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

Almost all our contentions and divisions are caused by the ignorance and injudiciousness of Christians; especially the most self-conceited. They are for the most as children, that yet need to be taught the very principles of the divine Oracles, and to be fed with milk, when they think themselves fit to be teachers of others. Heb. 5. 11, 12. And therefore as children they are tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, Eph. 4. 14. And when they have many years together been crying up an opinion, and vilifying dissenters, at last they turn to some other opinion, and confess that they did all this upon mistake. And was it not a pitiful life that they lived that while? and a pitiful zeal which did set them on? and a pitiful kind of worship which they thus offered to God? Alas to hear a man pray and preach up Antinomianism one year, and Arminianism the next, and Socinianism the next! To hear a man make Separation and Anabaptistry a great part of his business to men in preaching and to God in prayer for ⟨p. 213⟩seven and seven years together; and at last confess that all this was his error and his sin: (Or if he confess it not, it is so much the worse.) Is it not sad that ignorance and hasty rashness, should so much injure the Church and mens souls that so many well meaning people, should put evil for good and good for evil, darkness for light and light for darkness, Isa. 5. 20.

ALmost all our contentions and divisions are caused by the ignorance and injudiciousness of Christians; especially the most self-conceited. They are for the most as children, that yet need to be taught the very principles of the divine Oracles, and to be fed with milk, when they think themselves fit to be teachers of others. Heb. 5. 11, 12. And therefore as children they are tossed to and fro, and caried about with every wind of doctrine, Eph. 4. 14. And when they have many years together been crying up an opinion, and vilifying dissenters, at last they turn to some other opinion, and confess that they did all this upon mistake. And was it not a pitiful life that they lived that while? and a pitiful zeal which did set them on? and a pitiful kind of worship which they thus offered to God? Alas to hear a man pray and preach up Antinomianism one year, and Arminianism the next, and Socinianism the next! To hear a man make Separation and Anabaptistry a great part of his business to men in preaching and to God in prayer for