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A27139
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The true Christ owned in a few plain words of truth, by way of reply to all such professors or profane who lay to the charge the elect people of God called Quakers that they deny the bloud of Christ, and his body, and resurrection, and that they deny the Lord that brought them, and trample the blood of the Covenant under their feet ... / by William Bayly.
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Bayly, William, d. 1675.
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1667
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Wing B1542; ESTC R25915
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15,895
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incorruption And in the 24th verse saith Awake to Righteousness and sin not for some have not the Knowledge of God I speak this to your shame which were such as he called Fool that questioned and imagined about the Resurrection of the Body and what manner of Body it should be before they were awakened to Righteousness and left off sinning in which state they could not discern the Lords Body not the Resurrection for Sin is Darkness and the Wages of it is Death and what can you see in the Dark and when ye are Dead What knowledge of God have them that are in the Grave Therefore I say Awake and let your Eyes be opened and contend no longer against the Light within for it is that which gives the knowledge of the Glory of God in the Face of Christ Jesus And such as know the Power of his Resurrection being made conformable to his Death have seen his Glory To whom be Praise and Eternal Glory and Thanksgiving who is the Immortal Invisible the onely Wise God blessed forever Amen And much more might be written as to manifest your Darkness and Ignorance in the things of God and of the very Letter of the Scriptures and so denying the Light which should give you a good Understanding ye do err not knowing the Scriptures nor the Power of God see Matth. 22.29 which was spoken concerning the Resurrection Post-script THe Key that opens the Mysteries of the Kingdom of God is the Spirit of God and without it no man can rightly understand or judge of them or have any true sight thereof for the Natural man is blind and so speaks by imagination not at all perceiving them because they are spiritually discerned as it is written 1 Cor. chap. 2. And so often it happeneth with such to speak evil of those things they know not but in what they know naturally in those things they corrupt themselves mark naturally it s an easie thing for any vain Man or Hypocrite to talk or dispute about a natural thing as you may see how these Natural Professors use the word visible about the Body and Blood of Christ which I do not find written in all the Scriptures of Truth as to those particulars And so because we do not speak to answer their wills contrary to the Scriptures they are highly offended with us as Matthew Caffen was with me because I said God dwells in his People and that Christ sitteth at the Right-hand of God but M. C. said with a loud voice My Saviour that I own Salvation by is that visible Man Christ that is ascended up into Heaven and there sitteth at the Right-hand of God that visible Man with the same Flesh and Bones which he took of the Virgin Mary Which Heaven dost thou mean said I to him I mean said he that visible Heaven up there pointing over his head towards the Sky What up there where the Sun Moon and Sars are said I Yea said M. C. this is my Faith and my Principle I care not who knows it though you Quakers hide yours and will not deal plainly but are ashamed of what ye hold c. That is false Then said I Did Paul speak Truth and honestly to the People or did he mock them and deal deceitfully with them when he bid them seek the things that are above where Christ fitteth at the Right-hand of God c Or did he speak of impossibilities to them For if he meant up there where the visible Sun Moon and Stars are the visible Heaven How was it possible Or wherein was it any way profitable for them to seek things up there Or what things were they there to seek Oâ— did ever any of them obey his Exhortation to whom he thus spake Did any of them clime up thither and find Christ fitting there in a visible single Person as M. C. said he was there so And what things are there to be sought as pertaining to Salvation let the Witness of the living God in all People that have but the least understanding judge and answer And whether these men in their imaginations have not made to themselves the likeness of things in Heaven or things in Earth contrary to the command of God For Christ doth not always sit where he is though he mentioned sitting signifying a place of abode but Stephen saw Heaven open and Jesus standing at the Right-hand of God when he was before the Council bearing a Testimony That the most-Most-High dwelleth not in Temples made with Hands as saith the Prophet Heaven is my Throne and Earth is my Foot-stool What House will ye build me saith the Lord Or what is the Place of my Rest Hath not my Hands made all these things Acts 7.48 But Stephen was full of the Holy Ghost looking up stedfastly into Heaven and saw the Glory of God and Jesus standing on the Right-hand of God which they that gnashed with their Teeth on him did not see for they did alwayes resist the Holy Ghost as their Fathers did and they stopt their Ears and ran upon him with one accord as all the Professors in Christendom so called have done against the harmless People of God in this Age such as resist that which is Holy in themselves must needs resist and reproach and persecute them that are filled with it and born of it and so the Scripture is fulfilled they hated me before they hated you John 15.18 And so though men may be wise and zealous and learned and prudent and great and rich and mighty and be Rulers and Teachers c. yet if they resist the Holy Ghost or Spirit of Truth the Mysteries of God and of his Kingdom are still hid from them though they profess and talk of them with their mouth and lips yet their foolish heart is still darkened because they like not to retain God in their knowledge but like to retain only a kind of outside knowledge of those things that his Children do witness the Life and Power of within and so they are inwardly ravened from that which only can give the true and saving knowledge of God and of his Glory 2 Cor. 4.6 And so from the Wise and Prudent of the World in that which is natural and visible God hath hid and doth hide the Mysteries of his Heavenly Kingdom and Dominion but doth reveal and shew them plainly to Babes whom he forbids to cast their Pearls before Swine such as feed upon the Husk lest they trample them under their feet and turn again and rent them yet are we rent with divers and manifold Reproaches and Persecutions by such as pretend themselves the Sheep of Christ and People of God But by their Fruits ye shall know them and especially from the Teachers of the Letter of all sorts do we meet with much opposition but Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ their strength is but a Reed of Egypt where Death and Darkness is which may be felt and the Lord is
I spoke of Christ who said Before Abraham was I am and that all things were made by him and for him c. said one William Burnet a Baptist-Teacher There was nothing made by Christ then said I By whom were all things made in the beginning Said he By the Word Now let all People see the Darkness of these Men whom their envy hath blinded that they cannot see the plain Scripture how that Christ is called The Word of God Rev. 19. and in divers places he is called the Word And said the Apostle Paul By him were all things created that are in Heaven and that are in Earth visible and invisible c. Coloss 1.16 So it s no marvel they oppose us and revile us about these things when they belye the Apostle and contradict his plain words who are like the unbelieving Jews that looked at the outward age of the Person of Christ when he said to them Before Abraham was I am Is not this the true Christ that was before Abraham Was not he with the Father glorified before the World began Will ye deny these things so plainly recorded in the Scriptures of Truth And is not Christ Jesus the same yesterday day to day and for ever And did not John Baptist say He that cometh after me is preferred before me for he was before me See here Did not this Baptist-Teacher see farther then you Baptist-Teachers do now who cries out the visible Flesh and Bones is the Saviour And farther than the unbelieving Jews who said Thou art not Fifty years old and hast thou seen Abraham Whose answer serves for you all Before Abraham was I am Then took they up Stones to cast at him John 8.59 Can you read your Spirit For ye throw the hardest things that ye can scrable up against us about these things except ye had the outward Power and Sword in your hands then I am sure some of you would punish the Blasphemers as ye call them with a Prison or Death like as your Brethren have done for We have a Law and by our Law he ought to die said the unbelieving Jews And the Pope hath a Law to Burn Hereticks that do not believe the Natural Visible Corruptible Bread and Wine to be the Real Natural Substantial Body and Blood of Christ and so the Saviour and Redeemer And in New-England the Zealous Professors of the Letter the Man-slayers and Murtherers have Laws against the Quakers and call them A Cursed Sect and you call them Blasphemers So that Christ's Words are fulfilled Ye shall be hated of all Nations or Opinions for my Name-Sake who said I am the Light of the World and before Abraham was I am And Lodowick Muggleton he curses them and cries They deny the Son to be a Person in the form of a Man which suffered death and is risen c. And calls them the Cursed Sect of Quakers But all your Curses and Revilings Scandals Lyes and Reproaches will turn back into your own Bosoms and shall not come nigh the Dwelling of them whom the Lord hath blessed for we do not deny the Person of Christ nor the Blood of Christ nor the Resurrection of the Body as we are falsly charged but do own them all in their Place and Office according to the Scriptures of Truth and we are one with the Saints and Apostles in the Primitive time in all these things and so are not a Sect but Members of his Body of his Flesh and of his Bones as they were Ephes 5.30 But his Sayings are fulfilled If they have called the Master of the House Beelzebub much more them of his Houshold If ye were of the World the World would love his own but because I have chosen you out of the World therefore the World hateth you The third Query and Charge 3. BVt do you Quakers own and believe the Resurrection of this Body that this very Body that is visible of Flesh and Bones which we now see and feel and handle do you believe that this same Body shall rise again said Matthew Caffen and his Companion Burnet while they were handling one hand with the other For we believe you do not but deny the Resurrection of this same visible Body of Flesh and Bones as we have good ground to believe by your Books in which we cannot find that you own the visible Man Christ that is risen and ascended up into Heaven and sitteth at the Right-hand of God nor the Resurrection of this same visible Body if you do or do not say ay or no said M. C. directly to the Question Answer As I told thee then in that Discourse upon the Heath so I tell thee again That the Man Christ and his Resurrection from the Dead I own according to the Scriptures which thou said was general and nothing to the Question Then said I I own the Resurrection of the Body as Paul did and mentioned his words It is sown a Natural Body it is raised a Spiritual Body It is sown in Weakness it is raised in Power And there is a Natural Body and there is a Spiritual Body c. And whereas you cry the self same visible Body of Flesh and Bones you believe shall be raised and this is your Faith and Principle I do not so read it in your tearms in all the Scripture of Truth though ye alledge that saying in Ezekiel chap. 37. about the dry Bones I will lay Sinews upon you and will bring up Flesh upon you and cover you with Skin and put breath in you and ye shall live and ye shall know that I am the Lord. Now look in the 11th Verse and see the Mystery thereof if it be not above your reach for you are very near the Earth though ye talk so much of Heaven whether it was not spoken only of the Restoration of the Jews out of their Captivated and dead state as the Apostle said What shall the reviving or returning of them be but life from the dead Rom. 11.15 Consider well what ye say and whereof ye affirm for the Light will make all things manifest and the Fire must try your Works And we have read that Fifteenth Chapter of the First Epistle to the Corinthians through and find not your word visible in it from the one end to the other which speaks as much or more of the Resurrection as any place that I know of But I find Paul an Apostle of our Lord Jesus saying Thou Fool to such as queried how are the dead raised up And with what Body do they come But he doth not tell people as you do that the same visible Body of Flesh and Bones shall be raised up but says Thou sowest not that Body that shall be and in the 50th verse speaks very plainly which might be a full answer to your visible Flesh and same Flesh and to your shame Now this I say Brethren said he that Flesh and Blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God neither doth corruption inherit