we are all baptized into the one body and made partakers of the one bread which came down from heaven by the which we are fed and nourished led and guided into all truth In the sence of which Mercy and in the fellowship of this great Mistery which is hid in Christ from all that are high and proud and wise in their own conceit and envious and slight the Grace of God Who resisteth the proud but gives more Grace to the humble I say In the fellowship of this ever blessed and truly worthy for ever to be loved and obeyed Truth and Grace of God which haâ—h done this blessed work for us and hath made known this Mistery of Life in us the Salutation of my Life in the unspâ—akable Love and Meâ—cy of our God is unto you all Dear Brethren and Friends whom the Lord hath made pertakers with me and I with you of this prâ—tious Faith even the Faith which was of old delivered unto the Saints which give us victory over the World and by whâ—ch we receive power to deny our selves and to do the will of our God by which we feel a hope begotten in us which is as an Anchor most sure and stedfast in our hearts and souls That nothing that is present nor nothing that is yet to come shall ever be able to separate us from the love of our God Nor decline our minds nor pervert our hearts from following the Lord and obeying his blessed Truth and holy Spirit which hath effected this good work in our hearts and hath done us thus much good which our tongues are not able to set forth so fully as our Souls pertake and injoy of the benefit in the salvation of our Souls from death who hath by the Arm of His blessed Power revealed in and unto us preserved our feet from falling and our hearts from fainting and hath delivered our eyes from tears And now hath given us beauty for ashes and the Spirit of joy and gladness for the Spirit of heaviness So that the heart that hath been purged through the execution of the Lords Righteous Judgments now rejoyces in the enjoyment of his Mercies But this is not every ones state nor condition who are convinced of Gods blessed Truth and who are turned to the Light and Word of faith within for it s now with us as it was with them that the Apostle writ to who were in several states and conditions there were some that were strong men of full age whose sences were thorowly exercised in the word of God and Doctrine of the Apostles and these were such that the Apostle said Had obeyed from the heart their Doctrine which they preached by the which they were saved made free from sin and become servants to God their fruit unto holyness and their end everlasting peace These were acquianted with the misterys of Life and Godliness and he said to them The bread which we break is the communion of the body of Christ and the cup which we drink is the communion of the blood of Christ for although they were many members yet but one body of which Jesus Christ was the head who had true experience of the work of the Lord. And to some they spake and writ which were young in the faith and had but little experience in the knowledg of the work of the Lords blessed Truth unto which they were turned and in the which they had believed and by the which he told them they should be saved if they continued to the end in faith and obedience Also the Apostle wrote and spoke to such as had the knowledge of the Truth but did not continue in faithful obedience thereunto to the end of their race that so they might thereby receive the Crowne of Life who yet aboad in the form but had lost the virtue of the Life and power which once they felt and injoyed and which all do injoy which continue faithful unto the Lord whose virtue and power keeps them alwayes fresh and green and living to God And now dear Friends there is something in my heart as one that hath obtained mercy of the Lord and according to the experience which God hath given unto me of his Love and Mercy and as I feel the Lord requires of me for the easing of my heart and clearing of my conscience unto you that have believed in the Truth And first unto you whose hearts are tender of Gods glory and that desire to have your Portion with the Sanctified in Christ Jesus all keep low and wait in Gods holy fear for the fear of the Lord will keep your hearts tender of his glory for unto them that fears the Lord he revealeth his secrets And all keep to the pure holy Light of Jesus Christ unto the which you have been turned by the Messâ—ngers and Ministers of Jesus Christ whom God hath sent in his name and power now as he did in dayes past to turn People from Darkness to Light and all that were faithful in walking in it came to be redeemed from Sathans power and knew then and do now the power of God which saves the Soul Therefore Dear Friends be watchful in the Light of Jesus that shines in your hearts that you may all be led by it in the way which leads unto Peace He is given for a Leader and whosoever is led and guided by him that is come a Light into the world and now shines in thy heart He leads to Peace and gathers into Rest For this is the path which the Just walked in who travelled to God in all Ages which the wicked and ungodly hates the path of the Just is a shining Light which shines unto the perfect day And all you that are entred into this path be faithful to God and dilligent to walk in it and bring your deeds unto it that you may be found in well doing for them are they that shall and do come to injoy Immortallity and Eternal Life by Jesus Christ who continue in well doing And Christ sayes He that does well cometh to the Light and bringeth his deeds unto it And the Apostle said to them he wrote to in his day That they had this sure word of Prophecy whereunto they did well to take heed as unto a Light that shines in a dark place This also is my Testimony with many Brethren that all that ever come to have Life everlasting must walk in it love it and obey the teachings of it And therefore do I commit you all unto it that have recieved the knowledge of it as unto that which is able and on that which the Lord has laid help that is mighty to save to the utmost all that bowes to the apearance of it And therefore let your eyes be towards it to wait upon God in it even for the Grace that is to be brought in the Revelation of Jesus Christ for as thou waitest honestly in the Light it will let thee see how it is with thee
it was unto the Travelers in dayes past For when Paul the servant of God who was deeply exercised in his mind and troubled in his heart because of his own weakness and the strength of Sa hans accusations and temptations under the sence of which he cried unto the Lord for help whose answer was to him My grace is sufficient for my power is made perfect in weakness by the which he did come to witness help and deliverance from the body of sin and death and thâ—n his Soul praised the living God and then as he received of the Lord so he Preached to others and committed them unto God and to the word of his Grace which sayes he Is able to save your souls and to give you an inheritance with the Sanctified in Christ Jesus and he sayes That this Grace hath appeared to all that so many as obey it are brought into the perfect way of holyness in Gods fear Therefore all know your minds stayed in it and your hâ—arts subjected unto it that so you may come to witness Rest by it to the which I commit you as unto that which I am a living witness for the Lord is able to save your Soules and to set your hearts at liberty to serve and praise the living God And all be dilligent to keep your Meetings to wait upon God with them that meet together to worship the Lord out of a pure heart And all wait in the Light and labour to keep your hearts and minds stayed in and with his blessed and holy Spirit of Truth upon the living God that so his blessed peace you may all feel abounding in your hearts more and more to the comfort of your Soules that so in the living feeling of Gods heavenly power you may have fellowship together And all take heed that the enemy of your Souls That goeth about like a roaring Lion seeking whom he may devour does not betray your simple minds in causing your minds to wander from the Truth or to let thoughts to rest in your hearts which is the work of the enemy to bring in to trouble you when you are waiting upon God But all submit unto God and in his name and power Judge them out and let them not have a place in your hearts for if you do they will hinder you from hearing the voice of the beloved of your Souls And all take heed of deadness and drousiness and sleeping in Meetings for that is a great disorder and brings dishonour to the holy name of God that is concerned in and amongst you which all that loves the Lord ought to be tender of and it is also a great and heavy burthen to the Souls of the Righteteous which sits with you and are preserved in a fresh and living sence of the goodness of the Lord and it is also a great dishonour unto your selves as you are men and women that profess to meet together to worship God in Spirit and Truth for I do say and know That Gods witness in all your consciences who ever have felt the power of God and known the worship of God that is performed in Spirit that when and whilst at any time that sleepy drousy Spirit prevails over any although you may be in the Meeting with them that does serve and worship God you do not then worship him but burâ—hens the Just in your selves and in others for the Word of the Lord which the Children of God hear and feel is quick and poweâ—ful and Christ who is in the midest of those that meet in his name is a quickening Spirit whose Life quickens the mortal bodys and refreshes the Immortal Souls of all his little ones that wait for his appearance And therefore all wait in Gods pure fear that you may be covered with the Spirit of the Lord that so your nakedness may not appear which is the cause of shame And unto you that have long been convinced of the Truth and have not been faithful unto it but are in the state of them the Apostle speakes of Who for the time might have been teachers of others but now you have need one should teach you the first principles of true Religion for you are they that have not been faithful to God who have not truly nor throughly forsaken dead works but rest in a convincement of the Truth saying and confessing to that which doth shew you and all men sin and convinceth of the same is the Truth of God and there is no other but do not so obey it as to become conformable thereunto but rest in the knowledg of the will of God but does not yeild obedience unto it and have gotten into a form of Truth but for want of obedience to the same doth not come to witness the power of God to Rule in your hearts Freinds You are in the foolish Virgins state which Christ speaks of which have got the lamps but have not the Life and Virtue of the Love of God dwelling in you by the which the Soul is daily fed and nourished but even whilest your tongues may be talking of God your Souls are in leanness and this comes upon you because your hearts still lusteth after that which Gods Spirit is against which you ought to come out of and to be clean separated from and here you keep an enemy in your own bosome and harbours a Dalila in your own hearts while you suffer any lustful desire to live in your hearts that Gods Truth hath appointed to be slain and crucified which you ought to bear the Cross unto for the want of which you cannot follow Christ until you deny your selves and take up the Cross to your own wills to whatsoever it be that it lusteth after for our God is Pure Holy Just and Righteous who will and does render unto every man according to his Works for although he let the Children of Israel of old have their lustful minds satisfied yet for it he brought leanness of Soul upon them which was a just Judgment of God upon them which before he fed with bread from heaven even so doth he now Blessed be his holy name saith my Soul for now doth the Lord refresh and feed with bread from heaven which the world knowes not nor the disobedient pertake not of for the Lord our God refreshes cloathes and feeds and ministers Peace and Comfort unto those who are zealous for his name and obedient to his holy Truth But the disobedient doth and must dwell in a dry Land Therefore you that have the knowledge of this ever blessed and worthy to be obeyed Truth and Grace of God whith is given you for to lead and guide you to the Kingdome of the Living God Prize your time and improve your Talent For I testifie unto you that there is a Prize put into your hands and an oppertunity hath God afforded you to get strength Before you go hence and shall be seen no more But if you spend this pretious time that the Lord hath given you To work out your Salvation and to make your calling and election sure Then God will be just in the day when your Ruin comes upon you And his servant and servants will be clear of your blood And the Talent which is a measure of the Lords good Grace and Spirit will be taken from you and will be a swiâ—â— witness against you And therefore whilst you have time prize it and whilst you have Light walk in it least darkness so much overtake you and the cloud of errour through your continual disobedience to the Light growes so thick upon you as you cannot see the way to God and then the enemy of your Souls takes you wholly captive again to do his will And then the Scripture comes to be fulfilled upon you The Dog is returned again to his old vomit and the Sow that was washed to the wallowing in the mire And then thou art fit neither for the land nor for the Dunghil but to be trodden under foot of men and then falls into that snare that David prayed to the Lord to be kept from that he might never become a Scorn to fools that had no understanding for all of you that have in any measure obeyed the word and Grace of God you have known cleansing by it so far as you have obeyed it which is able to save and to cleanse throughly all thâ—m that abides in it whereby the words of Christ comes to be fulfilled If you abide in my word then are you my disciples indeed and you shall know the Truth and the Truth shall make you free And as you tender the glory of God and the good of your own Souls wait dilligently to hear what the Spirit saith in and unto you for that will deal justly and truly with every one for it is the same that ever it was which justifies them that obey the Truth but condemns and reproves in whatsoever they do evill And this is the Spirit that all are now to hear and obey which speakes a word in season to every ones condition And therefore all wait to hear what it doth signifie unto you whether it be Judgment or Mercy for through Judgment Mercy comes to be known for by Judgment that comes to be overcome which is contrary to the Lord and therefore blessed are they that wait upon the Lord in the way of his Judgments until by Judgment that be slain that is contrary to the Lord that so you may come to see Mercy and Truth to meet together and Righteousness and Peace imbrace each other which is the desire of my Soul who am a true Freind to your Souls This to be Read in the Assemblies of Gods People in the fear of the Lord in England Scotland and else where this may come as Friends may see a service therein Written at Monrosse Prison in Scotland the eleventh Moneth 1671. when I was there a Prisoner for the Testimony Of the Truth Samuel Cater THE END
A SALUTATION IN THE Love of God AND In the Fellowship of the work of his blessed Truth unto all the Faithful Brethren and Sisters in Christ Jesus our Lord who are Begotten by the Immortal Word of God unto a lively Hope which liveth and abideth for ever With A Word of Exhortation and Counsel unto all whose Faces are set Sion-ward and who have found the Narrow-Way that leads to Life whose hearts are tender of Gods Glory and desire to walk therein Also a Warning unto all them that have long known the Truth but have not neither do obey it with all their hearts that they may Redeem the time that yet remaines and prize the Day of their Visitation and while they have the Light walk in it lest utter Darkness come upon them and the Door of Mercy be shut By SAMUEL CATER Printed in the Year 1672. A Salutation In the Love of God and in the Fellowship of the work of his blessed Truth unto all the Faithful Brethren and Sisters in Christ Jesus our Lord c. Dear Friends Brethren and Sisters WHom God through the riches of his Grace and breakings of his blessed Light into our hearts hath thereby gathered us out of the dark world which lyeth in wickedness amongst whom we had our conversation in times past in which time we were Ignorant of the knowledg of the true God and strangers unto eternall Life which by his blessed Grace and heavenly Light he hath now brought us unto the knowledge of to the great Satisfaction of our hearts and comfort of our soules which peace and satisfaction the world could never give us neither can they now take it away from us blessed be the name of the Lord our God who speaks peace to his children and none can speake trouble but in his holy will we rest under the shadow of his winges where none of the instruments of cruelty can make us afraid for the Seed is known which is satisfied in the will of God and can and doth obey and follow the Lord as faithfully in adversity as in prosperity whereby we are fully satisfied thorow the work that God hath wrought in us by his unchangable truth and spirit that the day of his power is come in which day he hath made us willing to deny our own wills and to obey the will of the Lord God our maker and to take up the cross whereby selfe is daily crucified and to follow Christ Jesus and to keep the word of his patience whereby we are made pertakers of the fulfiling of his graâ—ious promises who keeps and delivers his in the hour of temptation who saith to the Seed of Jacob Call upon me in the time of trouble I will hear and deliver thee and thou shalt glorifie me And now dear Brethren often hath the Lord made us Eie-witnesses and pertakers of this his love and mercy who hath preserved our feet from falling yea and hath delivered us out of many troubles and when we have seen none to help then hath he been a present help unto us both outwardly and inwardly So that the Lord hath not been wanting unto us blessed be his holy name who hath and doth hand forth his mercy as largly now to them that fear him as he did unto the generations that are gone before us Oh! the love of our God and how large it doth abound to us-ward even unto them that fear him so that I can say as the Prophet said Truly the Lord is good to Israel even unto such as are of an upright heart For Dear Friends who is their that can say they want any good thing that put their trust in the Lord and are given up to serve and obey him with all their hearts So that our souls can say to the glory of our God That Wisdom and grace nor any good thing doth the Lord withhold from them that obey him with an upright heart for in him all fullness dwels who feeds the hungry with good things and covers the naked with the garment of Salvation and beautifies his Elect with high praises the poor he maketh rich with durable riches and everlasting righteousness so that he raises the poor beggar from the dunghill of the worlds glory and sets him in heavenly places in Christ Jesus where his soul feeds quietly in the fresh pastures of love and life and drinks at the Fountain of living water which becomes as a well springing up in his soul to Life Eternall the lame also doth the Lord in this the day of his blessed power which he hath made us pertakers off make to walke thorow the virtue of his love he refreshes the soules and hearts of all them that wait upon him whereby their strength is daily renewed to run the wayes of his holy commandments which the Lord makes easie to all them that are of an upright heart the tongue of the dumb he loosed through the vertue of his Life and showering down his blessed dews of heaven into their thirsty Soules which causeth them to publish his praise and to set forth his glory So that we see his Promise fulfilled in the wilderness waters breake forth and streams in the desart and the place of barrenness is now become fruitful whereby praises is brought forth to the glory of the Lord our God So that his presence is with us as certainly now as ever it was with his Children in any Age who obeyed his holy will and stood in his councel who for their obedience to the Law of their God were sometimes cast into the Lions den somtimes into the fire sometimes imprisoned and others their goods spoyled and the Loâ—ds presence was with them who upheld them and caused them to sing praises unto His name in the feeling of His holy Power which they injoyed when their bodies were lockt in the Prison and their feet in the Stocks Even so now He is known unto us that have believed in His name by the virtue of His love for He deals His bread of Life which is His flesh unto our Souls by the virtue of which our Souls live and receive strength to praise the Living God our maker and the misterys of Life and Godliness hath the Lord made known unto us who hath cleansed us and purged us by His blood and washed and Regenerated us by His holy Word So that there is a Remnant that can and do read in Gods blessed Light the misteryes of Life and these can say The bread which we break is the communion of the body of Christ and the cup which we drink is the communion of the blood of Christ For although we be many members and many miles distant outwardly separated one from another and have sundry gifts which God hath given us by His holy Spirit which He hath sent into our hearts by the which we are led and guided to exercise the same For the edifying of the body in the love of God which constraineth us so to do by which Spirit