The way of true peace and unity in the true church of Christ in all humility and bowels of love presented to them / by William Dell.

2. What kinde of power this is, which the true Church hath.

I answer in general, that it is a power sutable to the Church or Kingdom,* 1.1 whereof it is the power: now as the Church we speak of, is that Church, which is born of God, and of the Spirit, and so is not at all of this world; so the power, that is agreeable to this Church is the power of God, and his Spirit, and not at all of this world; that is, it is not any civil or secular power; I may add, nor any Ecclesiastical power (according to the common under∣standing it) that hath any place in the true Church, but meerly a spiritual and heavenly power, without any conjunction or mix∣ture of the other; seeing Christs power is perfect, and every way sufficient for his own Kingdom, and Christs Kingdom is Gods Kingdom, as well as the Fathers: and so men may as well carry worldly and secular power, into the Fathers Kingdom, as into the Sons, seeing this, is no other then the Kingdom of God, though it be among men, and no other then the Kingdom of Heaven, though it be upon earth; which hath not been understood nor considered by them, who have been so busie to being secular power into a spiritual Kingdom, as if Christs own power, in his own Kingdom, were either weak or imperfect.

More particularly, this true power, of the true Church, is (as I said) Christs power in the faithful, which is, the self-same with Christs power in himself; and so,

1. It is not a power of violence, but a power of influence, even such a power as the Head hath over the members, and the soul over the body; it is not a coercive, but a perswasive power, a power that makes men willing that are not willing, and doth not force the unwilling, against their wils.

2. This power is humble, and not proud, as worldly power is; for the power of the world, sets men over others, but the power of the Church, sets men under others; I (saith Christ of himself) am among you as one that serves: and again, He that will be the chief among you, let him be the servant of all.

3. This power, is for edification, and not for destruction; as Paul acknowledges, again and again, that the power the Lord gave him, was this, and no other power,* 1.2 viz. not to cast men out of their native Kingdoms, but to translate them into Gods Kingdom; not to take away their outward Liber∣ties or Estates, but to bring them into the Liberty and Inhe∣ritance of the Saints; to bring men to eternal life, and not to destroy men, by temporal death.

4. This power, seeks the good of others, more then its own, yea good of others, with the neglect of its own: So Moses was not busie, to have a most rebellious people, blotted out of the Book of life, but rather desired, his own name might be blotted out of that book, that (if it had been the will of God) theirs might have been written in. And Paul desired that himself might be separated from Christ, that his bre∣thren and kinsmen after the flesh, might have been united to him. And if this power seek the good of others after this high rate, even to the neglecting, as it were, and laying aside their own eternal good, how much more to the neglecting and laying aside their temporal good, their worldly profits, ad∣vantages and dignities?

5. This power, doth not make others suffer, to enlarge the Church, but suffers it self, to bring this about; So Christ, as Wickliff saith, through his poverty, humility and suffering in∣jury and death, got unto him, the children of his Kingdom, and not by force; and the Martyrs enlarged the Church of Christ by dying themselves, and not by causing others to die; the blood of the Martyrs, being the seed of the Church.

6. This power, only acts to a spiritual end, salvation, and only according to spiritual Laws; but not, to any temporal and worldly ends, according to civil and humane laws.

And thus you see, that this true Church power, for the nature

and quality of it, both in general, and in particular, differs very much, both from the apprehensions and practise of the most of our Ecclesiastical men.

Notes

• * 1.1

  The true power of the true Church, is a spiritual and heavenly power.
• * 1.2

  2 Cor. 10.8. — 13.10