'DireEtions for right Obedimce. 35 -~,.....T~k;h';;d'~;.-i·~~ the Mag.ifiratcs power tO the Clergy, and [erring up Secular. Coercive power s,e .Bi![1'1 of under the name of the power of the Keys: And it had been happy for the Church if God had per- S•bJetl.p.f•f• fwadcd Magifirates in all ages to ha.ve kept the Sword in their own hands, _and not have put it into ll. 6 • lh7#" theClergies hands, to fulfill their wills by: For, x. By this means the Clergy had efcaped the odium ~ft:y, ~i~~, of ufurparion and domineering., by which atheifiical Politicians, would make Religion odious to Ma- cb.tc Pa1lors giih•atts for their fakes. 2· And by thismeansgreater uniry had been prefcrved in the Church, while m.ty ufc no one fad-ion is not armed with the Sword to tread down the reil : For if I?ivines contend only by dint ~;rc,e h:r t~~:Y of Argument, when they have taikt them[elves an~ others aweary they w1ll havedone: But when they pcrfwali.on, to go ro it with dint of Sword, it fo ill becometh them, that it fddom dorh good, but the parry ofren recover. their rhat trufkth ltafi to their Reafon, mufi ddlroy the other, and make cheir caufe good by Iron argu~ w:udermg rnenrs. 3· A1~~.rhen the Rom~fh Cle.rgy _had not'been armed .agai1~fi Princes to th~ terrible concuffi~ 2:lj!~. ibid. p. ons of thLChntban world, wh1ch H!ilunes at brge relate; tf Prmces had not firfi lenc them the r 41 , l'Jth.t– Sword which they turned againfl them. 4• And then. Church D.fcipline would have been better up- men:s h1ve derllood, and have been more effeClual; which is corrupted and turned to another thing and fo been ~ept by caH out when the Sword is ukd int\ead of the Keys, under pretence of making it effcd:u41: None ~he 8K111~ a~d but Conftnters arc capable of Church-communion: No man can be a Chrifiia~, nor Godly, nor Caved dergl;':;J~,~Ii~ againfi his will: And therefore Conftnters and V.olumeers only are capable of Church·diCcipline: As cxdud ...d, :~nd a Sword will nor make a Sermon ctfectual, no more will it make Difcipline dfcC!ual ; which is but yet then AEh the m11nagemcnt of Gods \Vord to work upon the confcience. So fa.r as men are to be driven by the :::~ar~~d Sword to the ufe of mranJ, or rcfiralned from offLiing injury to Religion, the J\1agifirate himfelf is when the Si-. fittefi ro do it. It is noted by Hitloriins as the di{honour of Cyrill of Alexa11dri.J ( though a fa. thops were . mous BiChop ) that he was the firll Bi010p that like aMagifiute ufed theSword there , and ufed via~ pr~fenr, thm lcnce againH Ht:rericks and diffcnters. · ;b~(CC:o~~~:n to this day were neVer NcgJtive. By Gods bw you h:lVe ntthir.g to do with making laws, for Kingdoms an.l Common-wc:tlths: You may teach: you may not cvmm..tnd: Pcrfwalion is your pm, Compu:fion is tbe l'rimes, (?(, Thus Bifhop Bitfon. Sop. 35S. 5• Above all, abufe not the name of Religion for the refifiance of your lawful Governours : Rdi– gion muf\ be dcftnded and propagated by no irreligious means. lr is eafic before you are aWJre, to catch the fea.vor of fllCh a paffionate zeal as Jamt'l and J obn had, when they would have had tire from Heaven to confume the rcfufcrs and refilters of the Gofpd: And then you will think that any thing almoft is lawful, which doth but feem necdTuy to the profperiry ofRdigion. But no means but thofe of Gods allowance do ufe to profper, or bring home tha< which men expect : They may {ttm to do wonders for a while, but they come to nothing in the latter end, and fpoil the woril, and leave all worfe than it was before. · ~.101. Dirrct. 40. '1akJ hted of mijlai(!ng tht naturt of that Liberty of tiJt ptoplt, which i< tr~tly Dirt/1. 40. valuable and dcfirable, and of contending for an undefir.Jble Liberty itt itJ jle.Jd, It is ddirable to have r Pet.:. 16. Liberty to Jogood, and to poffefi our own, and enjoy Gods merciu, and Jive i;' peace : Bur it is not G;t. 5· 13· dcfirablc to have Li~erty ro fin, and abufe one ano_rher, and hin~er r~e <?Gtpei, and conte~n our Go~ ~al.t4\:f.· verr.ours: Some m1fiake Liberty for Government tt felf; and think lt 1s the peoples L1berty to be 2. Cor. 3 • 17. Governours : And fome miHake Liberty for tm exemption from Govermncnt, and think they are mojf fru , when they are rnofi "ngovertted, and may do what their lill: : But this is a mifery, and not a merq, and therefore was n~ver purchafed for us by Chrifi. Many dtfire fcrvirude and calamiry under the name of liberty : Optima eft Rtipublic.e forma, faith SeHtca, ubi nulla Libtrtas dee{t, nifi li· centia prreundi. As Mr. R. Hoo~er hith, Lib. 8. p. 195· [I am not ef npinion, that fimply !n KingJ tht Mojl, but tht Bcjllimittd power is btjl, both for them a11d tht ptople: '1ht Mojl limittd is that wbich m•y deal in [twrft things: the bcjl, that which in dtaling is tytd to tht {oundtjl, ptr[e/Jrfl and mojl indifferent Rule, which Rule i1 the Law: I mettn not only the Law o{Natttrt and of God, but the Na:ion,J Law confonant thereunto: Happirr that people wbofe Law is their King in the greatrft thing1, than that ww•[< King is him[elf their Law.] Yet no doubt, but the Law·givers are tH fuch above the Law as an Authoritative inflrumfnt of Government~ but under it, as a man is under the obligati011 of his own Confent and 1Yord: It ruleth fubjrds in the former fenfe: It bindeth the fummam Pottftattm in the later. 9·102. DireCt. 41. 1?hen you have done all that yo~t. can in juft obediencr, look.. for your rcwJ.rd Direa. 4 r. from God 11lom: Let it fat isfie you that he knoweth and approveth your fincerity. You make it a holy work. if you do it toplta{t G,d: and you will be fixed and confiant, if you take Heaven for your Reward, (which is enough, and will not fail you ) : But you make it but a fdfi(h carnal work !f you do ir only t? P.ltafo your.Governoun, or get preferment, or efcape forne hurt which they ma; do you, and are {ubJCd only m flattery, or for fear of wrath, and not for confcience fake. And fuc.h obedi,ence is uncerc•in a11d unconflant : For when you fail of your hopes, or think Rulers deal unJullly or unthankfully with you, your fubjedion will be turned into p;~ffionate defires of revenge. Remember flill the example of your Saviour, who fuffc:red death as an enemy to C£[ar, when he had never failtd of h1~ duty to much as in one thought or word. And are you betrer than your Lord a!ld Mafier? If God be All to you, and you ha.ve laid up all your hopes in Heaven, it is then but lttt~e of your conccrnmcnt~ ( further than God is concerned in it) whether Rulers do ufe you well or 1ll, and whether they interpret your aChons rightly, or what they take you for, or how they ~·n. you: But it is your conccrnm.cm that God account you Loyal , and will judge you fo, and Ju{hfic you from mo::ns accu1~uions o{ diiloya.lty, and reward you with more than man can give you.
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