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74

on

the Excellency

of

Chrift.

what the meaning

is,

when

wee

fay, that

Chrift only can

make Lawes

for his

Church, and

Officers

for

his

Church.

Why

?

becaufe whatfoever

is

fpiritual,

it

mull bee

only

by

the Authority

of

Jefus Chrift,

this

great

King

of

his

Church.

6

And

then

Sixthly,

Chrift

is a

wonderful King

in this,

that

his Soveraignty

is

abfolute,

which

no

Kings

power

is;

though

they

have great power in

the world,

yet

they have

not

an

abfolute power to doe what they lift

;

and

certainly,

no

Sub;e6ts are

bound

fo

farre to the

humours

of men,

that

they

fhall

doe what they

lift

, there

is

no abfolute power

that

one

man

bath

over

another

;

but

the

power

that

Jefus

Chrift

bath

is

abfolute,

an

abfolute

Kingly power, his

Will it

is

the

Law;

no

mans

will in

the

World

is

fufficient to

be

a

law,

but the will of

this

King

it

is

fuflïcient.

7

And

then in the

Seventh

place,

bee

hath power

to bind

Confcience,

his

Laws are

fuch

as

lay

obligations and bonds

upon

the Confciences

of men;no Law that

would

be

made by

all

the

Angels

in

heaven could lay

bonds upon confcience,but

the

Law

only

of

Jefus

Chrift;

all

the

Lawes

that men can

make,

mu&

receive

their

power

and

authority efpecially from

the

end

of

them,

and therefore

if

they

fhould not conduce

unto that

end

for

which God

fets

up Magiftracy over

men,

that

is, for the

good

of the place, then

the rule vvill hold,

that if

there be

not

fcandal

or

contempt,

there

is

no obligati-

on upon

a

mans confcience, meerly

becaufe

it

is

the vvill of

man. But

now

the

Lawes of

Chrift,

vvhatfoever they are,

they lay bonds

upon

confciences,

and

if

I

doe offend

them

never

fo

fecretly,

I

fiand

as

guilty

before

the great God

;

and

that

is the feventh thing..

8

And then

in

the

Eighth

place,

Chrifts Kingly power

it

reaches

to

mens

hearts,

(I

muff

not

as

I

goe

along

enter into

the large

opening of any

thing

chat

may be controverfal, but

meerlyprefent vvhat

at large might be opened to

you

about

the

i(ingly

power

of

Chrift)

I

fay, Chrifts

Kingly

povver

is

vvonderful in this,

in

that

it

rules over the hearts

of men

as

well

as

their confciences

;

Chrift

by his

povver

is

able to

fubdue