Saints is Greater in Goodness Righteousness Wisdom and all Things than the Devil is in Antichrist and his Prophets therefore the Faithful in whom God dwels and manifests Himself must needs overcome Antichrist and the false Prophets in whom the Devil dwels and manifests himself Now hence we may learn several things And first we may learn That Antichrist can prevail against any Outward Form of Religion and Godliness against any Humane Vertues and Graces and Works and Prayers or any thing that is of Man or flows from Him though in never so great appearance of Holiness as we by sad experience have seen many Men of great seeming Religion famous for Preaching and Praying and reputed Pillars in the Church when they have come hither into the University where Antichrist and his Spirit have remained in their full strength notwithstanding the great Consumption which God hath brought on them by his Word in other parts how soon have they cased from that sense of the Gospel which they once seemed to have had and how suddenly have they been intangled and overcome with the Spirit of the University and of Antichrist for Worldly Honour and Advantage sake and so the highest and strongest formal Religion in the Church Antichrist can soon prevail against But Antichrist can never prevail against God in the Saints nor against the Righteousness Wisdom and Power of God in them all which are contained in his true Presence nor against the Faith Hope and Love of Saints which are the Works of God in them by his Spirit against these Antichrist cannot prevail For greater is He that is in Us than he that is in the World So then if thou hast any thing in thee that is truly of God or rather that is God Himself in thee That Antichrist cannot overcome by all his Arts and Power but he will easily overcome any thing else Antichrist cannot prevail against Immanuel which is God with Us nor against the Mysterie of Godliness in us which is God manefest in the flesh but every other thing though it seem never so Angelical he prevails against 2. We may learn hence That it is not an easie thing to overcome Antichrist and to get the Victory over that Beast and his Image and his Mark and the Number of his Name seeing Antichrists coming is after the working of Satan as the Apostle saith and through Antichrist the Devil Himself speaks works and acts yet as an Angel of light in all lying or false Power Wisdom and Righteousness and this he doth for the Damnation of Men and to bring Them all who have no true love to the Truth to perish with Himself for ever And his Operation of Error is so mighty and efficacious that it cannot be resisted and overcome by any in all the World but by those who are born of God and do partake of his Nature and Presence in them For the Power Wisdom and Righteousness of Antichrist and his Prophets which is so suteable to the Nature of the World and so glorious in its Eye cannot possibly be overcome but by the true Power Wisdom and Righteousness of God in his true Children or Prophets 3. Hence also let us learn not to be dismayed at Antichirist and his Prophets who have in all Ages got such Reputation Power and Glory to Themselves in the World because of their seeming Learning Righteousness and Religion seeing Christ in Us and in all his poor People is infinitely more mighty than They are and the Devil in them and nothing can prevail against Us except first it can prevail against Christ. Wherefore if We in our selves are never so weak and through our weakness never so fearful and trembling yet let us not be discouraged or faint seeing our might is not in Our selves but in Christ who dwels in Us and who is infinitely greater than He that dwells in the World He that dwells in Us through Faith is Greater than he that dwells in Them through Unbelief and in His strength let us abide by his Word and Doctrine even to Suffering and Death if need be and in all these Evils we shall overcome Them by whom we seem to be overcome as also Christ our Head did And thus much for the fourth General thing The Fifth Point The Apostle shews with whom Antichrist and his Teachers should prevail to wit with the Worldly and Carnal People vers 5. They are of the World therefore speak they of the World and the World hears them The World hears them Antichrist and his Prophets prevail with the World and Worldly People and do obtain their favour love and applause and They are their Auditors and delight in Them and their Doctrine Now by the World here is meant such People who though they have an outward Christianity and Religion yet inwardly remain in their Natural Condition and Corruption without any true renewing through Faith and the Spirit And all such People notwithstanding their seeming Religion and Righteousness do love Themselves and this World and the Things of it better than Jesus Christ and his Truth And these here are called the World and this World or these worldly Christians do hear and entertain the Teachers of Antichrist and their Doctrine Two Grounds of which the Apostle here gives us to wit Why these People cleave to these Teachers 1. The first is Because these Teachers are of the World 2. Because they speak of the World 1. They are of the World That is though by their Breeding and Profession their Degrees and Ordination they seem to be set at a great distance from the Common people and to be nearer the Kingdom of God and the Knowledge and Possession of it then the Common People of the World yet for all this They indeed and in truth are still of the World and all their liberall Education their manner of Life their Study Knowledge Learning Languages Sciences Degrees and Ordination doth not at all change their inward evil Nature Mind Will Affections nor the corrupt Disposition and Principle in which they were born but notwithstanding all these things they are still the very same throughout as when they came first into the World being destitute of a New Birth and Heavenly Nature Nay by all these things they are more taken into the Spirit of the World into the corruptions and evils of it into the pride lust covetousness and ambition of it by how much through such Indowments and Accomplishments they think Themselves better than other Men and so notwithstanding their Academical Degrees and Ecclesiastical Orders they are not less but more of the World even fully of the World And hence we may learn That it is not Study Parts Breeding Learning nor any Natural Indowments or acquired Accomplishments that will deliver any man out of this World or corrupt state of Mankind or that can change his Nature or give him the least Place or Interest in the Kingdom of God
but only a new Birth and true faith in Jesus Christ whereby we are made the Children of God without which Men are still of the World notwithstanding all their other Improvements And this very thing manifests that Universities cannot be the fountains of the true Ministery of the Gospel seeing all the Education in it Philosophical Moral and Theological cannot change mens Natures or deliver them from their Corruptions or translate them one hairs breadth out of this present evil World yea generally we see that by University-Education as things have hitherto been managed Youth is made more of the World than they were by Nature through the High Improvement of their corruptions by their daily converse with the Heathens their vain Philosophers and filthy and obscene Poets and by these Heathenish abominable Accomplishments are they made the more fit Teachers for the World and Worldly People and become the more suitable to them and obtain the greater Aptness and Ability to please them Wherefore it may be most truly said of that Ministery that flows meerly from the fountain of the Universities that it is Of the World And now when the Teachers are of one Nature and Principle of one Heart Minde and Consent with the Hearers there must needs be a Great Agreement between them for each one approves and loves that which is like himself and so the Worldly people must needs cleave to the Teachers that are of the World Yea farther and which is very considerable the World can indure and like any Doctrine though in the Letter never so Holy and Spiritual from such Teachers are of one Nature and Spirit with it self And He that speaks of the things of Christ without the Spirit of Christ and by the Spirit of the World can never by any such Doctrine be grievous to the World but rather acceptable Seeing there is more in the Nature of those Teachers to reconcile the World to them than in their Doctrine to set the World against them For the World cannot but agree with those Teachers that are of the World let their Doctrine in the Letter be what it will Whereas on the contrary the faithfull are not of the World but of another Seed Nature and Principle which is in direct Enmity to the World and so they speaking the things of Christ in the Spirit of Christ must needs be grievous and troublesom to them who have the Spirit of the World and the Friends of Christ crucified cannot but be grievous to the Friends of this World And this for the first Ground 2. The second Ground Why the Worldly People hear the Worldly Teachers is this Because they speak of the World For as they are so they speak out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh and so They that are of the World speak of the World and this we may conceive of in three particulars 1. The Worldly Teachers speak of the World that is they speak the Spiritual Word of God in a Carnal and Worldly Sense they speak of Divine things as of Humane things according to their Natural and Humane Minde Reason Knowledge Learning and Understanding of them And so they give forth Christ himself and his Kingdom and all his Things his Redemption Reconciliation Salvation as also Faith Hope Love and all the Graces of the Spirit and Riches of Christ they give forth all these things in a Carnal Understanding and Notion to the People And the World can like well enough of Christ his Kingdom and Things in a Worldly Sense they can bear or endure Faith and Repentance and the New Creature and the New Jerusalem in a Carnal Sense while in the true Spiritual Sense of them and as they are in Themselves and according to the Minde of Christ they are the greatest Enemies to them that can be Now Believers must know in this Matter That whoever speaks the Things of Gods Spirit by the spirit of a Man or Spiritual Things in a Humane Carnal and Worldly Sense is a false Prophet and Teacher of Antichrist Whoever reading or hearing the Gospel of God our Saviour doth understand and frame it after his own Humane Sense and doth not so understand it as the Lord hath spoken it He is a false Prophet understanding and speaking the Gospel after his own minde but contrary to Christs and these open their own Hearts to the People and not Gods Now when the People that are of the World hear the Teachers that are of the World speaking Spiritual Things in a Carnal and Worldly sense and according to such an Apprehension as they have already in their own Hearts they do exceedingly cleave to and embrace such Teachers and their Doctrine For such Doctrine man in his Natural Condition can well like of seeing it leads men only to a change of Outward Works and to a performance of Outward Worship which any man by his own natural abilities can perform aad the World can well endure to put on the fairest form of Godliness and the strictest so their Nature inwardly may remain the Same And thus the Worldly People comply readily with the Worldly Doctrine of the Worldly Teachers seeing it is after the sense and mind of Man But on the contrary Christ and his Seed as they are not of the World so neither do they speak of the World but being of God they speak the Things of God according to God they speak of the Things of God by the Spirit of God and so according to the Minde of God they speak of the Things of God in the Wisdom Righteousness Truth Light and Life of God and thus the World cannot endure the VVord nor Those that teach it 2. The Prophets of Antichrist speak of the World that is they turn the Word of God into Worldly and Carnal doctrine for Worldly Advantage sake they preach the spiritual Word of God carnally that they may make it serve their own Turns and Ends. That Word of the Gospel which God hath given only to serve the spiritual and eternal Welfare of his Church the Worldly Teachers frame and use this only thereby to serve their own Worldly Credit and Reputation their Worldly Profit and Preferment and their Worldly Authority and Dominion And thus that Word of Faith which in its own proper Nature and Working calls off all Men from this World and the Things of it to the Kingdom and Glory of God they make this very Word to sound carnally that by it they may seek Themselves and the Things of this present Life But Christ and his Seed who are of God they speak of God and not of the World seeking no Worldly thing at all by the Word of God which They teach and hold forth as is manifest in the Life of Christ and his Christians 3. The Ministers of Antichrist or worldly Teachers speak of the World that is they turn the Word of God into Worldly Doctrine that thereby they may avoid
the Christian Religion and being afflicted in Mind he did withdraw Himself into a solitary Place where there met Him an old Antient Father of comely Visage and gentle behaviour who began to reason with Him and to tell him that there was no Knowledge of Truth among the Philosophers who neither knew God nor were ayded by his Holy Spirit And did farther reason with Him of the Immortality of the Soul of the Reward of the Godly and Punishment of the Wicked Then Justine being Satisfied with his Reasons yeilded to him and demanded of him How He might attain to that true Knowledge of God whereof he had spoken Who counselled Him to read the Scriptures adjoyning therewith Prayer c. And as this Justine left all other Learning and betook himself only to the Scriptures so in the understanding of the Scriptures he rejected all his Philosophy and Philosophical Apprehensions Saying that the Interpretation of the Scripture is to be accommodated to the Will of the Doctrine of the Spirit and not to Humane Reasonings And that he might be sure and safe in all things he had constant recourse to the Scriptures thus understood So that Justine Martyr being effectually Converted wholly left his Philosophy and betook himself to the Scriptures and taught them to the Church as He had been taught them of God by his Spirit Constantine the Emperor though he were the first that brought in the Mysterie of Iniquity into the Christian Church by mingling the Civil and Ecclesiastical states and Laws together there being in His time a great Increase of Christians through the Ministry of the Gospel and a great Confluence of them to his Imperial City for the Words sake he wrote to Eusebius Bishop of Nicomedia in a special Letter Wherein he desired him with all Diligence and Speed to procure fifty Volums of the Scriptures to be written in parchment Well and Legibly and in such a bignenss or Volume as might be carried with greatest ease for the further teaching and instructing of Those that came to attain the Knowledge of the Christian Religion Judging it most meet that Christian People should be Instructed in the Doctrine of Christ only and not in Heathenish Philosophy And though afterwards when the Suffering Times of the Church began to be over Christians became more carnal and secure and that in the very days of Constantine and so began to decline the Word of Faith and to seek after Philosophy yet had God in all the Ages of his Church some of his Servants who did reject it and did cleave only to the Word Among which I shall only for the present produce the Testimonies of Berno who lived above six hundred years ago and Zuinglius of latter times Berno who lived about the year 1008. and was a man furnished with all sorts of Learning saith That he had for many years rejected as dung the figments of the Poets and the Histories of the Heathens and the study of Secular Letters and had converted the whole Intention of his Mind to the Word of God and the Divine Things contained therein And accordingly he taught no other Doctrine to any Huldricus Zuinglius also Pastor of Zurich in Helvetia a man who had been educated in all kind of Learning and was after through faith and the teaching of God an eminent Instrument in his Church he saith thus of himself When saith he I being yet a Youth was exercised in all sorts of Learning I can truly say that I did not profit less then the rest of my Equals But when about seven years ago I betook my self to the study of the Holy Scriptures then the things that I had before sucked in or learned from Philosophers and Divines did procure me so much Trouble that being then moved by the Authority of the Scriptures I judged that all those things were to be cast away and counted as dung and that the true Mind of God was only to be received from his pure and simple Word And therefore I began humbly to intreat the Lord that he would vouchsafe me his own Light By which means it shortly came to pass that the reading of the Holy Scriptures did much delight and please me and they being nakedly and alone propounded did flow unto me with more ease then if I had read them divided and distracted with variety of Comments And as he rejected Philosophy wholly and entertained the Word So did he only teach this Word to faithfull Christians who are the only true School of Christ in the World Now by all this it appears that the Schools of the Prophets and Apostles and of Christ himself the Head of them and of the most faithfull Christians that followed Christ in the first and latter Ages were in no sort like the Schools in the present Universities where Humane Learning according to the Statutes of the Universities prevails for the first seven years and they think Youths cannot be made good Christians except they be first made good Heathens The Schools of the Prophets and Apostles would not meddle with the Philosophy of the Heathen but led the children and youth presently to the Word of God and therein to the true Knowledge of God in Christ But these Schools first lead Youth from God and his Word several years together to the corrupt Reason Wisdom Notions Conceptions yea to the Idolatry Blasphemy Atheism Lusts Filthiness and Villanies of the cursed Heathen that thereby in a strange and Antichristian Method they may be the fitter to know and understand the Scriptures The Schools of the Prophets taught only Moses and the Prophets to the Jewish Youth and the Schools of the Apostles taught Christ only and his Gospel to the children of Christians But the Universities lead men both from Moses and from Christ both from the Law and the Gospel to the Heathen to make men hereby the more able Christians and Divines The Queen of the South neglecting the Magi or Wise men of the Heathen came from the utmost parts of the earth to hear the Wisdom of Solomon And the Universities leave Christ who is Infinitely Greater and Wiser then Solomon and go to the utmost parts of the earth for Wisdom from the Heathen So that in these Universities there hath been the greatest Apostacy and Withdrawing from Christ and the greatest Dishonor and Disparagement offered to Him and his Gospel as ever was known in all the World For Is it not a matter of greatest Wonder and Amazement that after that Word which was with God and was God and is God blessed for ever hath been manifested in the flesh and that Flesh of His hath been justified by the Spirit to have the Fulness of the Godhead dwelling in it bodily and that This so Wonderfull a Person hath come to his Church in the same Common Nature with it filled with all the Righteousness Wisdom Truth Power Life Peace and Joy and all the things of God I say is it not strange
that He who alone comprehends the fulness of all things and in whom are hid all the Infinite Treasures of Divine and Heavenly Wisdom and Knowledge that He alone should not be counted sufficeent and enough no not by Those who pretend his Name to make us Wise to Salvation which is the only True Excellent and necessary Wisdom in the World and to make the man of God Perfect and the whole Church of God Compleat but to the great Dishonor of Christ yea to the very Rejection of Christ the children of Christians must be led from the Doctrine of Christ the Son of the Living God to the Doctrine and Disciplines of the Wretched Filthy Abominable Wicked and Damned Heathen and to spend the prime and flower of their Youth in these things Who but Antichrist Himself could have brought in and set up such an Abomination of Desolation in the Church of God And yet for the better credit of all things must These corrupt Heathenish Schools be called the Schools of the Prophets though Nothing but the Ignorance of the Law and Gospel be taught in Them and the Highest Enmity to Christ in all the World lives and flourishes in them And thus as the Christian Schools at first brought men from Heathenism to the Gospel so These Schools carry men from the Gospel to Heathenism as to their great Perfection And the Fruit of this Education of Youth is manifest For where hath the Gospel found less Favour and more Enmity at any time then from the Universities Ridly the Martyr with Cranmer and others being in Prison in Oxford for the Testimony of the Gospel writes thus to Bradford As yet saith he there was never Learned Man nor any Scholar or other that visited us since we came into Bocardo And in another Letter to him he saith And yet as we hear the Scholars bear us more heavily then the Townsmen A wonderfull thing among so Many never yet Scholar offered any of Us so far as I know any manner of favour either for or in Christs Cause Fox vol. 3. p. 442 443. Yea farther where shall you see Youth again in all the Nation so vain proud fantastical bold impudent Where shall you meet with such Mockers and Scoffers at God and his Gospel as here How many Hopefull Youths have here been sacrificed to the Heathen and their carefull Parents after much cost have received them home as full of Heathenish Manners as Doctrine And if some are lately become more civil and seemingly Religious yet is their Enmity to the Gospel in its true Spirituall Sense as it is the Word of Faith nothing abated For such as is the Doctrine among them such also of necessity must their Consciences and Lives be Wherefore the Universities according to their Statutes and usual Practice are not the Schools of the Prophets or of Christians but of Heathen Men and Plato and Aristotle have more credit in the University then Moses or Christ Himself And if after their course or running their Circle in Philosophy they betake themselves to Divinity yet do they so mingle spoil and corrupt it with Philosophy according to which they both understand the Scriptures and speak of them that their Divinity cannot be called the Doctrine of Christ but of Antichrist being wholly contrary to the Word of Faith And therefore Mr. Simpson was the more to blame to flatter them in their Evils and to deceive the World in appropriating to Them the glorious Title of the Schools of the Prophets Who are in all things so Contrary and Contradictory to Them Now the Sum and Certainty of this Matter is this That the Congregations of Believers where only the Word of the Gospel is truly taught according to the Ministration of the Spirit whether to Youth or Men They under the New Testament are answerable to the Schools of the Prophets under the Old who only taught Moses and the Prophets And the Universities wherein Philosophy is first taught the Youth and after Divinity and then both are mingled together to the utter perverting and corrupting the Gospel of Christ I say these Universities in the time of the Gospel are answerable to the High-Places in the time of the Law where a Doctrine and Worship prevailed which was not according to Gods Word but mans Will and where Judaism and Heathenism were mingled together into one Mungrel Religion most odious and abominable to God and his People And so the Universities in the time of the Gospel are only answerable to the High-Places in the time of the Law but not at all to the Schools of the Prophets as Mr. Simpson pretends And now for the Conclusion of this matter which I reckon to be of Great Concernment for the true Church to be thorowly instructed in I shall bring forth the Testimony of some Godly men of Whom some shew how the Schools and Universities of Christians came first to be Corrupted to wit by departing from the plain Word of the Gospel and bringing in Philosophy And another foretels the Reformation of the Schools of Christians again to wit by rejecting Philosophy again and bringing in the Word of Faith All which will serve as a Confirmation of what hath been already spoken Matthias Parisiensis a Bohemian by Nation who lived about the year 1380. wrote a large book against Antichrist wherein he affirms That Antichrist had seduced all Universities and Colledges of Learned men so that now they teach no sincere Doctrine neither give any true Light to Christians through their teaching to wit they being all corrupted through Philosophy and having through that corrupted all Divinity And John Hus that humble and faithful servant of Jesus Christ and blessed Martyr saith That Antichrist hath seduced all carnal Christians from Divine Wisdom which is full of Salvation and the Holy Spirit to the Wisdom and Science of Men and of the Princes of this World which Wisdom and Science he hath exceedingly inlarged and increased and made Authentical and very gainfull of Riches and Honors in this World that so by this means Divine Wisdom and Science might be neglected of Christians and grow old and be covered over and be accounted as Vile and Unprofitable by them And that only That which is High with Men to wit Humane Learning might be reckoned Glorious and Excellent and of great Authority with Christian People The same Hus saith That this Humane Learning Wisdom and Knowledge Antichrist doth perfectly subject to Himself and his Service He being more Mighty and Subtil through the Operation of Satan then all Worldly Men whom with all their Learning Disciplines and Abilities he strongly subjugates to Himself and doth especially serve Himself of These wherefore saith Job chap. 41. sub ipso erunt radii solis the Beams of the Sun shall be under Him that is the Holy Scripture and the chief Doctors and Teachers of it and He shall prepare Gold as dirt that is he shall have all the Wisdom and Learning
The Tryal of Spirits Both in TEACHERS HEARERS Wherein is held forth The clear Discovery and certain Downfal OF THE Carnal and Antichristian Clergie of These NATIONS Testified from the Word of God to the University-Congregation in Cambridge By WILLIAM DELL Whereunto is added A plain and necessary Confutation of divers gross Errors DELIVERED BY Mr SYDRACH SIMPSON In a Sermon preached to the same Congregation at the COMMENCEMENT Anno 1653. Wherein among other things is declared That the Universities according to their present Statutes and Practices are not as he affirmed answerable to the Schools of the Prophets in the time of the Law but rather to the Idolatrous High Places And that Humane Learning is not a Preparation appointed by Christ either for the Right Understanding or Right Teaching the Gospel With a brief Testimony against Divinity-Degrees in the Universities As also Luthers Testimony at large upon the whole Matter And lastly The right Reformation of Learning Schools and Universities according to the state of the Gospel and the Light that shines therein All necessary for the Instruction and Direction of the faithful in these last times London Printed for Giles Calvert at the Black spread-Eagle at the West-end of Pauls 1660. To all the truly Faithfull the very little Flock of Christ in these Nations now despised and almost worn out according to the Prophesies for the Word of God and Testimony which they hold Grace be multiplyed unto you and Peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ our Head and Hope I Could not choose but distinguish You thus from all the rest of the People of these Nations of what Condition or Quality soever seeing God Himself hath first done it having chosen you to Himself in Christ and set you apart for Himself as a Peculiar People zealous of good works And I have chosen to speak this only to You because You are all taught of God and have heard and learned from Him the Truth as it is in Jesus and because You have an inward Unction from God whereby You know the Truth from Error though it be never so much reproached by Carnal Christians and whereby you know Error from the Truth though it be never so much exalted and magnified by them You are those Spiritual Men who judge All things because you have received the Word and Spirit of Judgement in Christ from the Father Besides You are the Men whom God will use in his Greatest and most Glorious Works which he hath yet to do in the World to wit in the Destruction of the Kingdom of Antichrist and in the Setting up and inlarging the Kingdom of Christ which Things are not to be done by the Might and Power of worldly Magistrates which it may be you have not received and if you had it would not be helpful here but by the Spirit of the Lord which You all have received in some measure Yea farther none but You will be contented to live only by Faith and to follow Christ in Untrodden Paths and to undertake impossible Works to flesh and blood and none but You will be willing to have the residue of Christs Life and Works and of his Sufferings and Death fulfilled in your mortal bodies It grieves me much to see so Many Men as I have known once hopeful in the Army and elsewhere to be now so full gorged with the flesh of Kings and Nobles and Captains and Mighty Men that is with their Estates Mannors Houses Parks Lands c. that they can now be contented to take their ease and to comply with the World and worldly Church and the Teachers thereof and can perswade themselves that there is enough done for their time after it hath fared thus well with them and can leave the Remainder to Men that are as plain and mean as Themselves were at first forgetting Him who remembred Them when they were in Low Condition But they that were indeed Righteous among them are Righteous still and they that were indeed Holy are Holy still and Prosperity hath only slain the Fools as the Scriptures speak But You Christians are Called Chosen and Faithful and You will still be found with the Lamb on mount Sion and with the rest who have his Name and his Fathers Name written in their Foreheads and you dare still own the Ancient Truth Cause and Work of Christ how great disadvantage soever is for the present risen up against it through the Apostasie of Carnal Christians the Lovers of this World And You all know that all that hath been done hitherto by the Sword is but the Preparation of Christs way to his Work and that the Work it self is still behind and to be done by those Worthies of the Lord who love Jesus Christ and his Kingdom and Coming a thousand times better then the present World and all the best things of it yea then their own Lives Wherefore I advise You all to whom now I speak to take heed that you neither drink nor sip of the Clergies Cup which carries in it the Wine of the wrath of the fornication of Antichrist lest having drunk thereof you fall asleep through the strength of their Inchantments and so are rendred unable to follow Christ any farther For many Powers and Magistrates of the world once hopeful have been thus overcome and seduced into Antichrists cause against Christ to their utter ruine in the end And how have the present Clergy with their most Plausible Men attempted some of this Present Power yea some of the very Chiefest and most Godly in the Army and have put them into some that I say not great Danger Wherefore remember you that word of the Lord spoken by his Angel Rev. 14. 9 10. If any man worship the Beast and his Image and receive his Mark in his forehead or in his hand the same shall drink of the Wine of the Wrath of God which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation c. IF ANY MAN WORSHIP THE BEAST that is the Antichristian Church of the Pope and his Prelates and Clergy which is called the Beast because of its Fierceness and Cruelty against the Saints Or HIS IMAGE that is the Church of the Bishops and Presbyters which in a lesser Volume and less Letters doth answer the Other and is directly like it Whoever shall WORSHIP THESE that is highly esteem them for their Humane Learning and School-Divinity and Sacredness of their Orders and count them worthy all Honour and Respect and worldly Maintenance and also to have Power in matters of Religion to allow and determine of Doctrine and to appoint and institute in matters of Government and being Worldly Powers do subject Themselves and all the worldly People under them to these mens Religion Authority Doctrine Discipline c. Whoever shall thus worship them Or SHALL RECEIVE HIS MARK that is this Principle that It is lawful to punish and persecute men in Matters that meerly relate to Faith
and Temporal Power which they had gotten have stricken great fear into the whole World and have miserably vexed innumerable Consciences with a grievous and lasting bondage and have even driven them to Despair whilst none durst approve or own any Spirit or Doctrine though never so manifestly of Christ and his Gospel without their Allowance and Approbation so mightily hath the power of Antichrist prevailed in the World and that against the express Word of Christ. Now the ground of this their Antichristian Pride and Usurpation is This that they arrogate to Themselves that They are the Guides and Shepherds of all Christian men and are to teach them the Gospel which they are only to receive from their lips whereas Christ hath promised his true Church that they shall be all taught of God and shall hear and learn Themselves from the Father and hath also promised to send to them the Spirit to lead them in all Truth and to give them an Annointing to teach them All Things Now they by robbing the Faithful of this Power and arrogating it to Themselves have made themselves contrary to Christs Command Lords and Masters in the Church of God and have usurped to themselves Superiority and Authority over other Believers and have subjected all the World to their Opinion and Judgement in the things of God by which means they have set wide open the flood-gates to Antichrist and his Kingdom to break in upon the World and to overflow it whilst they had robbed all Christian People of their own Judgement in all the Things of God and had made them to depend wholly on the Judgement of the Clergy And had not Christian People thus unchristianly delivered up their Judgements to the Clergy and that in the very Highest Points of Religion Christianity had not been so miserably blinded and corrupted as it is and the Mysterie of Iniquity had not so much prevailed in the World as now it hath For when Christians would not try the Spirits whether They were of God and the Doctrines whether they were the Word of God or no but thought this a matter too High for them and would refer and submit all to the Judgement of their Ministers then Antichrist the Apostle of the Devill came forth boldly and proudly exalted Himself above all that is called God and his Kingdom above all the Kingdoms of the World having first put out both the Eyes of Christians by taking away from them their Right and Power of trying Spirits and judging Doctrines But when true Christians shall search the Scriptures as God I trust hath now fully put into their hearts to do and shall justly and lawfully take to themselves the Power which God hath given them to try Spirits and Doctrines then Antichrist and his Agents the carnal Clergy must soon be brought down for the Faithfull by that Word shall soon perceive that They are not of God nor their Doctrine of that right Gospel which is after the Mind of Christ. Well then by what hath been said You who are of Christs true Sheep may perceive that it is evident by the Word that faithful Christians have Right and Power to try Spirits and Doctrines though Antichrist for many Ages hath robbed them of this Priviledge For that I may speak a little more to this matter the Tryall of Spirits doth unquestionably belong to all Men who have received the Spirit of God for to this Spirit of God which dwells in the faithfull the Gift of Discerning Spirits is inseparably annexed and the Spirit of Christ which truly dwells in all true Christians cannot deceive nor be deceived in the Tryall of Spirits So that this now is a Common Grace that in some measure belongs to all true Christians who have received the Unction that teacheth them all things and is true and is no lie And though there be in the Church Diversities of Gifts from the same Spirit which are given to some and not to others as Tongues and Interpretation of Tongues and Miracles and Gifts of healing c. mentioned by Paul 1 Cor. 12. yet this gift of Trying Spirits is given to All in some measure that have received the Spirit For as in the Natural Body there are several Gifts given to several Members which are not given to all the members as Seeing to the Eye Hearing to the Ear Walking to the foot c. but Feeling is given to all the Members so also in the Body of Christ that is the spiritual Church several Gifts are given to several Saints but the Tryall of Spirits and Doctrines to all Saints who have received the Spirit and if any have not Christs Spirit he is none of His and if any have Christs Spirit he can in some measure discern and judge of all Spirits in the World and the more any man receives Christs Spirit the more able is he to judge of all Other Spirits Wherefore they who are true Believers and have received Christs Spirit their Judgement is to be preferred in the Tryall of Spirits before the Judgement of a whole Council of Clergy men And they only who can try Spirits by the Spirit of God and Doctrines by the Word of God written in their hearts by the Spirit are fit to commend Ministers to the Work of God that is the Congregations of the faithful and not Universities and Assemblies of Divines And thus you may perceive that seeing many false Prophets are gone out into the World it concerns the faithful as they tender their own everlasting Salvation not to believe every Spirit that speaks of Christ and his Kingdom and his Things but to Try the Spirits whether they be of God Object But now it may be some will be ready to say We ought indeed to try the Spirits seeing there are many falfe Prophets in the world but we hope there are no such Persons among us but only some upstart Men with their new Light who with their Novelties and Fancies trouble the Nation and would fain turn all things upside down and we know these well enough already and do sufficiently despise them Answ. It is very like you do but yet let me say to you Men Brethren and Fathers understand Your selves and know what you do in this matter For at the beginning of the Reformation by the Ministry of Luther Zuinglius Calvin and divers others pretious servants of Jesus Christ the Popish Clergy applyed all these Scriptures Try the Spirits whether they be of God for many false Prophets are gone out into the world and beware of false Prophets which come to you in sheeps clothing but inwardly are ravening wolves I say these and the like places of Scriptures they applied to these Godly Men and yet they Themselves were the false Prophets indeed and the Other whom they termed such were true Ones Wherefore it is possible for You to be mistaken as well as They and no doubt but you will be mistaken except the Lord be gracious
that believes and acknowledges that the Son of the living God is come not only into that Humanity of Christ that was born of the Virgin but also that he is come into Us and dwells in Us according to these Scriptures That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith And Christ in you the hope of Glory And know ye not that Christ is in you except you be reprobates c. Wherefore the true Prophets do not only acknowledge that Jesus Christ is come into his own flesh but also into theirs which by this means is made His and that Christ is in them of a truth and dwells in them For Antichrist himself and his Ministers do all acknowledge that Jesus Christ is come into that flesh which he did assume of the Virgin but they will not confess that this is true in Him and in Us They will acknowledge the mysterie of God manifested in the flesh as to Christ the Head but they will deny it as to the Church his Body and so whilst they separate the Head from the Body and the Body from the Head in this Mysterie they do solvere Jesum they dissolve Jesus I say some hold that the Eternal Word or Divine Nature came indeed into that flesh which was born of the blessed Virgin but they will by no means allow it to come into Ours through our Union with him by Faith only they say some created Habits or Gifts of Grace come into us or in our flesh but not Christ himself or the Divine Nature or Son of the living God And so these men set up these Created Gifts and Graces in the Members instead of Christ Himself the Head And yet these Teachers make a Glorious Shew in the flesh and this is Antichrist to wit when men think that these Created Habits of Grace which they fancy will renew comfort sanctifie and save them and so do make to themselves of Them a Glorious but yet a false Christ. Wherefore let us know that he that denies Jesus Christ in the Members is though not so great yet as true Antichrist as he that denies Jesus Christ in the Head and he that denies Christ dwelling in our hearts by Faith to be and to be alone Wisdom Righteousness Sanctification and Redemption to Us as he that denies Him to be the Power Wisdom and Righteousness of God in Himself The sum of this matter is this that the true Spirits or Prophets do acknowledge not only that Christ the Son of the Living God is come into that Son of Man which was born of the blessed Virgin but also that Christ is come into Them and dwels in Them as in his own true and proper Members And so He that hath Jesus Christ dwelling in his heart is a true Prophet and he that hath not Christ dwelling in his heart is a false Prophet though his Knowledge and Religion be never so high and glorious and holy also in the opinion of the World And this is the chief Sign and Mark whereby we may know the true Prophets and true Christians from the false Prophets and false Christians Object Now if any shall say But how shall we know whether a man hath Christ dwelling in his Heart or no and so consequently whether he be a true or false Prophet Answ. I Answer You shall certainly know it by the truth of the Word of Christ in him and by the truth of the Life of Christ in reference to his Office in the Word 1. First then the true Prophets are to be discerned from the false By the truth of the Word of God in them From the true Prophets speak the true Word of God even the Word of Wisdom the Word of Righteousness the Word of Life the Word of Power the Word that is able to save which is the true Gospel Word For this is the Covenant that God hath made with Christ and his seed saying Isai. 59. 21. My Spirit which is upon thee and my Word which is in thy mouth shall never depart out of thy mouth nor out of the mouth of thy seed nor out of the mouth of thy seeds seed from henceforth and for ever And this was perfectly fulfilled in Christ for that Word which in the beginning was with God and was God was made flesh in him and dwelt in him and out of that Word Jesus Christ spake all that ever he spake his whole Doctrine did flow from that Eternal Word which dwelt in him And Christ communicated to the Disciples the same Word which he had received as he saith John 17. 8. I have given to them the Words that thou gavest me that is the word of Righteousness and Life and they have received them and have known surely that I came out from thee and they have believed that thou didst send me and so that word which they Themselves received by faith they also held forth to Others as John saith 1 John 1. 1. That which was from the beginning which we have heard which we have seen with our eyes which we have looked upon and our hands have handled of the Word of Life declare we unto you And to this also John the Baptist gives Testimony John 3. 34. Where he saith He whom God hath sent speaketh the Words of God not the words of Men or Angles but of God and this is true both in Christ and in his Seed But now the false Prophets speak not the Word of God for they have it not in their hearts but what Word they have in their hearts that they speak and so they speak the words of their own Reason Wisdom and Righteousness or of other Mens but beyond Humane Things they do not go whether they pretend to high Notions on the one hand or to sound Orthodox Doctrine on the other hand Now of this true Christians are to take speciall notice because as the true Word of God is the greatest Commodity to the Church that can be and brings the presence of Christ and all the things of Christ along with it so the Words of Man is the greatest Mischief to the Church that can be for it brings Antichrist and his Kingdom and all his Things along with it And thus doth vain Philosophy and School Divinity which is an unlawfull mixing of Philosophy with the outward letter of the Word pervert all things in the Church of carnall and false Christians 2. As the true Prophets speak the true Word of God so also they speak it by the true Spirit of God and not by their own Spirit and thus did Christ who saith of himself The Spirit of the Lord is upon me for he hath annointed me to preach the Gospel and so he spake the Word of God by the Spirit of God And Christ commanded his Disciples to stay at Jerusalem till they had received the Spirit and then to go forth and preach because he knew they could not preach Gods word aright without Gods
more against Christ and his true Church and more for Antichrist and his false Church than all the People in these Nations besides Wherefore this is the Word of the Lord to You throughout all your quarters That the Nations shall not much longer be deceived by you nor buy any more of your Merchandize for your Wine is the poyson of Dragons and the cruel venom of Asps your Doctrine being the word of Philosophy and not of Faith after the mind of Man but contrary to Christs minde to set up Your selves and your own Interest to the prejudice of Christs Word and People Wherefore how much you have georified your selves and lived deliciously by this Trade of making Merchandize of the Word of God so much Torment and Sorrow shall God give you and your Plagues shall come upon you in a Day and your Judgement in an Hour and your Lovers shall not be able to help you nor the Petitioners for You to uphold You but God shall bring You down wonderfully by the clear light of his Word and his mighty and unresistable Providence accompanying it and the World shall tremble and wonder at the Noise of your Downfall and the Heavens and holy Apostles and Prophets shall rejoyce over You when God shall avenge their Cause upon you And the Lord will save his Flock and they shall be no more a Prey to You neither shall You any more serve Your selves of Them And he will set up one Shepherd over them even Jesus Christ and he shall feed them and be their Shepherd And till these things be fully brought to pass you shall be clothed with trembling when you shall perceive the Lord is risen up to perform all these things according to his Word And now for conclusion if any of You or most of You or all of You are offended at these things in such sort that you cannot contain your selves from anger and bitter zeal I do intreat you to consider seriously how much better and more profitable to your Eternal Salvation it would be for You to resist and to refrain from such evil and unchristian Passions and that You would rather if there be any hope return to your own hearts and try your works and repent before our holy and righteous Lord and return truly and speedily to Christ from Antichrist lest you be inwrapped both in his temporal and eternal Destruction And thus much was delivered to the University Congregation in Cambridge for a Testimony against them except they repent The rest for the substance of it was delivered elsewhere in the Town as followeth Anno 1653. THE TRYALL OF SPIRITS 1 John 4. 1 c. Believe not every spirit c. IN this Scripture we have noted these six things 1. That the Apostle gives the faithfull notice of a Great Evil risen up Many false Prophets are gone into the world 2. He prescribes them a sufficient Remedy against that evil Believe not every spirit but try c. 3. He gives them a right Rule for Trial vers 2. 3. 4. He shews with Whom those false Prophets who come in the Spirit of Antichrist should not prevail to wit with none of the true children of God ver 4. 5. With Whom they should prevail to wit with the Worldly and Carnal people ver 5. 6. He shews How the Spirit of Truth and Error may be known in the People as well as in the Teachers v. 6. Of the three first of these Points I have spoken already in the University Congregation The last time I spake of the third thing that is the Rule of Trial how the false Prophets may be known and discerned from the true And I gave forth clearly and plainly out of the word of God Nine signs to distinguish them not One of which can possibly be contradicted but by the Spirit of Antichrist or by the prophane and ignorant World And then I also delivered two Uses the one to spiritual Christians and the other to the Carnal Clergy all which you may have recourse to in the former Discourse But how these things have since vexed and tormented the false Prophets you very well know and how exceedingly grieved and angry they are that this Word of God should be taught the People and that in their Presence Unto which Word of Christ they say by their Deeds as Satan in the possessed said once to Christ himself in words Mark 1. 24. Let Us alone what have We to do with Thee thou Jesus of Nazareth Art Thou come to destroy Us I know thee who thou art the Holy One of God This Unclean Spirit knew and acknowledged Christ to be the Holy One of God and yet would have Nothing to do with Him because he was come to Destroy him So these false Prophets cannot choose but acknowledge in their Hearts at least that the Word that hath been taught them is the Holy Word of God but yet they say What have We to do with it for it is come to destroy Us. For the more the Word of Christ is held forth in the clearness and plainness of the Gospel the more doth it destroy Them and their Affairs Their carnal Clergy flowing from the Antichristian Fountain of the Universities their Ecclesiastical Assemblies arising out of the Clergy their Presbyterian Government springing up out of their Ecclesiastical Assemblies their National Church the product of their Presbyterian Government together with their worldly power and Domination their high Titles their Scarlet Robes their Divinity-Degrees c. I say the Word of the Gospel comes with full Might and Minde to destroy all these and all their other Things in which their souls delight as bringing worldly Profit Power and Honour to them Wherefore this Word which abases and casts down Them and all their Things and exalts Christ alone and all his Things they cannot endure but do account it their reproach and shame and say to it What have We to do with Thee thou holy Word of God! for thou art come to destroy Us and so against this Word they are angry and inraged at no ordinary or Humane Rate but as David saith Psal. 59. They belch out with their mouth and make a noise like a dog and go up and down full of pride cursing and lying But the Lord laughs at these Heathen and hath them in derision for he seeth the day is coming when they shall wander up and down for meat and grudge if they be not satisfied Now this behaviour of theirs towards the Word of God is plainly foretold Rev. 16. ver 10 11. where it is said that when the God of Heaven poured forth his Vial by the fifth Angel on the Seat or Throne of the Beast his Kingdom was full of Darkness and they gnawed their tongues for pain and blasphemed the God of Heaven because of their pains and their sores and yet repented not of their Deeds Now the Throne of the beast in these Nations are the Universities as the fountain of the Ministery
the Vial poured on them is the true Word of God or the plain and simple Gospel which is the Word of Faith than which Nothing is more grievous to them who have been bred up in Philosophy and in the Knowledge Wisdom Learning Righteousness and Spirit of the World Now the primary event of the pouring forth of this Vial of the Word of God on this Seat is the darkning of Antichrists Kingdom as it is said his Kingdom was full of Darkness it was full of Darkness before but now it is discovered to be full of Darkness their Philosophy is Darkness and vain deceit their School Divinity Darkness and Antichristianism their Divinity Acts and Clerums Darkness their Professorships of Divinity Darkness yea all their Doctrine Faith Worship Works Church-Discipline Titles Ordination and all are discovered to be Darkness even gross Darkness by the word of Faith And then follows the secundary event of the pouring forth this Vial which is They gnawed their Tongues for pain and blasphemed the God of Heaven because of their pains and sores which the Word inflicted on Them that is they had not the ordinary anger of Men against the Word but the anger and wrath of Devils causing them to blaspheme again But yet for all these things they repented not of their Deeds as we see manifestly which yet would have been more profitable for them And this also discovers them to be false Prophets indeed and the right Ministers of Antichrist and this appertains to the sixth Sign of false Prophets which I gave before The Fourth General Point And now I proceed to the fourth Thing wherein the Apostle shews with Whom the false Prophets which come in the spirit of Antichrist should not prevail namely with None of the true Children of God and this is set down in ver 4. We are of God little children and have overcome them because greater is he that is in you then he that is in the world Here now the Apostle shews the Victory which the truly faithfull and spiritual Christians do obtain over Antichrist and his false Prophets together with the Grounds of that Victory 1. The Victory is set down in these words Little children ye have overcome them 2. The Grounds of this Victory are two 1. Because the Faithfull are of God as Children of their Father Ye are of God little Children and have overcome them 2. Because that Spirit which the Faithfull have received and which dwells in them is stronger and mightier than that Spirit which the World receives and which dwells in them Greater is he that is in You than he that is in the World I shall first speak something of the Victory it self that is of that glorious Victory which all the true Children of God do obtain over Antichrist For though Antichrist and his Teachers do come in Christs Name as Christ hath foretold and in Sheeps Cloathing and though they transform themselves into the Apostles of Christ and come with all Deceivableness of Unrighteousness holding forth a false Christ the Head a false Church the Body a false Word a false Worship false Works false Ordinances and all these false things exceedingly like the True and in the very form and appearance of the True in such sort that they prevail with all the National Church and the Generality of the people of the World which all wonder after Them yet are they not able by all these things to prevail with any of the true Children of God as Christ hath taught us saying Many false Christs and false Prophets shall arise and shall come with lying Signs and Wonders able if it were possible to deceive the Elect And though they do deceive all Others yet is it not possible for them to deceive the Elect of God that is throughly and fully as they do deceive Others but the Faithful and Elect people of God do escape their Deceits and do overcome them yea though they be but little Children new in the Faith and young in Christ yet do they overcome all the false Prophets in the World For these little Children are so stript of their old Nature that they overcome the lusts of the Flesh the lusts of the Eye and the pride of Life which are not of God but of the World and through which only the Ministers of Antichrist are mighty and so these Teachers can find nothing in Them on which they can lay hold to prevail Besides as new born babes can discern and taste which is good and wholesome milk and sutable to them and can refuse what is otherwise and this instinct they have in their very nature as soon as they have a being to judge of their Food which is good for them and which is hurtful So the Children of God as soon as ever They by faith are made partakers of the Divine Nature they can immediately judge of the Milk of the Word and can surely taste and discern whether it be sincere or adulterated whether it be good or hurtful for them And so in the vertue of their New Nature they reject and overcome all the false Doctrine of the false Teachers And thus we have seen all along in the several Ages of the Reign of Antichrist that Christ hath alwayes had a People of his own though but few in number and mean in condition and despised of the World whom Antichrist never could prevail against neither by the subtilty of his Doctrine nor by the violence of his Tyranny but they have by their Faith and Patience and Word of their Testimony withstood Him and his Multitudes yea the whole World whom he hath all along seduced Thus in every Age hath Christ had so great Care of all those whom his Father hath given him that he hath lost none of Them no not one Single Person but by his Word and Spirit which he hath put into them and by his own Presence in them through his Word and Spirit he hath still preserved them and hath strenghthened them to oppose and resist Antichrist to the Death and to overcome as He overcame And so during all the Reign of Antichrist in the World whom hath he prevailed withall and deceived but only the World but not one Single person of the Elect children of God though he hath especially sought to prevail with Them But Jesus Christ who only knows who are his hath kept all along Those whom he hath Known that we might understand that the Care of the true Church is committed to Him alone from the Father and that all the Magistrates and Powers of the World are not at all Capable of such a Trust which would have been too Great for the very Angels of Heaven And though Antichrist during his Reign had inwrapped the Elect Themselves into all his Errors before Faith came as the first Adam had inwrapped them in all his Sin yet as God wrought Faith in them and gave them his Spirit so they by degrees
recovered out of the Errors of Antichrist and prevailed against them Lastly Seeing all the true Children of God do overcome Antichrist and his Ministers Antichrist hath no cause to boast of his Reign in the World nor the true Church of Christ to be discouraged at it Antichrist by all his subtilty and strength and by all his own Ecclesiastical Power and by all the Temporal Power of Princes whom he hath seduced hath conquered to Himself none but the World that is the people that were not of God And the true spiritual Church of Christs own building the new Jerusalem from above that sojourns in this World hath not lost one stone out of its Building nor one Member out of its Body by all that Antichrist and the Devil his Head could do And therefore Antichrist hath no cause to boast for He hath got none but his own and the true Church hath no cause to be discouraged for it hath lost none of its own and None ever went out from it but those that were not of it and all that were truly of it have ever continued with it And thus much briefly touching the Victory which the Faithful obtain aganst Antichrist and his Prophets Now the Grounds of this Victory here named are two 1. The first is Because they are of God Ye are of God little Children and have overcome them Antichrist and his false Prophets cannot prevail against the truly Faithful because They are of God as the Spirit also speaks elsewhere saying 1 Cor. 1. 30. Of Him are ye in Christ Jesus and they are of God as Children are of the Father as it is written Jam. 1. 18. Of his own will begat he us by the Word of Truth that we should be a kind of First Fruits of his Creatures So that as the Children of Men are of their Fathers through a Natural Generation and Being so the Faithful are of God through a Spiritual Generation and Being And as the Children of Men partake of the very Nature of their Fathers so do the Children of God partake of the Divine Nature the Faithful being born again not of corruptible but of incorruptible seed by the Word of God which lives and abides for ever That as Jesus Christ who according to his Humane Nature was a Man and in all things like to us sin excepted came to be of God and to be the Son of God through the coming and dwelling of the Living Word of God in his flesh according to the Love Will and Counsel of the Father so the same Living Word coming and dwelling in the Faithful his Members according to the same Love Will and Counsel of God They also come to be of God in Christ as Christ is of God according to his Humane Nature And as Christ being thus of God according to the Word of God that dwelt in his Humane Nature overcame the Devil the Head of Antichrist and Antichrist and his Body the Temple of the Devil So do all Christs Members overcome Antichrist and his Prophets through the same Living Word of God dwelling in Them or through the Word of Righteousness and Life its being incarnate in them that is its being written in their Hearts by the Spirit or put into their inward parts Wherefore Christ throughout that is from the Head it self to the lowest Member is called Immanuel God with us or which is all one God manifested in the flesh And for this Cause these faithful or little Children of God cannot be prevailed against inasmuch as they are of God and so have in them by true Union and Communion the Nature of God and the Word of God and the Spirit of God and the Righteousness of God and the Wisdom of God and the Power of God and the Life and Light of God and all the Things of God as the Apostle Paul saith in the New Creature all things are become New and all things that is all these New Things are of God that is they are the very Things of God And so these Faithful People cannot be prevailed against by Antichrist or by the Devil the Head of Antichrist but They do prevail against the Doctrine of Antichrist by the Doctrine of Christ against the Spirit of Antichrist by the Spirit of Christ against the Sin of Antichrist by the Righteousness of Christ against the Error of Antichrist by the Truth of Christ and against all the Things of Antichrist by the infinite and eternal Things of Christ. Wherefore you see that all they that are of God through a New birth and are the trne Children of that Heavenly Father and do partake of his Divine Nature and all his Divine Things they cannot be overcome of Antichrist and his Prophets but they do mightily overcome them all through that Immortal seed of the True and Living Word of God of which they are born and in which they live and act But They that are overcome by Antichrist and his Teachers through their deceivableness of Unrighteousness they never were the true Children of God but Hypocrites and Unbelievers under a form of Godliness that is as the Apostle stiles them Bastards or false Children who never had received the true Nature of God through Faith The Second Ground And now follows the second Ground why the Faithfull cannot be overcome by Antichrist and his Prophets to wit Because greater is he that is in You than he that is in the World And here the Apostle shews that the true faithful Christians are not only of God but also have God himself dwelling and abiding in them For they are built up by the Spirit to be the Habitation of God and God is in Them of a Truth and that not by created Habits of Grace as Antichrist and his Prophets have thought and taught but the true God is in them of a Truth and He dwells in them and walks in them as Himself hath said and the Tabernacle of God is with Men. And now as the Sun is never without its light and heat and all its Vertues and where-ever it goes all these go along with it being inseparable from it so where-ever the Lord God comes He comes with all his Righteousness Wisdom Power Peace Joy and all his infinite and eternal Things and where God Himself is there are all the Things of God And thus God in his Faithful People is Greater than He is that is in the World that is He is greater than Antichrist and the Devil his Head He is greater in his true Word than They in their pretended Word greater in his true Spirit than They in their pretended Spirit greater in his true Righteousness than They in their pretended Righteousness greater in his true Wisdom and Power than They in their pretended Wisdom and Power c. Greater is He that is in You than He that is in the World Now for certain the Less is overcome by the Greater and seeing God and his Spirit in his
the Cross which the Word of God in the Spiritual Sense of it would certainly expose them to But now these Worldly Teachers as they love the World so they cannot endure the Cross that is reproach poverty shame sufferings and death for the true Word Wherefore they Preach the Gospel in such a sense as shall please the World but never offend them as shall make the World their Friends but never their Enemies for they cannot endure to think of much less to suffer the utmost Hatred and Persecution of the World for Christs Names sake Wherefore I say again though in Christ they will praise his reproach his shame his poverty his tribulation his death and crucifying yet they cannot endure these things in Themselves for his Truths sake but are most careful and studious to preach the Word of God in such a Worldly Sence as shall never provoke the World against them to do them the least harm but shall rather incline them to confer upon them according to thir own phrase all Countenance and Maintenance And thus the worldly Teachers speak of the World in this sense also But Christ and his Seed who are of God they speak not of the World but of God that is they speak the Word of God according to God never regarding whether the World be pleased or displeased therewith Yea they speak Gods Word according to Gods Mind though they certainly know that it will procure them all sorts of reproaches and tribulations and all manner of evil to be spoken and done against them in as much as they love God and his Word more than Themselves and this World and so they are so far from declining the Cross of Christ which the right Confession of the Word will bring upon them that they account it their greatest Glorifying to have fellowship with Christ in his Sufferings and to be made conformable to him in his Death all which things He endured because he spake Gods Word according to Gods mind and contrary to the mind of the World and Worldly Church And thus we see by Johns Doctrine who spake by the Spirit Who they are with whom Antichrist and his false Prophets prevail to wit the World and worldly People as also the Grounds why they prevail with them namely because They are of the World and speak of the World And now for the Use. The World hears these Teachers who are and speak of the World And hence first we learn That Antichrist and his Prophets the Worldly Teachers come with such Deceivableness of Unrighteousness that no Natural or Worldly men whatever of whatever Parts Learning Knowledge Righteousness can possibly discern Them If men are but Natural men though never so accomplished Antichrist deceives them all and makes them his Disciples For Antichrist comes so subtilly and in such glorious appearances of Holiness and Religion that none can know Him and his Wayes except they be singularly taught of God according to that of Christ to his Disciples To You it is given to know the Mysteries of the Kingdom of God to them it is not given And to whom it is given to know the Mysteries of the Kingdom of Christ to Them also it is given to know the Mysteries of the Kingdom of Antichrist and none can truly know either the One or the Other without a special Gift from God Whence it is most evident That Men are not able to understand Antichrist and his Kingdom and Things as they are men learned in Philosophy and in the Knowledge of the Tongues or as they are men of such and such Degrees and Titles in the University or of such and such Ecclesiastical Orders in the Church I say Men by all such abilities and accomplishments as they speak are not able to discern Antichrist but rather are the more ready to be overcome by Him seeing by all these Humane and Ecclesiastical Things Antichrist can lay the faster hold on them and make them the more his own And Antichrist must needs be unknown to such men in as much as Christ Himself as he is held forth in the Word and whatever he is and doth both in Himself and Members is wholly unknown to them yea is so strangely unknown that by a prodigious mistake they do judge Christ and his Members and their Doctrine to be Antichrist and his Members and their Doctrine And on the contrary they do judge Antichrist and his Members and their Doctrine they do account and esteem of as of Christ Himself and his Members and their Doctrine And thus is the Multitude of carnal Christians which are even the whole World almost through the effectual Operation of Satan brought to think and believe assuredly that the Prophets of Antichrist who handle the Scriptures carnally and after the mind of Man do verily teach the very Doctrine and Truth of God and of this they are so confident that they would have the Worldly Powers and Magistrates to force all Men to believe as They say and to practise as They command Yea these Worldly Men with all their Worldly Accomplishments are so deluded by Antichrist that whilst they oppose and persecute the faithfull People of God or rather Christ Himself and his Word Works Truth and Righteousness in them they verily think they oppose and persecute Antichrist Himself and the falseness of his Members And as the Scribes and Pharisees the chief Teachers of the Jewish Church being Deceivers Themselves did yet call Christ a Deceiver and in killing and crucifying Him thought they did God good service so the carnal Clergy and the Head of them being Antichrists Themselves do yet tell of and terrifie People with another Antichrist And being Seducers Themselves do yet rise up against the very Members of Christ as Seducers that thereby they may boast themselves to be Righteous So throughly and perfectly hath Antichrist deluded and inchanted them through the cup of the Wine of his Fornications Thus the whole World is overcome by Antichrist and cannot by all their Highest Attainments discern Him from Christ only they who are born of God and are his true Children and being plain simple meek and lowly in Spirit are taught of God These only know Antichrist and overcome Him but these are the little flock Secondly In that the World Hears the Ministers of Antichrist We are given to understand That men that are of a Worldly Spirit and through that are addicted to the World and so seek and follow after the Profits Pleasures and Honours of this life they cannot possibly understand the Impostures and Deceits of Antichrist and his Teachers but They all are seduced and overcome by them Whoever therefore do profess or pretend to Religion and Godliness and nevertheless live in the Spirit of this World and are swallowed up with the Cares and Comforts of this World all such Christians are a fit Prey for Antichrist Seeing 1. Such carnal Christians are so addicted to Worldly Occasions that they cannot attend
to the Word of God in the Spiritual Sense of it which is only known by Temptation Prayer and Gods own Teaching And hereupon they want the true light by which only Antichrist can be discerned For Antichrist comes in so great subtilty and likeness to Christ that he cannot be perceived but by Christians much acquainted with the Word and much mortified and quickned through it 2. Such carnal Christians as they neglect the Word in the spirituality of it so also they do love this World and this quenches in their hearts the love of God as John saith If any man love this World the love of the Father is not in him now they whose Hearts are inwardly destitute of the true love of God and yet do outwardly profess and worship God all these are a fit Prey for Antichrist And thus the World loving and seeking it self and its own things receives Antichrist whilst it cannot discern Him Wherefore the Scriptures do every where give Christians so many warnings against Covetousness which takes from men all true desire after Christ and all regard sense and knowledge of Antichrist Christ therefore said to his Disciples Take heed and beware of Covetousness for where the Treasure is there will the Heart be also c. And thus all they who are Lovers of Themselves and of this World the greater outward Profession they make of Religion the more ready are they to receive and entertain the Ministers of Antichrist and their Doctrine seeing They are and speak of the World 3. Seeing the World hears Antichrist and his Teachers We are to take notice That the carnal and Antichristian Ministers have a Numerous Auditory all the Worldly People cleaving and joyning to them because they speak that which is in their Hearts And therefore it is said Revel 17. 15. That the waters whereon the great Whore that is the Ecclesiastical State which chiefly consists in the Clergy sitteth are People and Multitudes and Nations and Tongues So that the false Prophets have all the World to hear them except the Faithful and Spiritual people and Multitude is a certain Sign of their Church And Rev l. 15. v. 7. It is said that Power was given to Antichrist over all Kindreds and Tongues and Nations and that all that dwell on the earth shall worship him whose Names are not written in the Lambs book of Life So that Antichrist by degrees and by his several Forms and Appearances one still more deceitful than another doth win to Himself all mankind but the very Elect. And so from time to time hitherto he hath gotten to Himself National Churches even the Generality of all the People of whole Nations Kingdoms and Common-wealths to hear his Teachers and to receive and submit to his Doctrine and Discipline as most true and Orthodox And thus hath Antichrist Multitudes even the whole World to follow his Teachers and to submit to them But let not the true Church and little Flock of crucified Jesus be offended hereat seeing they are but the World who hear Antichrists Teachers that is they are such People 1. Whose inward Nature is earthly carnal divelish 2. Such who love an outward Form of Religion and Godliness whilst they are bitter Enemies to the Power of it 3. Such who love such a Doctrine and Religion as may stand with their old corrupt Nature and may beautifie and surport it and so may make them painted Sepulchers outwardly fair whilst they are inwardly abominable 4. Such who love the World in the sense of their own Mind but hate and abhor it in the sense of Christs Mind and reckon it so to be the greatest Error and Heresie in the World 5. Such as so profess Christ and his Gospel as to make them serve their own Worldly Ends and Advantages without the least regard or respect had to Christs true Kingdom 6. Such as love Themselves and their Own Things the provisions of the flesh and a quiet easie and commodious life better than Christ Jesus and his Things 7. In a word they are such as under the glorious Profession and subtil Pretence of Christs Church are truly and inwardly the Church of the Devil and Antichrist Such a people and no other hath Antichrist to hear Him and to embrace and depend on Him and his Doctrine Ministry and Ordinances that is the Multitude of false and carnal Christians which are almost the whole World of the outward Professors of the Gospel and Christianity For as Antichrist and his Prophets are of the World and speak of the World so also the World hears them And thus much for the fifth Point The Sixth Point In the sixth place the Apostle shews How the Spirit of Truth and Error may be known in the People as well as in the Teachers to wit by the Peoples cleaving to the Teachers of Truth or to the Teachers of Error saying vers 6. We are of God He that knoweth God heareth Us He that is not of God heareth not Us hereby know we the Spirit of Truth and the Spirit of Error We are of God to wit according to his New Workmanship in Christ Jesus through which we partake of the true Nature of God in Christ as Members as Christ Himself doth partake of that Nature as Head and being thus of God we cannot but confess God his Name and Truth in our Heart Month and Life He that knoweth God heareth Us that is he that knoweth God through the teaching of God knoweth Us who are born and taught of God because we speak to them of God and the Things of God as God himself hath taught Them of Himself and of his Things and therefore They readily receive from Us that Testimony of the Truth which God himself either hath already inwardly taught them or doth teach them by his Spirit whilst we yet speak by that Spirit And so they hear Us by being satisfied and acquiescing or being at rest in the true and wholsom and saving Doctrine of Jesus Christ which we teach Hereby know we the Spirit of Truth to wit in the Hearers when they cleave to the Truth of the Spirit or to the Truth as it is and dwels in Jesus published by the Teachers of Truth It follows He that is not of God heareth not Us That is He that is not of God through a New Birth and the Renewing of the Spirit and so is destitute of the Divine Nature or of the Eternal Word and Spirit which through his Unbelief have no place in his Heart He that thus is not of God but contrarily is of the Devil through Sin Error Darkness Death Enmity to God and his whole evil Nature He heareth not Us that is he doth not taste and relish and approve and receive and embrace and love the Word of Faith and Mysterie of Christ and his Gospel which we teach but doth rather hate oppose reproach and persecute our Doctrine And hereby know we also the Spirit of Error to wit in
Stoicks and other Sects of Philosophers but the Resurrection of Christ and his Kingdom and Judgement Acts 17. He also disputed daily in the School of one Tyrannus and that for two years together and perswaded only the things touching the Kingdom of God brought into the World by Jesus Christ Acts 19. And he so prevailed with his Doctrine that Many which used Curious Arts brought their Books together and burnt them before all men and the price of them was counted at Fifty Thousand pieces of Silver So that as the Gospel prevailed and the Name of Christ was magnified so did People renounce Philosophy and burn their Books of Curious Arts To recover which Books again out of their ashes if it might be our University would give as much Money if they could procure it from good Benefactors as they were then valued at by the Heathen So that as They through the efficacy of the Gospel of Heathens became Christians and threw away all other Learning and burnt their Books of Great Value lest they should infect others So on the contrary in our Universities of Pretended Christians Men usually become true Heathens never valuing the Precious Gospel of God our Saviour as they do other Heathenish and Philosophical Books Farther the same Paul dwelt after at Rome two whole Years in his own hired House and during all that time Preached only the Kingdom of God and taught those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness But taught not one Word of Philosophy He also at Corinth a great and famous City of Greece full of Philosophers and Orators taught nothing among them but Christ Crucified to the Jews a Stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness But to them that believe both of Jews and Greeks Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God 1 Cor. 1. And as he made no Use of Humane Learning all this while so in 1 Cor. 2. he plainly renounces it and rejects it saying Ver. 1. And I brethren when I came to you came not with Excellency of Speech or Wisdom declaring unto you the Testimony of God Ver. 2. For I determined not to know any thing among You save Jesus Christ and him Crucified Ver. 3. And I was with you in weakness and fear and much trembling Ver. 4. And my speech and Preaching was not with enticing Words of Mans Wisdom but in Demonstration of the Spirit and Power Ver. 5. That your Faith should not stand in the Wisdom of Man but in the Power of God Ver. 6. Howbeit we speak Wisdom among them that are Perfect Yet not the Wisdom of this World nor of the Princes of this World which come to nought Ver. 7 But we speak the Wisdom of God in a Mysterie even the Hidden Wisdom which God Ordained before the World unto our Glory c. Ver. 13. Which things also we speak not in the Words which Mans Wisdom teacheth but which the Holy Spirit teacheth comparing Spiritual things with Spiritual things In a word this whole Chapter tends to the Utter Rejection of Philosophy which is the Wisdom of the World in the Kingdom of Christ which is the Kingdom of God He also in his Epistle to the Colossians chap. 2. gives forth another plain Testimony against Philosophy desiring vers 2. that the Hearts of the Believers might be comforted and that they might be knit together in Love and unto all riches of the full assurance of Understanding to the acknowledgement of the Mysterie of God and of the Father and of Christ in whom are hid all the Treasures of Wisdom and Knowledge And this saith he I say lest any man should beguile you with Enticing Words Wherefore v. 8. saith he Beware lest any man spoyl you through Philosophy and Vain Deceit after the Tradition of men after the Rudiments or Elements of the world and not after Christ for in Him dwells the Fulness of the Godhead bodily and ye are Compleat in Him who is the Head of all Principality and Power Here is a sufficient Caution against Philosophy for the true Church for ever For what need we if we are true Christians to turn aside for Wisdom and Knowledge and Learning and curious Arts to the Heathen seeing God hath given Christ to us in Whom is treasured up all the Heights and Depths and Lengths and Bredths of Wisdom and Knowledge whereby the whole World was made and every Creature formed and fashioned and in which it hath its Being Subsistence and Operation Yea in this Christ dwells all the Fulness of the Infinite and Eternal God and he is the Head of all Principality and Power in Earth and Heaven and there is in Him alone infinitely enough to make us Wise and Learned for ever without calling in the Help and Contributions of the vain Philosophers and their foolish Wisdom It is enough for Christian Schools to be taught to know Christ by the Ministration of the Spirit and all other Learning that is out of Christ though it seem to be never so High and Deep all faithful Christians are to reject it as meer Sophistrie and Deceit And thus you see that the Apostles as well as Christ taught their Scholars and Disciples only the Gospel and spake not one word for Philosophy but directly against it And the following Fathers and next Teachers of the Christian Church after the Apostles they also obeyed the Command of Christ and followed the example of the Apostles in this matter For the Bishops and Presbyters that is the Overseers and Elders had tender regard to the Children of Christians and did teach Them as well as the People the pure Doctrine of the Gospel They held forth to them Christ Crucified and did exhort them to Faith new Obedience the Confession of Christ and patient Suffering and did not at all intermingle Philosophy with their Divinity but alwayes rejected and condemned it all along the first and purest times of the Christian Church till the Mysterie of Iniquity began to arise and did cunningly insinuate itself into the Church by the means of Humane Learning And here it will not be amiss to Relate what Justine Martyr saith of himself as to this matter who was before his Conversion to the Christian Faith a great Philosopher and lived about 150. years after Christs Nativity He in his Dialogue with Trypho relates How first he joyned Himself to that Sect of Philosophers called the Stoicks and after to the Peripateticks after to the Pythagorean Sect and after to the Platonists but had no Satisfaction in his Mind by all this Knowledge But at last he beholding the Torments and Sufferings of Christians and seeing Them bear them with such Comfort and Constancy he did thereby conceive that it was impossible for that kind of People to be subject to any Vice on carnality which Vices of their own Nature are not able to sustain any sharp Adversity much less the bitterness of Death And hereupon He began to love and search after
of Men at his Pleasure and in great Readiness and with much Ease shall gain it to Himself And Antichrist by such Men saith I. Hus doth make his Body or Church strong against the Saints of God and Welfavoured and Glorious that it may appear very taking to the World and may win in all Men to it that are not taught of God and renewed by his Spirit And thus Antichrist serves himself of all Learning and Learned men whereas Divine Learning and the Teaching of God He could never in any measure subject to Himself but is alwaies discovered resisted and overcome by it Martin Luther saith That whosoever it was whether Alexander of Hales or Thomas of Aquine who first instituted Universities he was a Star fallen from Heaven to Earth who received the Key of the bottomless Pit and opened it and brought forth into the Church Philosophy long ago dead and damned by the Doctrine of the Apostles and from the Smoak of the Bottomless Pit that is Philosophy came forth Locusts on the Earth that is saith he populus Universitatum è Philosophia natus the people of the Universities born and bred of Philosophy c. thus Luther Abbas Joachim Calaber who was long before these and flourished about the year 1230. in his Commentary on Jeremy the Prophet speaks to this purpose That the sixt Angel mentioned Rev. 9. opens the Bottomless Pit and brings out Philosophy into the Church and out of the Smoak of this Doctrine Lecusts proceeded and are spread over all the Church into every Fruitfull Place and these Locusts he saith are Scholastici Magistri qui nunc facie tenus blandiuntur ut decipiant nunc cauda tenus feriunt ut subvertant simplices incautos that is the Locusts are Scholars and Masters according to the Academical Degrees who sometimes flatter with their Countenances to deceive and sometimes strike with their Tails that they may subvert the Simple and Unadvised And to these Scholars and Masters the Ignorant and Common People resort and they open to them the old Cisterns of Heathenish Learning and Disciplines long ago stopt up by the Doctrine of the Apostles and these Cisterns they open by teaching Philosophy to the People But they shut up the Living Fountain of saving Water that is the Word of Faith But the Spirit of the Lord saith he in the following Prophets whom the Lord shall raise up idola studiorum carnalium visitabit shall visit the Idols of Carnal Studies maintained and kept up by Secular Stipends Further he saith that as Antichrist brings forth his Mark which is Philosophical Doctrine in the Church of Christ and by this Mark all his Teachers and People are known so there shall rise up against these such as have the Mark of Christ or the sign of Thau in their foreheads that is the Open and Manifest Doctrine of Christ Crucified And as the Signs of Moses destroyed the Signs of the Magicians so shall the Word or Preaching of the Cross destroy all Philosophical Doctrine and Humane and Secular Learning out of the Church And then the Children and Youth and men of all Ages Sorts and Conditions shall be taught no other Doctrine in the Church of Christ then that which is found in the Scriptures even in the Writings of the Prophets and Apostles and that not according to any Humane and Philosophical Understanding but according to the Teaching and Mind of the Spirit And God by all his true Servants shall destroy the Studies of carnal Doctors and Masters in Divinity and shall dissipate all Secular and Philosophical Learning by the Word of Truth in their mouths And so shall the Church be reformed aright when the Doctrine of Christ only shall be received and esteemed of and shall live and flourish among Christians And thus as Antichrist hath laid aside the Scriptures and all true Spiritual and Divine Learning out of his Schools and Universities and hath brought into them instead thereof Philosophy and Humane Learning and so these Schools are most unlike to the Schools of the Prophets so in due time when God shall undertake to reform his Church all this Sort of Learning shall be cast out again as dirt and dung and the plain Word of the Gospel only shall prevail and flourish among the Christian People Which Time the Lord hasten for his Elects sake 2. ERROR That they who have endeavoured to pull down Schools have always been Men who were found Enemies to Religion So Julian the Apostate shut up the doors of the Schools because he would have all Religion to go down Answer True it is that they who have sought the subversion of Christian Schools wherein the Doctrine of the Gospel is purely taught without the mixture of Philosophy and Heathenism They all have been and are very Enemies to the true Religion But they that seek to put down Heathenish Schools and to erect Christian or to reform the Schools of Heathen into Christian or to remove Heathenism out of Christian Schools They are not before God and Good Men Enemies to true Religion but the great Friends of it Nay they that call Heathenish Schools by the name of Christian that they may still remain with the better credit in their Heathenism without any true Reformation according to the Gospel I rather judge them to be Enemies to the true Religion and Friends only to their own Profit Preferment and Ends. Julian indeed did forbid that Christians should be instructed in the Disciplines of the Gentiles but saith Sozomen the Writer of the Ecclesiastical History he did this because he thought that by those Disciplines men might attain to a Great Faculty to perswade which Advantage he would not have the Christians to gain to the Help of their Religion Now certainly this was done as Socrates another Writer of the Ecclesiastical History doth acknowledge by the Singular Providence of God For seeing then Christians had begun to degenerate from the Gospel and to betake themselves to Heathenish Learning Julian attributed all the Glory and Excellency of Christianity to that Learning and so thought with Mr. Simpson that if Humane Learning were denied to Christians Christianity it Self would soon be at end Wherefore the Lord stirred up Julian to put down the Doctrine of the Heathen in the Schools of Christians that it might appear to all the World That as the true Christian Religion is not helped by Humane Learning so neither is it hindred by the Want of it And that there is more Light Knowledge Truth Wisdom Power Utterance given to Christians by the Unction of the Spirit alone which all receive who believe then through all Heathenish Disciplines And also that it might be manifest that true Christianity is founded on Faith in Christ and the Gift of his Spirit only and not at all on Humane Learning For what Humane Learning had Peter and John and yet in what Wisdom and Authority did they being Ignorant and Unlearned
have taught that all true Divinity is contained in God and his Word and that we can know Nothing of God aright but by his Word which Holy men have spoken by the Spirit and Believers do receive by Faith and out of this Word all the Learning in the World doth not contain in it Self neither can it reveal to Us aright â—he Least Thing of God or of his Mind and Will But I conceive he might speak thus That all Divinity is wrapped up in Humane Learning to deterr the Common People from the Study and Enquiry after it and to cause them still to expect all Divinity from the Clergy who by their Education have attained to that Humane Learning which the Plain People are destitute of For it is the Old and New Design of Antichrist to make the People depend on the Clergy for all Divinity though the People have the Scriptures as near Them and the Grace of God usually nearer to them then They seeing God resists the Proud and gives Grace to the Humble Again if all Divinity be swadled in Humane Learning then must it sadly follow that all who want Humane Learning must needs also want Divinity And then how shall poor plain People who live in lawfull Callings and have not the leisure to attain Humane Learning how shall They do to be saved Or what Help must they have to teach them Divinity who have not opportunity to gain Humane Learning And yet farther if all Divinity be swadled in Humane Learning then Christ and his Apostles had no true Divinity for they had no Humane Learning to swadle it in nor would have none Shall we say now according to Mr. Simpsons Doctrine that they had no Divinity I do with all boldness affirm that this Doctrine is contrary to the Christian Faith 4. ERROR That Paul was brought up at the feet of Gamaliel and God took him so fitted to wit with Humane Learning and made him an able Instrument in his Church Answer Not so But God took Paul not a good Scholar and so made him an able Preacher but he took Him as a Blasphemer and Persecutor and as a cruel and inraged Enemy against Christ and his Truth and People and magnified the riches of his Mercy in converting such an One and Paul having much forgiven him loved much and through his Great Love was the fitter to preach the Gospel according to that of Christ to Peter Peter dost thou love me feed my Sheep Yea Paul Himself ascribes his painfull and profitable Preaching not to his Learning and Education under Gamaliel which also was or ought to have been only in the Law and Prophets as hath been proved but to the free Grace of God bestowed on him saying I laboured more abundantly then They all yet not I but the Grace of God in me So that Paul became so excellent a Preacher not by his fitting through Humane Learning but through the Grace of God And here I shall mind Mr. Simpson of a passage which I have read in Chrysostome which comes home to this Matter in hand it is in his third Homily on the first Epistle to the Corinthians where he saith That God had no need at the beginning of the Gospel of Learned men and Sophisters to preach the Gospel and to convince the World with Syllogisms but did only use the Word of Faith in the mouths of plain Handicrafts men and Artificers Wherefore saith he when the Greeks shall accuse the Disciples of Christ as ignorant of Letters and Unlearned let Us our selves who are Christians accuse them More Neither let any one say that Paul was Wise and Learned but let us say Their Men were Wise and Learned but Ours were Rude and Ignorant For in thus doing according to the truth we shall have the Greater Advantage against them For if Paul were Unlearned and yet overcame Learned Plato his Victory was the Greater and the Grace of God the more Glorious Now this I say saith he because the other day I heard a certain Christian discoursing ridculously with a Greek each of them in their Discourse prejudicing their Own Cause For the Greek spake that which the Christian should have said and the Christian spake that which the Greek should have said For the Question between them being touching Paul and Plato the Greek endeavoured to prove that Paul was Rude and Unlearned but the Christian through his Simplicity did endeavor to prove that Paul was more Learned and Eloquent then Plato And so the Greek should obtain the Victory if the Christians Reasons should prevail For if Paul were more Learned then Plato then might men object That he overcame not the World through Grace but through Eloquence Wherefore that whith the Christian spake made for the Greek and that which the Greek spake made for the Christian. Wherefore he saith when the Greeks shall say the Apostles were Rude and Unlearned Poor Mean Simple Obscure Persons let us acknowledge it as the Truth For this is not their Reproach but their Glory that being Such they yet overcame the Learned Men the Wise Men the Philosophers the Rhetoricians the Orators the Princes and all the World as if They had not been Men. For when any thing is done above the State and power of Nature this doth exceedingly manifest and magnifie the Grace of God And so it appears that Chrysostom was of another mind in this matter touching Paul then Mr. Simpson and that Paul was of another mind touching Himself Now seeing Mr. Simpson doth here insinuate that Humane Learning fits a man to the Ministry of the Gospel and seeing this also is the Opinion of all the Carnal and Unbelieving People I do desire them to consider what some Godly Men have spoken clearly from the Word of God in this Matter Chrysostom who knew the Mysterie of the Gospel more clearly then any of the Ancient Writers in his Comment on the first Epistle to the Corinthians doth wholly exclude Humane Learning from contributing any thing either to the speaking or receiving the Gospel For saith he to believe in Him that was Crucified and Buried and to be fully perswaded that he Rose again and sits at the Right Hand of God and hath all Power in Heaven and Earth given to Him and that He is made of God to the whole Church Wisdom Righteousness Sanctification and Redemption this Doctrine stands not in need of Humane Wisdom and Reasonings but of Faith only and that both in Them that spake it and in Them that receive it For the Apostles did not proceed in this Matter in outward Wisdom but in Faith and so became more Wise and Excellent then the Worldly Wise and so much the more as it is a Greater Matter to receive the things of God by Faith then to be perswaded into them by the force of Argument He adds also That To the receiving the Doctrine of the Gospel neither is the Wise man profited any thing by
rob them of their faith in Christ through Philosophy and deceitful Vanities and through the Traditions of Men and Ordinances after the World and not after Christ And after But now Ye drive them from Gods Word and will let no man come thereto until he have been two years Master of Art First they nuzzle them in Sophistry in bene fundatum And there corrupt they their Judgements with apparent Arguments and with alledging to them texts of Logick of Natural Philosophy of Metaphysick and Moral Philosophy and of all manner of books of Aristotle and of all manner of Doctors which yet they never saw c. Again Huldricus Zuinglius speaks thus to this matter We must needs be taught of God and not of Men to wit in the knowledge of the Gospel For this is the saying of the Eternal Truth which knows not how to lye Joh. 6. But and if you do not firmly believe that you may be taught of God Humane Doctrines being utterly rejected ye are yet destitute of true Faith Neither have I my self devised this thing For Hilarie also is of this opinion But there is no need of his Testimony when we hear that both Christ and all the Apostles were of the same minde And here the whole use of School Divinity falls to the ground and whatsoever is drawn out of the Philosophers For all these things do lean on Humane Reasons which when they have once possessed a mans Mind he then thinks that the Heavenly Doctrine is wholly to be directed and framed according to the Rule of Humane Learning which he judges to be most firm and infallible Which thing they sufficiently discover in their words saying ubi cessat Philosophus illic incipit Theologus where the Philosopher ceases there the Divine begins whereby they signifie thus much that he is able to judge most rightly in Divine Things who comes most furnished with Humane Learning As if so be the Light of our Will were more excellent and more perspicuous then the Divine Glory When yet we hear Christ saying I receive not Glory of Men but I know You that you have not the Love of God in you Joh. 5. For they who have the Love of God cleave to no Word so constantly as to the Word of God seeing This is the Light that enlightens every man that comes into the World But no man is able to prove that Philosophy is such a Light For which of the Philosophers instructed the Apostles Those simple and in the Judgement of the World those foolish Men unskilful and unlearned Fishermen were elected and instituted of God and then were sent forth to preach that they might become the Masters and Teachers of the whole World to wit that God according to the saying of Paul might make ashamed all the strength of the World and all the Wisdom of the World Thus he Luther also saith It is an Errour to say that a man cannot be a Divine but through Aristotle Nay saith he A man cannot be a Divine except he become one without Aristotle And again A man becomes a Divine by living yea by dying and by being damned to wit in his own sense not by studying reading or speculating And again In Holy Things we must not dispute or play the Philosophers but in Divinity we must only hear and believe and resolve in our heart that God is true though the Things he speaks in his Word seem never so absurd to Reason And again We shall then do well if we leaving Logick or Philosophy in their own Sphere do learn to speak with New Tongues in the Kingdom of Faith without all Sphere For the Affection of Faith is to be exercised in the Kingdom of Faith and not a Philosophical Understanding And thus have these Godly men held forth and proved from the Word that Humane Learning is rather a hindrance then a Help to the Ministery of the Gospel and doth rather unfit then fit men for it and that the Grace and teaching of God only prepares and enables men to this Divine work and no Humane Thing at all Wherefore let all true Christians be advised that Humane Learning is so far from fitting men for the Gospel and the Ministry thereof as is suggested that indeed there is nothing in Greater Enmity to Christ Crucified nor more Contrary to the Word of the Cross then that Yea nothing in all the world hath been such an Introducer Favourer Supporter and Inlarger of Antichrists Kingdom as Humane Reason Learning and Philosophy This hath brought in all the Hypocrisie Superstition false Doctrine false Worship Sects Schisms Divisions which have at any time prevailed in the Church during all the Reign of Antichrist And the Gospel of Christ and the true Belief and Practice of it hath not had at any time a greater and more subtile and plausible Enemy then This. Yea farther the Gross Ignorance and Blindeness of the rude World hath not so perverted and falsified the Word of the Gospel nor rendred it such Contradiction and Resistance nor hath brought such annoyance to the Faithful who have received and confessed it as Humane Science hath done For this hath enabled men stoutly to oppose the Truth and subtilly to defend Errour as the Truth this hath made men bold and cunning to suppress Gods Minde from the World and to hold forth their own Minde to them as if it were Gods under the pretence of the outward Letter of the Word and a multitude of other Evils have sprung from this Corrupt Fountain Wherefore the Apostle Paul is so far from encouraging Christians to betake themselves to Humane Learning to fit them for the Gospel that He by the Spirit utterly forbids Christians Heathenish Philosophy lest they should be spoiled through the Vanity of it and beled away from Christ. And thus in this matter hath Mr. Simpson manifestly departed from the Doctrine of the Scriptures and of Faithful Men who have spoken from it 5. ERROR That mens Hatred to God doth as well appear in their Hatred to Humane Learning as if they hated the Scriptures Answer I conceive Mr. Simpsons Heart was hot within him out of his great Zeal to Humane Learning the great Goddess by which the University lives when he thus spake And it appears he is very tender of the Reputation and Glory of it who thus vindicates it at as high a rate as the very Scriptures But Sir do you know no more Difference between the most precious Word of our Eternal Lord God and his Son Jesus Christ and the foolish corrupt and stinking Doctrine of Men is there no more Difference in your Divinity between the Word of Righteousness Life and Salvation which God hath spoken by Christ and Christ by his Servants and the Word and Doctrines of wretched Men full of sin death and destruction And if the Law it self given by the Ministration of Angels loseth its Glory before the Gospel as the Apostle testifies
out that Youth lose as much by Idleness as they gain by Study And they being only brought up to read Books and such Books as only contain wrangling jangling foolish and unprofitable Philosophy when they have continued any long time in the University in these unwarranted courses by God they are commonly in the end fit for no Worthy Imployment either in the World or among the Faithful To remedy which Great Evil Colledges being as hath been spoken dispersed through the great Cities and Towns of the Commonwealth it may be so ordered that the Youth according to Luthers counsel may spend some part of the day in Learning or Study and the other part of the day in some Lawful Calling or one day in Study and another in Business as necessity or occasion shall require And thus shall Youth be delivered from that Ease and Idleness which fills the Hearts of University-Students with many corruptions and noisome lusts whilst they fill their Heads only with empty Knowledge and foolish Notions whereby neither can God be glorified nor their Neighbour profited 9. And if this course were taken in the disposing and ordering Colledges and Studies it would come to pass that twenty would learn then where one learns now and also by degrees many men on whom God shall please to pour forth his Spirit may grow up to teach the people whilst yet they live in an honest Calling and Imployment as the Apostles did And this would give them great efficacy and power in teaching whilst they lived by faith through their honest Labour and were delivered from the mischief of Idleness But and if the faithful shall desire any one that is more apt to teach and hath received a greater measure of the annointing then his Brethren to spend more of his time in the Word and Prayer then his Calling will afford at such times They ought to supply him and the Law of Love in the hearts of the Faithful will be Law enough in this matter without calling in the aide of the Magistrate And by this means may the chargeable and burdensome maintenance of the carnal Clergy by degrees be taken away and the Church of Christ and the very Nations Themselves be supplyed with a more Faithful Christian and Spiritual Ministry then now it hath at a far less rate For God hath promised in the last dayes to pour out his Spirit on all flesh and the sons and daughters and servants and handmaids shall prophesie and then shall Knowledge cover the Earth as waters the Seas Now for conclusion I do conceive that none of the Faithful and Wise have any just cause to be offended for speaking for the Use of Humane Learning in this reformed way which the Gospel will permit seeing by this means these two Errors of Antichrist would be dissolved among us the one of making Universities the fountain of the Ministery which One Thing is and will be more and more as Christs Kingdom shall rise up and prevail in the World a Milstone about their necks and the other of making the Clergy a distinct Sect or Order or Tribe from other Christians contrary to the simplicity of the Gospel 2. Let the faithful consider that this reformed use of Tongues and Arts justly hath its place in the World For if all men cannot be Christians as Paul saith all men have not faith yet let them be Men and improved in the use of Reason and sober Learning whereby they may be serviceable to the Commonwealth in their age whilst the Church of Christ hath its own Members and Officers through the Call of God and Unction of his Spirit only For Humane Learning hath it's place and use among Humane Things but hath no place nor use in Christs Kingdom as hath been sufficiently proved And thus have I freely offered my advice for mending things that are amiss and making strait the things that are crooked in this matter FINIS ☜ Six observable things in this Scripture 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. ☞ 6. 1. Point The great evil endangering the Church Note Two contrary Seeds from the beginning of the World The two Seeds distinguished by the Spirits that dwell in them They act differently about mankind The false Spirit the most common in the world The true Spirit more scarce 2. Point The Remedy against false Prophets Note Christians have right power to try Spirits It concerns the faithfull to try the Spirits for two causes First Secondly The Clergy have usurped to themselves this power of trying Spirits By this usurpation the Clergy have made themselves Masters in the Church of God The Gift of Trying and Discerning Spirits is a Common Grace in the true Church ☞ ☞ Objection Answer False Prophets not easily discerned Because of their several Vailes under which they lye hid First Secondly Thirdly Fourthly 2. Difficulty in trying false Prophets 3. Difficulty 4. Difficulty Third Point The Rule of Tryall A twofold understanding of this Scripture 1. Of a right knowledge of Christ. 1. That true God 2. That true Man 3. That both are united in Him in one Person 4. The End wherefore this excellent Person came into the world whence flows the Knowledge of his Offices 2. Of a right receiving of Christ. Objection Answer Signs whereby the true Prophets are discerned from the false The true Prophets speak the true Word of God Thus did Christ And his Disciples The false Prophets speak not the Word of God but their own or other Mens Word 2. They speak it by the true Spirit of God And so in the right sence of it The false speak without the Spirit And so do mistake the mind of Christ. Objection Whether a man destitute of the Spirit may not be a profitable Preacher Answer 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. The second general Rule of the Tryall of Spirits The true Prophets are known by the truth of the Life of Christ. 1. Sign The true Prophets are sent of Christ. ☞ God hath not committed the choise of his Ministers to any sort of men He sends them himself The proof of his sending them ☜ The false Prophets run without sending 2. True Prophets take all their warrant from God in what they teach The Learned i. e. they who are taught of God and have heard learned of the Father who are the learnedest Men in the world whatever the foolish and ignorant world saith to the contrary False Teachers take all their Authority from Man ☜ 3. True Prophets they only preach Jesus Christ. Non dixit Christus suo primo Caetui Ite praedicate mundo Nugas sed verum illis dedit Fundamentum illud tantum sonuit in ore Ipsorum Dante 's The false preach nothing less than Christ. 4. The true Prophets Preach Christ for love and not for gain The false Preach for gain and not for love of Christ. 5. The true Prophets Teach for the Glory of Christ and not for vain glory The false seek their own glory neglecting Christs 6.