Gospel reconciliation, or, Christ's trumpet of peace to the world

USE. 1.

If God then thus honours it, and puts this honour upon ⟨p. 426⟩it, O! let us all honour old age, let there be a reverent carriage of you towards them let them see the work of Godline•• the fruit of Godliness, especially governors in in their servants, parents in their Children, that they may see that since they were more godly, they have more reverence to old age, Advise with them, be willing to be guided by them, and yet not so far as to give so much unto age, as to make it to be a rule of actions, as to be led into any error by it. When antiquity is pleaded for that which is not truth, it is but the very mould (as it were) of error, many men when they are (as it were) mired in their error, and know not how to get out, especially in way of dispute, then they will seek to help themselves by antiquity as we read of Jeremiah when he was put into the mire, they put old rotten rags under his arm-holes to lift him up, so many being plunged in disput, when they have nothing else to say, they think to get together old rotten rags of antiquity, no true antiquity, for that is antiquity that is according to the first original of all antiquities meus Jesus Christus saith Ignatius, and Chrysostom saith, Christ said not that I am custom, but that I am the truth. There is a great deal of power I confess in old age, for to prevail with the younger sometimes in that that is evil, and in this sense the holy-ghost bids us call no man father, no man must be called Father, to have the authority, to be a rule of our actions against the truth; we have a notable story in the 1. Rings. 13.11. of the prophet that God charged not to return back again the same way he came, and when he came to the Court, not to stay, nor eat in that place, but when he came to the Court, then they laboured to persuade with him that he would return, that he would stay and eat, and he could easily put off a company of young gallants at Court, but when he came unto the old prophet, Now there dwelt an old prophet in Bethel, (saith the text) and this old prophet he comes