The Lords Table Not for All Comers, Treatise · Chapter 4
CHAP. IV.
TO tell you Mr Baxter's judgement as to this point of free admiſſion, Surely he is point blanke againſt it, as farre from M… Hs: judgement, as Mr H: is from theBap: 96. Truth. Thus ſaith M Baxter, Though I admit many hundred to the Sacrament, yet I adminiſter it to none that I know to be unbeleivers; nay, nor that I judge not probably, or hopefully beleivers. In another booke thus he ſaith; for myAph. App. 108. ſelfe I doe adminiſter the Sacrament to none that doe not ſolemnly profeſſe their aſſent to every fundamentall Article of faith expreſſely mentioned to them, and their Conſent; that Chriſt ſhall their Lord and Saviour, and that they will faithfully and ſyncerely obey His Scripture Lawes. Can a man ſpeak more fully to the point againſt free admiſſion? Truely he might be numbred among the men of the Congregationall way, but that it would not be for his honour. And yet he may thanke himſelfe for that; for he indeed hath numbred thoſe holy ones amongſt the uncircumciſed ones, thoſe ſons and daughters of Belial; And dealt little leſſe unmercifully with them, than did the perſecutors in old time deale with the faithfull witneſſes of Chriſt, they put them into beaſts skins, that ſo the dogges might hurry them to death. But let that paſſe, which, we hope, he will not paſſe without Repentance, not making a difference; he ſpeakes well for the way, we wiſh he walkes with a right foote in it: though it is as much above us to reconcile him to himſelfe, as a Mountain… is above a Mole-hill, and poſſible ſo others may finde it alſo. Hea…e …im what he ſaith in a third booke; You remember when you calledR: 4. 52. me to be your Teacher, You promiſed me under your hands, that you would faithfully and conſcientiouſly endeavour the receiving every truth, & obeying every command, which I ſhould, from the word of God, manifeſt unto you; I now Charge your promiſe upon you; he goes on bending to his higheſt end everlaſting reſt. We borrow his words, doing him or them no wrong, we hope▪ bending to our ſcope; There is not a more apparent Truth, than that the Table of the Lord ſhould not be polluted, nor a more apparent duty, that the Stewards in Gods houſe ſhould look to it, that doggs & ſwine be not admitted to Come thither. The ſacred Scripture ſpeaks clearely out to this; And we thinke▪ if a Child ſhould ſhew us Scriptures, and ſpeake to us the word of God, we ſhould not dare to diſobey it. We might goe on in his words; But we paſſe them, taking this onelyonly from them to juſtifie the Miniſters in the Congregationall way for propoſing a Covenant to their people. So it ſeemes Mr B. did doe. We mention it not, as if the Miniſters of Chriſt have no better …arrant, than his example; they take their warrant, as we hope he doth, from the Scriptures of God, and example of all the Godly, who can make out their intereſt in the Covenant of Gods grace with them by Jeſus Chriſt, and now enter into Covenant one with another, to walke together as fellow-helpers of the truth in the fellowſhip of the Goſpell according to the rule thereof, with full conſent of minde and heart to promote the proſperity of the ſame, and the Intereſt of Chriſt in their ſoules, and through the Nation; And they that ſticke at this, and are ſtrangers to it, and will be ſo, doe, as is to be feared ſticke as much at the Covenant of God to give up themſelves in full obedience to it and to Him who is the Mediator of it. We have ſeene Mr Bs. manner with his people, and ſurely it is Commendable, and he hath a ſure word for it; That Miniſter and people, They, that owne him for their Miniſter, ſhould walke together in a Goſpell-way by a Goſpell rule, full-up, in deſire, and endeavour, to That Covenant Jehojada made between him and all the people, that they ſhould be 2 Chron. 28.the Lords people. O it is good to be the ſame we profeſſe to be, the Lords, and to make cleare proofe that we are His by our circumſpect walking, watching over each other in our way; rendring an account of our way, when required ſo to doe, …eareing each others burthen, ſupplying each others wants, pertaking of each others graces, doing all things as becometh a Communion of Saints; alwayes doing or receiving good. O it is good to ſtand bound with theſe Cords, bonds and engagements of God upon our Spirits, we are the Lords people, He hath taken us into Covenant with Himſelfe; In deſire and endeavour we will walke as becometh a people in Covenant with their God, and one with another. Certainly nothing is done decently and in order, where this Covenant is not, or, where it is, and is not ſtood unto, there is a Confuſion, and every evill worke: The way of the world right, of a Nationall Church there; whoſe way is as broad as the Nation is, and puts them, that walke in it, to no Coſt, none at all: therein they may walke with all their uncleanneſſes upon them, onelyonly they muſt put themſelves into a Comely dreſſe againſt the next Communion day, as is becoming Beleivers, Diſciples, and Saints, who ſay they are ſuch, and their word muſt be taken having no other teſtimony of their goodneſſe but from themſelves and others like themſelves or from the miſtaken Charity of the Godly, if it be poſſible for Charity it ſelfe to be miſtaken in thoſe, who have no other plea for their Chriſtianitie, but that they were baptized.
But now the way of Chriſt with His people in Covenant with Him, and in fellowſhip one with another, is a ſtraight and narrow way, it pincheth the fleſh ſtill, yea it is ſtill ſtorming of it: And the orders therein preſcribed, His followers are ſo ſelfe-denying, ſo holy and ſo heavenly, as few, that hold for a Nationall Church will ariſe to the obedience of them; which made ſome prophane Men profeſſe (they were of a Nationall Church ſure enough) when the reformation began in Luther's time; That they would rather live under the government of the Turk, than where all things ſhould be ordered according to the word of God. We thought fitt to adde this, thereby to juſtifie the Brethren of the Congregationall way in Goſpell fellowſhip one with another, and in deſire and endeavour keeping cloſe to the Covenant of their God, taking the hint of it from Mr Bs manner with his people.
To the cloſe of this Chapter we crave leave to adde, a very good man's jealouſie, Godly we beleive it to be, as he himſelfe is; We thinke our brethren goe beyond their warrant, while they take Saints of the firſt magnitude onelyonly into fellowſhip; God hath a people of all ſizes, there is the ſame holineſſe, but not the ſame degree of true holineſſe in all Beleivers.
We make bold to tell our perſwaſion, as to this godly jealouſie in this matter (which may paſſe as farre as his heare-ſay, whereupon he grounds, we thinke, what he ſaith, which we, in favour of his pietie and goodneſſe, doe call His jealouſie, and allow it to be godly) That the Brethren of the Congregationall way, who walke with a right foote therein, are, as deare Children ought to be, followers of their deare Lord in this perticular; ſo farre from refuſing the weake in faith, as that they doe invite and encourage ſuch. The leaſt Breathing after Chriſt, the enjoying of Him, how deſireable a ſight is it? how acceptable with them? how encouraged, promoted, countenanced by them? how pleaſing and welcome to them? even as the bruiſed reed was, and the ſmoaking flax to their Lord and Maſter. Not the weake but the dead, To uſe that good man's words; not Children, but Baſtards; not comers towards Chriſt, but reſiſters of Him in the meanes of drawing to Him; doe theſe Brethren purpoſely refuſe, where they ſee any meaſure of true godly feare, any degree of graciouſneſſe, they gladly admit: God forbid they ſhould refuſe the meaneſt, as to the world, or in Grace; no they Covet the pureſt, and take the weakeſt.