Against Idolatry and Superstition, Sermon 2 · Part 7
VII. Holiness of Places, or Consecrating of Churches▪
TO discover the vanity of this Superstition, consider, that inherent Holiness which is in Persons, is a thing which Places are no way c…p…ble of: but the onelyonly holiness that is or can be pretended for them, is a Relative Holiness, upon the account of some thing without them, in respect and relation whereto, they are denominated and reputed holy. Hence one that writes for it hath described it thus, A state of Relation of Peculiarity to Godwards. Now in the time of the Old Testament, we finde two sorts of holy Places upon this account of Relation to the holy God.
1. Where God was pleased to afford the visible and extraordinary Appearances and Manifestations of his Glory to the very eyes of his Servants, such Places were Holy during the time of those Manifestations. As when the Lord appeared to Moses in the burning Bush, Exod. 3. 5. The place whereon thou standest is holy ground. So to Joshua, Chap. 5. 15. Hence Mount Sinai might not be touched, Exod. 19. And upon this accoun… the Mount where Christ was transfigured is called the Holy Mount, 2 Pet. 1. 18. but this Holiness continued onelyonly while that extraordinary Presenc… continued, there is no more Holiness in Mount Sinai, or in Mount Tab…r now, then there is in any other place, therefore the Apostle so calls it from what it was, not that it is so still; neither is any other place in these times priviledged with such an extraordinary visible Presence and Appearance of God: and therefore this neither is nor can be pretended for our Meeting-places. But
2. There was a stated Holiness in the time of the Law in some Places. And thus some have observed, that we finde but three Places that were holy in this respect, The Land of Canaan, called the holy Land, Zech. 2. 12. the City of Jerusalem, called the holy City, Mat. 5. 4. & 27. 53. and the Temple▪ frequently therefore called the holy Temple, Jonah 2. 4. And these places were perpetually holy, as long as the Old Testament dispensation continued. But if we enquire into the nature, and into the grounds and reasons of this Holiness, we shall finde that it is wholly ceased in th…se Gospel-times, and that no place is holy now upon any such account. For
1. Th…se Places were holy, because in them were the standing Signs and Symbols of Gods Presence, which is therefore called his Symbolical Presence, to distinguish it from his Extraordinary Presence beforementioned, and from his Spiritual Presence, which is not tyed to any place. Hence he is said to choose Jerusalem, and Mount Sion, and the Temple, to dwell there, and to put his Name there, Psal. 76. 2. & 87 2. and to dwell between the Cherubims, Psal. 80. 1. The Temple it self was a Sign of his Presence, and the Altar, the Ark, the Mercy-seat, Cherubims, Sacrifices, and almost all the Ordinances of those times were affixed by Gods appointment unto those places, to be observed and celebrated there, viz. in the Temple, and in Jerusalem: but there is no place that is now priviledged with this Symbolical Presence. There are no such standing Signs and tokens of his Presence annexed unto any place. God hath given his Ordinances to his Church, but he hath not tyed them to any place, He dwells not in Temples made with hands, Acts 17. 24.
2. These places under the Law were holy, by reason of their Typical respect to Christ, and the good things that were to come by him. Canaan the holy Land was a Type of the Church on Earth, and of the Kingdome of Heaven, the heavenly Canaan: They sought another Country, a better Country, that is, an heavenly, Heb. 11. 14, 16. Thine eyes shall se… the land that is very far off, Isa. 33. 17. Jerusalem also was a Type of the Church, and of Jerusalem above, Gal. 4. 26. Rev. 21. 2. and so the Temple, Psal. 15. 1. and it was a Type also of Christs Body, Joh. 2. 21. Col. 2. 9. Hence some have well observed, That the more nearly and lively that any of these Places did typifie Christ, so the difference and degree of holiness did arise; as the Temple was more holy, because it typified the Body of Christ, in whom the Godhead dwelt bodily, Coloss. 2. 9. as God did dwell Symbolically in the Temple. But Christ the Substance being come, and all the Types and Shadows therefore done away, there are not, there cannot be typical Places, or typical Holiness in Places in these times.
3. Those Places of old were holy by virtue of Gods Institution, who did appoint and sanctifie them to be parts of his Worship, and Ordinances of a very high nature; for the Lord appointed them to be the wayes and means of Communion between himself and his people: There will I meet thee, and I will commune with thee from above the Mercyseat, from between the two Cherubims, which are upon the Ark of the Testimony, Exod. 25. 22. Numb. 7. 89. And they did sanctifie both the Worshippers, and the Worship performed in them, the Altar sanctified the gift, the Temple sanctified the gold, Matth. 23. 18, 19. in so much that the Places were principal, and the Duties less princ…pal, as Divines observe. The Temple and the Altar being Types of Christ, were of an higher worth and excell…ncy then th… Services and Sacrifices offered in them, and did bring acceptance to them, and therefore they were to pray towards the Templ…, to offer upon the Alta…, &c. Deut 12. 5, 6. 1 Kings 8. 29. There will I accept them, Ezek 20. 40. And it was a profaning of the Temple to use it for Civil Imployments, being consecra…d and appropriat…d by God to holy uses: and therefore Christ would not suffer them to buy or sell, or to carry vessels through it, Mark 11. 15. 16.
But there is no word of Institution in the New Testament to sanct…fie any one Place more then another, but on the contrary it layes all places level in regard of Holiness. When the woman of Sama…ia pleaded, Our fathers worshipped in this Mountain, but ye s…y that in Jerusal…m is the place where men ought to worship; Jesus said unto h…r, Woman, believe me, The hour cometh, and now i…, when ye shall neither in this Mountain, nor y…t at Jerusalem worship the Father, but the true worshippers shall worship him in spir…t and in t…uth, Joh. 4. 21, 23. He turns her eye… and thoughts away from the d…fferenc… of Places, to look a… the spirituality of the worship: for as God is no respecter of persons, so he is no resp…cter of places; but wheresoever for that indefinite [where] is equivalent to an universal, Wheresoever two or three are gathered together in my Name, there am I in the midst of them, Matth. 18. 20. I wi… that men pray every where, foreign, in every pl…c…, 1 Tim. 2. 8. The Church of Troas met in an upp…r Chamber to b…ea… Bread. and for Preaching and other Ordinances, Acts 20. 8. therefore all places are alike.
Our publisk Meeting-places for Worship in these Gospel times, do not succeed in the stead of the Jewish Tabernacle or Temple, because they are not priviledged with that extraordinary visible Presence of God in them, which was in the Temple at som… times, neither have they that Symbolical Presence, and residence of God in them, which was in the Temple at all times. n…ither have they that typical respect to Christ, neither hath God sanctified them, and set them apart to himself as his own peculiar: but they are of the same nature with the I wish Synag…gues, which were the places of the publick Moral Worship of God in those times, and were withou… question every whit as holy as our Churches, but yet we finde that the Synagogues wereM…tt. 10 17 … 1… …. not appropriated to holy uses onelyonly, though the Temple was, bu… they kept Courts, and had Civil Assemblies in them about Civil ma… ters, Mat. 23. 34. Some of them shall you sc…urge in your Synago…u…, which suppose it were not meant of the executing and infl…cting of the punishment upon them, but onelyonly as some would have it, of passing the Sentence, yet this will not help them, for still it was a Civil and Secular use of the place, where they met for the publick Worship of God.
I may therefore here apply that of Isai. 27. 9. By this therefore shall the iniquity of Jacob be purged, and this is all the fruit, to take away his sin: when he maketh all the stones of the Altar as chalk-stones, that are beaten asunder, the Groves and Images shall not stand up. God will never purge away the iniquity of Ireland, nor take away the sins of England, till the stones of the Altar be as Chalk-stones, till people be convinced that there is no more holiness in a Church, I mean the Me…ting-place of Wood and Stones, then in a dwelling house, nor in an Altar more then in Chalk-stones. There have been some Episcopal men, Episcopal at least in some other things, who yet have been much above this gross superstitious Conceit of the difference of Places. Dr. Ʋsher in his Body of Divinity, speaking against the private Administration of the Sacraments, he hath these words; In times of Pers…cution the godly did often meet in Barns, and such obscure places, which were indeed publick, because of the Church of God there, the House or Place availing nothing to make it publick or private, even as wheres…ev…r the Prince is, there is the Court, although it were in a poor Cottage.
It is true, there is a Spiritual Presence of God in our publick Meeti…g-places, when his people are there assembled to Worship him in the B…auties of Holiness, but he doth not afford his Presence with respect to the place, but to the persons; he is not present with them for the places sake, but present in the place at that time for their sakes. And therefore this Spiritual Presence of God doth not mak… any place properly holy, for then all places should be holy, wheresoever holy persons meet to enjoy the Spiritual Presence of God in holy duties: as the Primitive Churches met in private Chambers, Acts 1. 13. & 20. 8. and by the same reason all the dwelling-houses where there are Fam…ly-duties, and daily worshipping of God in the Family, and in s…cret, are holy pl…ces also. Nay, the Fields, the Streets, and sometimes Prisons, and Dungeons, and Gibb…ts, and all places where the S…ints come, and enjoy Communion with God in their Spirits, are h…ly places. And so by their own Argument they lay all places level, … Lord having many precious Saints that walk with him▪ who are d…sed & scattered up and down almost in every corner of the Land.
Churches I confess are holy things, but the word Church is very improperly, and Catachrestically used concerning the Material Church of Wood and Stones, by a Metonymie; but the Scripture knows no other Church but the Church of Saints. That place, 1 Cor. 11. 22. is much abused, and misinterpreted, Have you not houses of your own to eat and drink in? or despise you the Church of God? It is not meant of those improper Metonymical Churches, neither doth the opposition inforce any such thing: for there be many other things which may be opposed to their own houses, besides the publick Meetingplace. There are in Logick not onelyonly Contraria, quorum unum uni, but also Disparata quorum unum multis pariter opponitur: The Apostles Argument is this, that it is a contempt of the Church or Saints of God, to carry themselves so disorderly in their presence.
And yet it doth not follow, that the publick Meeting-places must be pulled down, for the Consecrating of them is an abuse of things necessary, and not of things indifferent. The Script…r… mentions it as a good work to build them, He loveth our Nation, and hath built us a Synag…gue, Luke 7. 5. and as an act of great profaneness to pull them down, Psal. 74. 8. They have burnt up all the Synagogues of God in the Land, which yet had no more holiness in them then our Meeting-places. And the thing it self speaks, for if there ought to be publick Assemblies for the Worship of God, if this be a duty, it is nec…ssary that there be pl…ces to meet in. It is true, the Lord commanded the Jews to demolish the Heathen Temples of the Canaanites, Deut. 12. 2, 3. but these were built for Idols, and therefore might justly be accounted meer Monuments of Idolatry; but our Meetingplaces were built for Christian Churches and Assemblies to Worship God in, amongst whom the Essentials of a Church-estate and Worship were preserved, even under the Apostacy of Antichrist, for the Woman was fed & nourished all the 1260 dayes, Rev. 12. 6, 14. therefore som… Fundamental Ordinances were preserved, though both the Worship and the Places have been much defiled with Superstition: but yet as we do not therefore reject the Worship of God, bec…use of those Abuses, so neither need we reject the Places, but should reform and retain both the one and the other, the Worship and Ordinances being necessary by virtue of Gods Institution, and the Places needful for the performance of the Worship. And the Super…titio…s abuse of them hath been taken off by publick Authority. …or the Great Parliament hath thus declared: As no Place is capable of any Holin…s, under pretence of whatsoever Dedication or Consecration, so neither is it subject to such Pollution by any Superstition formerly used, and now laid aside, as may render it unlawful or inconvenient for Christians to meet together therein for the publick Worship of God; and therefore we hold it requisite, that the places of publick Assembling for Worship amongst us, should be continued, and employed to that use. Neither indeed can they be destroyed without great and manifest hinderance and prejudice to the publick Worship of God, unless new ones be first built. And if they that plead for it will first erect new Meeting-places, that are every way better, and stronger, and more comely, and more capacious to contain large and numerous Assemblies, and more conveniently situated for the accommodation of all the people, I say, when this is done, they shall have my free consent to do what they please with the old ones. But if they will needs demolish them before new and better be built in their stead, the least that can be said to them in such a case, is that their Milk boyles over: if they have any true Zeal against Superstition, they had need take heed lest they run out of one extream into another, and lest they be acted by the spirit of the Mystery of Iniquity, and by the Subtilty and cunning Craft of Satan into gross Profaneness, upon pretence of avoiding Superstition.