Com.S. The Duties ofPa.fíors and People. Chap.. ;65 CHAP. ,VII. Of honouringSpiritual Fathers inthe Church. The excellency and welt)) of their Cal- ling. Fourforts ofMinifters in theChurch.. r. The Thief, 2. The Hireling, 3. The Wolf, 4. The good Shepherd; whofe Duties are, I. To be an example to bis fink. I. In himfelf, z. Inhis Family. Thepeoples Dutyanfaierable to this. 2. To ufe his ,talet{t for their good: Rules for Doiïrine andConverfation. The peoplesDuty, r, To Snow their own fhepherd, 2. Toobey and followhim, 3. Togive himdouble honour.; I. OfReverence, 2. OfMaintenance. AN D firft, of thole that are to inftrud andgovern the Church. Thefeare called Fathers. The "Apoftle calleth himfelf a Father. And fo they are callednot only r Cot. 4. IS: by the Church ofChrift; but by Micah an Idolater. He hired a Letiite to be a Father Judges 17.1o, and a Pried. The Idolatrous Tribe ofDan ufe the very fame words , they bid the re. rg- Levite to come and be their Father. Andbecaufe, as was Paid before, all Paternity it originally in God, and from him communicated to Chrift, whole Fatherhood towards the Church is no other but as he is the only Pried and Prophet of the new Teftament and becaufe God is foes Efay g. onenis boni, the fountain of an good ; therefore he mull needs have this property of goodnefs, tobeseoIpnr,n e, communicative, that others may partakeofhis ; and therefore he made the World by creating it at the firft , and not only fo, but by a fecond Creation renewed and reftored all by Chrift , into whom they that are myftically incorporated are admitted to that ;dam mront-redpa, that'celeftial City orCorporatión,where they Shall bepartakers ofall that goodnefs and glory,which is inGod. And God having purpofed to create the World for this purpofe , made it with threedivifions, or diftind places. I. Heaven to behis ßeseCstTbeeor, or place of re- ward. 2. Earth to be his ipyasñeter, a work hoofs. And thirdly Hell his haves?peror, or prifon. To the end that men exercifing themlelves here in this world,which is the workhou(e,according to the Grace received,and the Talent given them,might either be rewarded with eternal felicity in Heaven, or punifht with eternal miferyin Hell: So that the Earth being madefor a place of Exercife, and Heaven for a place ofRe- ward ; the World was made for the Church, and eonfequentlyall thofePaternities : the natural to beget a holySeed ; and the Oeconomical allo for Education, and this lait, the Fatherhood of the Prophets and Teachers in Schools and Univerfities , are all of them ordained to prepare and fit men for this Fatherhood in the Church, and for thefurthering of their paternal Power in the work of the Minifiry ; this being the principal Paternity,and other Fathers beingbut as pales and rails to the Church to keep all within their due bounds, thereby to let this work the better forward. For wemay fee, that the Apottle fetteth them in this order , all that Chrift did by Ephef. 4, ral his defcending,his paffion, &c. was to this end. Firft, to gather together the Saints, which was to be effected. Secondly, by the workpfthe Miniftry, by which they be- ing gathered, then cometh the third thing, which is, to buildthem up by faith, knows- ledg andvertue, as in verfi 13. they being,as S. Peter calls them, livingftones, and fo rae confequently they are tobe partakers of áuEaoit the growth or increafe till they come Pet, 2. 5. to the fulnefs of the ftature ofChrift, being joined together with Chrift the Head, here by the Spirit, and hereafter by petfed fruitionofhis prefence: And this was the chief and great work of all other, for which all others are ordained, for which Schoolswere founded, and the Miniftry ordained,and Common-wealths eftablifhed. Andtherefore Saint Paul faith, let no manglory in men, for aU thingsareyours, fpeak- ingof the Church, things prefent, andthings to come, &c." And you are Chrifts and t Cot. 3. sr, Chrift it Gods. 22 Thus we fee theInflitution, Ordination, and ( withal) the end ofthofe which rat be lawfully called to become Fathers in the Church, and what account we are to make of this Work, feting that Families, Schools, and Common- wealths were eflablifhed ; yea the whole World created for this, which is effected by thework ofthe Miniftery, the building upof the Church; And it is the want of due confr- aeratioxt
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