lighteth every man that cometh into the world The Exposition of these words I shall give according to what the Lord hath enabled me with and refute what the Quakers give as the meaning of it and conclude from thence We shall not question that the Relative that hath for its Antecedent and is to be understood of the Word which was in the beginning which was with God which was God by whom all things were made the light of men c. The special Character of this Word who was God and Creator that was the true light I thus explain Light is taken properly for that which doth manifest or discover any thing so Christ is light But is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ who hath abolished death and hath brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel The meaning is That that salvation eternal which God had purposed to give to his people which could not be seen in the purpose of God as such is by the appearing of Christ in the flesh and therein transacting and declaring this salvation and eternal life abundantly discovered For God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness hath shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ And as light properly is that which makes manifest so metaphorically it is that which comforts and rejoyceth and as the first is put in opposition to ignorance or the absence of the means of knowledge so the other is put in opposition to affliction grief distress which are so frequently called darkness in Scripture that I need not turn to their Instances And I do not in the least doubt but Christ the Word is here called light in both respects and that eminently for as he discovers the gracious thoughts and purposes of God for the salvation of man it hath in its open hand the light of comfort they are glad tidings and gladding tidings And this I take to be the import of the 4th Verse In him was life and the life was the light of men That is the salvation and life eternal of poor sinners was wrapt up in Christ as God who being so qualified was capable of working it and this consideration of God manifest in the flesh for those ends is matter of strong consolation as being an adequate and sufficient foundation for faith to build on The qualification of this light the true light comes next under consideration True is taken in opposition to false but so we are not to understand it here True is taken in opposition to types and shadows so Christ is the true light which all the types and shadows in the Mosaical dispensations were not no more than the picture and pourtraiture of a man drawn with the dark lines of Charcoal are the man they so express or the figures for a thousand pounds in a Bond or Bill are the money And this is the true Exposition of the 23 d. Verse of the 4th of John God never accepted in sincere and hypocritical worshippers under the Old Testament dispensation But the question being of worshipping at Jerusalem or Mount Gerazim he tells her as his sense that question was now almost out of date for that the Temple being but a shadow and figure of Christ and Gospel-worship they were now shortly to use those shadows no more Christ being come and the Gospel spiritual-worship which they were but prefiguring of Again The true light is to be understood of the light eminently considered and so though John was a true light and by Christs own testimony a burning and a shining light and so the Prophets were true lights yet Christ excelled them all in light as the Sun doth the Stars The brightness of his Fathers glory and express image of his person So that while they gave a more dim and imperfect light Christ shined as the day-light In the Text last mentioned he is to be understood of Christ in the flesh before his ascension Lastly By true light we may understand his being that light to whom and of whom all the Prophets bare witness as Isaiah did not speak those things read out of him by the Eunuch of himself but of Jesus Christ as Philip expounded them to him I now proceed to the efficacy of this light wherein lies a great part of the controversie Which lighteth It is not to be doubted but this light doth give light both in respect of manifestation which may be of that which is matter of terrour and also of comfort to a miserable world by sin and its effects But I pray how will it follow from hence that Christ is within those whom he lighteth Truly no more than the Sun in the Firmament is within every one it affordeth light unto But it is the scope of some Pages in William Pen's late Piece to prove that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 should be rendered not lighteth but enlightneth But by this I perceive he is as very as those Physicians who impose severe abstinence on others but they themselves will take their Cups off and their good cheer to wantonness and giddiness I return to the business in hand and grant that most Translators render it enlightneth But what helpeth it 'T is never the more the Quakers light within for a seeing faculty can do nothing alone no more than the best eyes in the head without a light without as a medium by which to discern objects And this faculty of mans understanding is enlightned by Christ so as that by his light it is made capable to discern the face of God shining on sinners according to the import of the Covenant of graâ—… and that enlightning may be no more Two Scriptures will evidence First That concerning Jonathan And dipt it in an honey-comb and put his hand to his mouth and his eyes were enlightned See I pray you how mine eyes have been enlightned If the light within be no more in the conscience than the honey was in Jonathan's eyes it will make little for the Quakers notion of the light in the conscience to be very Christ and not only his manifestations which are his acts and influence not himself The other Text is more plain to the purpose His lightnings enlightned the world the earth saw and trembled If by the earth be not meant the men on the earth and by the world the men in the world lightning was not likely to be seen by or help them so to see as to effect trembling unless you will say the meer animals were intended Well then the world was enlightned by Gods lightnings that were totally without them whether their seeing by those lightnings have respect to the objects of their bodily eyes or to God the object of the eye of the mind who is in a good measure made known by his mighty and terrible works But if you will needs have
God who gives being to all things that are and to whose being and blessedness it is beyond the reach of any or all together to make the least Iota or title of addition owes us nothing and whatever of his free bounty he shall please to reach us with it is not only suitable to Scripture revelation but right reason also that in order thereunto he should choose his own wayes And although many enjoy plenty and prosperity in the outward good things of this life in all whose thoughts God is not and who are utter strangers to his worship yet God will make them know one day that they not coming into the possession of those good things by the right door of his holy and religious Ordinances they are but thieves and robbers But for men to attempt or expect spiritual blessings from God out of his own wayes so far as they are capable of understanding what they are and how to reach them is such a direct opposition and contradiction to a soul truly addicted and disposed to spiritual blessings as would fill up a volume to enumerate its parts and express its folly except you will say that spiritual blessings have nothing to do with a conformity to the will of God and a holy complacency and delight resulting to our souls therein and that they are made up of nothing but a self-pleasing conceit and fancy that we have brought God to our own bow and made him a subject and captive to our unbridled lusts and so our blessedness hath been hither to spell'd backward but newly found out really to consist not in our conformity to God but his conformity to us Some of these Ordinances of the Lord have been written in natures Book by the light of which men have been led to prayer and some kind of thankful and reverend acknowledgements of God More by revelation which with respect to Ordinances had three steps the first what was revealed before Moses the second by Moses the third at the beginning of Christs administration By Gospel-Ordinances therefore I do not intend either those with their circumstances that were known and practised by the light of nature Nor those which were under the Mosaical administrations with their circumstances but those Ordinances which were commanded by precept or prescribed by example in the New Testament or which being of natural obligation are therein formed with the substantial and additional respect to a Mediator already come in the flesh and ascended in his humane nature into heaven All those Gospel-Ordinances according to the above-mentioned account being so spiritual and so suiting the grace of the Gospel stripped of those costly and burthensome members of the Mosaical dispensations which the Apostle calls beggarly Elements carnal Ordinances how aggravated a rebellion must it needs be to kick against them and not endure so easie and so becoming a yoke beside it s rich and plentiful Incomes SECT II. I shall first prove that the Quakers deny Gospel-Ordinances in general and then in particular you must not expect on the first head that I shall produce their denial of Ordinances under the terms Gospel Ordinances but if I prove they deny all the things that are truly such it is as much as can be reasonably expected And we say he Christ hath triumphed over the Ordinances and blotted them out and they are not to be touched and the Saints have Christ in them who is the end of outward forms and thou art deceived who thinks to find the living among the dead This is the Quakers chief Apostle to whom they have all regard as the first among the first three of their Worthies In the first place he abuses the Scripture by a grosly false and directly contradictious Exposition The Scripture which most agrees with his words is in 2 Col. 14. blotting out the hand writing of Ordinances he might have added the next words that was against us which was contrary to us and took it out of the way nailing it to his Cross but these words were not for his turn The true meaning of the Text is that Jesus Christ by his death fulfilling what was signified by the typical Jewish Ordinances and abolishing the Mosaical dispensation entred his house his Church to undertake the administration of its affairs which he in all things disposed as was suitable to the gracious nature of the Redeemer and that glory of Gods goodness that now shines in the face of Jesus Christ But will this great Prophet G. F. say that the pure Gospel-Ordinances are against us contrary to us or as the Jewish standing in the way of the conversion of the Gentiles through their burthensomeness Will he say that Christ by his death abolished his own proper Ordinances Will he say that he nailed them to his Cross before they had a being divers of them not being formed till by his Apostles after his resurrection Will he say that he blotted out the Lords Supper and nailed that to his Cross also as soon as he had instituted it as if he delighted in a fickle humour as the Quakers and to give life to an Ordinance and within twenty four hours put it to death yea to engage his Disciples thereby to remember his death as often as they did it and yet abolish the Ordinance by his death and so take away all opportunity of remembring his death thereby And that phrase of the Angel seeking the living among the dead because they are taken with the sound is often used by them though not only beside the meaning of it but contrary to the sense of any Scripture I am sure it was never intended to prove Gospel-Ordinances dead You may hereby note what he denies viz. outward forms they are not to be touched and his reason is an excellent one the Saints have Christ in them At another time he will say Moses Abraham and the Old-Testament Saints had Christ in them and that in their own sense and yet I hope he will give us leave to believe that it was their duty to observe Gods forms But I wonder not that they that hold not fast the form of sound words are so easily perswaded to let go the forms of sound worship Let us hear another For this I say that the Father hath given his Son for a leader and guide to all ages and into and out of all forms at his will and in his way and time in every generation and therefore it is that all who know his will herein cannot endure that any visible thing should be set up to limit his leadings in Spirit Here you have the tenet and the pretended reason of it all that know his will that is the Quakers cannot endure that any visible thing should be set up c. But what if Christ have set them up If they can prove as strongly that Christ hath pulled them down and is departed from them as we can that Christ did
of justifying or so acts on Christ as to justifie the person in the sight of God by cloathing the soul with Christs righteousness And although in the Text it is translated not by faith only it may and I was going to say ought to be translated alone and then the sense is but this That faith which is alone without works doth not justifie a man in the sight of God And I shall give two good Reasons for it The one because it may be so without wrong to the Original Secondly It must be so because it will otherwise contradict the Apostle Paul and the truth also as expressed abundantly in other Scriptures 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 doth as well signifie alone as only and is very often so rendred as Joh. 8. 29. The Father hath not left me alone 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Joh. 16. 32. And shall leave me 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 alone Yea it is rendred apart Mat. 14. 23. He went up into a mountain apart to pray I could instance abundantly in the like Now whereas being rendred only it implies that works also justifie whereas if it were rendred alone or apart which is as fair in the Greek it would amount but to this a faith which hath not or is separate from works will not be a justifying faith And it must be so because else it opposes the great Doctrine of the Gospel or at least looks like such a thing Rom. 4. 2 5 6. For if Abraham were justified by works he hath whereof to glory c. But to him that worketh not that is aiming at justification thereby but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly his faith is counted for righteousness The blessedness of the man to whom God imputeth righteousness without works that is without respect to his works But enough of this only take one Text that needs no Comment to raise up this truth out of it viz. That the righteousness of Christ imputed is that alone or only which justifies by way of merit and which true faith looks to for this end For he hath made him to be sin for us who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness of God in him SECT III. I must not forget to do somewhat to satisfie the very weak of the influence the sufferings of Christ the Son of the Virgin Mary hath into the satisfaction of Gods justice appeasing wrath reconciling us to God c. Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree c. And the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all Surely he hath born our griefs and carried our sorrows c. But he was wounded for our transgressions he was bruised for our iniquities the chastisement of our peace was upon him and with his stripes we are healed That God was not is as George Fox hath quoted it to lose the truth and save his errour in Christ reconciling the world to himself not imputing their trespasses unto them Having made peace by the bloud of his Cross And without shedding of bloud there is no remission Much more then being now justified by his bloud we shall be saved from wrath through him Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear him that glory may dwell in our land mercy and truth have met together righteousness and peace have kissed each other Truth shall spring out of the earth and righteousness shall look down from heaven 'T is generally agreed these Verses respect Jesus Christ who is Gods salvation the triumph and glory of whose effects for his people are chiefly two First The reconciliation of Gods mercy to us with his truth and his righteousness to our peace The truth and righteousness of God were engaged to destroy and ruine the whole race of mankind for their sinning against him and breach of his Covenant in those words For in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die Now whatever inclinations God might have to shew mercy to man and bless him with peace the truth and righteousness of God he having that word gone out of his mouth seemed to oppose it as not consisting with mercy and peace towards man and to have bound up those hands and lockt up those bowels from whence mans peace through the Lords mercy might reach him But through Christ Gods salvation and what he did and suffered in our nature as our publick person and in our stead the mercy of God in reaching poor sinners is set free without any detriment to his truth and the peace of a believing sinner throws no scandal on the righteousness and justice of a gracious God but these his glorious Attributes of mercy truth righteousness are at a full agreement amity and union not only in God as they alwayes were and never can be otherwise but also in blessing man with a reconciliation with his offended Creator This Jesus arises like a divine Sun in his almighty strength with healing in his wings And this is no mean evidence of the satisfaction to the truth justice and righteousness of God by what Christ transacted in the world in the behalf of lost and undone man To declare I say at this time his righteousness that he might be just and the justifier of him that believeth in Jesus The second glorious effect of this salvation of God Jesus Christ by his transacting our redemption is That righteousness shall look down from Heaven The righteousness in the 11th Verse I suppose is not the same with that in the 10th Verse the former in the 10th Verse being the essential righteousness and justice of God which was to be reconciled to sinners which could not be done with a salvo to his Word but by some means which might answer to and satisfie his justice But the righteousness in the 11th Verse seems to me to be that sinless state which Christ who came down from Heaven hath cloathed them with by imputing to them and putting upon them that divine and glorious righteousness which he wrought in his own person and in our nature when he was in the world and so renders his believing ones not only free from the direfull stroaks and heart-piercing frowns of a just and offended God but also the objects of his love of benevolence yea of delight and complacence To conclude The whole transaction of Jesus Christ as Redeemer is the ground of our justification and its effects and consequences we being instated therein although the righteousness of Christ considered as his obedience and fulfilling that Law under which he was made as man and imputed to us be the glory of the Saints wherewith they shine in the righteousness of God in him And with relation to our union with Christ all those holy fruits the Saints bring forth by the strength and life from Christ received are accepted of by God and shall be eternally rewarded yet have no part nor portion in this matter of justifying our persons
me leave to tell them That though faith in Christ be so in the heart of a believer that it doth thereby enjoy the blessed effects and fruits of the Redeemer yet while the faith in Christ is in the heart the man Christ in his person or if you will his glorified body flesh bloud and bones is as far from them as beyond the visible Heavens And I care not if I mind you of the Popishness of their conceit near of kin to Transubstantiation but that is but an Infant-absurdity to this that one single body one individual man of flesh bloud and bones should be entirely in so many places at once as in every Quaker yea every man and woman in the world But it may be the Quakers being the only masters of the Mysteries can say more for it than we can imagine I am sure more than any man in his wits can believe Let us therefore give them the hearing before we dismiss this importunate Candidate with Ignoramus or a condemning Verdict Now the woman here hath a husband to ask at home and not usurp authority over the man but Christ in the male as in the female who redeems from under the Law and makes free from the Law the man may speak Christ in the male and female who are in the Spirit of God are not under the Law but the Whore who drinks the bloud of the Saints is gone from her husband from under the Law to ask the Whoremaster that doth drink the bloud of the Saints which Christ the seed judgeth upon to whom he gives judgement I have transcribed the more of this Answer of George Fox's that you may see what spiritual rare matter the Quakers swallow from the hand of Fox's infallible and inspired Authority the Chief among that Sect. The non-sense and rarity of the Exposition of the Apostles inhibition of Womens speaking in the Church I shall leave you to construe and descant upon But you find him owning a man Christ in the male and in the female The clearest Expositor that I have met with among the Quakers of this Mystery is Isaac Pennington Two passages of many I shall quote out of him Was not the Word made flesh And did not the Word made flesh dwell and appear in a tabernacle of flesh And cause the glory of his own divine flesh to shine through the earthly flesh Is it the flesh and bloud of the body which was prepared for and taken by him wherein he tabernacled and appeared Or is it the flesh and bloud of him who took tabernacled and appeared in that body For that which he took upon him was our garment even the flesh and bloud of our nature which is of an earthly perishing nature and his flesh and bloud and bones are of his nature c. The scope of this judicious Author in many Pages a non-such for new discoveries is to let us know that there was a heavenly spiritual divine body constituted of flesh bloud and bones in which Christ came from Heaven and that he put that body into the other body of our nature which he took of the Virgin and that outermost body of our nature he left behind when he ascended into Heaven no body knows where And this heavenly spiritual body nothing of kin to Abraham David Mary according to the flesh is the man Christ which is in the Quakers and so the Quakers are as compleat Christs as ever the Son of Mary was for they also have the divine nature of Christ dwelling in a body of spiritual flesh and bloud and that dwelling in those their bodies which we see are but the outward tabernacles of the God and the man Christ Jesus And when they speak and what they act all is but the words and deeds of this man Christ within the bodies of every he and she Quaker and so no more they but Christ in them However ridiculous this may seem to be it is no more but what they as seriously own as any Article in their Creed I say no more on this particular but that he that can digest such fables as these hath a stomack hotter than an Ostrich SECT III. The Quakers in their opinion of the divine nature of their Christ are exceeding superfluous and they have not more diminishing thoughts of the humane nature of the true Christ whose body they have doom'd to perish into dust and corruption than they have magnifying apprehensions of the divinity of their false Christ Their Tenet which I am next to consider is That every man and woman in the world have in them a saving light from Christ and this light is no other but Christ the Saviour and God eternal and there is no other Saviour but it It hath been the opinion of some before the Quakers were known in the world that by the redemption of Christ called universal all men have a sufficient light given them from God the utmost improvement of which will prove saving but far were they from accounting this light to be the Christ the Saviour However alien my thoughts may be from this Tenet it is not my work here to consider it But that peculiar to the Quakers that the light within every man is Christ and the only Saviour and very God Although there are none of them will stick to proclaim this on the house-top yet I shall for general satisfaction give it you under their hands And no one knows salvation but who knows this Christ in you who is the salvation and where he is within there is salvation And this Christ in us is he in whom our salvation standeth as the Mediator between God and man the man Christ Jesus And we also know and believe that he is the same Christ in us which in dispensations past did humble himself to the Cross And you whom the Prince of the power of the air hath led out of me you scorn me the light in you They have disobeyed it and called it a natural light and ye have said that I the light am not able to save those that believe in me That if you would believe and wait in me the light I will purge out all your iniquities and forgive all your trespasses and I will change your nature and I will make you new creatures if you will hearken to me and obey me the light in you How confident they are of this to be true may be seen in a bold adventure If ever man be justified by his Maker then by believing in Gods Covenant of light which in the conscience bears its testimony against all iniquity then let me for ever be condemned from the presence of the righteous God My design is to do two things First To consider the Scriptures which they lay as their principal foundation and chief corner stones in this building Secondly Prove by Scripture and Reason the falsity and abomination of their errour SECT IV. That was the true light which