Organisation of the Church.

I. Government.

a. Chief authority.

(1) Exercised by the Apostles as received from CHRIST.
2 Cor. x. 8; xiii. 2, 3. 2 Thes. iii. 4, 14. Com-
mitted to Bishops ordained by them.
Tit. ii. 15.

1 Tim. iv. II, 12.

(2) The Church commits to her Bishops

power to

administer the discipline of the Church. "Give grace, we beseech Thee, to all Bishops, Pastors of Thy Church, that they may. administer the godly discipline thereof.”1

b. Orders of Ministers.

(1) Three Orders in the Apostolic Church.

.....

duly

a. Apostles or Bishops; having power to administer the chief [and all other] rites of the Church.

To ordain to the Office of Bishop, or Elder.
Acts xiii. 2, 3; xiv. 23.
Tit. i. 5.
To confirm the Baptized with the Gift of the
HOLY GHOST. Acts viii. 14-18.

B. Elders; together with the Apostles overseers of the Church, but subordinate to the Apostles in authority. Acts xx. 28. I S. Pet. v. I, 2, 3. Deacons; appointed to assist in all the minor offices of the Church. Acts vi. 1-7. Deacons were also permitted to Baptize. Acts viii. 12, 13. (2) The Church retains the same three orders of ministers.

a. Bishops; having power, together with that of
administering all other rites of the Church-
To ordain,2

To confirm; "after the example of the Holy
Apostles."3

B. Priests. Having power

To absolve.

To baptize.

preach "if admitted thereto by the Bishop." e Church.

Apostolic Church, questions of difficulty by Council. Acts xv.

resent "unhappy divisions" of the Catholic such a Council as that of Acts xv. is ble; but the voice of the Church is heard decisions of those early Councils (such as ene) which defined the Catholic Faith.

and other holy ordinances. lic Church we find

o great Sacraments of Salvation duly adred.

Baptism. Acts ii. 38; viii. 12; xvi. 31, 33. "Breaking of Bread." Acts ii. 42, 46; 7. I Cor. xi. 23, 24, 25.

of other holy rites; as of

laying on of hands on the baptized. Acts . 14-18. Cf. Heb. vi. 2.

Ordination of Bishops and Elders. Acts . 2, 3; xiv. 23.

exercise of the power given by CHRIST to s Apostles in the forgiveness, and the rening of sins. I Cor. v. 4, 5. 2 Cor. ii. 10. craments and holy ordinances continued in : Church.

craments "generally necessary to SalvaBaptism.

Supper of the LORD, or the Holy Eucharist. oly rites; as

irmation.

ers. olution.

(2) The Church keeps the First Day Holy, and pro-
vides for its due observance in the Celebration of
the Holy Eucharist, appointing a proper Collect,
Epistle, and Gospel for every Sunday.

b. A common form of Prayer.

(1) A cómmon form of Prayer in use in the Apostolic
Church. "They continued steadfastly in ... the
prayers." Acts ii. 42.

(2) The Church now has her book of Common Prayer. c. Fasting.

(1) Certain rules of Fasting observed by the Apostolic
Church. Acts xiii. 3; xiv. 23.

(2) The Church still has her appointed Fasts.2

d. Almsgiving.

(1) In the Apostolic Church, a fixed and regular order
for the gathering of Alms. I Cor. xvi. 2.

2 Cor. ix. 5, 6, 7.

(2) The Church still has her offertories.

e. Relief of the distressed.

S

Cf.

(1) The Apostolic Church provided for the temporal
needs of her poorer members. Acts vi. 1-4.
(2) The Church makes provision for the sick, and needy,
"To search for the sick, poor, and impotent
people," one of the Offices of a Deacon.

"I believe in one Catholic and Apostolic Church."

Duty of Obedience to the Church.

I. Obedience in doctrine.

a. To the keeping of the Catholic Church, "the pillar and
ground of the truth," CHRIST has committed the Faith
once delivered to the Saints."

S. Jude 3. 1 Tim. iii. 15. Cf. Gal. i. 8, 9. [1 Tim.
iv. 16. S. Jude 20, 21.]

b. In our baptism we promised

the obedience of faith."

"To believe all the articles of the Christian Faith." 13
[Rom. xvi. 25, 26.]

II. Obedience in discipline.

Heb. xiii. 17. S. Mat. xviii. 17.

Precepts of the Church,-4

(i) To observe the appointed Festivals, and holy-days."

1 Revised Version. 2 Table of Fasts 3 Catechism.

and Days of Abstinence.

4 See "Cosin's Devotions." 5 Calendar of the Church.

m

(2) Our spiritual Life ;—the Life we receive when we
are "regenerate" or "born again" in Holy Baptism.
By this New Life we are made partakers of the
nature of CHRIST, the Second Adam. This na-
ture is "from heaven," "heavenly," full of holy
desires, and heavenly hopes. I Cor. xv. 47, 48,
49. Called in Scripture," The new man,” Eph.
iv. 24; “The Spirit,” Gal. v. 17.

b. Warfare between these two natures.
(1) Constant.

By every principle these two natures are antagon-
istic one to another; their desires, their hopes,
their aims, are all opposed; there can therefore
be no peace between them. Gal. v. 17. Rom.
vii. 21, 22, 23. Cf. Gen. iii. 15. S. Mat. vi. 19,
20, 24. [Type, Isaac, and Ishmael. Gen. xxi. 9,
IO. Gal. iv. 29.]

(2) Lifelong.

The Christian is pledged to fight manfully “unto his life's end."

c. The old nature must be put to death.

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'Kept under ;” 1 Cor. ix. 27. "Mortified;" Rom. viii. 13; Col. iii. 5. "Crucified;" Gal. v. 24 ; cf. Rom. vi. 6.

II. The Christian Life, a Resurrection.

As the old nature dies, the new nature must spring up, and live, and grow.

"We also should walk in newness of life;" "in the like

ness of His Resurrection;"

66

as those that are alive from the dead." Rom. vi. 4, 5, 13. Cf. viii. 13.

III. This Life, and this Death, Baptism represents

to us.

a.

'Baptism doth represent unto us our profession, which
is to follow the example of our SAVIOUR CHRIST, and
to be made like unto Him; that, as He died, and rose
again for us, so should we who are baptized--
(1) "Die from sin... continually mortifying all our
evil and corrupt affections.

...

daily pro(2) "And rise again unto righteousness ceeding in all virtue and godliness of living."

1 Baptismal Office. Office.

2 Exhortation to Godparents; Baptismal