Hozv far Jve may tt{e other mens Help or Forms. Q£eG:. 7 6. 1Joth not the Calling of a Minifter Jo conji/l in tlJe exercife of his owr1 Minifterial 6ifts , tlJat he may not officiate without them, 11or make rife of otl1er mens Gifts inftead of them ~ "Anfw. 1o '"T'He Office of the Minifiry is an Obligation and Autbority to do the Minificrial v;ork, ,1!- by thofc per[un,;l competen: 1bilities which God h:uh given us. 2. This obligation to ufc our own ahi.littP , forbiddc:th us not to make ufe of the helps, gifu and ttbilitits of othefs; either topromote our o-«A abHitiu and habit!, or to further us in the all or the cxcrcife of them. t'or, l· There is no f~.u:h prohibition in Scripture. 2· All men are infofficicm fOr rhemftlvcs; and Nilture and Scripture: require them to ufc the bell help they can get from others, 3· Gods fervice mufi be done in the beft manner we can. _But many Minifiers ·cannot do it fo well ( co1Jfideratit confiderandH) without other mens help as with it. 3· We may ufe other mens gifts to help us, I· For Matter, 2· Method, 3· Wordr, and fa for a' ahmfold form, of preaching or prayer. • 4• He that ufeth a Scripture form of Matter, Me~b~d or Tfl'ordJ, ufeth his. own abilitieJ no morC', than if he ufcd a form out of another Book. But tt IS lawful to ufc a Smpture form : Therefore it is lawful fo far to take in affifiancc in the ufc of our own abilities. 5· He that ufcth a form ufeth· his'""' abilitits ·alfo (not only perhapS at other rim.,, hui) in the ufe of it. He uferh his underftaHding to difccrn the true fenfe and aptitude of the words which he uferh : He ufeth his bol) Dtfim in ·putting up thofe pnycrs to God : And his other Graw, as he doth in other prayers. He ufeth his Vmranct in the apt and decent fpeaking of thctn. 6. A Minificr is not alwaye< hound to ufe his own gifts to the utmoft that he can, and other men< as little as he can. for, •· There is no fuch Command from God. 2. All things mufi be done to ihe Churches edification : But fomctimes the greater ufe of another mans gifts, and the Icfs ufe of his ow.n may be to the Churches greater edification. . ' Infiances of the lawful ufc of other mens gifts arc fuGh as tb&. I; for Matitr, an Abler Minifier may tell a young man what fubjceh arc fittell for him in preach· ing and prayer; and what is the fcnfe of the Scriptures which he is to open; and what is the true fa~ lution of feveral dooots and cat!:s. AMiniller thin is young, raw c:it ignorant, (yea, the bcfi ) may be a Le:uner while he is a Tcachrr: But he that is a Learner rnakcth ufe fo far of the gifts of others. And indeed all Teachers in the world make ufe of the gifts of others : For all te>eh what rhey learn from others. 2· For !vletbod; it is lawful to learn that as well as mtJitCr from another. Chrifi taught his Difciples a Mttbod of praytr: And other men may open that method to us. All Tutors teach their Pupils Met!Jod., well zs matter: for Metb,d is needful to the due underflanding &nd ufing of th~ Mdter. A Mabodof Divinity, a Methodof Preaching, and a Mtthod of Praying may be taug_hc aPreacher by word, and may be "rittcn or primed for his ufe. 3· For 1Yvrdt, 1. There is no more prohibition in Gods Word, againfi lcarnin_g or ufing another - mans TYord1, than hi5 Muhod or Matter. Therefore it is not unlawfal. 2. ATutor or Senior Mini~ £\er may teach the Scripture words to a Pupil ·or Junior Minifier; yea; and m~y fet them together and compofe him a Sermon. or Prayer out of Scripture in its words. ( For he: tha~ rtJay ufc: an ill-con:pofed ScriP:ture form of his own gathering , may ufe a wcll~compofcd form of anothcrs. ) 3• All tht Books in our Libraries are torms of words ; and it is lawful furc to ufe ft:A:le at all theft: worch which wc read ; or clfc our Books would be a fnare and limita.. tion to our Languagl.". 4· All Preachers ordinarily ufe Citations, TeHimonies, &c. in other mens words. 5· All Minifiers ufe Pf•lms in the Metre of other mens eompofing ( and ufu•lly lmpofing too). And there is no more prohibition againfi ufing other mens words in a Prayer, than in a Pfalm. 6. A.lmofi all Minillers ufe other mens gifts and form of words, in reading the Scriptures, in thci..r YHigar 'fongseet : For God did not write them by his Apofilcs and Prophets in Englijh, FrencH, Dutch, &c. but in Hebrew, Chalda and Greek: Therefore the wording them in Englith, &c. is a bumttne fOrm of wordJ: And few Miniilers think they are bound to ttanflate all the Bible themfclves, left they ufc other mens words or abilities. 7· If a young Minifter that can pray bUt weakly, heat more apt txpuffions and fentenccs in another Miniftcts prayers, than his own are, he m1y afterward make ufe of thofe fentences and exprdlions. And if of one fentence, why not of two or ttn, whc:n God harh not forbidden it' So alfo in preaching. 8. It is lawful to read another mans Epifiles or Sernions in the Church, as the primitive Churches did by Cltmtntt and fome otherS. 9· An im'po!i~ ricn may he fo Je:rcrc, that we !hall not ufe our own wordt, unlefs wc will ufe fame of other muu. to. All Churches almoft in the world, have confented in the ufe ofCreeds, Confeffions, and Prayers, and Pfalms in the words of others. BU:t yet I• No Minifier mull: on thefe pretences flifle his own gifts, and grow negligent; 2. Nor confent to Chur,h-tyranny or Papal ufurpations; 3.Nor do that whiCh tendeth to eat out teriouliu:fs in 11 the Woriliip of God, and turn all into dead Imagery or formality. · Q:!e£1.
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