Rogers on Article IV: Of the Resurrection of Christ

The propositions.

1. Christ is risen from the dead.

2. Christ is ascended into heauen.

3. Christ shall come again at the last day, to iudge all men, euen the quick and the dead.

1. Proposition. Christ is risen from the dead.

The profe from Gods word.

THe resurrection of Christ may easily be prooued from the holy Scriptures, in which it is euident, first that Christ should ¹; and next that hee did rise from death vnto life, both by his appearing to Marie Magdalene ², to diuers women ³, to two ⁴, to tenne ⁵, to all the disciples f, to moe then 500. brethren at once⁶, to sundry persons by the space of 40 daies together ⁷; and by the testimonie also of the Apostles Peter ⁸, & Paul ⁹.

A truth both beleeued, and acknowledged by Gods people from age to age ¹⁰.

Errors and adversaries vnto this truth.

Vtterly false then, and vnchristian is the opinion of those men.

Which vtterly denie the resurrection of any flesh, as did the Sadduces ¹¹, the false Apostles ¹²; Simon Magus ¹³, and the Manichies ¹⁴.

Which would acknowledge no resurrection of Christ, as would not, nor will the Iewes ¹⁵, nor heretike Hamant ¹⁶, nor Dauid Georg, one of whose errors was, that the flesh of Christ was dissolued into ashes, and so rose no more ¹⁷.

which affirme (as did Cerinthus) that Christ shall rise againe, but yet is not risen ¹⁸.

Which say, how our Sauiour, after his resurrection, was so deified, as he reteined no more the parts and properties of his bodie, and soule; nor the vnion of both natures, but is meerely God. So thought the Schwenkfeldians:

Which take the Resurrection of Christ to be but an allegorie and no true, and certaine historie; as doe the Familie of Loue ¹⁹.

2. Proposition. Christ is ascended into heauen.

The proofe from Gods word.

In saying how Christ with his bodie is ascended into heauen, and there sitteth, and abideth, we doe agree with the Prophets ²⁰, Euangelists ²¹, and Apostles ²², with the ancien fathers ²³, and Gods people our brethren, throughout all Christendome ²⁴.

Errors, and adversaries vnto this truth.

But we altogether dissent

From Hamant, the English heretike, which denied the ascension of Christ ²⁵.

Also from Ket, the heretike and Apostata, which likewise denied our Sauiours asscension, affirming that his humane nature is not in heauen but in Iudaea, gathering a Church and people.

Also from the Germane Vbiquitaries, and Papists, they saying that Christ as man, is not onely in heauen, but in earth too at this instant, wheresoeuer the deitie is ²⁶, these affirming the humane nature of Christ is, wheresoeuer the Sacrament of the Altar is administred ²⁷.

Also from the Montanists, Cataphrygians, and Carpocratians ²⁸, who held how Christ not in body but in soule ascended into heauen.

From the papists, who say that Christ ascending into heauen carried with him the soules, which he loosed from captiuitie, and bondage of the deuill; euen the soules of the righteous, afore that time were not in heauen, but in Lymbo ²⁹.

And lastly from those Germane diuines, which thinke that our Sauiour carried with him into heauen the faithfull people, in soule and bodie, raised at his resurrection ³⁰.

3. Proposition. Christ shall come againe at the last day, to iudge all men, euen the quicke and the dead.

The proofe from Gods word.

God annointed Iesus of Nazareth with the holie Ghost, and with power, &c. Hence God raised vp the third day, &c. And he commanded vs to preach vnto the people, & to testifie, that it is hee, that is ordained of God a Iudge of quicke, and dead, saith S. Peter ³¹.

God shall iudge the world by Iesus Christ ³².

Iesus Christ shall iudge the quicke and dead at his appearing, and in his kingdome, &c. Henceforth is laid vp for me the crowne of righteousnesse, which the Lotd, the righteous iudge shall giue mee at that day, and not to mee onely, but vnto all them also that loue his appearing; saith S. Paul ³³.

The Iudge standeth before the doore, saith. S. Iames ³⁴.

And this Gods church and people doe firmely beleeue and faithfully confesse ³⁵.

Errors and adversaries vnto this truth.

On the other side both they abroad, and we at home, abhorre them for their opinions which said that,

There shallbe no genera[?]l iudgement at all, as did the Manichies ³⁶, and doe the atheists.

That the deuills, and the most vngodly, some of them, and namely so manie as in hell do call vpon God for mercie, and forgiuenesse, say the Turkes ³⁷, yea of al them, say the Originists ³⁸, and Catabaptists ³⁹, shall be saued.

That the wicked shall not be iudged at all, but shall die as the bruite beasts, and neither rise againe in body, nor come vnto iudgement. An error of the Familie of Loue ⁴⁰.

That Christ shall not be the future Iudge; so thought both Dauid George, Coppinger and Arthington: For that George rumord himselfe to be the iudge of the whole world ⁴¹, and Coppinger and Arthington, published how one William Hacket was come to iudge the world, and themselues to be his angels for the separating the sheepe from Goates ⁴².

That besides Christ, the Pope is iudge of the quick, & dead; An error of the Papists ⁴³.

That afore the iudgement there shall be a golden world, the godly, and none besides, enioying the same peaceably, and gloriously, as the Iewes imagine ⁴⁴.

That the Beleife, touching the general Iudgement of Christ, ouer the liuing, and dead, is a doctrine mysticall, or a mysterie (no historie); as H.N. teacheth ⁴⁵.

That the righteous are alreadie in godly glorie, and shall from henceforth liue euerlastingly with Christ, and raigne vpon the Earth; as the Familie of Loue holdeth ⁴⁶.

Footnotes

1. Thou wilt not suffer thine holy one to see corruption. Psal. 16.10. After he is killed, he shall rise againe the 3. day. Mark. 9.31. & 10.34. Luk. 9.32. ↩

2. Ioh. 20.14. ↩

3. Math. [?]8.9. ↩

4. Luke 24 13.15, 30, 31. ↩

5. Ioh. 20.19. ↩

6. 1. Cor. 15.6.
   ↩

7. Act. 1.3. ↩

8. Act. 1.22. & 2.32. 1. Pet. 1.3. ↩

9. Act. 17.2, 3. Rom. 10.9 1. Cor. 15.4, 5, &c. ↩

10. Symbol. Apost. Athan. Nicen. Confess. Helvet. 1. ar. 11. & 2. c. 11. Basil. ar. 4. Bohem. c. 6. Gal. ar. 15.16. Belg. ar. 20. August. ar. 3. Suevica, ar. 2. Harmon. confess praef. ↩

11. The Sadduces say there is no resurrection, Matth. 22.23. they denie there is any resurrection. Luk. 20.27. they say there is no resurrection, neither angel, nor spirit. Act. 23 8. ↩

12. How say som among you that there is no resurrection of the dead. 1. Cor. 15.12. ↩

13. Epiphan. ↩

14. August. contra Faust. l. 4. c. 16. ↩

15. Matth. 28.13.15. Lud. Caret, l, divinor. visor. ↩

16. Holinsh. chron. fol. 1299. ↩

17. Hist. Dauidis Georg. ↩

18. Philaster. ↩

19. Display in Allens confess. ↩

20. Ps l. 47.5.68.18.110.1. ↩

21. Math. 23.44.26.64. Act. 1.9. Luk. 24.51. ↩

22. Rom. 8.34. Eph. 4.8. ↩

23. Symb. Apost. Athan. Nicen. ↩

24. Confess. Helv. 1. ar. 11. & 2. c. 11. Basi. ar. 4. Bohem. c. 6. Gal. ar. 15. Belg. ar. 20. August. ar. 3. Saxon. ar. 3. Suevic. ar. 2. ↩

25. Holinsh. chro. fol. 1299. ↩

26. Ia. Smidelinus, Vbiquitatis Apostolus. Beza, epist. 61. ↩

27. Ergo it is not in heauen, vnles heauen be vpon earth. ↩

28. Philast. Theodor. ↩

29. Catech. Tri[?]. in Symb. verba, d. […]. c. 1. Te[?]t. Rh[?]m. 11. marg..633. ↩

30. D. M[?]. Dom. in Euang. in fes[?]o Ascen. Dom. & in epist. Dom. Ascen. D. ↩

31. Act 10.38.40, 41. ↩

32. Rom. 2.16. ↩

33. 2. Tim. 4.1.8.
    ↩

34. Iam. 5.9. ↩

35. Symb. Apost. Nicen. Athan. Confess. Helv. 2. c. 11. & 1. ar. 11. Basil. ar. 9. Bohem. c. 6. Belg. ar. 37. August. ar. 3. Suevi[?]a, ar. 2. ↩

36. Philaster. ↩

37. […] 23. ↩

38. […]. 17. ↩

39. Bulling con[?]r. Catah[?]. l. 1. tra[?]t. 1. ↩

40. Dis[?]l[?]y of the Fam. H. 6. b. ↩

41. […]. David[?]s Georg. ↩

42. Conspir. f[?]r pretend. Ref[?]r. p. 47 55. Arthing. s[?]duc. ↩

43. Extrauag. de sent. Excom. C. a nobis, & 24. q. 2. ↩

44. Confess. Aug. ar. 17. ↩

45. H.N. in his Jnstruct. praef. […]. 5. ↩

46. H.N. ibid. […]. 1. ar. 8. § 35. and in his Euang. c. 1. § 1. […], confess. in the Displ[?]y. ↩