them as one undivided body, affembling frequently and ordinarily in one place for the worship of God, and all matters. of common concern to them, and leave us to make out a conftitution and order of that church, which should be followed, as a plan laid down by the Holy Ghoft for after ages, and this from the number of the difciples its being fo great, that the church of Jerufalem could not be as he seems exprefsly to fay? It were more agreeable to a due regard to the fcriptures of truth, to say something for reconciling the fcripture-account of the nature of the church in Jerufalem, with the numbers of difcipies there, than to ufe an inde cent freedom with the plain words of the Holy Ghost, to reconcile them with our own diftant confequences, drawn from words spoken by him, befide his fcope in these words. And to this good purpose it is obfervable, that there were fome things fomeway extraordinary in the church at Jeru falem, by reason of which a greater multitude could be one congregation there than in other places, where we read of churches of Christ in the New Teftament. As, 1. The communion of goods among them. Acts ii. 44. 45′ 46. "And all that believed had all things common, and "fold their poffeffions and goods, and parted them to all " men, as every man had need. And breaking bread "from houfe to houfe, did eat their meat with gladness, and ❝fingleness of heart." And Acts iv. 32. 34. 35. "And the "multitude of them that believed, were of one heart and of "one foul: neither faid any of them that ought of the 66 things which he poffeffed was his own, but they had all things common. Neither was there any among them that "lacked: for as many as were poffeffors of lands or houses, "fold them, and brought the prices of the things that were "fold, and laid them down at the apoftles feet and diftri “bution was made unto every man according as he had "need." By this communion of goods, they were a body of people living upon a common stock, and had accefs to be much together, and to be well acquainted; and were not hindered, by their ordinary employments, from clofe communion. in their private and public meetings, and from continuing daily with one accord in the temple. For thus they feem to have given up themfelves wholly unto the bufinefs of their communion in the worship of God, and in the mutual duties of brotherly love, and in fpreading the gofpel. This was extraordinary for the cafe was not the fame in other churches; where the difciples laboured, for most part, in X 2 : their their ordinary employments through the week, I Cor. xvi. 2. and affembled ordinarily on the Lord's day. 2. They had the conveniency of the temple for a meeting-place, where it was free to all forts and fects of the Jews to affemble, without trouble or moleftation, even from the Romans, if they did not disturb their government, or make any uproar. The members of the church were all Jews, that had not yet forfaken the obfervation of the ceremonies of Mofes's law. And as it is plain, they preached openly in and about the temple; fo the Chriftian inftitutions of baptifm, and the eating of bread and drinking of wine in the Lord's fupper, were like to fome ufages among the Jews, and could not occafion greater offence to the unbelieving Jews, than the preaching of the gospel, and the great converfions thereby. We have feen before, that they were a feparate body, in some of their meetings in the temple; and it is alfo obfervable, that the people not yet joined to the church, and that durft not join themselves unto them, magnified them; and that they had favour with all the people for fome time, Acts v. 11.- -14. and Acts ii. 47. When the perfecution became fo hot, that they could not affemble with one accord in the temple, they were fo fcattered abroad, that it cannot be fhewed there remained any more in Jerufalem, during the perfecution, than might af femble in fome private place: neither, after the heat of that perfecution was over, can it be shown, that there was any greater multitude in the church at Jerufalem, than fuch as might, and whom it behoved to come together in one place, Acts xxi. 18.-22. For though James and the elders fpeak to Paul of many thousands of Jews which believed; yet they do not tell that these thousands were in the church at Jeru falem for by that time there were many other churches of believing Jews throughout all Judea, Acts ix. 31. Gal. i. 22. occafioned by Paul's perfecuting, wafting, and scattering the church at Jerufalem, and those diftinct from the church in Jerufalem, and many believing Jews through the world, that came to the feast. It is obfervable, that when the multitude became fo great, and the perfecution fuch, that they could not conveniently affemble with one accord in one place, it was fo ordered, they were fcattered abroad, and other churches made out of them. And fuch a great multitude of difciples in Jerufalem being kept together, till then affembling with one accord in the temple, without any infinuation of its being divided into diftinct diftinct congregations united in a prefbytery, makes way for an inference of this nature, That the Holy Ghoft, laying down a plan in the church at Jerufalem for all other churches of Chrift, kept that great multitude in the ftate of a congrega tion, till it could no more be fo; and then ordered things fo, that it was scattered abroad, and other new churches erected after the fashion of it. 3. That great multitude was all of one heart and foul. The unity of the Spirit, in the bond of peace and brotherly love, was there in its very prime; and the gift of tongues was there in exceeding abundance, with all gifts neceffary unto mutual edification. For the members of that church were furnished and trained up there for fpreading the gospel through the world: and the multitude was under the oversight and guidance of all the apoftles of Chrift. So that no objection, arifing from the unwieldinefs of fuch a great body of men, or from the difference of languages among them, can shake the truth of their being all one congregation, affembling from time to time with one accord in one place. There might be manifold meetings of difciples in Jerufalem; but it seems pretty plain, that the body of difciples, called the church, could, and did frequently affemble with one accord in one place; and fo was but one congregation. Thus we find the words church and congregation of the fame import in Jerufalem. And if this was the cafe there, we may expect to find it fo in other places. 26. The first church of the Gentiles was at Antioch. The disciples there seem to have been brought into church-order by Barnabas, Act xi. from 22. and we are told, that he and Paul "affembled themselves a whole year with "the church." And, Acts xiv. 26. 27. when they returned to Antioch from "the work which they had fulfilled," it is faid, "they gathered the church together, and rehearsed all "that God had done with them, and how he had opened the "door of faith unto the Gentiles." Acts xv. 30. "When "they were difmiffed, they came to Antioch: and when "they had gathered the multitude together, they delivered "the epiftle." The church at Corinth was a numerous church, but still one congregation, and a church of the fame kind with that at Cenchrea. See chap. xi. of the first epistle directed unto the church of God at Corinth, y 18. 20. 22."When ye come together in the church, I hear there be di"vifions among you. When ye come together therefore "into one place, this is not to eat the Lord's fupper," [or, ye ye cannot eat the Lord's fupper]. "What, have ye not houses "to eat and to drink in? or despise ye the church of God?" Chap. xiv. 23. "If therefore the whole church be come to"gether into one place, and all speak with tongues, and "there come in those that are unlearned or unbelievers, will "they not say that ye are mad?" The church at Ephefus is much spoke of in this matter, and the numbers of the converts there infifted on, the same way as in the cafe of Jerufalem, to fhew that it behoved the church there to confift of many congregations united in a prefbytery. That church, when firft erected, confifted of no great number, Acts xix. 7. 9. And it is true, that, from that time, the fuccefs of the gofpel at Ephefus was very great. Paul's continuance there for the space of two years, gave occafion to all the Proconfular Afia to hear the word of the Lord Jefus, y 10. So that the growth and prevalency of the word of God there, y 28. furnished matter for the seven famous churches of Afia, y 26. whereof this of Ephefus was one; and without question, it was a church of the fame kind with the other fix; and it appears from the latter end of the xix. chapter of the Acts, that all the town of Ephefus was very far from being converted to the faith. When Paul, on his journey, calls the elders of that church to Miletus, he speaks to them as the overfcers of one congregation, Acts xx. 28. "Take heed to yourfelves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghoft hath made you overfeers, to feed the church of God, which he hath "purchased with his own blood." If the church at Ephesus had been many congregations united in a prefbytery, it would have been a way of fpeaking very agreeable thereunto to have faid, "Take heed to yourfelves, and the flocks over which "the Holy Ghoft hath made you overfeers" and this would have been reckoned a very ftrong argument for a plurality of congregations under a prefbytery. But this way of fpeaking is still avoided in the writings of the New Teftament. Here we find the difciples of Chrift at Ephefus diftinguished from the prefbytery, (which is that whereby fome would make many congregations one church), and in this diftinction from the prefbytery called all one flock and church: "Take heed "to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made " you overfeers." So that here was one flock, one congregation; not many flocks, not many churches or congregations, under the overfight of the prefbytery at Ephefus. And this was the church at Ephefus, the faints and faithful at E phefus, phefus, all builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit, Eph. ii. 22. In this ftate remained the church at Ephefus for a long time after, as they that have been looking into antiquity have told us*, all communicating and praying together in one place. It is true, the other churches had not the conveniency of the temple for a meeting-place, as had that firft church at Jerufalem: but they had large upper rooms;" as we find the church at Troas affembled to partake of the Lord's supper" in an upper room," where there were many lights, and fome fat in windows, Acts xx. 6. 7. 8. 9. And it is probable that Aquila and Prifcilla, great inftruments in promoting the kingdom of Christ, kept such a house, where-ever they dwelt, as was a fit meeting-place for the church in that place. So we find Paul advising the church at Rome to falute Aquila and Prifcilla, probably then at Corinth, with the church in their houfe; and writing to the Corinthians from fome other place, he tells them, that " Aquila and Prifcilla falute them, with, "the church in their house," Rom. xvi. 1.-5. 1 Cor. vi. 19. We also read of one Nymphas, whom Paul defires the Coloffians to falute, with the church in his house; which was probably fome one or other of the Afian churches, perhaps Laodicea itself, Col. vi. 15. And Philemon had a church in his house, Philem. y 2. He feems to have been fome great man. Upon this head of the scripture-language about the church, it will not be easy otherwise to satisfy any man's confcience, how it is that the Holy Ghoft, when speaking of all the difciples of Chrift, in a nation or province, that could not af semble ordinarily in one place, fo constantly abstains from calling them the church of fuch a nation, or province, or one church by themselves; but fays, the brethren or faints in fuch places, Acts xv. 23. 2 Cor. i. 1. and the churches of Galatia, Gal. i. 2. the churches of Macedonia, 2 Cor. viii. 1. the churches of Afia, 1 Cor. xvi. 19. ; but when speaking of the difciples of Chrift in a city or town, which might affemble together ordinarily in one place, calls them a church, saying, the church of Antioch, the church at Corinth, the church of Ephefus, and the like. Shall we believe, that fuch a state of the church has the stamp of divine authority upon it, that the Holy Ghoft has fo much forborn to favour with the name of a church, and in favour of which he has ftrictly avoided *See King's inquiry into the conftitution, life, &c. chap. 2. dropping |