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Show Trial! of churcb-Memhers. ____ c_h_ap_._3_· (as all hypocrites will at length?) They procure the removAlL of the candleftick, fuv. :z. 4· Wee pa!Ie by the tyf!e' of ~he old T c frarnent, which yet are not without th~r due w_et~ht; It w~s touched above, that rough ftrmeJ nmt not l.:id m tht put~dtng nfSolomont Templr till they were brrven and prepared before, I King. 6. 7· and: beholcl 11 f,reatt:f then Soloman it hm, 'lnd a greater 'temple then th~t of Solommu · the attendance and w.:tcbfulnefje of tbe parter! fujfonRg nom to entt; into the 'Itmple th~t n>ere wtclun~ in any thing,2 Ghro.23. I 9· doth it not evidently type funh the watchfulneife of the Officets of the Church of Chri!t ;to fufkr none undeane(uncleane in ell: a tc or courfe of life) to enter inco the.fellowlhip of the Church,which oilght to be-a Communion ofSaints? Well then,if all the members of the Church oughtttJ be S~in11 by calling, and j.:Jithfi•lJ brettmn,it cannot be thought an tmfeaforiable curiofitie, put rather held a due and faithful! watchfulne!le ir, the Officer:; aod body of every Ch11rch of. Chtifrj to uke a dae .triall of men bpcpnfiflionoffii'1Zet, as John Baplifodid:,; Mlzt;i 6. and by a profiffirm oft heir faith, as Philip did, A8.8. 37· before they receive them into the Church as members of the body of the Lord JeCus; neither wa> it an exce$ve aufl:ericie in John, but an h{)!y 'bithfulne!fe apd god) y zealc, not smely, to repulfo the>S,;ribtt ,nJ I'.ba'l'ifeet, !\.Jar. 3· 7. bu~the propha1le ptopk a]ji! frbm,his ·Bapttfme,, J,u/x3. 7. as r(!Qfe who were a generation ofvipw, and bad not)'t brought forth fmit m{et for repentanc,, ver.7, 8. and therefore: them· telves were not meete for his B.iptifine, which WJS a baptifme of n:pentance, Lt<k: 3 • 5· Neyenhele!fe~ in-lhis triall, wee doe not exaB: eminent meal'Ure, eit~er of knowledge, or holind!e , but dOt willingly llretch om our hands to receive the wea~ in-faith, fi1ch in whofe fpirits wee can ducerne tlu Ie..ft mufore of br~athing 1111d pantinz after Cbrift, in their fonjib/, ftelJng of a loft tfttJte; for we bad rather 99· hypocrite~ lhould pedih through prefiunption,then one humble foul~ l c!ont:mg (O Chrifr ,.lh<!>J!ld finke ooder difconragemer, t or defpairc:; and· by rcafQn of tbcfe .hypocrites ~ved into the C.hu; ch , it is that the Church is iard to have in it good aod bad, whc:ate and tares ; for tares) ( as Hieromdaith) are like tO· wheate.. S i! c T· Sea. 4• Admijfion by 1911) of Covenant. s E. cT. I v. r,Ome wee now to give aq:ount of the fecond point, why wee ~receive fuch into the Church by way of Co-ven11nt. 1. Meete it is that as the whole Church was w:eived as· one body unto Chrift by profdftng theil' entrance into covenant with God, as hath been !hewed above in the third Propo!ition of the fift part, fo every rnembe.r of the Church ihould be received into the fame fellowfhip, byprofeffion of their taking hold of the fame Covenant; Eadem eft ratio partium & totiur,there is the fame reafon of the whole and of the pans, in fuch things as conccrne the com· mon nature of both; And as all relatives doe, they mutually argue one another. Hence it ia that when godly firangers(who had joyned themfel ves to the Lord, to wit,, by faith, to fcrve him, to loYe his name, and keep his Sabbath) were to be brought into the fellow!hip of the Lords houfe, they added this dude over and above the tanner, they too~holdoftbeCovenant of the Imd, ICa. 5_6. - 3>4,),6,7. Surely not byfoitb umlyfor their perfonaO filvation, (ivr fo they took hold of the covenant before when tbey joymd thmzfelver to th.i Lord, ver.3.) but by thcirprofeffion of their acceptance of th< Co?knant,tJnd [Jtbje[iion to it, which the Lord m~th with hu ChHrcb a!ttlpoplt, whom he caufeth te pa§e into the bond of the Covenant, Ezek. 20. 37· Objel1. It is objcB:ed firfi, that the place in lfoiab fpeaketh of fuch ftrangtN<Hwereprofe/ytff, who in joyning themfelves to the Lml, were therein alfo joyned unto the CbHrch, for Co j'!J'Zing to th~ Lrtd,implyeth joyning to theCburch,Jer. )O. 5· Zech. 2. I 1. An f. I .They that joyned to the Lord in thofe Texts of]trem~ and Zaebary, did indeed in fo doing joyne in a Church-body alfo ; for they who are the~poken of were a multitude,concurri.ng and confendng in the fame Covenant, to joync to the Lord,and to become his people ; but here in Ifoiab, the Eunuch and flrangers are Uid to be joyned to the l.ord, who yet were not joyned to the Church, but ready to complaine th.zt the L?rd bad utterly deprived thtm of that Iiberti' of joyting to the Chlirch, a!ld h.Jd HI ter!J Jtparaud thtmfrom hk people, ver. 3· As indeed he had by exprefiC Law fepa,·ated tlmn,th;lt is,prabibitd tbem from entrin;; i1to 1 hl Con:J!~g~tion of I 2 tbt |
