Mof. By the articles of your belief, the im morality of your first reformer, with your whole mafs, and the univerfal difagreements from your beginning to your prefent ftate, as your fynods and every monument you have produced, teftifies and gives full evidence, that your new gospel and lives are a direct prostitution of the gospel of Jefus Chrift and his and a chriftian life; there is not the leaft clue the Reformation can hold by: you, according to reafon and common fenfe, have unchriftianed yourfelves, and changed Jefus Chrift for Luther and Calvin. That is reprobating both the chriftian and Jewish covenants, and fetting up your proteftant covenant; that is a religion contrived to glut the paffions, and fet all your inclinations afloat, repel remorfe, and fear the confcience. Luth. & Calv. Jefus Chrift is our Lord, and the fcriptures our rule of faith and guide. Mof. Is it poffible that Jefus Chrift can be your Lord, and the fcriptures your rule and guide, when you proteft and villify both, and place your faith in Luther and Calvin, two reprobates? Luib. & Calv. Our faith and hope is in Jefus Chrift, and if our confcience accufed us we would embrace what we fhould think right. Mof. Your confcience fhould be actuated and ruled by reafon. You acknowledge with us but one God, and two covenants. This, you fay, is the ground of your faith; yet you join with the defamers of this fa th and fet up a new religion. Luth. Luth. & Calv. By the two covenants you mean the religion of the Jews and that of the Roman Catholics; you cannot expect our return to the Lutherans, neither would you conceive that we could relish the crucifiers of Chrift we heartily renounce both. Mof. In renouncing the covenants, you renounce almighty God and his holy fcriptures? Luth. & Calv. We will renounce neither. Mof. Nor obey either? Lnth. & Calv. We warrant the truth. Calv. Calvinism. Mof. Do not proteftantifm hold the fame articles of faith in all their congregations? Luth. If they did, no doubt there would not be that variety of new-fangled doctrines and fects, but would bear the name of their head and father, Luther... Calv. Luther being a carnal man, purely fpiritual, being the vitals of New Sion, Calvin enters high and mighty prince, (having obtained the bleffing) into the Land of Promife, where he reigns trumphant without equal. Luth. If this be allowed, where is priority, the birthright of great Luther, who, as Til letfon well obferves, like an iron wedge, fplit and difperfed the hard and knotty oak (popery) into a thousand wrecks. Calv. Luther we hold to be the precurfor of Calvin, as Efau was of Jacob, which we have proved. Luther mifplaced himself. Mof. Your proteftantifim has entered the world 250 years and remains without a head? Luth. You mean it as one religion or a body; but view it diftinctly and feparately, you will clearly fee many congregations, each one its head or firft brother. The Calvinists, Quakers, Anabaptifts, and fo on to upwards of 100 fects, Whitfielites, Weftlyfhites, and no one knows, not Luther himfelf, where all this will end; befides this, every head has his own religion communicated by the fpirit. The anxiety Luther fuffered to erect a due fubordination, difcipline and good agreement among his difciples to perpetuate his church pure and fpotlefs is unperceivable; he fummoned fynods and coun cils for this purpose, but to no effect. When he looked for duty and agreement, he received undutifulnefs, anarchy, and difagreement. Calvin and others of his first converts proved thorns to his fides, who became fchifmatics and heretics, difobedient and deftructive of the new gofpel, fetting up religions different from what he taught them, for which impiety he was obliged to excommunicate them. Calv. Our fathers return his excommunications on Luther's own pate, and wrefted the ftaff out of his carnal hand, as little David did the fpear out of Goliah of Gotha, or as Jacob did the birthright from Efau. Luther, as Goliah, lays as an inanimated trunk, wallowing in the carnality, while Calvin, in fpirit, preached purity purity of fpirit. How fweet are the gofpels of peace that bringeth good tidings, O Sion! Mof. You talk much, but prove nothing: what proofs do you produce to authenticate Luther's miffion and power to excommunicate diffenters and others? Luth. The fcriptures and creeds granted full and ample authority. Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of bell fhall not prevail against it. And I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of beaven; and whatsoever you shall loofe on earth fhall be loofed in heaven, and whatsoever you shall bind on earth, shall be bound also in beaven. This is the plenitude of power pofitive without reftriction. This, you obferve, was given fingly to Peter, that unity might be preferved, without which all muft terminate in anarchy and confufion; and that the other apoftles and affociates might be partners under due fubordination in the great work of falvation, they have the like fpiritual arms imparted to them with obedience to their head. After our Lord's refurrection he grants the forgiveness of fins to them and to the priesthood. Whofe fins you forgive, they are forgiven; and whofe fins you will not forgive, fhall not be forgiven. The fcripture above quoted clears two points quoted, denied by the Calvinift. The primacy of Luther and full power to excommunicate all diffenters, and power to the priesthood to forgive fins; both which the Lutherans hold as an article of faith, and the Calvinifts deny, plain feripture, and that there may may be no deficiency in the perpetuity of these promifes, both your's and our fcriptures confirm. Daniel I faw in the night vifions, and behold one, like the Son of Man, came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the ancient of days, and they brought him near before him, and there was given him dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all people, nations and languages fhould ferve him his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which fhall not pafs away, and his kingdom which shall not be deftroyed. I will afk the Father, and he shall give you another Paraclete, that he may abide with you for ever. And Jefus coming, fpoke to them, faying, all power is given to me in beaven, and on earth. Go you therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghoft, teaching them to obferve all things whatsoever I have commanded you, and behold I am with you all days, even to the end of the world. Many other fcriptures prove the unity and perpetuity of the new covenant or church of Chrift. The creeds are equally full and explicit. 1 believe in the holy catholic church, the forgiveness of fins, and the communion of faints, I believe one, holy, catholic, and apoftolic church. Whofoever will be faved, it is neceffary that he hold the catholic faith, which faith, unless he keep whole and undefiled, without doubt, he fhall perish everlaftingly. And all that believed were together, and the Lord added daily to their fociety fuch as should be faved, Acts ii. Calv. |