(Continued from page 84)
IV. Of Relic-worship.
The church of Rome not only worship saints and their images, but they also worship their relics, that is, the remainders of their bodies, or such things as belonged to them when alive, as an arm, leg, bones, ashes, the chains or instruments by which they suffered. They pretend, that, by the religious veneration of such relics, many benefits are received, miracles wrought, diseases cured, devils cast out &c. Although many vile cheats and imposters have been discovered, touching the pretended virtues of Popish relics, yet they still maintain this idolatrous practice. Nothing have they in the Bible for it, but much against it. Because God knew the Israelites’ proneness to idolatry, he buried the body of Moses in a place none knew of, Deut. 34: 6, to prevent their worshipping his relics. And when the devil would have showed the grave and body of Moses to the Israelites, for ensnaring them, Michael hindered it; which seems to be the contention spoken of, Jude ver. 9. When the Israelites abused the brazen serpent to idolatry, as being a relic of Moses, and a memorial of the miraculous cures God wrought upon their ancestors by it; good king Hezekiah brake it in pieces, calling it Nehushtan, a piece of brass, 2 Kings 18: 4. From which we see, that, though it were true what Papists say of miracles wrought by these relics, it would not be a good reason for the reverence and worship they give them; nay, that idolatrous worship is rather a good reason, according to Hezekiah’s practice, for giving them a decent interment than for enshrining them.
“But,” say Papists, “we read in scripture, that a dead man was raised to life by touching Elisha’s bones; and from Paul’s body were brought handkerchiefs and aprons for curing the sick,” &c.
Ans. Though God thought fit to work miracles by Elisha’s bones and Paul’s handkerchiefs, that is no argument for worshipping them; but the worshipping them is a better argument for breaking them all to pieces. The primitive Christians worshipped no such relics.
V. Of Cross-worship.
They also worship the material cross, or the figure of that on which Christ was crucified; they ascribe peculiar virtues to it, and pray that God would make the wood of the cross “the stability of faith, an increase of good works, the redemption of souls:” nay, they pray directly to it, to “increase grace in the godly, and blot out the sins of the guilty.” Likewise, they give to the cross Latria the same worship they give to God: and since they own it is idolatry to give Latria to any but God, and yet give Latria to the material cross, they must, in this instance, be self-condemned as idolaters. But there is no end of the idolatry, superstition, and will-worship of the Romish church: some of their own writers have been so sensible of it, that they have acknowledged with regret, that Popish Rome is nothing inferior to Pagan Rome in this matter. Good reason then have all true Christians to avoid communion with her, and keep separate from her; as we are plainly called and warned by God to do; 2 Cor. 6: 16, 17; Rev. 18: 4.
VI. Of Pope-worship.
They likewise deify and adore their Pope. They exalt him into Christ’s room, and give him divine titles and honours: they call him their Lord and God, Dominus Deus noster papa, Deus alter in terra, idem est dominus Deis et papæ, universal head of the church, &c. They give him power to make laws to bind the conscience and say that Christians are bound to give him implicit faith and blind obedience. They are not to examine his laws and prescriptions by the scriptures, as the Bereans did the apostles’ doctrine; but all must implicitly obey his commands, though never so contrary to the commands of God; as when he commands the worshipping of images, prohibits the people to read the scriptures, or to take the sacramental cup, refuses marriage to priests, exempts them from the jurisdiction of magistrates, &c. They give the Pope power to dispense with God’s laws at pleasure, to forgive sins committed against God, and to remit the punishment he might inflict for them, to open and shut both heaven and hell; and therefore he wears a bundle of keys at his girdle. Hence the Spirit of God calls him “the man of sin, who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God;” and saith, “he is full of the names of blasphemy, and opens his mouth in blasphemy against God;” see 2 Thes. 2: 3,4; Rev. 17: 3; 13: 6.
Just grounds have we to separate from the church of Rome as a grossly idolatrous and blasphemous church, rejected and abandoned of God. Far worse is she than the ancient enemies of Christ, the Scribes and Pharisees; for they still held that principle, that none can forgive sin but God only. But the Romanists have given up that principle, and give this power to their Pope. O what daring usurpation must it be for a subject, and one that is a criminal himself, to presume to pardon crimes committed against his almighty sovereign, and to remit the punishment which belongs to him to inflict! How admirable is the patience and long-suffering of the King of heaven and earth, that can bear so long with such insolence and blasphemous indignities from a worm of the earth!
VII. Of Bread-worship.
The church of Rome worship the bread in the sacrament, which they call the Hostia; though they have no precept nor example in scripture for this adoration, nor was there any such practice in the church for eight hundred years after Christ. It never began until the monstrous doctrine of transubstantiation was brought in, which taught that Christ is corporally present in the bread; a doctrine against both scripture and reason. How absurd is it to teach, that a poor silly priest hath power when he pleases to make a God, by muttering a few words; and, as soon as he makes it, the people must fall down and worship it; and, when that is done, they must presently eat and devour their god! And yet so violent are Papists for this idolatry, that they would burn and destroy those who will not bow to their breaden god. But though transubstantiation were possible, yet Romanists, according to their own principles are in continual hazard of idolatry, namely, by giving divine worship to a creature; for they can never be sure that the bread is changed into Christ’s body, seeing they grant the change may be hindered by sundry defects; such as, if the bread be not wheat bread, if it be corrupted, if the wine be soured, if there be more water than wine, if the priest err in the words of consecration, of which the people cannot be sure, seeing he utters them with such a low voice that he cannot be heard; or again, if the priest’s intention be not right in consecration; or if he be no priest, through some error in his ordination or baptism, or in the ordination or baptism of his authors, even back to the apostles’ times. For in any of these cases, by their own doctrine which suspends the validity of all sacraments upon the intention of the priest, and other such things, the consecration of the bread is invalid, and no real change is made; and then the worshippers of it must be guilty of idolatry. Now, what an unsafe and unhappy religion must Popery be, that exposes the people so frequently to the danger of idolatry! a sin which God declares to be so abominable and hateful in his sight! Jer. 44: 4. And hence it is, that the Spirit of God, when he speaks of the idols of the nations, calls them by the name of abominations; as the abomination of the Moabites, the abomination of the Ammonites, the abomination of the Zidonians, &c. And indeed we have just ground to speak in the same style of the abomination of the Papists; for their idolatry is as abominable, as that of the Jews or Pagans of old.
We may hence see, that it was with good reason, and upon just grounds, that our ancestors about two hundred years ago separated from the church of Rome and her worship. Why? God abhors idolatry, and calls all his people to separate from idolaters, and come out from among them, because the temple of God can have no agreement with idols, 2 Cor. 6: 16, 17. And, in particular, God gives the loudest warnings and plainest calls to separate from Babylon, or idolatrous Rome, Rev. 18: 4, 5, “Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues; for her sins are reached unto heaven. Now, what are the sins which bring on her plagues? They are the heaven-daring and God-affronting sins of blasphemy and idolatry mentioned before. And we see how particularly God points forth the gross idolatry of Babylon, and her ensnaring the nations into it with her, as the main sin which provokes the Lord at length to destroy her. Rev. 14: 8, “Babylon is fallen, because she made all nations drink of the wine of her fornication.” Idolatry is called wine, because it is sweet and palatable to corrupt nature, and soon intoxicates men. And, frequently, in scripture, idolatry is called fornication, namely, in a spiritual sense, as it is going a-whoring from God, Hos. 9: 1. And it is often called adultery, upon the same account, Jer. 3: 8,9; Ezek. 23: 37; Jam. 4: 4. The Lord is a jealous God, and will not suffer his spouse to go a-whoring after other gods, but will have her as a chaste virgin presented to him, and preserved for him; otherwise the marriage-relation cannot subsist, Hosea 3: 3, “Thou shalt abide for me, thou shalt not play the harlot, so will I also be for thee.” Idolatry breaks the marriage-covenant between Christ and his church, as adultery doth it amongst men; and for this sin he sends desolating judgments. It was idolatry that brought desolation upon Israel, and made their land spue them out. And to this day the Jews are so sensible of the God-provoking nature of this sin, that, when any great judgement or calamity befalls them, they say, There is an ounce of the golden calf, they made in the wilderness, given them in it. Likewise, it is for idolatry that Rome will in one hour be made desolate; see Rev. 18: 3, 19.
As idolatry is a land-desolating and church-destroying sin here, so it is a wrath-kindling and soul-damning sin hereafter. We see God expressly declares all idolaters to be in a damnable state, 1 Cor. 6: 9,10, “No idolater shall inherit the kingdom of God;” Rev. 21: 8, “Idolaters and all liars shall have their part in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.” Surely then Romish idolaters have great cause to fear and tremble, because of their gross idolatry, as well as for their blasphemy, and the damnable errors in the grand article of our justification before God, which I handled in the preceding sermon. O that God might open their eyes to read and consider what the word of God saith concerning them in the text about cited, and particularly in Rev. 14: 9-11, “They who worship the beast, and receive his mark in their forehead and hand,” that is, those who thoroughly and openly adhere to the antichristian profession, “they shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, and shall be tormented with fire and brimstone, where the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever!” O what a sad religion Popery must be, that hath the everlasting wrath of God threatened against it, and those who profess it! Likewise, it is said, Rev. 17: 8. “They who wonder after the beast, their names are not written in the book of life.” We have also a very awful confirmation of these threatenings against Papists, which would make them reflect with terror upon their errors and delusions, in 2 Thes. 2: 11, 12, where it is expressly asserted, that they who believe the delusions of the man of sin, are given up to be damned. Now, these being the words of the Spirit of God, we cannot alter them, nor take from them. But by them we are called to think seriously of the damnable nature of Popery, and to bless God for our deliverance from it; and also to commiserate their case who are carried away with Romish delusions, and pray earnestly for them, that God may open their eyes, as he was pleased in mercy to do to this land at the Reformation; and that he may still preserve us from the return of Romish idolatry and delusions, and from every thing that would open the door unto them. For since God gives it as the strong reason for his people’s coming out and separating from the idolatrous church of Rome, because he was to destroy her for her idolatry, and because all who drink of the wine of her fornication, shall also drink of the wine of God’s indignation, Rev. 14: 10, it is highly our wisdom and interest to shun and avoid, with the greatest care, the idolatry and delusions of Rome, and all the snares and methods of those who are concerned to promote her interest, and in their rebellion would appoint a captain to lead back these lands into Egyptian bondage, as in Neh. 9: 17. Still remember the caution of the apostle John, 1 John 5: 21, “Little children, keep yourselves from idols;” as if he had said, Shun all idolatrous communion, avoid fellowship with idol-worshippers, their society is infectious and dangerous: since ye have the knowledge of the true God, pay all your religious worship and honour to him, as the sole object of worship and adoration; let no creature partake with him in it. Adore not your God by statues and images, which would share with him in his worship; he forbids all these. Remember your God is an incomprehensible Spirit, and would reckon himself disgraced by such sordid representations. Hence it is, that he often puts that question to idolaters, Isa. 40: 18, “To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?” Intimating that he looks on it as an intolerable affront to liken the glorious invisible God to a poor despicable creature. May God preserve us from the abominable sin of idolatry! Amen.