_Of the Special Kind, or Peculiar Nature of this Power and Authority._
Having viewed what is the rule of this authority, viz. the holy
Scriptures, and what is the fountain of this authority, viz. Jesus
Christ our Mediator; now consider the special kind or peculiar nature of
this authority, which the description lays down in two several
expressions, viz: 1. It is a spiritual power or authority. 2. It is a
derived power, &c.
1. The power or authority of church government is a spiritual power.
Spiritual, not so perfectly and completely as Christ's supreme
government is spiritual, who alone hath absolute and immediate power and
authority over the very spirits and consciences of men; ruling them by
the invisible influence of his Spirit and grace as he pleaseth, John
iii. 8; Rom. viii. 14; Gal. ii. 20: but so purely, properly, and merely
spiritual is this power, that it really, essentially, and specifically
differs, and is contradistinct from that power which is properly civil,
worldly, and political, in the hand of the political magistrate. Now,
that this power of church government is in this sense properly, purely,
merely spiritual: and that by divine right may be evidenced many ways
according to Scripture; forasmuch as the rule, fountain, matter, form,
subject, object, end, and the all of this power, is only spiritual.
1. Spiritual in the rule, revealing and regulating it, viz. not any
principles of state policy, parliament rolls, any human statutes, laws,
ordinances, edicts, decrees, traditions, or precepts of men whatsoever,
according to which cities, provinces, kingdoms, empires, may be happily
governed: but the holy Scriptures, that perfect divine canon, wherein
the Lord Christ hath revealed sufficiently how his own house, his
Church, shall be ruled, 1 Tim. iii. 14, 15; and all his ordinances,
word, sacraments, censures, &c., shall therein be dispensed, 2 Tim. iii.
16, 17. (See chap. IV.) Now this Scripture is divinely breathed, or
inspired of God--holy men writing not according to the fallible will of
man, but the infallible acting of the Holy Ghost, 2 Tim. iii. 16, with 2
Pet. i. 20, 21.
2. Spiritual in the fountain or author of this power, whence it
originally flows; it being derived, not from any magistrate, prince, or
potentate in the world, not from any man on earth, or the will of man;
but only from Jesus Christ our Mediator, himself being the sole or first
receptacle of all power from the Father, Matt. xxviii. 18; John v. 22:
and consequently, the very fountain of all power and authority to his
Church, Matt. xxviii. 18-20, with John xx. 21, 23; Matt. xvi. 19, and
xviii. 18-20; 2 Cor. x. 8. See this formerly cleared, chap. III. and V.
3. Spiritual in the matter of it, and the several parts of this power:
therefore called the _keys of the kingdom of heaven_, not the keys of
the kingdoms of earth, Matt. xvi. 19, (as Christ professed his _kingdom
was not of this world_, John xviii. 36; and when one requested of
Christ, that by his authority he would speak to his brother to divide
the inheritance with him, Christ disclaimed utterly all such worldly,
earthly power, saying, "Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you?"
Luke xii. 13, 14.) Consider these heavenly spiritual keys in the kinds
of them, whether of doctrine or discipline; or in the acts of them,
whether of binding or loosing, in all which they are spiritual: e.g. the
doctrine which is preached is not human but divine, revealed in the
Scriptures by the Spirit of God, and handling most sublime spiritual
mysteries of religion, 2 Pet. i.; 2 Tim. iii. 16,17. The seals
administered are not worldly seals, confirming and ratifying any carnal
privileges, liberties, interests, authority, &c., but spiritual,
_sealing the righteousness of faith_, Rom. iv. 11; the death and blood
of Jesus Christ, with all the spiritual virtue and efficacy thereof unto
his members, Rom. v. 6; Gal. iii.; 1 Cor. x. 16, 17, and xi. 23, 24, &c.
The censures dispensed are not pecuniary, corporal, or capital, by
fines, confiscations, imprisonments, whippings, stocking, stigmatizing,
or taking away of limb or life, (all such things this government meddles
not withal, but leaves them to such as bear the civil sword,) but
spiritual, that only concern the soul and conscience; as _admonishing_
of the unruly and disorderly, Matt, xviii. 18, 19; _casting out the
incorrigible_ and obstinate from the spiritual fellowship of the saints,
Matt. xviii. 18, 19; 2 Cor. v. ult.: _receiving again into spiritual
communion_ of the faithful, such as are penitent, 2 Cor. ii. 6. Thus the
binding and loosing, which are counted the chief acts of the keys, are
spiritually by our Saviour interpreted to be the _remitting and
retaining of sins_; compare Matt, xviii. 18, 19, with John xx. 21, 23.
4. Spiritual in the form and manner, as well as in the matter. For this
power is to be exercised, not in a natural manner, or in any carnal
name, of earthly magistrate, court, parliament, prince, or potentate
whatsoever, as all secular civil power is; no, nor in the name of
saints, ministers, or the churches: but in a spiritual manner, in the
name of the Lord Jesus, from whom alone all his officers receive their
commissions. The word is to be _preached in his name_, Acts xvii. 18:
seals dispensed in his name, Matt. xxviii. 19; Acts xix. 5: censures
inflicted in his name, 1 Cor. v. 4, &c. (See chap. V.)
5. Spiritual in the subject intrusted with this power; which is not any
civil, political, or secular magistrate, (as after will more fully
appear, in chap. IX.) but spiritual officers, which Christ himself hath
instituted and bestowed upon his Church, _apostles_, &c., _pastors,
teachers, elders_, Eph. iv. 7, 8, 10, 11. To these only he hath given
the _keys of the kingdom of heaven_, Matt. xvi. 19, and xviii. 18,19,
and xxviii. 18, 19; John xx. 21-23; 2 Cor. x. 8, _authority which the
Lord hath given us_. These he hath made _governments in his Church_, 1
Cor. xii. 28. To these he will have _obedience and subjection_
performed, Heb. xiii. 17, and _double honor_ allowed, 1 Tim. v. 17.
6. Spiritual in respect of the object about which this power is to be
put forth and exercised, viz. not about things, actions, or persons
civil, as such; but spiritual and ecclesiastical, as such. Thus
injurious actions, not as trespasses against any statute or law
political; but as scandalous to our brethren, or the Church of God,
Matt, xviii. 18, 19; are considered and punished by this power. Thus the
incestuous person was cast out, because a wicked person in himself, and
likely to leaven others by his bad example, 1 Cor. v. 6. Thus the
persons whom the Church may judge are not the men of the world without
the Church, but those that are in some sense spiritual, and within the
Church, 1 Cor. v. 12.
7. Spiritual also is this power in the scope and end of it. This the
Scripture frequently inculcates: e.g. a brother is to be admonished
privately, publicly, &c., not for the gaining of our private interests,
advantages, &c., but for _the gaining of our brother_, that his soul and
conscience may be gained to God and to his duty, and he be reformed,
Matt, xviii. 15. The incestuous person is to be "delivered to Satan, for
the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of
our Lord Jesus," 1 Cor. v. 5; yea, the whole authority given to church
guides from the Lord was given to this end, _for the edification, not
the destruction_ of the Church, 2 Cor. x. 8, and xiii. 10; all which,
and such like, are spiritual ends. Thus the power of church government
here described is wholly and entirely a spiritual power, whether we
respect the rule, root, matter, form, subject, object, or end thereof.
So that in this respect it is really and specifically distinct from all
civil power, and in no respect encroacheth upon, or can be prejudicial
unto the magistrate's authority, which is properly and only political.
2. The power or authority of church government is a derived power. For
clearing this, observe, there is a magisterial primitive supreme power,
which is peculiar to Jesus Christ our Mediator, (as hath been proved,
chap. III. and V:) and there is a ministerial, derivative, subordinate
power, which the Scripture declares to be in church guides, Matt. xvi.
19, and xviii. 18; John xx. 21, 23; Matt, xxviii. 19, 20; 2 Cor. x. 8,
and xiii. 10, and often elsewhere this is abundantly testified. But
whence is this power originally derived to them? Here we are carefully
to consider and distinguish three things, touching this power or
authority from one another, viz: 1st. The donation of the authority
itself, and of the offices whereunto this power doth properly belong.
2d. The designation of particular persons to such offices as are vested
with such power. 3d. The public protection, countenancing, authorizing,
defending, and maintaining of such officers in the public exercise of
such power within such and such realms or dominions. This being
premised, we may clearly thus resolve, according to scripture warrant,
viz. the designation or setting apart of particular individual persons
to those offices in the Church that have power and authority engraven
upon them, is from the church nominating, electing, and ordaining of
such persons thereunto, see Acts iii. 1-3; 1 Tim. iv. 14, and v. 22;
Tit. i. 5; Acts iv. 22. The public protection, defence, maintenance,
&c., of such officers in the public exercise of the power and authority
of their office in such or such dominions, is from the civil magistrate,
as the _nursing-father_ of the Church, Isa. xlix. 23; for it is by his
authority and sanction that such public places shall be set apart for
the public ministry, that such maintenance and reward shall be legally
performed for such a ministry, that all such persons of such and such
congregations shall be (in case they neglect their duty to such a
ministry) punished with such political penalties, &c. But the donation
of the office and spiritual authority annexed thereunto, is only derived
from Jesus Christ our Mediator. He alone gives all church officers, and
therefore none may devise or superadd any new officers, Eph. iv. 7, 8,
10, 11; 1 Cor. xii. 28. And he alone commits all authority and power
spiritual to those officers, for dispensing of word, sacraments,
censures, and all ordinances, Matt. xvi. 19, and xxviii. 18-20; John xx.
21-23; 2 Cor. x. 8, and xiii. 10: and therefore it is not safe for any
creature to intrude upon this prerogative royal of Christ to give any
power to any officer of the Church. None can give what he has not.