A57976:270
A peaceable and temperate plea for Pauls presbytery in Scotland, or, A modest and…A peaceable and temperate plea for Pauls presbyterie in Scotland, or, A modest and…
A peaceable and temperate plea for Pauls presbytery in Scotland, or, A modest and brotherly dispute of the government of the Church of Scotland wherein our discipline is demonstrated to be the true apostolic way of divine truth, and the arguments on the contrary are friendly dissolved, the grounds of separation and the independency [sic] of particular congregations, in defence of ecclesiastical presbyteries, synods, and assemblies, are examined and tried / by Samuel Rutherfurd ...A peaceable and temperate plea for Pauls presbyterie in Scotland, or, A modest and brotherly dispute of the government of the Church of Scotland wherein our discipline is demonstrated to be the true apostolick way of divine truth, and the arguments on the contrary are friendly dissolved, the grounds of separation and the indepencie [sic] of particular congregations, in defence of ecclesiasticall presbyteries, synods, and assemblies, are examined and tryed / by Samuell Rutherfurd ...
London: printed for John Bartlet, 1642London: printed for Iohn Bartlet, 1642
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.
Now our brethren cannot deny but all these might, and did exercise Ecclesiastical Acts that were valid and ratified of God▪ yea of binding and loosing, and so nothing is required to make men members of a visible Church, but such an outward profession of faith as may befall, and hath been found in the fairest broidered and pa• mented hypocrites, who have been in the Apostolic Church. Also what more was in Judas, even after Christ had said (Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a Devil?) yet the eleven say not, Lord, discover him to us, that we may separate from him.
Now our brethren cannot deny but all these might, and did exercise Ecclesiasticall Acts that were valid and ratified of God▪ yea of binding and loosing, and so nothing is required to make men members of a visible Church, but such an outward profession of faith as may befall, and hath been found in the fairest broidered and pa• mented hypocrites, who have been in the Apostolike Church. Also what more was in Judas, even after Christ had said (Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a Devill?) yet the eleven say not, Lord, discover him to us, that we may separate from him.
2. Argument. 1If the visible Church planted and constituted lawfully, be a draw-net, wherein are fishes of all sorts; and a house wherein are vessels of silver and gold; and also base vessels of brass and wood; and a barn-floor wherein are wheat and a chaff, then a Church is rightly constitute; howbeit there be in it believers and unbelievers, and hypocrites, as members thereof: And there is no more required to make members of the Church visible as visible, but that they be within the net, hearers of the word, within the house as vessels of brass, within the barn-walls as chaff, in likeness and appearance like wheat: But the former is true,2