The national church of the Jews, with all the shadowish, typical ordinances of kings, priests, prophets, temple, sacrifices, were as a silver candlestick, on which the light of the knowledge of God and the Lord Jesus, in the type and shadow, was set up and shined. That silver candlestick it pleased the Most Holy and Only Wise to take away, and instead thereof to set up the golden candlesticks of particular churches (Rev. i.) by the hand of the Son of God himself. Now the first was silver,—the pure will and mind of God, but intended only for a season; the second of a more precious, lasting nature, a kingdom not to be shaken, that is, abolished as the former, Heb. xii. 28.
Moses’s ordinances at one time precious and holy, at another time beggarly and deadly. The first Christians communicated in the Jewish synagogues until the Jews contradicted and spoke evil, &c., then they separated.
Therefore, secondly, observe the difference of time, which Mr. Cotton himself confesseth: “after instruction and conviction,” saith he, “Moses’s law was deadly, and would separate from Christ;” therefore, there was a time when they were not deadly, and did not separate from Christ, to wit, until Moses was honourably fallen asleep, and lamented for—as I conceive—in the type and figure thirty days, Deut. xxxiv. [8.] Therefore, at one season, not for Timothy’s weak conscience, but for the Jews’ sake, Paul circumcised Timothy: at another time, when the Jews had sufficient instruction, and obstinately would be circumcised, and that necessarily to salvation, Paul seasonably cries out, that if they were circumcised Christ should profit them nothing, Gal. v. [2.] Hence, the Christians at Ephesus conversed with the Jewish synagogue until the Jews contradicted and blasphemed, and then were speedily separated by Paul, Acts xix. [9.] But to apply, Paul observed a vow, and the ceremonies of it, circumcised Timothy, &c.; may therefore a messenger of Christ now, as Paul, go to mass, pray to saints, perform penance, keep Christmas and other popish feasts and fasts? &c.
A member of a true church falling into any idolatrous practice, not presently to be excommunicated.
Again, is there such a time allowed to any man, uniting or adding himself to the true church now, to observe the unholy holy days of feasting and fasting invented by anti-christ? Yea, and, as Paul did circumcision, to practise the popish sacraments? I doubt not; but if any member of a true church or assembly of worshippers, shall fall to any paganish or popish practice, he must be instructed and convinced before excommunication: but the question is, whether still observing and so practising, a person may be received to the true Christian church, as the Jews were, although they yet practised Moses’s ceremonies?
These things duly pondered, in the fear and presence of God, it will appear how vain the allegation is, from that tender and honourable respect to God’s ordinances now vanishing from the Jews, and their weak consciences about the same, to prove the same tenderness to Satan’s inventions, and [to] the consciences of men in the renouncing of paganical, Turkish, anti-christian, yea, and I add Judaical worships now, when once the time of their full vanishing was come.
Not one degree of sight of, or sorrow for anti-christian abominations; yet a necessity of cutting off from the false before union to the true church, ministry, worship, &c.
To conclude, although I prescribe not such a measure of sight of, or sorrow for anti-christian abominations—I speak in respect of degrees, which it pleaseth the Father of lights to dispense variously, to one more, to another less—yet, I believe it absolutely necessary to see and bewail so much as may amount to cut off the soul from the false church, whether national, parishional, or any other falsely constituted church, ministry, worship, and government of it.[253]
CHAP. XV.
Mr. Cotton. “Ans. 3. To places of scripture which you object, Isa. lii. 11; 2 Cor. vi. 17; Rev. xviii. 4, we answer, two of them make nothing to your purpose: for that of Isaiah and the other of the Revelation, speak of local separation, which yourself know we have made, and yet you say, you do not apprehend that to be sufficient. As for that place of the Corinthians, it only requireth coming out from idolaters in the fellowship of their idolatry. No marriages were they to make with them, no feasts were they to hold with them in the idol’s temple: no intimate familiarity were they to maintain with them, nor any fellowship were they to keep with them in the unfruitful works of darkness; and this is all which that place requireth. But what makes all this to prove, that we may not receive such persons to church fellowship as yourself confess to be godly, and who do professedly renounce and bewail all known sin, and would renounce more if they knew more, although it may be they do not see the utmost skirts of all that pollution they have sometimes been defiled with: as the patriarchs saw not the pollution of their polygamy. But that you may plainly see this place is wrested beside the apostle’s scope when you argue from it, that such persons are not fit matter for church fellowship as are defiled with any remnants of anti-christian pollution, nor such churches any more to be accounted churches as do receive such amongst them: consider, I pray you, were there not at that time in the church of Corinth such as partook with the idolaters in the idol’s temple? And was not this the touching of an unclean thing? And did this sin reject these members from church fellowship before conviction? Or did it evacuate their church estate for not casting out such members?”