Major.  No proper power of church government, which was fully exercised in the Church of Christ, before any magistrate became Christian, yea, when magistrates were persecutors of the Church, was derived from Christ to the magistrate as a magistrate.

Minor.  But all proper power of church government was fully exercised in the Church before any magistrate became Christian, yea, when magistrates were cruel persecutors of the Church of Christ.

Conclusion.  Therefore no proper power of church government was derived from Christ to the civil magistrate as a magistrate.

The major proposition must be granted.  For, 1st, Either then the Church, in exercising such full power of church government, should have usurped that power which belonged not at all to her, but only to the magistrate; for what power belongs to a magistrate, as a magistrate, belongs to him only; but dare we think that the apostles, or the primitive purest apostolical churches did or durst exercise all their power of church government which they exercised, merely by usurpation without any right thereunto themselves? 2d, Or if the Church usurped not, &c., but exercised the power which Christ gave her, let the magistrate show wherein Christ made void the Church’s charter, retracted this power, and gave it unto him.

The minor proposition cannot be denied.  For,

1st.  It was about 300 years after Christ before any of the Roman emperors (who had subdued the whole world, Luke ii. 1, under their sole dominion) became Christian.  For Constantine the Great was the first emperor that received the faith, procured peace to the Church, and gave her respite from her cruel persecutions, which was in Anno 309 (or thereabouts) after Christ; before which time the Church was miserably wasted and butchered with those ten bloody persecutions, by the tyranny of Nero, and other cruel emperors before Constantine.

2d.  Yet within the space of this first 309 or 311 years, all proper power of church government was fully exercised in the Church of Christ; not only the word preached, Acts iv. 2; 1 Tim. iii. 16; and sacraments dispensed, Acts xx. 7; 1 Cor. xi. 17, &c.; Acts ii. 4, and viii. 12:  but also deacons set apart for that office of deaconship, Acts vi.:  elders ordained and sent forth, Acts xiii. 1-3, and xiv. 23; 1 Tim. iv.; Tit. i. 5:  public admonition in use, Tit. iii. 10; 1 Tim. v. 20:  excommunication, 1 Cor. v.; and 1 Tim. i. 20:  absolution of the penitent, 2 Cor. ii. 6, 7, &c.:  synodical conventions and decrees, Acts xv. with xvi. 4.  So that we may conclude,

Therefore no proper power of church government was derived from Christ to the civil magistrate, as a magistrate.

Argum. 3d.  The magistratical power really, specifically, and essentially differs from the ecclesiastical power; therefore the civil magistrate, as a magistrate, cannot be the proper subject of this ecclesiastical power.  Hence we may thus argue: