Salvation that ever the Son had from him The Jews were to learn in Types Figures and Shadows till Christ came And after Christ came he also taught them in Resemblances and Similitudes of things and the Apostle wrote and spake much to persons as just coming out of that state in a language suited to that state But he that comes into the thing it self and is taught there by the Spirit after he is grown up and made capable he is taught plainly the nature of the Heavenly things and the words of the Apostles concerning the deep things of God which are mysterious to others are manifest plain to him Yea the Lord so teacheth him things as words cannot utter that is He so knoweth the Peace of God the Joy of his Spirit the Life and Power of the Lord Jesus Christ his Wisdom Righteousness and pure pretious way of sanctifying the heart the tender Mercy Faithfulness and rich love of the Father c. as he cannot utter to any man nay so as he never learned nor could learn from words about the thing but by the sense and experience of the thing it self the Lord in whom are the depths of life and who giveth the sense and understanding of the deep things of the Spirit opening them in him and manifesting them to him And indeed this is the right and excellent way of knowledge to come into the Union to come into the Thing it self to learn in the Union to see and know in the Thing This is the Way that the Lord teacheth all his Children in the new Covenant by inward Life by the pure Light within by the inward demonstration of his Spirit by the Power and Virtue of the Truth it self which it hath in him that is true And he that is in the Son hath some measure of this Life and he that hath not some measure of this Life is not in the Son but in a talk and wise knowledge of things after the flesh which will perish and he with it who abideth there For no man can be saved but by coming into the knowledge which is of a pure eternal living saving Nature Can an opinion which a man takes up concerning Christ from the Scriptures and casting himself thereupon save him for it is no more than an Opinion or Judgment unto a man unless he be in the life and power of the thing it self Then indeed it is Truth to him Knowledge in him right Knowledge otherwise it is but Knowledge falsly so called Knowledge which will not subdue his heart to Truth nor hath its seat there but in his head making him wise and able there to oppose Truth and so bringing him into a state of Condemnation Wrath and Misery beyond the Heathen and making him harder to be wrought upon by the Light and Power of Truth than the very Heathen Therefore consider your wayes O Professors of Christianity and do not despise the hand which is stretched forth to you in the love of God and in the motion and guidance of his Spirit who condescends to you exceedingly that he might reach to his own in you and scatter your Apprehensions Imaginations and Conceivings about the meanings of Scriptures which are as so many Chains of Death and Darkness upon you that ye might come to him in whom is Life and who gives life freely to all that come to him O observe what Barrs were in the way of the Scribes and Pharisees They would not come to him that they might have life nay indeed they could not as they stood There are greater Barrs in your way yea it is harder for many of you to come to him than it was for them My upright desire to the Lord for you is That he would remove the stumbling-blocks out of your way that he would batter and knock down the flesh in you that he would strip you of al your knowledge of Scriptures according to the flesh that ye might be made by him capable of knowing and receiving things according to the Spirit and then ye will know how to understand honour and make use of the Letter also but till then ye cannot but make use of it both against your own Souls and against Christ and his Truth And then for setting up a natural Principle we are further from that then ye are aware For we are as shy of this and jealous that it was a natural Principle as ye can be and started from it divers of us till the Lord by his eternal Power and demonstration of his Spirit reached our hearts and shewed us that it was the Seed of the Kingdom even the Root of all the Spiritual life that either we our selves formerly or ever any else received at any time and gave us the sight of the things of the Kingdom in it and at length wrought that in us and for us by it which never was wrought in us before and which can be wrought by nothing else but the power of the Spirit Now having certainly felt and known the thing in our own hearts and having also seen the Snares and Nets which the Enemy laies for you whereby he keeps you from the true Bread and from the Water and Wine of the Kingdom even as he kept us formerly How can we hold our peace but witness to you in the love and drawings of the Spirit of the Lord of the Truth Life and Power which we have felt in Jesus though ye become our Enemies therefore Nor do we this to bring you to another Opinion or outward Way that is not our end but that ye might feel the thing it self and know assuredly what is the Truth in that which never was deceived it self nor ever deceived any nor will suffer any to be deceived who are joyned to it and abide in it O why should ye wander in the dark Opinions and uncertainties of the night Why should ye not rather come to that wherein the light of the day springs and out of which it shines And can the natural man who hath his eyes be deceived about the light of the natural day Doth he not know the Light of the day both from the lights and also from the darkness of the night Ten thousand times more certain and inwardly satisfied is he who is born of the spiritual Day brought forth in the Light thereof and who spiritually sees lives and walks therein So that there is no doubt in him who is grown up into the thing but he hath the assurance of Faith which is far above the assurance of outward sense or reason and the assurance of understanding O blessed is he who hath an eye to see an ear to hear an heart to understand the things which God hath revealed by his Spirit in this our day the living Way which he hath now made manifest the principle of Life that he hath raised out of the Grave of Death But he that reproacheth and speaketh evil of this that will neither enter in himself nor suffer
body for him to do his Will in all things in and particularly to offer up to him the acceptable Sacrifice for the sins of the whole World Quer. 3. Whether it was not necessary in this respect also that Christ should take upon him our flesh that he might have experience of our temptations and infirmities and become a merciful and faithful High Priest and Intercessor for us Quer. 4. Wherein lay the value and worth of his Sacrifice and of all he did Did it lie chiefly in the thing done or in the Life wherein he did it in that he did it in the pure Faith and in obedience to the Father He became obedient unto death even the death of the Cross and he through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God Quer. 5. What was he for whom the Father prepared a Body and who took it up to do the Will and did the Will in it was he not the Arm of God the Power of God the Saviour and Salvation of God the Jesus and Christ of God Quer. 6. To whom do the Names and Titles Jesus and Christ chiefly in the first place belong do they belong to the Body which was took by him or to him who took the Body The Body hath its Nature and Properties and the eternal Word or Son of God the pure spotless Lamb the Fountain of Innocency its Nature and Properties Now the Query is Which was the appointed Saviour of the Father which was the Anointed of the Father chiefly and in the first place Whether the Body prepared or he for whom the Body was prepared to do the Will and offer up the acceptable Sacrifice in Quer. 7. Which is Christs Flesh and Blood which we are to partake of whereof we are to be formed which we are to eat and drink and which is meat and drink indeed nourishing to life everlasting Is it the flesh and blood of the Body which was prepared for and taken by him wherein he tabernacled and appeared or is it the flesh and blood of him who took tabernacled and appeared in the Body For that which he took upon him was our Garment even the flesh and blood of our Nature which is of an earthly perishing Nature but he is of an eternal Nature and his flesh and blood and bones are of his Nature Now as the Life and Nature which is begotten in his is Spiritual so that which feeds and is the nourishment of it must needs be of a spiritual and eternal Nature Quer. 8. What is the Bread which came down from Heaven Is not the Bread and the Flesh all one Outwardly-visible flesh and blood was not in Heaven nor came down from Heaven but the Bread of Life did come down from Heaven which the heavenly Birth feeds on and lives by For that which redeems that which is Jesus the Saviour came down from Heaven and took upon him a body of flesh here on earth in which he manifested himself as King Priest and Prophet and did the Work appointed him by the Father John 17.1 c. Quer. 9. What was that which saved people outwardly from their outward infirmities and diseases while Christ was on the earth in that Body Was it the Body or the Life Power and Spirit of the Father within the Body and manifested through the Body And can any thing less save inwardly Now that which saves that which hath the Virtue and Power of Salvation in it that the Eye of Faith is to fix upon and not to stick or stop in that through which the Life works it Quer. 10. Who was he that humbled himself that made himself of no reputation that took upon him the form of a Servant and was made in the likeness of men and found in fashion or habit as a man Was it the body of flesh or was it He that was glorified with the Father before the World was And who is to have the honour and exaltation At whose Name is every knee to bow Is not the reward to him who laid down his Glory to take upon him the body of flesh and appear in it that he might honour glorifie and fulfill the Will of his Father Quer. 11. Are not the Children and he of one Is not he and they of the same stock Both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one Heb. 2.11 Is it not from thence that he is not ashamed to call them Brethren even because he finds the Nature Spirit and Life of his Father in them What makes a Child to God Is it not the being begotten of the Father and born of the Spirit And that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit Now mark Have we the denomination and relation with Christ from that which is Spiritual and hath Christ himself the Name from or because of the body of flesh Nay nay the Name Christ was from the anointing which was in the Body which ran into and filled the Vessel It is true the Body in and by the Union partakes with him of his Name but the Name belongs chiefly and most properly to the treasure in the Vessel Quer. 12. What is it to put on Christ or what is the putting on of Christ Is it the putting on of that body of flesh Or the putting on a belief concerning him according to what is said of him in Scripture Or is it not rather a putting on of his Nature his Seed his Spirit his Life wherewith the Souls of those that are born from above are cloathed as the Body is with a Garment Quer. 13. Who was it that said I am the Resurrection and the Life Was it not Christ And what did he say it concerning Did he say it concerning the Body Or did he say it concerning the Power and Virtue of the Father which was in the Body Did he not say it concerning that which had the power of Life in it before it took up the Body and had also the power of Life while it was in the Body yea and could raise up not only other bodies but that also after it had laid it down For after it was laid in the Grave he could raise it up and take it on again as well as he did at first when it was first prepared John 10.17 18. Quer. 14. If I or any one else have felt the saving Arm of the Lord revealed in us If we have felt a measure of the same Life Power and Anointing revealed in our Vessels as was revealed in his Is it not of the same Nature Is it not the same thing Is not Christ the Seed And is not this Seed sown in the heart Now if this Seed spring and grow up in me into a spiritual shape or form though it be but of a Babe is not Christ then formed in me If I be ingrafted into and grow up in it am I not ingrafted into Christ the true Olive-Tree the true Vine and do I not grow up in him And is not this the
to it in nature and kind Quer. 17. Can outward blood cleanse the Conscience ye that are spiritual consider Can outward water wash the Soul clean Ye that have ever felt the blood of sprinkling from the Lord upon your Consciences and your Consciences cleansed thereby did ye ever feel it to be outward It is one thing what a man apprehends in the way of notion from the Letter concerning the things of God and another thing what a man feels in Spirit Quer. 18. Seeing the Apostle speaks of purifying the Heavenly things themselves Ebr. 9.23 It would seriously be inquired into and the Lord waited on to know what nature these Sacrifices must be of which cleanse the Heavenly things Whether they must not of necessity be Heavenly If so then whether was it the flesh and blood of the Vail or the flesh and blood within the Vail Whether was it the flesh and blood of the outward earthly Nature or the flesh and blood of the inward spiritual Nature Whether was it the flesh and blood which Christ took of the first Adams Nature or the flesh and blood of the second Adams Nature Quer. 19. What is that wherein they that are in the Spirit behold as in a Glass with open face the glory of the Lord Is it not Christ And how is Christ so Is it not as he is made manifest in Spirit Doth he know Christ aright or believe in him aright that knoweth him according to his bodily appearance that can relate and firmly believe what he did therein or he that knoweth and believeth in his Spirit and Power Henceforth know we no man after the flesh no not Christ saith the Apostle though we have known him so What meaneth that The same thing may be known several wayes outwardly inwardly according to the Flesh according to the Spirit Now if ye are of the Spirit live in the Spirit If ye live in the Spirit know in the Spirit the things of God after the Spirit as the Spirit reveals as that which is born of God receives and not as the wisdom understanding reason and flesh of man can receive And then ye will come into fellowship with Christ both in his death and resurrection and know indeed the resurrection both of the Life and of the Body which to know and be able to acknowledge in Jesus is very pretious Quer. 20. Hath not Christ made us Kings and Priests to God even his Father What is it that is the King and Priest in us And if we be Priests must we not have somewhat to offer What have we to offer And what makes our Sacrifices savoury and acceptable Is it not that of his Spirit that of his Life which is in them Is it not the Faith the Love the Obedience which are all of him wherein they are offered If we should give our bodies to be burned in the way of testifying to Truth without this would they be accepted If we give but a cup of cold water in this is it not accepted Now is the Life the Faith the Obedience of the Son the thing which is of value in us And was it not the same which was of value in him What did the Father require of the Son for satisfaction for Adams disobedience Was it not the obedience of the second Adam which weighed down the transgression and disobedience of the first Doth not this make all righteous who are of Him and found in his Nature as the transgression of the first made all unrighteous Rom. 5.19 Sacrifice and Offering thou wouldst not Lo I come to do thy Will O God He taketh away the first that he may establish the second By the which Will we are sanctified through the offering of the Body of Jesus Christ once for all Heb. 10.9 10. What can be plainer to that which hath Truths ear So by Truth manifested in the heart there is nothing denied of what is said concerning Christ in Scripture but every thing owned believed and received in its proper place Quer. 21. Who is the Captain of our Salvation Who is it that girdeth himself with Might riding on conquering and to conquer all the Enemies of the Soul Is it not the Lamb Is it not Christ Is it not he whose Name is called the Word of God And yet how can it be he Is not he to sit at Gods right hand until his Enemies be made his footstool Quer. 22. What is the Water and Spirit whereof a man must be born again or he cannot see the Kingdom of God Is it Christs flesh and blood or no His flesh saw no corruption and incorruptible flesh and blood may enter the Kingdom though corruptible cannot Quer. 23. What did all the Types Vails and Shadows under the Law signifie Did they signifie another Vail Did they signifie or shadow out that which was outward or did they shadow out and signifie that inward Life Virtue and saving Power which was the substance of all Quer. 24. Is not the Substance the Life the Anointing called Christ wherever it is found Doth not the Name belong to the whole Body and every Member in the Body as well as to the Head Are they not all of one yea all one in the anointing Was not this the great desire of his heart to the Father that they all might be one even as the Father and Christ were one John 17.21 23. And so being one in the same Spirit one in the same Life one in the same divine Nature 2 Pet. 1.4 even partakers of Gods Holiness Heb. 12.10 Christ is not ashamed to call them Brethren Heb. 2.11 nor is the Apostle ashamed to give them the Name Christ together with him 2 Cor. 12.12 The Body is the same with the Head one and the same in Nature and doth not the Name belong to the Nature in the whole So that the Name is not given to the Vessel but to the Nature to the heavenly Treasure to that which is of him in the Vessel to that which the Lord from Heaven begets in his own Image and Likeness of his own Substance of his own Seed of his own Spirit and pure Life Quer. 25. What was that live Coal from the Altar whereby the Prophet Isaiah's iniquity was taken away and his sin purged Isa 6.6 7. Can any thing purge away sin but the Blood of Christ Quer. 26. What are the Leaves of the Tree of Life which are for the healing of the Nations Is not Christ the Tree of Life Is there any other Tree of Life besides him Is there any other Healer And what do these Leaves of the Tree of Life heal the Nations of Do they not heal them of their sins and of the sicknesses and distempers of their Souls because of their sins And have these Leaves any of the Blood of Christ in them or no Quer. 27. Is not Christ the true Vine the true Olive-Tree the living Vine the living Olive-Tree the spiritual Vine the spiritual Olive-Tree into which all
while he was here on Earth yet was not excluded from being in Heaven with the Father at the very same time as he himself said concerning himself The Son of Man which is in Heaven John 3.13 Nor was the Father excluded from being with him in the Body but the Father was in him and he in the Father whereupon he said to Philip He that hath seen me hath seen the Father What did every on that saw that Body see the Father also Nay not so but be that saw Christ the Son of the living God whom flesh and blood revealed not but the Father only Mat. 16.16 17. he saw the Father also O Friends look to your knowledge of Christ and to your Faith and Knowledge of the Scriptures and to your Prayers also for it is easie missing of the living substance in all these and meeting with a shadow which may please and make a great shew in the earthly part in the natural understanding and affections but satisfieth not the Soul or that which is born after the Spirit but still the cry there goes out where the Soul is awakened after Truth Substance Life Virtue from Gods Spirit in the Spirit which it alone can feed upon These four things following I am certain of which he that cometh into the true Light shall infallibly experience them there First That nothing can save but the knowledge of Christ even of that very Christ and no other who took upon him the prepared Body and offered it up at Jerusalem Secondly That no Knowledge of Christ can save but the living Knowledge Not a knowledge of him after the Letter which the carnal part may get much of and value it self much by but a knowledge of him in the Spirit which is only given to that which is begotten and born of the Spirit and only retained by that which abides and remains in the Spirit and runs not out into the fleshly reasonings imaginings and conceivings about the things mentioned in the Scriptures Thirdly That that man who knoweth not Christ in Spirit nor keepeth close to him in Spirit but through darkness and misguidance of the spirit of deceit calleth the shinings of his Light his reproofs his checks for that which is evil and his secret motions to that which is good natural This man though he seem to own Christ never so much according to the Letter yet in Truth denies him Fourthly He that denies Christ in his knocking 's and visitations of him in his own heart and before men in the Truths which he holds forth by his Servants and Ministers of his Spirit him will he deny before his Father in Heaven O I beseech you do not trifle about these things for they are exceeding weighty lest ye perish from the way for missing of the Saviour ye must needs also miss of the Salvation O that ye knew your state as God knows it to be and as it is ceatainly known and felt in the measure of his Life and holy Spirit by those whom God hath gathered together and whose eyes he hath opened and preserveth open there Glory be to his Name therefore Yea Glory Glory Glory and everlasting Praises be sung to him throughout all the holy Land yea in the very heights of Sion by the Souls of the Redeemed from henceforth and for evermore Amen whose Mercy Love Grace Wisdom Power and rich Goodness remaineth and endureth for ever by and in which the Redeemed live to his Praise who have overcome by the Blood of the Lamb whose Blood they know what it is and none else knoweth it but they who feel the sprinkling and virtue of it Lo this is our God we have waited for him and how can we but be glad and rejoyce in his Salvation O let all that live by the breath of thy Power and drink of thy Streams sing praise unto Thee and exalt thy great and wonderful Name for ever and ever Some Propositions and Considerations concerning the nature of Church-Worships and Ordinances since the dayes of the Apostles for the sake of the Simplicity which hath been long held captive therein HE that would know the true state of the Church and Ordinances thereof must wait upon God in fear and humility of heart who alone is able to give the true knowledge and understanding of these things And he that cometh to the Spirit waiteth in the Spirit and receiveth the true Light from the Spirit he shall be able to measure Ages and Generations past as with a span and see clearly in that Light how things were before the Apostacy while the Church was in the Wilderness and how things shall be again after the Apostacy when the Church cometh out of the Wilderness She her self is the same in all but her state is different according to the wisdom and good pleasure of him who variously disposeth of her One while she is cloathed appearing in the beauty and glorious dress which the Lord had put upon her Another while she is stripped of her outward Garments and the Harlot dressed therewith and appearing therein After which season she is adorned again as gloriously if not more gloriously then before but whether ever she appears more in those Garments wherein the Harlot had been dressed and wherein she had long appeared even all the time of the Apostacy the Lord would be enquired of and waited on to know Now to help the tender and upright hearts towards the true sense of these things the Propositions and Considerations following are given forth which he that sincerely waiteth on the Lord from him may receive the true understanding and right acknowledgment of 1. That upon the coming of Christ and the change of that outward Covenant the distinction betwen the outward Jew and Gentile fell they becoming all one as in relation to Christ and then another distinction arose in relation to the Faith Believers becoming Jews now and unbelievers Gentiles 2. That these true inward Jews had not only the inward Faith the Life the Power the Spirit but also a Ministry Ordinances and gifts of the Spirit relating to their present state 3. That there was a time after a long and sharp fight between the true Ministers who appered in the true Light and Power of the true Spirit and the false Ministers who also appeared as Ministers of Righteousness and as in the Power of the Spirit but were not such indeed but instructed by Satan to transform themselves into a resemblance and likeness of Ministers of Righteousness For though they said they were Apostles and seemed so in appearance yet their Spirit being tried was found not to be the Spirit of the Apostles I say there was a time when there was a division or separation made between the inward Temple and the outward Court 4. That when this division was made the outward Court was given to the Gentiles not any longer reserved by God for the true worshippers who worship in Spirit and Truth but given to the unbelievers the
also of him that appeared in the Body nor only of bodily flesh blood and bones but also of such flesh and bones whereof Christ and his Church consist He is Christ say the Scriptures who is one with the Father who came from the Father in whom the Father was and who was in the Father so said Jesus of himself lifting up his eyes to Heaven and praying to the Father for his Disciples and the Children whom the Father had given him more then once in that seventeenth Chapter of John Yea he is Christ whom a man cannot see but he must see the Father also and whom whosoever seeth the Father seeth who was before Abraham was whom no man could know whence he was even as no man can know whence the Father is Christ granted the Jews that they knew him and whence he was as to his Body and yet for all that he was the Christ who was to come whom no man knew from whence he was What was that Christ called me speaking to Philip Hast thou not known me Philip Hast thou not seen me What dost thou know me after the flesh after the body Dost thou take that for me Have I been so long with you and do ye know me no better then so The body is from below the body is like one of yours only sanctifyed by the Father and preserved without sin but I am the same Spirit Life and Being with the Father We are one Substance one pure power of Life and we cannot be divided but he that sees one must needs see both and he that knows one must needs know both This is the Lamb of God which John bare witnesse of which he said was before him John 1.15 which the body was not Now Friends if ye have this living spiritual knowledge if ye hold it in him that is true then own and acknowledge it as it is expressed in the Scriptures and as God hath now brought it forth in his People that ye may manifest your selves to that which is of God that ye are of him There is an understanding and wisdom of man and there is a Witness of God which Witness gives true Judgment Man at best judgeth but according as things appear to him from the Scriptures but the Witness judgeth of the things of God in the demonstration of the Spirit according as they are felt and known to be in him But if ye have not this knowledge but have long laid out your money and labour for that which is not bread nor can yeeld the true satisfaction O come to the waters and receive that which is given freely without money and without price O sell all for the Pearl for the knowledge which is of Life for the knowledge which is Life I am the Way the Truth and the Life saith Christ this is life Eternal to know And wait to feel the Rock laid as a Foundation in you even the Seed of God the Life of Christ the Spirit of Christ revealed in you and your Souls born of it and built upon it O that ye could come out of your own understandings that ye might feel and receive the love of my Heart and know the travel of my Bowels for you that ye might be born of the Truth and know and receive it as it is in Jesus and as it is felt in the Spirit and in its own pure Power Now a little further to remove Scruple and Prejudices out of the minds of such as sometimes have been touched with the power of Truth and have had the Witness of God reached to in their hearts but afterwards the Enemy hath raised mists and cast blocks in their way stirring up in them hard thoughts against us as if we denyed what the Scriptures affirm in this thing and indeed in effect that Christ which died at Jerusalem and set up a natural Principle within instead thereof To remove this out of the minds of the honest-hearted who in the guidance of God may light on this Paper I shall open my heart nakedly herein 1. We do own that the Word of God the only begotten of the Father did take up a Body of the flesh of the Virgin Mary who was of the Seed of David according to the Scriptures and did the Will of the Father therein in holy obedience unto him both in life and death 2. That he did offer up the flesh and blood of that Body though not only so for he poured out his Soul he poured out his Life a Sacrifice or Offering for sin do not O do not stumble at it but rather wait on the Lord to understand it for we speak in this matter what we know a Sacrifice unto the Father and in it tasted death for every man and that it is upon consideration and through Gods acceptance of this Sacrifice for sin that the sins of Believers are pardoned that God might be just and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus or who is of the Faith of Jesus 3. What is attributed to that Body we acknowledge and give to that Body in its place according as the Scripture attributeth it which is through and because of that which dwelt and acted in it But that which sanctified and kept the Body pure and made all acceptable in him was the Life Holiness and Righteousness of the Spirit And the same thing that kept his Vessel pure it is the same thing that cleanseth us The value which the natural flesh and blood had was from that in its coming from that in its acting in that in its suffering through that Yea indeed that hath the virtue that is it which is of an unchangeable nature which abideth for ever which is pure and maketh pure for ever and it is impossible for a man to touch it but he must feel cleansing by it Now this living Virtue and Power man was shut out from by the fall but through the true knowledge of the death of Christ the way is made open to it again and man brought to it to be baptized washed cleansed sanctified fitted for and filled with life so that this is it that doth the thing this is it from whence Christ had his own flesh and blood for we are taught both by the Spirit and by the Scriptures to distinguish between Christs own flesh and that of ours which he took up and made his which flesh and blood we feed of in the Spirit which they cannot feed on which serve at the outward Tabernacle nor they neither which know onely the outward body but they only that feed in the Spirit Now of this thing we might speak yet more clearly and plainly could men hear our words But if we have spoken to you earthly things in Parables and Figures suitable to your understanding and ye believe not How shall ye believe if we speak to you heavenly things if we should tell you plainly of the Father in whom is all the life of the Son and all the virtue of
same Christ that took upon him the body of flesh and offered it without the Gates of Jerusalem Is there any more than one or is there any other than he Is Christ divided Is there one Christ within and another without He that knoweth the least measure of the thing doth he not know the thing in some measure And he that is in the least measure of the thing is he not in the thing He that knoweth the Son doth he not also know the Father And he that knoweth the Spirit doth he not also know the Son And he that is in the Spirit is he not in the Son For they are one Nature and Being A man may have notions of the one and not of the other but their Nature their Being their Life their Virtue is inseparable And as Christ said concerning the Father That he was in the Father and the Father in him and that he that saw him saw the Father So may it not be as truly affirmed in the true sence and understanding of Life concerning Christ That he is in the Spirit and the Spirit in him and that he that seeth the Spirit seeth him and that he that seeth him seeth the Spirit For he is the Spirit according to that Scripture 2 Cor. 3.17 Now the Lord is that Spirit and where the Spirit of the Lord is there is Liberty What to do Why to see and read within the Vail and to behold the glory of the Lord which is revealed there which they whom the Vail was over formerly or whom the Vail is over now have not liberty to do Here is confusion and impossibility to mans wisdom that Christ should be all one with the Spirit that Christ should send the Spirit in his Name and also himself be the Spirit whom he sends This is an hard saying who can bear it And yet this confusion to man is Gods Wisdom and pretious in their eye who are taught of him For it is one and the same Christ that was signified in Types and Shadows under the Law revealed in the fulness of time in that prepared Body and afterwards in Spirit Now after he was ascended he received the Spirit so as he had not received him before and so having received the Promise of the Father he so dispenseth the Spirit to his Brethren and Disciples as it had not been dispensed before Indeed he comforted and refreshed his People under the Law by his holy Spirit which was their instructer then Neh. 9.20 and taught them the things of God under Types Shadows and Resemblances When he came in the Body he chose out Disciples whom he taught the things of the Kingdom and was a Refresher and Comforter of them therein And was not this another Comforter than those had under the Law Had the Jews before ever any such Comforter as Christ was to his Disciples in his bodily presence Now when he ascends he receives the Spirit from the Father as the Father had promised him and having so received him he sends him to them for their Comforter And may not this justly be tearmed another Comforter then Christ was in his bodily presence And yet is it not also the same Spirit of Life that had been with them in that Body So that it is another in the way of Administration but the same in substance even the Word which was from the beginning the Spirit which was from everlasting and to everlasting there is no other Now as the Father sent the Son and yet was with and in the Son so the Son sending the Spirit he also is with and in the Spirit And as it is the Fathers Will that the same honour be given to the Son as is given to him so it is the Sons pleasure that the same honour be given to his Spirit as is given to him Yea as he that will worship the Father must worship in the Son must come to him in the Son must appear before him in the Son must reverence and kiss the Son so he that will come to Christ will worship him must come to him in the Spirit must bow to him in the Spirit Yea he that will know and worship Christ in his fulness in the majesty of his Glory Dominion and Power must learn to bow at the lowest appearance of his Light and Spirit even at the very feet of Jesus for that is the lowest part of the Body Quer. 15. Did not the Bridegroom go away as to his appearance in flesh that he might come again in Spirit Did not the Apostles who knew his appearance in flesh and his tabernacling among them know also afterwards his appearance in Spirit and his tabernacling in them And were not their hearts filled with joy unspeakable and full of glory because of the presence of the Bridegroom Did they not know the Man-Child born and brought forth in Spirit as really as ever he was born and brought forth in flesh Yea did they not travel and help to bring him forth Were there not many in that day who could say concerning the spiritual and inward appearance of the Bridegroom We know that the Son of God the eternal Life the pure power and wisdom of the Father is come Did they not receive from him the understanding which he gives in and by his coming Yea were they not in him that is true even in Jesus Christ the Son who is the true God and Life eternal 1 John 5.20 Had they not received the Kingdom which could not be shaken And did they never see and converse with the King in the Kingdom Nay did not he walk in them and they in him and he sup with them and they with him eating and drinking together the Bread and Wine of the Kingdom fresh and new in the Kingdom O that ye could read in Spirit O that ye did receive that measure of life from Christ which the Father hath allotted you that ye might read therein but the Letter read out of the Spirit darkeneth and killeth Quer. 16. What is the Laver of Regeneration or the Water wherewith the Soul is washed and whereof a man is born again Is it outward or inward Is it the water which ran out of the side of the natural Body when it was pierced with a Spear or the water which springs from the Fountain of Life the water which floweth from the Spirit What are the waters which corrupt mud and defile the mind Are they outward waters And what are the waters which purifie and cleanse it Can they be of a lower nature then Spiritual What are the waters which answer the thirst of the Soul after Life after Purity after Salvation That refresh and glad the heart of him that drinketh thereof Are they not from the pure River clear as Chrystal which runs from the Throne And if the water which cleanseth and nourisheth the Soul be spiritual can the flesh and blood which falleth not short of the Water in its Virtues Properties and Operations be inferiour
measure of the eternal Rest where we have found that Life that Power that manifestation of the eternal Spirit and that redeeming Virtue which we never were before distinctly acquainted with I say having tasted of this having known this having felt this and come to a real enjoyment of it in some degree in our several measures we could not possibly conceal this Treasure but in bowels of love and in the movings of the Life and Power of the Spirit have been drawn to testifie of it to them who were left behind groveling under the burthen of corruption and crying out because of the sin and bondage from the powers of darkness who hath in a mist withheld their eyes from beholding that living Virtue which is able to save and doth save blessed be his Name therefrom Now this we have often found That this our Testimony hath not been received in the same Spirit and Love wherein it hath gone forth but the Enemy by his subtilty hath raised up jealousies concerning us and prejudices against us as if we denyed the Scriptures and Ordinances of God and that Christ that died at Jerusalem professing him only in words to win upon others by but denying him in reality and substance To clear this latter for my heart is only at this present drawn out concerning that we have solemnly professed in the sight of the Lord God who hath given us the knowledge of his Son in Life and Power these two things First That we do really in our hearts own that Christ who came in the fulness of time in that prepared Body to do the Fathers Will his coming into the World Doctrine Miracles Sufferings Death Resurrection c. in plainness and simplicity of heart according as it is expressed in the Letter of the Scriptures Secondly That we own no other Christ then that nor hold forth no other thing for Christ but him who then appeared and was made manifest in flesh Now it would be nakedly inquired into by Professors What is the reason that their jealousies still remain concerning us and why they are still so ready to cast this upon us Certainly if they did know and own the same thing with us in the Spirit and in the Power in the Life and in the Love which is of the Truth this prejudice and these hard thoughts could not remain But if they themselves do not know Christ in the Spirit but only according to a relation of the Letter no marvel though they miss both of the Spirit and of the true intent and meaning of the Letter and likewise be liable to clash against the Truth as it is made manifest in others And indeed the Lord hath shewen me in Spirit several times that they themselves are guilty of that very charge and that he will so implead them at his Judgment Seat which they cast upon us even of denying that Christ which died at Jerusalem to be the Christ For he that owneth the words of Scripture as he apprehends or conceives them in the reasonings of his mind and doth not wait to have them revealed in the Spirit keeping out of his own reasonings and conceivings and waiting patiently till the Lord open the thing in the Spirit he setteth up his own conceivings or an Image in his mind of the mind of the Spirit but misseth of the thing in self which alone is known in the Spirit by them who wait upon the Spirit there to receive it and are not hasty to set up their own reasonings and imaginations concerning the thing in the mean time No man can in Truth call Jesus the Lord but by the Spirit But any man that is any thing serious and weighs the Scriptures in the natural part may so learn to acknowledge his coming into the World and that he is Lord and King c. and may thus call him Lord yea and kindle a great heat in his affections towards him but all this out of the Life out of the Spirit is but mans Image which he forms in his mind in his reading the Scriptures and observing things therefrom But the true calling Jesus Lord is from the feeling of his eternal Virtue in the Spirit and finding the Scriptures opened to him by the Spirit in a Principle which is above the Reason comprehends the Reason and confounds and brings it to nothing Again There is no true Knowledge of Christ no living Knowledge no saving Knowledge no Knowledge which hath the eternal Virtue in it but that which is received and retained in a measure of Light given by God to the Creature in the Faith which is the Gift in the Grace which is supernatural and spiritual whereas the reasoning part is but Natural And such as have received the Spiritual understanding know it to be distinct from the Natural and we experimentally find a very clear distinction between Scriptures searched out by the reasonings of the mind and so practises drawn therefrom and Scriptures opened by the Spirit and felt in the Life Now that Professors generally have not received their knowledge of Christ from the Spirit or from Scriptures opened in the Spirit and so know not the thing but only such a relation of the thing as mans reasoning part may drink in from the Letter of the Scriptures is manifest by this In that they are not able in Spirit and Understanding to distinguish the thing it self from the Garment wherewith it was cloathed though the Scriptures be very express therein Speak of Christ according to a Relation of the Letter there they can say somewhat but come to the Substance come to the Spirit of the thing come to the thing it self there they stutter and stammer and shew plainly that they know not what it is Now the Scriptures do expresly distinguish between Christ and the Garment which he wore between him that came and the Body in which he came between the Substance which was vailed and the Vail which vailed it Lo I come a body hast thou prepared me There is plainly He and the Body in which he came There was the outward Vessel and the inward Life This we certainly know and can never call the bodily Garment Christ but that which appeared and dwelt in the Body Now if ye indeed know the Christ of God tell us plainly what that is which appeared in the Body whether that was not the Christ before it took up the Body after it took up the Body and for ever And then their confining of Christ to that Body plainly manifesteth that they want the knowledge of him in Spirit For Christ is the Son of the Father he is the infinite eternal Being one with the Father and with the Spirit and cannot be divided from either cannot be any where where they are not nor can be excluded from any place where they are He may take up a Body and appear in it but cannot be confined to be no where else but there no not at the very time while he is there Christ
worshippers out of the true Faith the worshippers out of the Spirit and out of the Life 5. That henceforward since this separation the Believers or true Jews are not to be expected in the outward Court in the worship thereof wherein they were found before this separation but the unbelievers the Gentiles who have not the true Nature but at best but the appearance of the Jew are to be expected there and the true Jew is to be looked for and found more inward 6. That therefore which allureth to look for God there and to wait for him in the wayes and worships of that Court all this time of the separation is not the true Spirit which rightly guideth the simple heart to the place where God appears and where he is to be waited for but the wrong spirit who when he cannot stifle the simplicity and hinder it from breathing and seeking after God waits to draw aside and mislead it 7. That the great way of that spirits misguiding and misleading the honest heart in its breathing and longing state is not by a direct taking it off from seeking after God but rather by pointing it to a way to seek him in wherein he once appeared and was enjoyed but is now withdrawn from 8. He that will keep close to God and not be withdrawn from him must watch to his Spirit and know the leadings of it else he will not follow the Lamb whithersoever he goes but stay behind in some observation or practice which the Lamb is gone out of and so miss of his Leader and meet instead thereof with another Leader even the spirit of Antichrist who enters into the outward Court and outward practises so soon as ever the Spirit of God hath left them 9. That Gods People since his withdrawing inward and giving the outward Court to the Gentiles have been much deceived by the Antichristian Spirit and led captive into Babylon in so much as God when he cometh to overthrow Antichrist with the Babylon of his building finds them there and calls them out from thence For the light growing low and the deceit great and that spirit subtile how can the poor weak innocent Babe espy that spirit and escape his snares when he tempts to those very paths and wayes of worship wherein the Saints had walked and met with God before the Spirit of the Lord departed out of them and gave them up to the Gentiles 10. That there is danger to the People of God of not understanding his Call out of Babylon but abiding there through the subtile entanglements of the false spirit who bewitcheth with the Cup of Fornication to make Babylon appear as Sion her doctrines as the Truths of the Gospel her ordinances and wayes of worship as the true Ordinances and wayes of Worship For the deceit is exceeding deep and the mystery of iniquity very great following that heart close which the Lord is drawing to depart therefrom and if the Lord God were not strong and vigilant who judgeth the Whore she would still keep her hold of the heart and if the heart be not kept very close to the Lord in the Judgement it cannot come out of Babylon but will still be entangled and held in some part or other of the mystery of its deceit 11. Such of the People of God as do not wait to understand and receive the full Call and so do not follow the Lord perfectly out of that City of Abominations but by her subtilties and inward or outward witchcrafts are held captive therein and found in any part thereof when the Lord cometh to judge her such must partake of her Plagues from the hand of the Lord who will not spare her nor the spirits of his dearest People who are found there in the day of his visitation and righteous judgments Therefore come out of her come out of her O ye that love your Souls and the pure Presence and fresh Light of Gods countenance Ye that know what it is to provoke him to jealousy and fear the weight of his hand upon your spirits ye that love the holy Land the holy City and Temple of the living God O come out of that impure building that fleshly building those fleshly wayes and worships which that spirit adorneth to make them appear as if they were spiritual O depart ye depart ye out of your new removes for they are also polluted and not your rest but short of that wherein the Rest the Peace the Presence of the Lord of Life is felt by others and to be found by you And consider this if ever ye will come to the holy City which was once built in the dayes of the Apostles but since the division of it from the outward Court hath been trodden down and trampled under the feet of the unbelievers even while they have been worshipping in the outward Court which God once built and chose but afterwards withdrew his Spirit from and gave up to the unbelievers I say if ever ye will come to this holy City the holy Land wherein it is built and the holy Hill whereon it is founded ye must pass through the Wilderness be exercised in the Wilderness even till ye are fitted for it and not strive to raise up a building your selves in the likeness of it but wait till God hath hewen and prepared the stones by his Spirit and then by the skil of the same spirit build up his Sion again Therefore in the fear of the Lord consider seriously meekly humbly and brokenly that the Lord may manifest your present state and condition unto you Whether ye have not erred in these things as well as others and have not cause to repent of your forwardness herein and to acknowledge that your buildings have been raised in the forwardness of your own spirits and in the confidence of your reasonings upon Scripture-words without feeling the presence guidance and holy Power of Gods Spirit raising up the Foundation of many Generations and rearing his own pure House upon his own holy Mountain In the Lords hand is the time and season of building his own house David though his desire was approved yet might not build the outward Temple in the time of his choice but Gods time and season was to be waited for both for the first building and for the rebuilding of it There is likewise a season for the rebuilding of Spiritual Sion after the long captivity of it in Mystery-Babylon Now he that is forward building before the time and season of the Spirit buildeth without the Spirit and his building is not of the Spirit but of the nature of Babylon which is wholly to be departed from and left behind in the Souls travels and progress towards Sion And what ever is of the nature of Babylon must at length fall with Babylon in the day of her terrible Judgement if the Lord in mercy do not shake it and cause it to fall before Therefore O all Professor awaken out of the flesh
mans nature nor to be attained by his Art They also know and hear the Voice of the Word nigh in the mouth and heart and follow the Law of his Spirit received from his mouth which none else but his Sheep do or can do for this is given by him and it is given by him only to his Sheep Quest 7. What doth Christ the Shepherd the eternal Word the Wisdom Life and Power of the Father do for his Sheep Answ He doth great things for them which utter who can but happy is he that feels and knows them He gives them a new Nature a new Spirit a new Heart a new Name which none knoweth but he that hath it for it is written on the white stone which none else receives nor none else can read but he that hath the eye which is of him what is written thereon He giveth them eternal Life he leadeth them into the postures of Life he giveth them to drink of the Waters of Life He patteth them forth out of the Prison-house out of the Chains and Fetters out of the Darkness out of the Bonds and from under the burthens of the Soul into the pure Light and liberty of the Spirit where they taste know and enjoy of his freedom and dwell with him and rest with him and lie down with him and rise up with him even in the same eternal Life Spirit and Power wherein his dwelling-place is And all this they enjoy safely hearkening to the Voice of the Shepherd and turning from the voice of the stranger which it is natural to them to do For being turned from man born of that which is immortal and keeping to that that ear which is there received will alone hearken to the Voice of him who is Immortal and the voice of the stranger who speaketh of himself is presently discerned and turned from by him that heareth with the true ear The Lord God who is the Spring and Fountain of all good inflame people with desires after the pure Life and holy Nature which is of and from Christ the Seed his Son and satisfie those desires which are singly and uprightly after him The Conclusion GLorious was the estate of the Church before the Apostacy for Purity of Doctrine for holy Order and Discipline for Love to God one to another and to all men even of Enemies for Faith in God for the Presence and Power of his Spirit among them insomuch as the unbeliever coming among them might find his heart and state reached to and be forced to confess and report that God was in them of a truth for singleness and uprightnesse of Heart meekness and innocency of Spirit and Conversation for zeal for God and his Truth suffering the spoiling of their Goods Imprisonments Stripes and many other wayes both from the Heathen and also from the professing Jews who had been the Church once O what shall I say concerning the beauty and loveliness of that State Ye that would know it O wait to feel it in that which giveth the true sence of it But over this glorious State came a dark thick corrupt night wherein the Kernel was lost and the Shell defaced wherein the House which had been swept and garnished became again recovered and possessed by the wicked spirit And how great hath this darkness been O what a kind of Church hath appeared in the World wherein the spirit of Enmity hath dwelt and acted in men under the Name of Christianity So that instead of loving and seeking the good of Enemies they are ready to rend and tear one another for every little difference and will be Lords over mens Faith requiring men to practise things in Religion before the Spirit of the Lord teacheth them so to do which the Apostles did not For though they had from God the express knowledge of what was Truth and could certainly instruct and build men up therein yet they were not Lords over mens Faith but if men were otherwise minded then according to what they knew and taught they could wait and bear with them bidding them walk so far as they had attained and God in his due time would reveal the rest also O that men were come to this Spirit again Then they would be Christians indeed and then they might be known to be Christs Disciples by their loving the Brethren and fellow-Disciples But without this love mens Religion is but as a tinkling Cymbal making a noise and sound of somewhat but not having the true Nature or Virtue of Religion in it Now will it not be a glorious Day when the Spirit of the Lord cleanseth away this thick darkness and causeth the Light of his pure Truth to arise and appear again Why there is such a Day to be wherein the true Church which was reproached and driven into the Wilderness is to come out of the Wilderness again and her Witnesses stand on their feet again and her Seed to spring up in the Power of Life following the Lamb who marcheth on fighting with the Sword of the Spirit the words of his mouth conquering and to conquer thereby the corrupted Antichristian World even as he did at first the corrupt Heathenish World The Lord will purifie his Temple and cleanse the World by the Plagues of his Angels which he hath prepared making way for the beauty of his Truth and the Church of his gathering wherein he will bring forth his Righteousness wherein his Power shall appear wherein his Presence shall be made manifest wherein that which shined before in the Primitive Church shall shine again in this new-reared Building of his insomuch as men shall be forced to say This is the Church of Christ indeed God is here of a truth This is the Gospel-Jerusalem indeed which is built upon the holy Hill of Sion in which Innocency Righteousnesse Truth Love Sweetnesse Peaceablenesse and the gentle Nature and Spirit of the Lamb lives and reigns and the Lord bless thee O Habitation of Justice and Mountain of Holiness Now of a truth this Work is begun The times of refreshment are come from the Presence of the Lord. The Lord hath heard from Heaven pittying the cries of his Seed and hath visited their Souls causing the Light of Life even the pure Light of the everlasting Covenant to shine upon their Tabernacles But whoever would know these things and partake of them must come in at the Door by the Guidance of the Spirit through the Light which is with him And he that would enjoy the full Light even the shinings forth of the Sun at noon day must begin with its glimmerings even that in the heart which discovereth and draweth out of the corrupt state of the World towards the Father O hear and live Do not dispute about it but wait to feel it upon the feeling of it despising the shame and taking up and enduring the Cross and so bearing the reproach and sufferings of Christ in thy Age and Generation And as thou obeyest thou shalt know of its Doctrine but out of the pure Faith and Obedience there is no true sound deep rooted knowledge but all of that kind must be parted with for the knowledge which is of the Faith and which is made manifest and increased in the Obedience which knowledge is of a far more excellent Kind and Nature than that which thou art to part with for it The Lord guide thy Mind and stretch forth his Hand to help thee who from the least touch of a true Nature and Spirit desirest after the pure Truth and way of eternal Life Amen This Testimony here held forth is faithful and true and I know the Witness of God in many hearts will answer to it and happy is he that maketh a right use of it For so doing his Soul will not fall short of the pure living Truth nor set up any thing else for Truth which is not THE END