Discourse Previous to the Ordination of Joseph Sewell, Discourse
A DISCOURSE, To Prove that ORDINATION By the Hands of the Presbitery, Is Valid and Regular According to Divine Institution.
THIS Audience cannot but be Sensible that the design of this Solemn Assembly is to Seperate One to the Service of GOD in the Ministry of the Gospel of his dear SON, by Solemn Prayer, and the Imposition of the Hands of the Presbytery. And I cannot but apprehend it proper and Seasonable to preface this Solemnity with some brief Account of the Nature of the present Sacred Action, and of the Grounds on which we apprehend that we regularly according to Gospel Rule are attending on it. And this I shall endeavour to do with all due deference to the Godly and Learned, who may see things in another light; and without offence to any, unless such as are for stretching or cutting all men to their own Measure. This Account I at present apprehend necessary, as we are Accountable peculiarly for such publick Actions to GOD and Man.
I shall proceed herein gradually, in these steps,
I. It is not to be disputed but that Christ has appointed a standing Gospel Ministry in his Church, to continue to the Consummation of all things. It was not a Temporary Constitution, but a Standing Ordinance, that there should be in all Ages of the Church an order of men to represent his Person, publish his Laws, exhibit the Promises, and administer Seals and Censures. This seems evident to a Demonstration, from the Promise of Christ's Presence to be with his Ministers to the End of the World, Math. 28.20. In that the Reason of such an Institution of Men to this Service will continue. Their work will: The Lords Supper is to be administer'd till Christ shall come: Christ's Church needs such Ministrations: for the Seculum Spiritus Sancti, such a Dispensation of the Spirit as shall supercede the Use of Ministry and Ordinances, is not to be expected till Christ shall come in the Clouds, when the Lamb himself shall be the Light and Glory. Agreeably we have the End and Duration of the Gospel Ministry stated, Eph. 4.12, 13. For the perfecting of the Saints, till we all come to the Unity of the Faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the Stature of the fulness of Christ.
II. It is most evident that those who are to serve God in the Ministry of his Gospel, must be duely Authorized to discharge the Office of a Gospel Minister. This Honour no man must take to himself but they that are called. The Apostles Interrogation implies a vehement Assertion; Rom. 10.14. How can one preach unless he be sent? God has not left this Work of the Ministry in common, but within a Sacred Inclosure, which can't be broke over without the Efforts of a Corah-like Spirit.
Now We are to observe two things necessary in Ordinary cases to intitle any to the power of the Ministerial Office; viz. The Power it self, and the Investiture whereby they are regularly authorized to the Exercise of that Ministerial power.
These must be distinguish'd; for want of which confusion follows. The Power comes alone from the Head of the Church, by his Commission given in the Gospel to all Ministers. The Investiture is only requisite unto the regular Exercise of that power which is given by Christ's Commission. And the Distinction may be Illustrated by paralel Cases among men. Thus particularly the Mayor of a City, his Power is one thing, and his regular Introduction into the Exercise of it, another. The people or Burgesses ele…; the Recorder or Steward gives him his Oath; but none of these confer the power, but only … the particular Person who receives his power from the Prince alone, by the Charter of the P…ce.
So in the Case before us, — The whole power of a Gospel Minister is from Christ: for that Charter in the Gospel in which he institutes such an Order of men states their Work, and qualifications, and appoints what power shall belong to their Office. And it is not in the power of any men to institute a new Office. They can't alter their Work, nor require other Qualifications than what Christ has stated: for that wou'd be to encroach upon the Authority and Governing Wisdom of Christ, the great Lawgiver of the Church.
And hence it follows, that it is not the Intention of the Ordainers that can determine what power a Gospel Minister is invested with. When he is introduced into the Office, he has all the powers that by the Gospel belongs to that Office. For the Minister is not of Men; tho' by Men; as those that invest regularly with that Authority.
Now the Investiture is by Persons authoriz'd by Christ hereto; whose Business only is designare personam, to signify that the Person offering himself to the Ministry has Gospel qualifications for it, and being willing to Dedicate himself to it, and having Opportunity for the exercise of it, is Commissioned by Christ, approved as such, charged and commended to the Grace of God. They declare according to the Grace of the Gosspel, it is the Will of Christ the great Lawgiver of the Church, that the Person Ordained should officiate in the Sacred Function, and be under the solemn Bonds and Obligations, & endowed with all the Priviledges and Power that belong to the Office. The Person thus qualified has a Right before: A right to be admitted, — and the Investiture can't be deny'd him. It is not at the pleasure of men to deny it.
This Investiture is received in Ordination, performed according to Scripture precept and precedent. And no man, how qualified soever for the Work, can regularly exercise this right & power in ordinary Cases (I meddle not with Cases of Necessity) till he is regularly Introduced into the Ministry and Invested. Now according to Gospel Order a Minister receives his Investiture by being separated to this Work by the Imposition of Hands and solemn Prayer, by which he is commended to the Grace of God: Which Separation by the approved Ceremony is to be performed regularly only by such as Christ has given a right and power thus to separate and ordain to the Ministerial Office.
Here therefore these three things are necessary,
1. Solemn Prayer, by which the Presence of God with them, and his Acceptance of the Ordained, is implored. So we find Paul and Barnabas were recommended to the Grace of God, Acts 13.2.
2. Imposition of Hands, which is a Sacred Ceremony used in the setting a Person apart for the Discharge of a Sacred Office. This Ceremony we find used in Scripture on various Occasions. 1. As a Rite of Benediction. So Jacob used it when he blessed Ephraim and Manasseh. And so our Saviour on the Children when he blessed them. Sometimes in Conferring Miraculous Gifts of the Holy Ghost. Sometimes for working, Miraculous Cures. But chiefly as a Rite of Consecration, whereby a person was dedicated to the Exercise of a Function, which immediately related to the Service of God. So Moses laid his hands on Joshua before the whole Congregation, and gave him a Charge, Numb. 27.23. So the Apostles used it in Ordaining Deacons, Acts 6.6. So Paul and Barnabas had hands laid on them, when separated to the Work, to which God had called them. And so Timothy was separated, 1 Tim. 4.14.
This was not borrowed from the Ceremonies of the Tabernacle or Temple; for the Priests were not consecrated by that Ceremony; but from the Synag…e, where their Doctors and Teachers were set apart to their Work by Imposition of Hands. And there is an admirable Conformity between the Synagogue, and the Constitution of Christian Churches; as may be seen in Blondel, Vitringa, Dr. Lightfoot, Stillingfleet, and Basnage. However this Ceremony is now Introduced into the Christian Church, and it is requisite in the Ordinary Separation of a Person to the Work of the Ministry, and may not be despised or neglected without Sin. And hence we have Gospel Examples of its Use, and the whole of Ordination is sometimes expressed by i…. So 1 Tim. 5.22. Lay hands suddenly on no man.
3. The third thing requisite in an Orderly Separation to the Ministry is, That this Investiture be made by those that have Authority from Christ to Ordain. Which Power of Ordination must come from Christ. And such as have not a Right inherent in their Office to Ordain, may not presume to do it. For as it is Christ's Will manifested that tells Us who shall be Ordained, so who shall have power to Ordain. This is therefore necessary to a regular Investiture in the Ministerial Office, that it be performed by such as have been delegated by Christ to this Work.
Now here the Great Question is, Who these are? And this will be consider'd under the next Assertion, to which we pass,
III. That we cannot but Apprehend that according to the Will of Christ, Gospel Presbyters or Elders, the Ordinary standing Ministry of the Gospel, who have Power to preach and dispence the Sacraments, have power to Ordain, and admit Persons suitably qualified and called into the Ministerial Office.
Now the Grounds on which we build this Assertion are, — That we are satisfied that we have Scripture light to direct Ordinary Ministers in Ordaining — That we have nothing in Primitive or later Antiquity but what may be reconciled hereto, and much to confirm this Practice, — That there are no Pleas we can find against it which appear of sufficient force to invalidate it — And that there will certainly great Inconveniences and Mischiefs to the Church of God follow from a denyal of this power to Ordinary Presbyters.
Something I shall offer to each of these,
I. We are satisfied that by Scripture light the Ordinary Ministers or Presbyters have power to invest others with Ministerial Authority. And from Scripture we have such Reasons as these to confirm our Assertion.
1. Presbyters or the Ordinary Ministers of the Gospel appear to have this Power, in that the Commission of Christ, by which any that are supposed of a Superior Order Degree or Character do ordain, doth certainly belong to them.
They that have power to ordain must have it from Christ, by his Commission. Where now shall we find this Commission? We must look to the Time after Christs Resurrection; for before there was no Officers appointed, nor any Christian Churches gathered. Now there are two Places which are pleaded to contain this power of Ordination, not expresly but implicitly. John 20.21, 23. As my Father hath sent me, even so send I You: Whose soever Sins ye remit, they are remitted to them. The other is, Math. 28.19, 20. Go t…ach all Nations, baptising them, &c. And …o I am with you always, even unto the End of the World, Am…n. Now these belong equally to Presbyters or Gospel Ministers. It is by this they Baptise, Preach, &c. and by these the Opponents to our Assertion do assert the power of Presbyters to remit and retain Sins. Now if the Commission belongs to 'em it must belong to 'em in its full power, unless Christ has limited them. And this Limitation we demand. If Christ hath not limited, none else have power to limit their Comission. Either therefore they have by this Commission no power to Baptise and administer the Lords Supper, or they have power to Ordain. For the power of an Office must be taken from the Commission which impowers to the Discharge of it.
And this is owned by Several of a great Character and name in the Establish'd Church of our Nation. So Dr. Forbes in his Discourse of Episcopa…y says, that Presbyters have the same power to Ordain by Divine Right, as to preach and baptise. And Dr. Charlton in his Treatise of Jurisdiction says, The power of Order is given alike by Christ to all Bishops and Priests in their Consecration. So Dr. Field of the Church. And it was a Celebrated Saying of Dr. Usher, that Ordinis est Ordinare. Presbyters therefore having the power of Order, have the power of Ordination.
2. A second Reason is, Because we cannot find in Scripture the Institution of any standing Officer in the Church of a Superior Degree or Order to that of Elders, or Ministers of a particular Flock.
We read indeed of Apostles, Evangelists, Prophets; but these were Extraordinary Offices, endowed with extraordinary powers, and had an extraordinary Call. But these ceased with the extraordinary Circumstances of the Church of God, which then called for them.
Bishops and Presbyters do in Scripture evidently appear the same. Were Bishops of a Superior degree or Office we must surely discover it by distinct Names or by distinct Qualifications requir'd of them, or by different Work assign'd them; by a different Commission given them, or by different Ordination and Consecration. But we find nothing of this upon Scripture Record. The same Office and Officers are promiscuously styled Bishops or Elders, So Acts 20.28. The Elders of Ephesus are termed Bishops: Take heed to the Flock over which the Holy Ghost hath made you Overseers: i e. Bishops, in the Original. So the Elders of Philippi are called Bishops, Philip. 1.1. Now these must be Elders and not Bishops, because there could not be more than One Bishop in a Church according to the Scheme of our Opponents. Moreover, The same qualifications are required: See Titus 1.5—9. the same Work is assign'd to them: the Elders are to take the Oversight of the Flock and to do the Work of a Bishop: 1 Pet. 5.1, 2. The Elders which are among you, I exhort, — feed ye the Flock of God which is among you, taking the Oversight thereof, — not as Lords over God's Heritage, but being Ensamples to the Flock. The word is Episcopountes. Again, We find no difference in their Commission, Consecration or Ordination. We have a Directory for the Ordination of Elders in every Church, Tit. 1.5. But none for the Consecration of Bishops to a Superior Office. Nay we want a Scripture Canon for any ordinary standing Officer to rule Presbyters. And we have no shadow of a Command to them to subject themselves to any standing Superior Degree or Order of Officers.
So that we can't but conclude Scripture Bishops and Elders to be of the same Order and Degree in the Church; and that either there is no Elder as a Minister of a particular Flock, or no Bishop as Superior to an Elder. And this made Dr. Hammond say, "There were no Presbyters of an Inferior Order instituted by the Apostles: and Dr. Stilling…leet on the Contrary, "That there were no Bishops during the Apostles life. And a Superior Officer without an Inferior under him, or an Inferior without a Superior over him, comes to one and the same. And if there be no Officer Superior to Ministers, then Ministers have the Authority to Ordain, if there be any.
3. Another Reason is, Because they that have Authority to exercise the power of the Keys, and are consequently Rulers in God's Houshold, have the power of Ordaining Ministers. But the Ordinary Ministers of the Gospel have the Keys committed to them. It is universally acknowledged, they have the Key of Doctrine; but how, or by what Rule, can that be separated from the Key of Jurisdiction.
The full power of the Keys was committed to the Apostles, and must be transmitted to all Gospel Elders. Unless some Divine Canon may be produced to divide them.
There are Rulers in the Church of Christ: A power to bind and loose: Qualifications for Government are required: the feeding the flock comprehends Government in it: Submission is required to them that rule, Heb. 13.17. Obey them that have the Rule over you, and submit your selves, for they watch for Your Souls, as they that must give Account. And we can find no Elders but what have the power of Rule.
4. We can't but apprehend their power of Ordination from Scripture Precedents. I shall name two famous Instances. Paul and Barnabas were set apart by the hands of Ordinary Elders: Acts 13.1, 2, 3. So was Timothy ordained by the Imposition of the Hands of the Presbytery: 1 Tim. 4.14. And what was then valid is now. So that if we err, it is safest erring with such Guides.
Upon the whole, If Scripture be the Rule then we can't but safely conclude for the Right of Presbyters, or Ordinary Gospel Ministers, to Ordain Others into that holy Function without Intrusion, or Encroachment upon the Prerogative of any other Degree or …der of men; or any breach upon any Canon truly Divine or Apostolical.
II. We find much in Antiquity, Primitive and later, that favours this power of Presbyters; and nothing but what may be reconciled to it. Tho' our Cause is not to stand at this Tribunal: We have a more sure Rule to judge by. Yet here we meet with what confirms our Assertion. Clemens Romanus and Polycarp mention only two Orders of Officers as of Divine Institution; viz. Bishops or Elders, and Deacons. Jerom and Hil…y are on our side by the consent of all. And where he speaks of Ordination as the peculiar of the Bishop, he speaks what was according to Constitution Ecclesiastical. And we have Evidence that in Alexandria for two hundred Years only Presbyters appointed any unto the Sacred Office.
It must be acknowledged that Early there was a distinction between Bishops and Presbyters. But this at first was not greater than between a Moderator of a Council and the rest of the Presbytery of which it is Constituted.
Ignatius his Authority doth not move us, because his Bishop was certainly but a Pastor of a single Congregation; and his Presbyters not the Ministers that had the care of different Flocks, but Assistants to the Bishop in one and the same Flock▪ In that also he asserts "That his Presbyters did succeed into the Bench of the Apostles, and as such are to be regarded and submitted to. Not to say, how much reason we have to question whether his Epistles are genuine.
Afterwards the Superior power of Bishops was fixed by Councils, and by common Agreement. We find sufficient in Canonists, Councils and Schoolmen to give us to understand, that this Limitation of the Power of Presbyters was not owing to Divine Institution, but to Ecclesiastical Constitutions: with what warrant I leave.
If we come to the time of the Reformation we find it as clear as the Light that the Reformers were for an inherent power in Elders to Ordain. The Judgment of the forreign Churches of the Reformed is evident from the Harmony of their Confessions, which assert an Equality in all Gospel Ministers. The sense of the Protestant Churches of the German Empire may be well known from those Articles called the Smalcaldic; in which the Equality of Ordaining power by Divine right is asserted to belong to Presbyters; which was subscribed by three Electors, Forty five Noblemen, the Consuls and Senators of Thirty five Cities, and a vast Number of Divines. At Home in our Nation, the Reformers asserted the same Equality of power by Divine right. We have Dr. Cranmer's Judgment for it given by Dr. Stillingfleet: and in the Book called the Erudition of the Christian Man, which was drawn up by the Body of the Clergy, approved by both Houses of Parliament, and publish…d by the Kings Command, it is asserted That Priests and Bishops by God's Law are one and the same; and that the power of Ordination belongs Equally to both. I shall only add, that when the three Scottish Bishops came to be Consecrated in the days of Arch-Bishop Bancroft, the Motion for their being first Ordained Priests, because they had never received Episcopal Ordination, was over-rul…d for this Reason, because Priests had the power of Ordination.
We stand therefore with the Reformed, in asserting our own Ord…ining Power.
III. We cannot see sufficient Strength in any Pleas alledged against Ordination by Presbyters, without a Superior Officer.
It is pleaded that the Seventy were subbordinated to the Apostles; and that Bishops succeed to the Apostles, and Presbyters to the Seventy. But this appears to us only asserted, not proved; nor as we think can be; for the Apostles were Extraordinary Officers, unfixed, and had no Successors, as is made good by Dr. Barrow in his Discourse of the Popes Supremacy. Nor can we find the Seventy subjected to them; but rather that they had the same Commission: Their Mission also seems but for a season, and we hear no more of them after Christs Resurrection and Ascention and therefore they have no Successors.
It is pleaded that Timothy and Titus had as Bishops a Superiority over Presbyters. But we find them no where styled so in the Word of God; and the Superiority they had was as they were Extraordinary Officers, and not as fixed Bishops. For we are assured that they did not fix their Abode in the Places where they … said to be Bishops. We find them both in other Cities, and carrying on the some Work. And we find several Bishops of Ephesus together, while Timothy was alive, Acts 20.28. And tho' Timothy in Ephesus and Titus in Crete had the Power of Ordination, yet there appears nothing to restrain the Stated Elders of those Places from the Exercise of the like power.
It is pleaded, that the Bishops that ordained Elders did not commit to them ordaining Power. But we see no weight in this: If they were Ordained to the Offi…e of Gospel Ministers, and the power of that Office is not to be determined by the Intention of the Ordainers, but by the Powers granted by Christ unto such an Office.
It is pleaded, That the want of a lineal Succession in a direct line from the Apostles, doth wholly subvert the power of Subordinate Presbyters to Ordain. But we cannot be moved by this; partly because we believe there is no necessity of such a Succession; partly because we are satisfied that the Ordination of no one Minister on Earth can be thus made evident; and because the same way that others make good that they themselves are in the Line of Succession, Presbyters may prove that they are equally in it. But we dare not put the Regularity and much less the Validity of our Ministry upon such an uncertain foundation.
IV. We cannot but apprehend manifest Inconveniences, nay Mischiefs to the Church of God, by denying this power of Ordination to all true Ministers of the Gospel. I shall mention two.
1. If we deny that power, we must conclude that the main part of the Churches of the Reformation have no regular or Lawful Ministers, nor regular Ordinances, And we cannot pass a Judgement so rash and severe.
2. Then also we must conclude, that when Churches are overun with the greatest Heresies and Idolatry there can be no Reformation unless the Ministers of an Episcopal Character lead therein. For if they reform without them, they will lose all regular power to propogate the Ministerial Order. And this is a Thought so big with shocking Conclusions that we can on no terms be reconciled to it.
Upon all these Accounts we are satisfied, that Ordination by the Hands of the Presbytery is valid and regular according to Divine Institution: And we trust that we have found the Presence of God with us herein, and with our Ministers thus Separated to the service of the Gospel: And therefore we hope at this time to enjoy his Presence and Blessing in the present Solemnity, in which we shall now engage in his Name and Fear.
FINIS.
End of the text · Ebenezer Pemberton, Discourse Previous to the Ordination of Joseph Sewell (1718)