates of hell, ſtronger then the raine and tempeſts that aſſault them: by the power of which they are enabled to ſtand, even in ſuch times as theſe (which are the worſt of times) when ſo many hundreds fall on the right hand and on the left. Amongſt many other meanes which God (J doubt not) will teach you to make uſe of for your continuance in the faith: the matter of this enſuing Treatiſe gives me occaſion to ſpeak of one, which is a high priſing of and diligent attendance upon the miniſtry, …he word: that word I meane which is preached by thoſe who are ſent of God and this Church for the ſame purpoſe. In my ſhort experience I have obſerved that the Divells grand deſigne for the raiſing of his own Kingdome, hath beene in all ages to hinder the efficacie and authority of the publik Miniſtry. In the daies of Antichriſtian darkneſſe there was either no preaching at all, or none but that which was delivered in a ſtrange language, by which the people received no benefit. In latter dayes, under the Prelates tyranny here in England, what ſtone was left unrolled to diſcourage and undermine the moſt ſaithſull, holy and learned miniſters: either by withholding from them a competent maintenance (whiles many a prophane ſuperſtitious dotard and dumbe dogge had more then enough) or by injoyning an ungodly compliance to humane and antichriſtian inventions, Ceremonies, Oathes, Subſcriptions, &c. which their conſciences could not away with: Hence many profeſſors made it the greateſt part of their religion, and made this their reſt, even to goe up and downe, to heare Sermons, and ſpeak againſt thoſe (perſons or things) that were the occaſion of muzling the mouthes of ſo many of Gods meſſengers. In theſe dayes the doore is opened ſo wide, that who ſo will, may now take upon him that high and holy calling, and under pretence of preaching the Goſpel, vent privately and publikely all manner of untruths, and becauſe they cannot raiſe themſelves to that high pitch of preferment which they aime at, as long as godly Miniſters beare witneſſe againſt them both in Pulpits and Preſſes: therefore they poſſeſſe their Proſelites with all the prejudice they can againſt their Miniſters, either their calling is Antichriſtian, or they are men of an Old Teſtament ſpirit, or (at beſt) they are Black-coats. Hence many, who have acknowledged often with much comfort that God had made their Miniſter inſtrumental, not onelyonly to turne them firſt unto God, but to build them up in faith, and knowledge and all grace, and have formeriy loved them ſo dearly that they could even have pulled out their eyes to have done them good: yet now they disfrequent their company and their Miniſtry: and lay themſelves open thereby to all manner of Temptations and deluſions: and the farther they fall away, the higher they raiſe up themſelves in their owne eſteeme, giving forth that they are all taught of God: and hence they take upon them deſperatly to broach all manner of proud Atheiſtical conceits; one queſtions whether there be any Heaven or Hell, or any Reſurrection from the dead: another thinks himſelfe to be as good a Chriſt as Chriſt the Lord, and doth not fear to ſay that the God-head is as much in him as it was in Chriſt, &c. whoſe diſtemper is the more deſpreate becauſe the nature of it is to admit of no remedy. In the middeſt of this confuſion whether ſhall we fly? The Land is become like ſome deepe pit in a wilderneſſe into which are fallen Toades, Mice, Frogs Serpents and all manner of vermin, and there they bite and devoure one another: Religion is turned into a very gallimafra of errours and hereſies, and each hereſy brands all other doctrines with the name of Hereſie, beſides it ſelfe. The wiſe and eternall God which made the world out of a Chaos, and brought light out of darkneſſe, in his rich mercy bring light and order out of this diſmall helliſh confuſion, and let all that love the Truth ſay Amen.
In order to which end I have under-taken in this enſuing Treatiſe according to the ability I have received, to make forth this truth againſt Chillenden and all his followers, that there is no ground either in reaſon or Scripture for private perſons, though never ſo well gifted, to preach publickly unleſſe they be thereto caled by the Church: intending ſhortly (if God permit) to prove poſitively from the Scriptures that preaching is a work peculiar to Church-officers. And before the Reader peruſe the Treatiſe it ſelfe, I ſhall deſire him to take notice of theſe two particulars.
1. That al the arguments which I have here undertaken to anſwer, are ſtolen out of a Booke of Robinſons (the famous Separatiſt) entituled The peoples plea for propheſying. I believe Chillenden would be content that the child ſhould be divided; for if it be wholly given to the right father, upon my credit Chillenden muſt have no part in it.
2. I have not taken notice of many places of Scripture written in the margin, but of thoſe onelyonly to which he doth expreſſely referre his Reader: partly becauſe they are very unequally aſcribed, not paralell to the line to which they refer; and partly becauſe moſt of them are places from which he borrows words or phraſes occaſionally mentioned, nothing at all pertaining to the maine ſcope; many other things of leſſe conſequence I have paſſed over, but nothing of moment as I know of. Farewell.
F. T.
Imprimatur,
Edm. Calamy.