The minister stands in God’s stead to his parish, says Herbert. He is not a mediating priest or replacement God (as if he were a celebrity pastor to be worshipped and glorified!). But he tries to mirror the approval or disapproval of God for his parishioner’s actions in his own responses.

As the Church Times said last week, Herbert “wrote a rather severe guide to country worship, and to rural priesthood itself. Much of it still stands up” (“Word from Wormingford”, 6th March 2015). Does this idea still stand up? Should we reward the generous and withdraw our courtesy from those who offend (presumably until they repent)?

As Richard Baxter, another 17th century pastor, once wrote, “godliness is not practically believed to be the most gainful way (or else men would follow it as eagerly as they do their worldly gain).” So is Herbert onto a good method to teach people about the more ultimate justice of God, the rewarder of those who seek him? Since we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ to receive what we are due, either good or bad (2 Corinthians 5:10), can pastors help people understand this, by their words and deeds in this life?

CHAPTER 20
The Parson in God’s stead

The country parson is in God’s stead to his parish, and discharges God what he can of his promises. Wherefore there is nothing done either well or ill, whereof he is not the rewarder, or punisher.

If he chance to find any reading in another’s Bible, he provides him one of his own. If he find another giving a poor man a penny, he gives him a tester for it, if the giver be fit to receive it; or if he be of a condition above such gifts, he sends him a good book, or eases him in his tithes, telling him when he has forgotten it, “This I do, because at such and such a time you were charitable.”

This is in some sort a discharging of God; as concerning this life, who has promised that “godliness shall be gainful” (1 Timothy 4:8; 6:6). But in the other, God is his own immediate paymaster, rewarding all good deeds to their full proportion.

The parson’s punishing of sin and vice is rather by withdrawing his bounty and courtesy from the parties offending, or by private, or public reproof, as the case requires, than by causing them to be presented, or otherwise complained of. And yet as the malice of the person, or heinousness of the crime may be, he is careful to see condign [appropriate] punishment inflicted, and with truly godly zeal, without hatred to the person, hungers and thirsts after righteous punishment of unrighteousness.

Thus both in rewarding virtue and in punishing vice, the parson endeavours to be in God’s stead, knowing that country people are drawn or led by sense, more than by faith, by present rewards or punishments, more than by future.