The same authors contend that the liberty of choosing their own officers or elders, such as it was, was granted unto them or permitted by way of condescension for a season, and not made use of by vir- tue of any right in them thereunto. But this permission is a mere imagination. It was according to the mind of Christ that the churches should choose their own elders, or it was not. If it Avere not, the apostles would not have permitted it ; and if it were, they ought to ordain it and practise according to it, as they did. Nor is such a constant apostolical practice, proposed for the direction of the church in all ages, to be ascribed unto such an original as condescension and permission : yea, it is evident that it arose from the most fundamental principles of the constitution and nature of the gospel churches, and was onl}' a regular pursuit and practice of them ; for, —
First, The calling of bishops, pastors, or elders, is an act of the power of the keys of the kingdom of heaven. But these keys are origi- nally and properly given unto the whole church, unto the elders of it only ministerially, and as unto exercise. Pastors are eyes to the church. But God and nature design, in the first place, light to the whole body, to the whole person ; thereunto it is granted both sub- jectively and finally, but actually it is peculiarly seated in the eye. So is it in the grant of church-power ; it is given to the whole church, though to be exercised only by its elders.
That the gi-ant of the keys unto Peter was in the person and as
64 TRUE NATURE OF A GOSPEL CHURCH.
the representative of the whole confesshig church is the known judgment of Austin and a multitude of divines that follow him: so he fully expresseth himself, Tractat. 124 in Johan. : "Peter the apostle bare, in a general figure, the person of the church; for as unto what belonged unto himself, he was by nature one man, by grace one Christian, and of special, more abounding grace one and the chief apostle. But when it was said unto him, ' I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven,' etc.. He signified the whole church," etc. Again : " The church, which is founded in Christ, re- ceived from him, in (the person of) Peter, the keys of the kingdom of heaven, which is the power of binding and loosing."
Unto whom these keys are granted, they, according to their dis- tinct interests in that grant, have the right and power of calling their bishops, pastors, or elders; for in the exercise of that trust and power it doth consist. But this is made unto the whole church ; and as there are in a church already constituted several sorts of persons, as some are elders, others are of the people only, this right resideth in them and is acted by them according to their respective capa- cities, as limited by the light of nature and divine institution; which is, that the election of them should belong unto the body of the people, and their authoritative designation or ordination unto the elders. And when in any place the supreme magistrate is a mem- ber or part of the church, he hath also his peculiar right herein.
That the power of the keys is thus granted originally and funda- mentally unto the whole church is undeniably confirmed by two arguments: —
1, The church itself is the wife, the spouse, the bride, the queen of the husband and king of the church, Christ Jesus, Ps. xlv. 9 ; John iii. 29; Rev. xxi. 9, xxii. 17; Matt. xxv. 1, 5, 6. Other wife Christ hath none ; nor hath the church any other husband. Now, to whom should the keys of the house be committed but unto the bride? There is, I confess, another who claims the keys to be his own; but withal he makes himself the head and husband of the church, proclaiming himself not only to be an adulterer with that har- lot which he calleth the church, but a tyrant also, in that, pretending to be her husband, he will not trust her with the keys of his house, which Christ hath done with his spouse. And whereas, by the canon law, every bishop is the husband or spouse of his diocesan church, for the most part they commit an open rape upon the people, taking them without their consent; at least they are not chosen by them, which yet is essential unto a lawful marriage. And the bride of Christ comes no otherwise so to be but by the voluntary choice of him to be her husband. For the officers or rulers of the church, they do be- long unto it as hers, 1 Cor. iii. 21 , 22, and as stewards in the house, chap. iv. 1 ; the servants of the church for Jesus' sake, 2 Cor. iv. 5.
THE OFFICERS OF THE CHURCH. 65
If the Lord Christ have the keys of the kingdom of heaven, that is, of " his own house," Heb. iii. 6 ; if the church itself be the spouse of Christ, the mother of the family, the bride, the Lamb's wife, Rev. xxi. 9; and if all the officers of the church be but stewards and servants in the house and unto the family ; if the Lord Christ do make a grant of these keys unto any, whereon the disposal of all things in tliis house and family doth depend, the question is, whether he hath originally granted them unto his holy spouse, to dispose of according unto her judgment and duty, or unto any servants in the house, to dispose of her and all her concernments at their pleasure?