Testimony if they speak not according to this Word it is because there is no light in them Isa 8. 20. But why dare you say That the practice of Bread Wine and Water was to be held no longer than till Christ came By his coming you intend his coming in Spirit That this is false and contrary to holy Scripture I shall evidently make appear And first I shall begin with the Ordinance of the Lord's Supper which you call Bread and Wine and that the practice of this continues and remains in full force and virtue to the end of the World or until the Second coming or Appearance of Christ in Person and that he is not so come the second time I shall also prove to thee before I have done That the practice of breaking Bread and drinking Wine in remembrance of Christ's Death remains after the coming of Christ in Spirit I prove by these Arguments following First Because the Apostle Paul did receive this from our Saviour as a glorious Appointment and Institution of the Lord Jesus a considerable time after the coming of Christ in Spirit The Promise of the Comforter or Christ's coming in Spirit was performed and fulfilled to the Sainrs some days after his Ascention as may be seen in the second of the Acts and it was some time after this before Paul was converted unto Christ For Paul after the coming of the Spirit according to the Promise of the Father and our Lord Jesus remained in darkness and was a Persecutor of the Saints and yet see I beseech ye what he affirms to the Church of the Corinthians 1 Cor. 11. 23. For I received of the Lord that which I also delivered unto you that the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took Bread and when he had given thanks he brake it and said Take eat this is my Body which is broken for you this do in remembrance of me and after the same manner also he took the Cup c. Now if Paul received this after that coming of Christ which you speak of as an Institution and Divine Appointment of the Lord Jesus as it appears plainly he did then that which you affirm is utterly false and to be rejected But Secondly The Apostle did not only receive this from Christ after the coming of Christ in Spirit but also did deliver it as Christ's Appointment to the Saints That which I received of the Lord saith he I also delivered unto yon Thirdly I argue further That this Ordinance doth remain in force and the practice of it to be held up after the coming of Christ in Spirit because the Primitive Saints did abide in the practice of it after the pouring forth of the Spirit according to Christ's Promise as appears Acts 2. 42. They continued in the Apostles Doctrine in breaking of Bread and Prayer compare this with Acts 20. 7 11. also 1 Cor. 11. 20. to the end Fourthly Consider The end of this Ordinance doth remain notwithstanding the pourings forth of the Spirit and therefore the Ordinance must needs remain which is to confirm our Faith in the true Saviour and to keep up our Love to him who gave his Body to be broken and his Blood to be shed for our sakes This is to be done to shew forth his Death until he come And these things considered which hath been said 't is plain it cannot intend his Spiritual Coming or the giving forth the holy Spirit the Comforter according to his promise And that he is not come the Second time without sin to Salvation as you seem to affirm doth appear First Because his coming that day shall be visible Every eye shall see him Rev. 1. 7. Secondly Because his feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives Zech. 14. 4. and he shall come in the same manner as he went up to Heaven Acts. 1. 11. Thirdly Because the Saints which had the highest attainments of the Spirit or to whom Christ was Spiritually come as gloriously as ever he came to any of the Saints did notwithstanding that still expect look and wait for his coming from Heaven See 1 Cor. 1. vers 4 5 6 7. I thank my God alwayes on your behalf for the Grace of God which is given to you by Jesus Christ tht in every thing ye are inriched by him in all utterance and all knowledge even as the Testimony of Christ was confirmed in you mark that So that ye come behind in no gift waiting for his Son from Heaven If Christ was not spiritually come to these who was he come to and yet they waited for his coming The Saints at Thessalonica are said to turn from Idols to serve the true God and to wait for his Son from Heaven 1 Thess 1. 9 10. and unto those that look for him saith the Apostle He shall appear the Second time without sin unto Salvation Heb. 9. 28. The beloved Apostle who injoyed so much of the Spiritual Presence of Christ yet desired and looked for his coming Which clearly shews that his Second coming is another manner of coming than that which you speak of for when he comes he comes with all his Saints and holy Angels with him and when he comes the Graves shall be opened and the Dead shall be raised yea the dead Bodies of Men and Women 1 Thess 4. 16. You say that you are risen from the dead already and Christ is come the Second time but be assured of this you will find another Resurrection Coming and Judgment ere long than this I could wish it were so indeed that thou hadst part in the true work of Regeneration that so in that day thou mightest have part in the first Resurrection for the dead in Christ shall rise first 1 Thess 4. which cannot intend any other save the dead bodies of the Saints who are fallen asleep or gone to the dust But because I have somewhat to say in the Vindication of Baptism which you call Water I shall proceed to that for as you and other Quakers deny the continuance of the Lord's Supper so also you affirm that the practise of Water-Baptism was to continue but till Christ came in Spirit Now how false this is may appear First from the Commission Matth. 28. 19 20. where Christ gave forth this blessed Ordinance All Power is given to me in Heaven and Earth Go therefore teach all Nations Baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy Spirit teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded yon and lo I am with you alwayes to the end of the world Now that the Baptism here spoken of is that of Water is evident because the Disciples are commanded or injoyned to be the Administraters or Dispensers of it To baptize with the holy Spirit is the alone Work Prerogative and Office of Jesus Christ and it never was in the power of any Apostle or Disciple of Christ to do it though the Spirit was
when all Jabesh Gilead heard all that the Philistines had done to Saul vers 12. they arose all the valiant men and took away the body of Saul and the bodies of his Sons and brought them to Jabesh and buried their bones under the Oak c. What they speak of Christ they may as well affirm concerning Saul and his Sons the case is the same Saul was not flesh they may as well conclude but something which did dwell in that body that the men of Jabesh Gilead buried under an Oak after his overthrow because that body is not called Saul but the body of Saul The same we also reade concerning Moses as may be seen Jude vers 9. Michael the Archangel when contending with the Devil he disputed about the body of Moses durst not bring a railing accusation against him c. That Moses was a man consisting of flesh and bone they may deny by the same Argument or say assuredly that that body was not him because it is called his body as so to affirm and speak concerning our Lord Jesus 'T is not said saith one of your Teachers that Joseph of Arimathea begged the Jesus of Jesus but the body of * See G. Whitehead's Book called The Light of Christ within p. 62. Jesus As if it must needs have been so said if that Man called Jesus had been the Christ What Nonsense would this man have writ if he had penned the story concerning the body of Saul he must have writ the men of Jabesh took up the Saul of Saul And what a strange Epitaph would this man write upon a Grave or Tombstone he can't write by this Argument Here lies the body of Thomas or William c. but rather thus Here lies the Thomas of Thomas And by this all persons may see how ridiculous these men render themselves while they scrape up such silly Arguments to deny and oppose the Truth But to proceed You tell me That flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God and so from those words of the Apostle conclude That our Saviour is not ascended with the same body into Heaven above which he took in the Womb of the Virgin Answ I understand to my trouble that many poor Souls in these last and evil days are carried away so far by the Spirit of Dâ—â—sion that they do deny the Resurrection the dead and this place of Scripture 〈◊〉 you mention I find is commonly made use of as a proof and confirmation of this their evil opinion but how exceedingly you and others do wrest the words of the Apostle in 1 Cor. 15. I might abundantly make appear It seems strange to me that you should father such a Principle upon the Apostle Paul who doth so clearly in the Spirit and Power of Christ Jesus in that very Chapter oppose and utterly detect it and sharply reproves those that did deny the Resurrection of the dead in his dayes If there be no resurrection of the dead saith he vers 13. then is not Christ risen and if Christ be not risen then is our Preaching vain yea and we are found false witnesses of God because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ whom he raised not up if the dead rise not For if the dead rise not then is not Christ risen vers 16. And if Christ be not raised your Faith is vain and ye are yet in your sins viz. Then they also that are fallen asleep in Christ are perished vers 18. Observe these expressions well and let all such tremble who are found this day opposing and denying this glorious Truth and great Fundamental of the Gospel Remember the words of our blessed Saviour himself Joh. 5. 28 29. Marvel not at this for the hour is coming in which all that are in the Graves shall hear his voice and shall come forth they that have done good to the Resurrection of life and they that have done evil to the resurrection of condemnation This cannot intend a rising out of the grave of sin because rising in that sense spiritually from the dead our Lord spake of that before in the same Chapter ver 25. and he plainly holds forth this rising vers 28. to be quite another thing to that he speaks of v. 25. And there are none that hear Christ's voice and are raised spiritually from the dead in that respect that do rise to condemnation The Lord Jesus alludes to the same Resurrection which Daniel speaks of Dan. 12. 2. Many of them that sleep in the dust of the Earth shall awake some to everlasting life and some to shame and everlasting contempt Thy dead men shall live saith the Prophet Isa 26. 19. with my dead body shall they arise Abundance of clear proofs I might further urge for the clearing up of this Truth but I shall proceed and indeed should not have mentioned these Scriptures but that I find you questioning if not utterly denying the Resurrection of the body You mention Paul's expression 1 Cor. 15. flesh blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God To Answer you in this much I need not speak for it is evident to any unless such who are wofully blinded that by flesh and blood the Apostle doth intend corruption or corruptible flesh and blood and therefore he testifies that those who are alive at the coming of Jesus Christ shall be changed in a moment in the twinkling of an eye For saith he this corruptible must put on incorruption and this mortal must put on immortallity he will change our vile bodies and fashion them like unto his glorious body Phil. 3. 21. But let not any conclude because the Apostle doth affirm our bodies shall be changed that therefore the same body respecting the matter substance or essence of it shall not be raised for Paul asserts that the same it which is sown in corruption that very same it riseth in incorruption and every seed shall have its own body If the same body which is buried in the Grave respecting the matter rise not then the dead rise not All the change is touching the state qualities or condition of the body the corruption and imperfection and all manner of deformity shall be done away and it shall rise more glorious than it was before To help your understanding a little further consider that true convertion is called a change the Soul of every regenerate godly Man and Woman is changed yet it t is not a change of the essence of the Soul but only of its evil qualities c. Observe a saying of Job Job 19. 25 c. I know that my Redeemer liveth and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the Earth And though after my skin worms destroy this body yet in my flesh shall I see God whom I shall see for my self and my eyes shall behold and not another although my reins be consumed in me That same body that hath sinned with the Soul shall be punished with the Soul and the same body
Church and to cleanse and wash the Church was Jesus Christ Object But here it may be some will object and say That this same name or appellation hath been given unto men as we read concerning Moses Exod. 7. 1. And the Lord said unto Moses See I have made thee a God unto Pharaoh c. And so the Scriptures elsewhere speak of the Rulers as Gods I said ye are Gods but ye shall die like Men. Answ 1. I do grant the name God hath been given to men upon the account of what those Scriptures speak yet was that name or title never given to any man on earth as it is given unto Jesus Christ for he is not only called God but also the Mighty God See Isa 9. 6. For unto us a Child is born unto us a Son is given and the Government shall be upon his shoulders and his name shall be called Wonderful Counsellor the Mighty GOD the Everlasting Father the Prince of Peace And as he is here called the Mighty God so the Apostle John calls him the True God 1 Job 5. 20. And we know saith he that the Son of God is come and hath given us an understanding that we may know him that is true and we are in him that is true even in his Son Jesus Christ This is the true God and eternal life And as he is called by this Apostle the true God so Jude calls him the only Wise God Jude 25. Yea and the Apostle Paul calls him Rom. 9. 5. God blessed for ever see and observe his expressions Whose are the Fathers and of whom as concerning the flesh Chrict came who is GOD blessed for ever Amen Now where is any man save Jesus of Nazareth only called the Mighty God the True God the only Wise God and God blessed for ever And how dares any man these Scriptures being considered deny the glorious Deity of our Lord Jesus Christ But 2. He that made the World must needs be Eternal God for none could do that but God alone 'T is ridiculous and most absurd to think the Creature could make it self before it self was God upon the account of his infinite Power and Wisdom in creating the the World expostulateth and reasoneth with his People glorying if I may so say in the greatness of his Power and Majesty and unwordable Essence proving that way his dreadful Godhead Isa 40. and all the Gods of the Nations to be but Idols And now that Jesus Christ made and created the World see the first of John vers 1. In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God vers 3. All things were made by him c. Now compare this with the 14th verse And the Word was made Flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory as the glory of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth Reade the next verse and you may see that this was he that John bear witness of to be the true Christ But again reade Col. 2. 16. For by him saith Paul were all things created that are in heaven and that are in earth visible and invisible If you would know who this is you may see if you please to mind vers 14. 't is he who hath purchased remission of sins for us through his blood and 18 verse 'T is he who is the head of the body the Church who is the beginning the first born from the dead c. compare this with Heb. 2. 10. And thou Lord in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth and the heavens are the works of thy hands That he speaks of the Son 't is evident see the whole Chapter the main drift of the Author is to set forth the glorious Deity and Godhead of Jesus Christ But I must hasten to the next Argument and that is this 3. He that upholdeth all things that are made must needs be God but that Jesus Christ doth uphold and preserve all the whole Creation see Heb. 1 3. Who being the brightness of his Glory and the express image of his Person and upholding observe all things by the word of his Power when he had by him self purged our sins sate down on the right hand of the Majesty on High This agrees with Col. 1. 17. And he is before all things and by him all things consist 4. He that knoweth all things before it cometh to pass must be God such knowledge is too wonderful for us Psal 139. In several places of Scripture you may see how the Almighty doth prove his glorious Being and Godhead by his Omnisciency Job 38. 1 2 4 5 19 20 33 39. Psal 4. 10. Job 36. 4 5 6 c. And that our Lord Jesus Christ knoweth all things see John 21. 17. they are the words of Simon Peter And he said unto him Lord THOU KNOWEST all things thou Knowest that I love thee Moreover 't is said Joh. 2. 24 25. That Jesus did not commit himself unto them because he Knew all men And needed not that any should Testifie of Man for he knew what was in man And in another place it is said That Jesus Knew from the beginning who they were that believed not and who should betray him Joh. 6. 64. What more clearly tends to prove his blessed Deity than his Omnisciency 5. I shall yet add another Argument further to evince this glorious truth which doth hang or depend upon the precedent Reason viz. He that searcheth the heart must of necessity be acknowledged and owned to be the Almighty and Etenal God for who knoweth the heart save that infinite Majesty that formed the Spirit of Man that is in him The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked saith the Prophet Jer. 17. 9. who can know it I the LORD search the heart and try the reins vers 10. As if the Lord should say There is none save my self knoweth or can know it And now that the Lord Jesus Christ who died for our sins doth search the heart and the reins he himself doth assert it Rev. 2. 23. I will kill her Children with death speaking of the woman Jezebel and all the Churches shall know that I am HE which searcheth the reins and the heart and I will give unto every one of you according as his works shall be c. 6. He that is the first and the last must needs be the Everlasting God for from this very ground and consideration the Lord doth argue or reason with his People to shew and make appear there is no other God besides himself Isa 44. 6. I am the first and I am the last and besides me there is no God compared with Chap. 48. 12. Hearken unto me O Jacob and Israel my called I am he I am the first and I am the last c. And that the famous said of the Lord Jesus Christ reade Rev. 2. 8. I am Alpha and Omega the beginning and the ending which is and