Coln. 4. The do&irine o f thefabbatl, and Lords day, &c. Chap.;. a II ofthe week, and that the Apoftles publifhed and ordained it, not as_ordinary rulers and governours ofthe Church,, but as fpecial extraordinary legates of Chrift, lay order fromhim ; and therefore the Church now bath no power to alteti this day. This affertion follows upon theformer ; for ifthe fabbathwas inflituted by God be- fore the law, and didoblige allmankind , as we have fhewed already for the ef- fential part of it, asa dayofpublick worfhip and praife to the honourof the Creator, and that the ceremonial and fymbolical part by a typical reit from labour was that, which properly_ concerned the Jews, then it will neceffarily follow, that, the fab- bathonly in this latter refpe&expired at the deathof Chrift; and that the other part, which wasthe obfervation of the feventh day as a. day of publick ; praife in honour ofthe Creatour of all, having no reference to Chrift, (for wherein did the obfer- vation of a certain day for divineworfhip typifie Chrift or his benefits ?I but being ;grounded uponmoral reafons, andnot givenonly tà the Jews, oughtto; continue ítill, unleffe it were,altered by the fame authority, , to wit; divine ; and therefore the day being altereddefaEo, asappears by the perpetual praife öf the Chriftiati Church, to the firft day of the week,. it will clearly.follow , that this could be :done_by noleffe thendivineauthority,and to theobfervation of the Lords day maybe .truely faid to be ,yuredivino, as enjoyned by him who is Lord of the fabbath, and therefore had power to alter the day ; which he did by his Apoftles. Neither is it needful' (which force urge) that a clear precept of Chrift fhould be brought for this out ofthe New Teftament. If is fufficient, ifby neceffaryconfequence it can be deduced from Scripture : and though in matters of faith which are ofabfo- lute neceffity to falvatïon for all to know,' it may be granted, that they areall ex- preffed in fcripture ; yet for other natters that concern the difcipline,; -order and government, of the 'Church, it was not nécelfary to have them expreffed in writ- ing (thoughmany of them be occafionally mentioned) it was fufficient, that they might be known by the dailypra wife of the Church, wherein everyone might read them written in large and Capital letters which univerfal pradife and tradition of the Church in thefe mattershe thatfhall_deny or que&ion, may by the like reafon vide Hug. queftionthe authors and number of the books óf CanonicalScripture, andwhether 1,opaa un they were written by men divinely infpired, and fobyconfe uence mayqueftion the p.140,14 I. Si authority of the Scripture it felf, which is conveyed to us no otherwife, then by difcati spa'. theuniverfal and Catholick tradition of the Church. Befides.how dangerous is is, civets p r43, thatthe publick exercifeofChriftianreligion, fhould depend upon fo weak.a founda- 174. &c. Lim,as authority humane,sthich mayalter itsown constitutions,& is fubjeft tomani- fold errours,I leave to the prudent and judicious Chriftian to eonfrder.The Lords day thenI conceive tobe grounded upon divine authority, notonly in regard that all au- thorityis fromGod,and fodivine;for fo all humane laws might be faid to beby divine authority: for it is true which learned Breerewood faith,theremay be divine authority else ilbolt. for humane decrees:and as Molina faith well,Licet quaa regia & aleas legitimis ánferì, orib is ote atibus ritepracipiuntur f une de are pofitivoquod tarnen P o f q uam átá p.6g, tY isih cratì.deinttit, conflituta Punt pareatur, eft de jure divino, cum legitimo omnes poteflates a Deo 2. difp. 27 faut, Deique vices fuo ordine tenent, dumque álles obedemus, earumque precepta ferva- mas, Dea parecer in illis furemos, :Deique praceptum.& .yoluntatetx exequimur: though the commands ofKings andother inferióur, lawful powers are onlyby pofi- tive law, yet that their constitutions be obeyed is by divine law; for all lawful powers are from, God, . and are his Deputies in their order, fa that when we obey them, and keep theirCommandments, we do alloobey.God in them, and fulfill his will andCommandment. But I mean by divineauthority tharwhich is immediately divine in regard ofthe fubjeá, God, or Chrift himfelf, who ordained and appointed this day, though it were publifht to the world by the Apoftles, as the meffengers of Chrift, as theypublifht the Gofpel,and thole, things. for which they had cómmiffion fromChria. It is true thattheApoftles inftituted other things,as ordinary govern- ours of the Church, which are in themfelves,changeable, as cannot be denied, as their orders about widows, faintingwith aholy kiffe, and the like which are now antiquated. But that the Lords day was not of this latter fort, but of the former, befides the former reafons, which are stronger then any I have feen to the. contrary, spay be likewife evinced by the teftimonyof the Church, and of the most learned fihd elt inent Doftors of it in feveral ages, whole teftimony in Matters of fait, ands things
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=