A26892:5645
A Christian Directory
A Christian directory, or, A sum of practical theology and cases of conscience directing Christians how to use their knowledge and faith, how to improve all helps and means, and to perform all duties, how to overcome temptations, and to escape or mortify every sin : in four parts ... / by Richard Baxter.A Christian directory, or, A summ of practical theologie and cases of conscience directing Christians how to use their knowledge and faith, how to improve all helps and means, and to perform all duties, how to overcome temptations, and to escape or mortifie every sin : in four parts ... / by Richard Baxter.
London: printed by Robert White for Nevill Simmons, 1673
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
§. 86. Direct. 9. Take heed of singularity, and narrowness of mind, and unacquaintedness with the 1former and present state of the Church and world. Men that are bred up in a corner, and never read nor heard of the common condition of the Church or world, are easily mislead into Schism, through ignorance of those matters of fact that would preserve them. Abundance of this sort of honest people that I have known, have known so little beyond the Town or Country where they lived, that they have thought they were very Catholic in their Communion, because they had one or two Congregations, and divided not among themselves. But for the avoiding of Schism, 1. Look (with pity) on the Unbelieving world, and consider that Christians of all sorts, are but a sixth part of the whole earth: And then 2. Consider of this sixth part how small a part the reformed Churches are: And if you be willing to leave Christ any Church at all, perhaps you will be loth to separate yet into a narrower party, which is no more to all the world, than one of your Cottages is to the whole Kingdom. And is this all the Kingdom on earth that you will ascribe to Christ? Is the King of the Church, the King only of your little party? Though his flock be but a little flock, make it not next to none: As if he c••e into the World on so low a design as the gathering of your sect only: The less his stock is, the more sinful it is to rob him of it, and make it lesser than it is: It is a little flock, if it contained all the Christians, Protestants, Greeks, Armenians, Abassines and Papists on the E••th. Be singular and separate from the unbelieving world, and spare not: And be singular in Holiness from Profane and nominal hypocritical Christians. But affect not to be singular in opinion or practice, or separated in Communion, from the universal Church, or generality of sound believers: or if you forsake some common error, yet hold still the Common Love and Communion, with all the faithful according to your opportunities. 3. And it will be very useful when you are tempted to separate from any Church for the defectiveness of its manner of Worship, to enquire how God is worshipped in all the Churches on Earth, and then consider, whether if you lived 23among them you would forsake Communion with them all, for such defects (while you are not forced to justify or approve them). 4.