The cure of church-divisions, or, Directions for weak Christians to keep them from being…

Fourthly, The Unity of Christians is their secondary strength: Their primary strength is Christ and the Spirit of grace which quickeneth them: And their secondary strength is their Union among themselves: Separation from Christ depriveth men of the first; and separation from one another depriveth them of the second. An Army is stronger than a man: And a Kingdom than a single person: A flame will burn more strongly than a spark: And the waves of the Ocean are more forcible than a single drop. A threefold Cord is not easily broken. Therefore it is that weak Commonwealths do seek to strengthen themselves by confederacies with other States. The Church is likened to an Army with Banners; both, for their Numbers, their Concord, and their Order. And therefore Christ saith that a Kingdom divided cannot stand. Union is the Churches strength: And what good soever they may pretend, Dividers are certainly the weakeners and destroyers of the Church: And as those means which best corroborate the body, and fortify the spirits, do best cure many particular diseases, which no means would c•re whilst nature is debilitated: So are the Churches ⟨p. 70⟩diseases best cured, by uniting fortifying remedies, which will be increased by a dividing way of Reformation: Dividing is wounding, and uniting is the closing of the wound.

Fourthly, The Unity of Christians is their secondary strength: Their primary strength is Christ and the Spirit of grace which quickeneth them: And their secondary strength is their Vnion among themselves: Separation from Christ depriveth men of the first; and separation from one another depriveth them of the second. An Army is stronger than a man: And a Kingdom than a single person: A flame will burn more strongly than a spark: And the waves of the Ocean are more forcible than a single drop. A threefold Cord is not easily broken. Therefore it is that weak Commonwealths do seek to strengthen themselves by confederacies with other States. The Church is likened to an Army with Banners; both, for their Numbers, their Concord, and their Order. And therefore Christ saith that a Kingdom divided cannot stand. Union is the Churches strength: And what good soever they may pretend, Dividers are certainly the weakeners and destroyers of the Church: And as those means which best corroborate the body, and fortifie the spirits, do best cure many particular diseases, which no means would c•re whilst nature is debilitated: So are the Churches