A26932:553
Gildas Salvianus: The Reformed Pastor
Gildas Salvianus, the reformed pastor showing the nature of the pastoral work, especially in private instruction and catechizing : with an open confession of our too open sins : prepared for a day of humiliation kept at Worcester, Decemb. 4, 1655 by the ministers of that county, who subscribed the agreement for catechizing and personal instruction at their entrance upon that work / by their unworthy fellow-servant, Richard Baxter ...Gildas Salvianus, the reformed pastor shewing the nature of the pastoral work, especially in private instruction and catechizing : with an open confession of our too open sins : prepared for a day of humiliation kept at Worcester, Decemb. 4, 1655 by the ministers of that county, who subscribed the agreement for catechizing and personal instruction at their entrance upon that work / by their unworthy fellow-servant, Richard Baxter ...
London: printed by Robert White for Nevil Simmons, 1656
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.
SECT. X.
6. THE next branch of my Exhortation is, that you would maintain your Christian and brotherly Unity and Communion, and do as much of Gods work as you can in unanimity and holy concord. Blessed be the Lord that it is so well with us in this County in this regard as it is. We lose our Authority with our people when we divide. They will yield to us when we go together, who would resist and contemn the best of us alone.
Two things in order to this I beseech you to observe. The first is, that you still maintain your meetings for communion: Incorporate, and hold all Christian correspondency; Grow not strange to one another; Do not say, that you have business of your own to do, when you should be at any such meeting or other work for God. It is not only the mutual edification that we may receive by Lectures, disputations or conferences (though that's not nothing) but it is specially for consultations for the common good, and the maintaining of our Communion, that we must thus assemble. Though your own person might be without the benefit of such meetings, yet the Church and our common work requireth them. Do not then show your selves contemners or neglecters of such a necessary work. Distance breedeth strangeness, and fomenteth dividing flames and jealousies, which Communion will prevent or cure. It will be our enemies chiefest plot to divide us that they may ⟨p. 286⟩weaken us: conspire not with the enemies, and take not their course. And indeed Ministers have need of one another, and must improve the gifts of God in one another: and the self-sufficient are the most deficient, and commonly proud and empty men. Some there be that come not among their brethren to do or receive good, nor afford them any of their assistance in consultations for the common good, and their excuse is only we love to live privately. To whom I say, why do you not on the same grounds forbear going to Christ, and say You love to live privately? Is not Ministerial Communion a duty, as well as common-Christian Communion? and hath not the Church always thought so, and practised accordingly? If you mean that you love your own ease or commodity better then Gods service, say so and speak your minds. But I suppose there are few of them so silly as to think that is any just excuse, though they will give us no better. Somewhat else sure lieth at the bottom. Indeed some of them are empty men, and afraid their weakness should be known, when as they cannot conceal it by their solitariness, and might do much to heal it by Communion: some of them are careless or scandalous men: & for them we have no desire of their Communion, not shall admit it, but upon public Repentance and Reformation.