and all thy babbling against perfection is palpable contradiction to the doctrine of the Son of God by him and his Apostles left upon record in scriptures Thou art forced to confesse That Abraham and the rest of the holy men of God had the spirit of truth within them before the Law written by Moses And is not the Lord as good as gratious now as ever to his people I tell thee he is now in the midst of his people and thousands witnesse his kingdome come and the King of Sion sitting upon his throne in the hearts and consciences of his people though in thy dark mind thou wouldest exclude him and confine or limit him above the starrs Christ when he was in that prepared body upon earth was conversant with the Apostles i Pe. 3 19 Io. 5.25 and preached to the spirits in prison and the dead that did hear the voice of the son of God did live go learn what that meanes and prove if thou canst by Scripture that the spirit of truth is received by the letter or by believing that to be the power of God unto salvation pag. 33. Thou babblest of one Henry Nicholas and pours out the dregs of thy wrath even such bitter foame as thy vessel is filled with against the innocent lambs who deny not but do receive salvation from the same Christ that suffered without the gates at Jerusalem Therefore silence thou deceitful tongue for t is thy self and thy generation who though in words you confess him as the Pope does yet by your works of iniquity you deny him crying loe here and loe there but the saints know their saviour near them he is within them in their own bosomes though fools boast of they know not what Hadst thou never read or heard of Scriptures thou hadst never known there is a Christ or that the bodies of his people are his temple By thy pleading against the Saints judging I may judge what thou art shall not and do not the saints judge the world Is not thy heart in the world and worldly losts and vanities yea surely and the judgements of the Son of God whom now thou persecutest in his Saints thou shalt find and feel if at this repoof thou turnest not In thy 34. and 35. pages thou saies Thou judges me not and askes where thou hast judged the people called Dippers c. To which I answer if thou dost not judge me what meanes all thy foule mouthed language in these and thy former papers against me but I know him who thus judges me his name is the false accuser of the brethren and as for those called Dippers whether thou hast not judged them or no I appeale to the righteous witnesse in thine and their consciences In thy 36 page thou speakest thou knowest not what of the spirit that returnes to God that gave it I tell thee that spirit which invents and loves a lye is for the lake And t is that spirit which loves no iniquity that goes to God and it was that spirit of truth in the Apostles which loved not a lye that preached Christ and did worke miracles which spirit they never received by reading Moses or the Prophets And as for the wolfe that would worry the weak mentioned in thy 37 page he lodgeth near thee he is within thee but the pit is his portion Now because in thy 37 and 38 sides thou hast dealt so deceitfully misreporting thy own argument and then putting a deceitfull cover upon it I shall here lay down thy own words and then take off thy polluted varnish This is thy argument He that desires to be tryed by the true touch-stone the infalible Rule the living principle of God the light of Christ in the Saints consciences the spirit of truth and would not be tryed by the dead letter his spirit is of God he is guided by the spirit of promise but Jonathan Iohnson desires to be tryed as above said and not by the dead letter therefore his spirit is of God he 's guided by the spirit of promise Are not these thy own words Then wherein have I wronged thee but hath not the Lord herein confounded thy wisdome and suffered thee to utter words thou wouldest not and now to save thy head thou runs to inventions and saies by dead letter thou meanest the Quakers books the writings of M M. and his fellowes Ah Jonathan this mantle doth not cover thee this polluted garment will not shelter thee tell me Jonathan and I charge thee by the Lord thou let the voice of truth answer me was not this the ground of that and other arguments whether the Scriptures or the spirit were the rule not whether the writings of those whom thou cals Quakers or the spirit were the rule were ever such words exchanged between us O that thy eye were opened that thou mightest see thy nakednesse and be ashamed In the 40 page thou tells the people whosoever reads and observe me will see my desire to set up my selse as a wise master builder but let the discreet reader see what ground I gave thee to write so scornfully concerning me the words in my book are these according to the grace of God that is given unto me as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation saith Paul 1 Cor. 3.10 He built upon the rock now I say upon the same rock which was Christ the light whom Paul preached my building is and upon no other which was in Paul ' before he preached him and so by the same grace I am what I am but who can escape the reproach of the envyous In thy 41 page speaking as to some words I used in my book That which lay dead did at the hearing of the voice of the Son of God live Thou answers That which here lay dead is but I never told thee so that which before I called the Christ in all the Royal seed the unction the Lord of glory crucified in them so that by my doctrine saist thou The Royal seed the unction the Lord of glory and Christ in all lay dead till it did at the hearing of the voice of the Son of God live and then askeâ— what greater confused nonsence can be delivered then to say Christ the Son of God lyeth dead until he hear the voice of Christ the Son of God and live can such babbling be without blasphemy saist thou To all which Jonathan I reply let the honest hearted reader peruse my book and Wisdome will be justified of her children my words are these If there had not been a Royal seed of God left in every man and woman to have answered owned and received the Testimony of the Apostles they might have wandred all the World over and have spent all their life time and not have gayned one convert but there was a witnesse for God in all and that which lay dead did at the hearing of the voice of the Son of God live Here I have affirmed that there was a witnesse for God in all which cannot honestly be denyed and I have affirmed also and so do the Scriptures that that which lay dead did at the hearing of the voice of the Son of God live but did I ever affirme or say that the Royal Seed the unction the Lord of glory and Christ in all lay dead till it did at the hearing of the voice of the Son of God live or that Christ the Son of God lyeth dead till he hear the voice of Christ the Son of God and live But it appears thou knowes not what that was which lay dead to which the Gospel was preached so in thy darke imagination thou ignorantly concludes thou knowes not what and casts a lye upon the innocent for I never did affirme these things thou reportest of me so there thou art found with a lye in thy mouth and to be a false accuser of the innocent and the confused nonsence and blasphemy is turned back into thy own bosome To that which remaines thy vnsavoury riming excepted this I write that the answer of a good conscience is wanting in you notwithstanding your imagined water baptisme here I speak to thee and those in fellowship with thee and do appeal to Gods witnesse in all your consciences whether your yea be yea and your nay nay in all things and whether you be not in the respect of persons or vain customes and fashions of the heathen and whether the true bridling of the tongue be witnessed by you As for Peter I know he baptized with outward water upon permission not by precept And Paul did see that Ordinance or practice idolized in his daies and so laid it a side saying He was not sent to baptize but to preach the Gospel And surely if that eye in you that should see were not blinded you might see the hand of the Lord is held forth against you and that his glory is departed from you is there nothing amisse among you that the Lord thus scatters you and breakes you in peeces like a potters vessel let his witnesse search you have you not lost your first love have you kept your garments pure have you abstained from idoles and as for your outward water I shall now say no more to that but this 2. Kngs 18 4. Remember the brazen serpent Written by a lover of your Souls Martin Mason Lincoln 28. Day 5. Moneth 1659. THE END
light shines in darknesse though darknesse comprehends it not The true light was within them though not a Saviour to them because they believed not in it nor was obedient to it It was a condemning voice to them as it is to thee and so before they believed in it they were without God in the World and so art thou Be not angry if I tell thee Jonathan that Gods faithful witness now suffers within thee thy works of iniquity wound the righteous soul within thee with them he is pressed as a cart with sheavs he is a man of sorrows and suffers within thee the just for the unjust he is in the grave and not risen in thee did he not suffer for thee and within thee thou shouldest soon seel that consuming fire which is not to be quenched And as for my charging thee 〈…〉 thou said I killed the scriptures I tell thee Jonathan thou usedst these words to me what light according to the word of God is in thee to crucifie the Son of God again and kill his preaching Answer me plainly Jonathan dost thou not own the scriptures to be Christs preaching then wherein have I wronged thee and now let him who is found with a lye in his mouth wash and be clean 2 Ki. 5.13 Whether thou didst call the scriptures dead letter or no I shall leave the sober minded reader to judge when I come to answer the 37 and 38 pages till then I spare thee in the mean time I see thou wouldest fain shuffle off the words which I delivered concerning thee in relation to those called Dippers peruse thy paper and try if those be not the words thou writst unto me viz. thou art forced to run for shelter and defence to those thou accounts thy enemies those who knows no other burial with Christ but burial in water and with them tells me of sprinkling with water but I tell thee these chief Princes of Meshech Tuball will be all found together to band themselves against the peaceable habitation and dwelling of the Saints these are thy own words Jonathan though in thy foolish cover thy wisdome is confounded which would have the world believe that these words of thine were applyed to me and my geneneration but tell me and let the voice of truth answer me dost thou believe I account my own generation to be my enemies I know they are the generation of the just which I do own who know a better burial with Christ then burial in outward water so I appeal with boldnesse to the witnesse of God in thy own conscience whether I had not good cause to conclude as I did concerning thee in this particular and let the honest hearted reader who reads with an impartial eye judge if thou hast not sinned against thy own soul in this foul and foolish shufling In my reply to the sixt position I used these words which thou very dceitsully hast wrested Is thy sprinkling with water the baptism of Christ Jesus yea or nay And did the Lord command that to his disciples yea or nay And does the Lord require it of his people to this day Now in thy letter thou saist I bid thee prove whether Christ commanded baptisme to his disciples yea or nay And did the Lord require it of his people to this day I say whether thy dealing thus deceitfully with my words be not a lye and whether this deciptfull lye be not abominable and whether nonsence be not lapt up in this lye or no let the discreet reader judge between us And what though I told thee that I did never read nor know of one that pretends to more piety then thou dost that ever excelled or equalled thee in the devilish art of lying Lying is his worke who abode not in the truth and in that work thou art found then what wrong have I done thee I also told thee that a Notable servant thou wert to thy master but I did not call thee Noble for then I had wronged thee And as for my words That I would peruse those places thy Father sent thee with to fight for his Kingdome I still own them and thy works of iniquity makes it manyfest thou art not doing the will or worke of the living God and therefore he is none of thy father while the innocent ones thou slandrest t is the lying God thou servest and he for his own ends makes use of scripture to war against that spirit of truth which gave forth scripture and this the scriptures testifie Mat. 4.6 Thou spends three or four sides pleading for outward water I shall not follow thee in all thy crooked windings but this I say still not thou nor all thy generation can by clear scripture prove convince me that Christ gave an expresse command to any of his disciples to baptize with outward water So that though they in their christian liberty did use it wherein I do not judge them yet do I not justifie thee thy generation in your sprinkling I told thee some used circumcision in the flesh as well as baptising with outward water and I asked thee if their authority were not of an equal parity though the printer mistakeing put an U for an A but what if I had said purity both by permission not by precept and let mee aske thee and thy generation this question whether the commission which Christ gave to his disciples in Mat. 28. 19 20. be not the same which paul received of him or was his commission short or contrary unto theirs answer plainly for Paul tells us plainly he was not sent to baptize but to preach the Gosple Paul told the people in him that is in his flesh dwelt no good thing doth he not explain his own words when we were in the flesh saith he the motions of sin did worke in our members to bring forth fruit unto death observe this He was not a christian when such fruites were brought forth and are not such fruits still brought forth in thee Paul then spake of a time past but now saith he The letter killeth we are delivered from the Law that we should serve in newnesse of spirit not in the oldnesse of the letter loe he calls scriptures the letter and are they not so they that are in the flesh cannot please God Rom. 8.8 9. but ye are not in the flesh yet they were alive upon earth but in the spirit and I tell thee Paul was filled with the holy Ghost and he spake wisdome amongst them that were perfect and what I sent thee as to perfection does stand over thee But why dost thou tell me 76 Ps 4. that I strive to get shut of the scriptures and that their witness does torment me these two lyes lye near one an other and know thou O man the scriptures testimony is for me and not against the truth which I hold-forth viz. That the light of Christ in the conscience is more glorious and excellent then the letter
not greater then his master the light was the life and being of all the true Prophets and Apostles who spake and writ the scriptures and they preached the word to be nigh even in the heart and laboured to turn men from darkenesse unto light and from the power of Satan unto God Deu. 30.14 Ro. 10.8 1 Io. 10. Io. 13.16 Act. 17.28 That which gave forth the leaves said I. I own and thou casts this upon me The printer gave forth the leaves but I tell thee now as I did before it was the spirit of God that gave the scriptures and its that I own and not the Printer as the author of them does the printer give or sell them But Pro. 27.22 bray a fool in a morter yet his folly will not leave him Thy scornfull upbrayding me with a mistake in the title page of my former book 1 Cor. 15.10 as if I had published my selfe a Minister of the Gospel does not become thee nor things well weighed do I deserve it from thee By the Grace of God I am What I am though no Minister in that sence thy envious mind receives it yet a servant in my measure not of the letter but of the everlasting Gospel And I want not witness within nor without that I did neither then nor doeth now so appropriate that title to my self but intended it to one who then did well deserve it And had not the printer begun a new line where he should not thou hadst wanted this stone to have flung at the innocent Thou busiest thy selfe with babling of the baptism of repentance and spends many words to no purpose about it were it lesse in thy tongue and better witnessed in thy heart it were better for thee The Rev. 7.14 light of conscience as thou calls it thou hast again in thy mouth happy were it for thee if thy conscience were made clean with the blood of the lamb and purified with the light that is in it which light once under thy own hand thou didst own to be the in-let to the spirit of promise though nâ—w with impudence thou denyes it And if ever thou own the truth as it is in Jesus this thou wilt see and confesse with sorrow many things which are now denyed by thee till thou silence thou child of ignorance and boast not above thy measure and lean no longer on a reed of Egypt while the baptism of repentance from dead works is not witnessed by thee And tel the world no longer 1 Tim. 6.13 that we are denyers of that Christ Jesus who suffered at Jerusalem for his sufferings we own who witnessed a good confession before Pontius Pilate but what 's his sufferings unto thee whilst thou art an enemy to that Righteouâ— Seed within thee which is a continual remembrancer unto thee and reprover of thee As for thy aspersions unworthily cast upon me as if I had denyed his sufferings without the gues at Jerusalem who ever reads my book with a single eye may see thee slandring of the innocent and that 's not the worke of a servant of Jesus Christ as thou hast published thy selfe to be Thy shunting and rayling terms to my queries mentioned in thy 17. page is no good answer it may be if thou livest two yeares longer thou maist more wisely consider of them In the meane time let the honest reader observe thaâ— although thou thus unworthily They who live in sin are servants to sin and so out of the faith which purifies the heart and givs victory over sin and therefore such while they are servants to sin are not saved or redeemed from their sins reproaches me as if I denyed the sufferings of Christ noe ground for this thou hast I know of t is true I said thou and they who feed your selves with the meer frothy verbal faith in the sufferings of the man Christ Jesus at Jerusalem and yet wallow in your wickednesse are not saved or redeemed from your sins Now whether this be a denyal of Christs sufferings or not let the righteous witnesse in all consciences judge between us Besides I told thee then no other Jesus did I own but that lamb of God who was slain from the beginning of the world and that the fulnesse of the Godhead dwels bodily in him he was apointed above his fellowes and yet the son of impudence tels people I deny him but my witnesse within me doth herein justifie me and he is greater then my false accuser without me To what end is all thy loud outcries against the harmlesse children of the light ranking them among the worst of men and rendring them as odious to the world with thy reproachful pen as thy wrathful heart could invent if not to sharpen the edge of authority against them but the persecuting spirit is felt and fathomed and its reward will not be wanting I do not deny but the Apostles preacht all one Christ and affirme that there is a witnesse for God in all though all receive him not no more dost thou he came to his own and his own received him not he that hath eares to hear let him hear and it was Christ who preached in Paul and the rest of the Apostles and I tell thee Jonathan there are millions of men and women now on earth who never heard of the sufferings of Christ without the gates at Jerusalem and yet the witnesse of God is within them and is calling them to come unto the Lord that they may have life 3 Col. 11. and that is his voyce which reproves for sin in the gate though thou and thy generation trample on him and reject him there is no room for him in the Inne the manger must contain him and so the pearle of great price is set at nought by the wise and prudent of the world Luke 2.7 Thou spendest much paper in pleading for thy idol to wit outward water and no other baptism I am bold to say knows thou but that which never washed thee from thy sins thou art not come to the bridling of the tongue so all thy religion is vain Iohns Baptism I answer thee was from God it had its root and rife from him and in its time and place was serviceable but it shal have its end he must increase saith Iohn but I must decrease spake he this of his person or of his ministration let the voice of truth give answer to me not do I deny but that the Apostles in honour to Iohns ministry made use of Iohns Baptism by permission I say and therein I do not judg them prove thou if thou canst that it was by precept or command from Christ But all thy twisting and twining cannot do it I tell thee once more the light of Christ was in the Ephesians and shined in their hearts before their conversion to the Son of God Paul preached the light unto them or directed them to the same principle of light within them
SIONS ENEMY DISCOVERED OR The Worker of iniquity rebuked AND INNOCENCY CLEARED In a Reply to seven sheets of Paper Published by Jonathan Johnson of Lincoln and by him Entituled The Quaker quasht and his quarrel queld c. JONATHAN I shall not here take notice of every polluted stream coming from the Fountain of thy corrupt heart which in thy papers thou hast published Thou runs on at a high rate as if there were not a righteous God that takes notice of and registers all the wrongs done unto his people abide thou no longer in the dark habitation of the Hipocrite for though thou hast told the World thou expectedst my acknowledgment of my evil in writing against thee as if that were the cause thou kept thy papers almost these two years by thee yet thy fig leaves cannot cover thee the light of Israel doth discern thee and thou shalt one day know they were sober lines wch then were sent thee whâ—n thou writst last to me and happy hadst thou been if thou wouldst have been warned by me Thou tells me page 1 That I Bragadotâ—-like said I will not give one inch of ground or turn my back off the uncircumcised Philistine Let the sober Reader peruse my book and he may see that in answer to thy charge of the weaknesse and disarmed condition of those I am encamped with and that our weapon is but a bull rush I told thee It was not thâ—â— nor thy Fathers legion could make one Souldier in the camp of the Lord give one inch of ground or turn his back off the uncircumcised Philistine Judge honest Reader hath not the wicked one wrested my words but when will he learn to speak truth say Jonathan dost thou not see thy bold presumption that wouldst have thy engagement to be compared with David See his book p. 1.2 and my words with Goltan Come down son of ambition David was a man after Gods own heart but thy hearr is not circumcised therefore blush and be ashamed I asked thee this question Hath every one that cometh into the world heard and read the preaching of Christ and his Apostles as they are transcribed in the Bible to which thou didst positively answer They have all heard and yet like a son of impudence in thy book thou deniest it and chargest me that I have dealt falsly with thy answer To which I reply the Lord of heaven and earth be judge betwixt us whether them were thy words or nay And because thou art so confident in thy darknesse I tell thee millions of men and women may witnesse against thee that they never read the preachings of Christ and his Apostles as they are transcribed in the Bible To my other question How is the Gospel preached to every creature under heaven which is the power of God if not by that principle of light in the conscience In thy book thou answerest thus In the preaching of Christ and his Apostles which worketh the principle of light in the conscience and whatsoever is not enlightned from thence t is darknesse and not light Be not these thy own words Art thou an elder Jonathan or head or leader of a separated people and so sottish to make the letter the author of the light of Christ in the conscience which was before the letter was given forth as if a man gave being to his maker Sure if thy Church were in God the Father of lights they would see thy nakednesse and be ashamed Thou multiplyest many words about the sound of accusing or excusing in all consciences I am satisfied that thou diddst confess that the sound of accusing or excusing is in all consciences and knowes it is accusing not excusing thee in thy conscience for several sins thou commits against it And thy dark assertion that it comes only by the hearing of faith preached by the Apostles doth more manifest thy miserable nakedness and thy grosse ignorance of Christ the power of God and of his kingdome where it is and what pag. 5. Thou confesseth there was a principle of light in the people before Moses writ the letter and subtilly speaks of Christs sending the people to Moses and the Prophets to hear them Iob. 5 46. I grant thee he did so and I give thee this reason recorded in scripture Had they believed Moses they would have believed Christ for Moses writ of Christ So now we desire people would wisely read and search the scriptures for they do testifie of the light of Christ in the conscience but many read them foolishly as thou dost and think in them to have eternal life but come not to be guided by the light of Christ in the conscience and so fall short of eternal life Charge me no more with useing this phrase the light of conscience 2 Pet. 1.19 for thou never receivedst it from me Conscience is dark untill it be awaked untill the light of Christ in the conscience arise and shine in the heart nor do the children of the day or true Ministers of the light direct the hearts or consciences of the people to any other thing then that sure word of Prophesie the light of Christ in the conscience who is the seed of the woman the word of God though such as thou believes not in it and that 's the reason you are not saved by it so sin hath dominion over you Rom. 1.16 because you believe not in the light of Christ in the conscience which is the power of God unto salvation to all that believe therein and while thy carnal minde is gazing after a Christ without as the Jewes did thou art not like to find him within thee but as a condemner of thee and know this also I am not ashamed to assirme unto thee that the grace of God which brings salvation hath appeared unto all men though all do not receive salvation by it because they believe not in it no more dost thou while thus thou persecutes it and smites the innocent Lambs with the fist of wickednesse Isa 58.4 Wherefore hast thou dealt thus unworthyly with me in thy ninth p. with thy save only c thus boldly to assirme that I granted to thee that the light in the conscience comes by the hearing of faith preached by the Apostles as if the letter were the author of the light How hast thou polluted thy garment with a lye but no better dealing do I look for from thee while blindnesse of heart thus rests upon thee Eph 4.18 I own that which Paul and Peter preached from to be the spirit of the living God and what they spake from the mouth of the Lord I own to be the winde or words of the Lord Io. 8.12 Rev. 19.13 But still afirming as as I did before that Christ the light of the world is the word of God from whom the words proceeded by whom the world was made and so the letter must give place to the spirit the servant is