An unjust and partial desire of liberty to some consciences, and bondage unto all others.
To these I answer, If they intend that the civil magistrate should permit liberty to the free and voluntary spiritual meetings of their subjects, I shall subscribe unto them; but if they intend that the magistrate should give liberty only unto themselves, and not to the rest of their subjects, that is to desire their own souls only to be free, and all other souls of their subjects to be kept in bondage:
Secondly, if they intend that the magistrate should enforce all the elders of such churches under their jurisdiction to keep correspondency with them in such meetings, then I say, as before, it is to cause him to give liberty with a partial hand, and unequal balance; for thus I argue:—If the civil state and civil officers be of their religion and conscience, it is not proper for them to give liberty or freedom, but to give honourable testimony and approbation, and their own personal submission to the churches. But if the civil state and officers be of another conscience and worship, and shall be bound to grant permission and liberty to them, their consciences, and meetings, and not to those of his own religion and conscience also, how will this appear to be equal in the very eye of common peace and righteousness?
For those yearly and monthly meetings, as we find not any such in the first churches, so neither will those general arguments from the plausible pretence of Christian fellowship, God’s glory, &c., prove such particular ways of glorifying God, without some precept or precedent of such a kind.
The commission, Matt. xxviii. of preaching and baptizing, not properly directed to the church, or fixed teachers of it, least of all to the commonwealth.
For those scriptures, 1 Cor. x. 33, and 2 Cor. xi. 28, expressing the apostle Paul’s zeal for glorifying God, and his care for all the churches, it is clear they concern such as are indeed Paul’s successors, sent forth by Christ Jesus to preach and gather churches; but those scriptures concern not the churches themselves, nor the pastors of the churches properly, least of all the civil state and commonwealth, neither of which, the churches, the pastors, or commonwealth, do go forth personally with that commission, Matt. xxviii. [19,] to preach and baptize, that is, to gather churches unto Christ.
For as for the first, the churches are not ministers of the gospel; the angels or messengers of the churches, and the churches themselves, were distinct, Rev. ii. and iii.
As for the second, the pastors and elders of the church, their work is not to gather churches, but to govern and feed them, Acts xx., and 1 Pet. v.
As for the civil magistrate, it is a ministry indeed, magistrates are God’s ministers, Rom. xiii. 4; but it is of another nature. And therefore none of these—the churches of Christ, the shepherds of those churches, nor the civil magistrate, succeeding the apostles or first messengers, these scriptures alleged concern not any of these to have care of all the churches.
A query who have now the care of all the churches?