A Christian Directory, Part 3: Christian Ecclesiastics

by Richard Baxter

Our concord in religion hath all these advantages for the converting of unbelievers and ungodly men. 1. It is a sign that there is a constraining evidence of truth in that gospel which doth convince so many; a concurrent satisfaction and yielding to the truth, is a powerful testimony for it. 2. They see then that religion is not a matter of worldly policy and design, when so many men of contrary interests do embrace it. 3. And they see it is not the fruit of melancholy constitutions, when so many men of various temperatures entertain it. 4. They may see that the gospel hath power to conquer that self-love and self-interest which is the most potent thing in vitiated nature: otherwise it could never make so many unite in God as their common interest and end. 5. They may see that the gospel and Spirit of Christ are stronger than the devil and all the allurements of the flesh and world, when they can make so many agree in the renouncing of all earthly vanities, for the hopes of everlasting life. 6. They will see that the design and doctrine of christianity are good and excellent, beseeming God, and desirable to man; when they see that they produce so good effects, as the love, and unity, and concord of mankind. 7. And it is an exceeding great and powerful help to the conversion of the world in this respect, because it is a thing so conspicuous in their sight, and so intelligible to them, and so approved by them. They are little wrought on by the doctrine of Christ alone, because it is visible or audible but to few, and understood by fewer, and containeth many things which nature doth distaste; but the holy concord of believers is a thing that they are more able to discern and judge of, and do more generally approve. The holy concord of christians must be the conversion of the unbelieving world, if God have so great a mercy for the world; which is a consideration that should not only deter us from divisions, but make us zealously study and labour with all our interest and might, for the healing of the lamentable divisions among christians, if we have the hearts of christians, and any sense of the interest of Christ.

6. The concord of christians doth greatly conduce to the ease and peace of particular believers. The very exercise of love to one another doth sweeten all our lives and duties; we sail towards heaven in a pleasant calm, with wind and tide, when we live in love and peace together. How easy doth it make the work of godliness! How light a burden doth religion seem, when we are all as of one heart and soul!

7. Lastly, consider whether this be not the likest state to heaven, and therefore have not in it the most of christian excellency and perfection? In heaven there is no discord, but a perfect consort of glorified spirits, harmoniously loving and praising their Creator. And if heaven be desirable, holy concord on earth is next desirable.

The mischiefs of division.

III. On the contrary, consider well of the mischiefs of divisions. 1. It is the killing of the church, (as much as lieth in the dividers,) or the wounding it at least. Christ's body is one, and it is sensible; and therefore dividing it tendeth directly to the destroying it, and at least will cause its smart and pain. To reform the church by dividing it, is no wiser than to cut out the liver, or spleen, or gall, to cleanse them from the filth that doth obstruct them, and hinder them in their office; you may indeed thus cleanse them, but it will be a mortal cure. As he that should divide the kingdom into two kingdoms dissolveth the old kingdom, or part of it at least, to erect two new ones; so he that would divide the catholic church into two, must thereby destroy it, if he could succeed; or destroy that part which divideth itself from the rest. Can a member live that is cut off from the body, or a branch that is separated from the tree?

Quest. O but, say the Romanists, why then do you cut off yourselves from us? the division is made by you, and we are the church, and you are dead till you return to us. How will you know which part is the church, when a division is once made? Answ. |Whether papists or protestants are schismatics.|Are you the church? Are you the only christians in the world? The church is, all christians united in Christ their Head. You traitorously set up a new usurping head; and proclaim yourselves to be the whole church, and condemn all that are not subjects to your new head: we keep our station, and disclaim his usurpation, and deny subjection to you, and tell you that as you are the subjects of the pope, you are none of the church of Christ at all; from this treasonable conspiracy we withdraw ourselves; but as you are the subjects of Christ we never divided from you, nor denied you our communion.[153] Let reason judge now who are the dividers. And is it not easy to know which is the church in the division? It is all those that are still united unto Christ: if you or we be divided from Christ and from christians that are his body, we are then none of the church; but if we are not divided from Christ, we are of the church still: if part of a tree (though the far greater part) be cut off or separated from the rest, it is that part (how small soever) that still groweth with the root that is the living tree. The Indian fig tree, and some other trees, have branches that take root when they touch the ground: if now you ask me whether the branches springing from the second root, are members of the first tree, I answer, 1. The rest that have no new root are more undoubtedly members of it. 2. If any branches are separated from the first tree, and grow upon the new root alone, the case is out of doubt. 3. But if yet they are by continuation joined to both, that root which they receive their nutriment most from, is it which they most belong to. Suppose a tyrant counterfeit a commission from the king to be vice-king in Ireland, and proclaim all them to be traitors that receive him not; the king disclaimeth him, the wisest subjects renounce him, and the rest obey him but so as to profess they do it because they believe him to be commissioned by the king. Let the question be now, who are the dividers in Ireland? and who are the king's truest subjects? and what head it is that denominateth the kingdom? and who are the traitors? This is your case.

2. Divisions are the deformities of the church. Cut off a nose, or pluck out an eye, or dismember either a man or a picture, and see whether you have not deformed it. Ask any compassionate christian, ask any insulting enemy, whether our divisions be not our deformity and shame, the lamentation of friends, and the scorn of enemies?

3. The church's divisions are not our own dishonour alone, but the injurious dishonour of Christ, and religion, and the gospel. The world thinketh that Christ is an impotent king, that cannot keep his kingdom at unity in itself, when he hath himself told us, that "every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand," Matt. xii. 25. They think the gospel tendeth to division, and is a doctrine of dissension, when they see divisions and dissensions procured by it; they impute all the faults of the subjects to the King, and think that Christ was confused in his legislation, and knew not what to teach or command, because men are confounded in their opinions or practices, and know not what to think or do. If men misunderstand the law of Christ, and one saith, This is the sense, and another saith, That is the sense, they are ready to think that Christ spake nonsense, or understood not himself, because the ignorant understand him not: who is there that converseth with the ungodly of the world, that heareth not by their reproach and scorns how much God and religion are dishonoured by the divisions of religious people?

4. And thus also our divisions do lamentably hinder the progress of the gospel, and the conversion and salvation of the ungodly world: they think they have small encouragement to be of your religion, while your divisions seem to tell them, that you know not what religion to be of yourselves. Whatever Satan or wicked men would say against religion to discourage the ungodly from it, the same will exasperated persons in these divisions say against each other's way; and when every one of you condemneth another, how should the consciences of the ungodly persuade them to accept salvation in any of those ways, which you thus condemn? Doubtless the divisions of the christian world have done more to hinder the conversion of infidels, and keep the heathen and Mahometan world in their damnable ignorance and delusions, than all our power is able to undo; and have produced such desolations of the church of Christ, and such a plentiful harvest and kingdom for the devil, as every tender christian heart is bound to lament with tears of bitterness. If it must be that such offences shall come, yet woe to those by whom they come!

5. Divisions lay open the churches of Christ, not only to the scorn, but to the malice, will, and fury of their enemies. A kingdom or house divided cannot stand, Matt. xii. 25. Where hath the church been destroyed, or religion rooted out, in any nation of the earth, but divisions had a principal hand in the effect? Oh what desolations have they made among the flocks of Christ! As Seneca and others opened their veins and bled to death, when Nero or such other tyrants did send them their commands to die; even so have many churches done by their divisions, to the gratifying of Satan, the enemy of souls.