A92140:104
A free disputation against pretended liberty of conscience tending to resolve doubts moved
A free disputation against pretended liberty of conscience tending to resolve doubts moved by Mr. John Goodwin, John Baptist, Dr. Jer. Taylor, the Belgic Arminians, Socinians, and other authors contending for lawless liberty, or licentious toleration of sects and heresies. / By Samuel Rutherfurd professor of divinity in the University of St. Andrews.A free disputation against pretended liberty of conscience tending to resolve doubts moved by Mr. John Goodwin, John Baptist, Dr. Jer. Taylor, the Belgick Arminians, Socinians, and other authors contending for lawlesse liberty, or licentious toleration of sects and heresies. / By Samuel Rutherfurd professor of divinity in the University of St. Andrews.
London: printed by R.I. for Andrew Crook, 1649
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.
Answ. 1Say that the decision of the Synod be agreeable to the word, the Lord layeth on the coaction to all; to believe and accordingly profess the truth, and that by a Synod as Christ saith, he that heareth you heareth me: so the coaction, such as it is, must come principally from God; instrumentally from the Synod; but it floweth from both by accident, and through mens abuse, who receive not the truth in love, but for fear of shame, least they should by the godly go for perverters of souls, Act. 15. that they do hypocritically profess what they ought sincerely to believe and profess, May we not say many men of corrupt minds believed Circumcision to be necessary, and yet for fear of the Apostles censure that they should be judged troublers of souls, liars and false teachers, as they are judged to be Act. 15. 24. would dissemble? And they are no other ways by a Synodical truth compelled to lie and dissemble by shame and falling out of the hearts of the Apostles and of all the godly the one way than the other; in that case than in this […]. For there be but two ways of working on the mind to drive men to be of another opinion, one by fear either of shame, reproach or censures civill or ecclesiastical, another by mere teaching and instructing.
Answ. 1Say that the decision of the Synod be agreeable to the word, the Lord layeth on the coaction to all; to beleeve and accordingly professe the truth, and that by a Synod as Christ saith, he that heareth you heareth me: so the coaction, such as it is, must come principally from God; instrumentally from the Synod; but it floweth from both by accident, and through mens abuse, who receive not the truth in love, but for feare of shame, least they should by the godly goe for perverters of soules, Act. 15. that they doe hypocritically professe what they ought sincerely to beleeve and professe, May we not say many men of corrupt minds beleeved Circumcision to be necessary, and yet for feare of the Apostles censure that they should be judged troublers of souls, lyars and false teachers, as they are judged to bee