Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	apostle_n	speak_v	word_n	9,283	5	4.1967	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A65909	A few words by way of query to the teachers, and professors, called Presbyterians and Independents with a word of prophesie, in verse : also a word of exhortation and warning of love to them to haste out of Babylon, the mystery of iniquity, into Sion, the City of Holinesse : with a word at last to those that were persecutors / written by ... John Whithowse.	Whitehouse, John, fl. 1662-1663.	1662 (1662)	Wing W1985; ESTC R18048	4,972	10

A Few WORDS by way of QUERY TO THE TEACHERS and PROFESSORS CALLED PRESBYTERIANS And INDEPENDENTS WITH A Word of PROPHESIE in Verse ALSO A Word of Exhortation and Warning of love to them to haste out of Babylon the Mystery of Iniquity into SION the City of Holinesse With A Word at last to those that were PERSECVTORS Written by one that desires the good of all men and the Glory of God and his Truth JOHN WHITHOWSE Printed in the Year 1662. A few Words by way of Querie to the Teachers and Professors called Presbyterians and Independents c. WHat was the ground of your Zeal which carried you on in the Years lately past to preach and professe as you then did seeing now the carnal sword is taken from you it is greatly fallen in you and you are fallen from that Zealousnesse that then was with you Whether had you ever any command from God the Higher Power for the keeping of your Lectures and other of your Assemblings your selves together to preach and pray to God as you have done seeing now man commands the contrary you let them down Whether was your Ministers and your Order of Ministring ordained by the power of God seeing that by the power of man you are put to silence and yet not by force and violence onely but by words of command But if you say We are put out of our Places and Churches and cannot do as we have done Then I Querie Is not anoher Place as lawfull as that seeing Christ saith Wheresoever two or three are gathered together in my Name there will I be in the midst of them And also the Ministers of Christ when they were put out of the Temple and Synagogues feared not to preach the Gospel of which they were made Ministers though they were commanded of men to the contrary yet they met together in Houses and other Places as the Scriptures testifie And have you not Houses that might serve for that purpose And if God ever set you on in his work why do you not go on therein not fearing vain man who can but kill the body and take your Company that have owned you and your Ministry and have denyed the Common-Prayer long ago and separate your selves therefrom and so beare a Testimony by your practice publickly against it Or else may it not be said justly That you are an hypocritical Company of Time-servers who in the Time of Liberty preached and professed against it but now for fear of Man and what he may do conforme thereunto Whether did Daniel well or ill and the Three Children also in disobeying those Kings Lawes in their dayes and bearing a Testimony as Living Witnesses for the Lord although Daniel was but one man to stand against a King and Nations Decree and likewise the other but Three against the Decree of the mightiest King in all the Earth at that time who thought no God could deliver out of his hand And had Daniel ceased praying openly as many of you have done and Preaching also and the other Three conformed to that worship as was then commanded as many of you have done now to a Worship of the like nature which is to say contrary to God then had they not I say betrayed their God O then consider what you have done and are a doing And also How had the Everlasting Gospel been published if the Apostles had been of your spirit when the Chief Rulers of Jerusalem charged them to speak no more in the Name of Jesus And seeing you professe your selves to be Ministers and Servants of him How is it that your actions are so quite contrary to the Faithfull Ones before mentioned now you are tryed in like manner as they were Upon which ground may it not be concluded by all people That you have had but the outside shew or Covering of the Ministers and Servants of Christ and have wanted the inside nature all this while Dan. 103 16. Acts 5.28 29. Some build on the waters and some build on the sand But nought but what 's o' th rock in this day will stand For the waters will roul and toss and the winds will blow And what 's not grounded on the rock the storm will overthrow For now the sheeps covering shall be ript off the wolf And all deceit shall be cast down into hells dark gulph Whence never more it shall arise the simple to deceive For from all that hath made them a prize God will them bereave And they shall see who is i' th form but wants the power Eze. 34. Read the whole Chap. For they shall not stand in his trying hour Which is come and coming on all professions them to try Whether they will suffer for their Religion or to escape it deny The false Church stands upon the sand and waters which are peoples multitudes Nations and tongues Rev. 17.15 which are like the tossing Sea Isa 57.20 But in the New Creation there shall be no more Sea Rev. 21.1 And yet the Kings of the earth shall bring their Glory into the Holy City new Jerusalem therein ver 24. He that reads let him understand for verily the time 's at hand TO such as plead it lawfull and good to conforme to the Common-prayer and hear the Teachers thereof I querie thus Whether do you believe that it is the Spirit of God that leads and guides them to read and performe that Forme of worship which to the Common-prayer belongeth which if you believe not then how dare you joyn with them seeing it is said They that are not led by the Spirit of Christ are none of his 1 Rom. 8.9 And they that are not for us are against us saith Christ Luke 9.50 Ah! How dare you that professe to love Christ joyn with those that are against him who saith My sheep hear my voyce and a strangers voice will they not follow John 10.5 Then if you joyn with and follow those which you are convinced speak not by his Spirit do you not manifest your selves to be none of his Sheep and if not his spirit then what psirit then what spirit is it seeing there is but the Spirit of God and the spirit of the Devil that doth lead or guide the spirits of men O consider if you follow these do you not erre from the Spirit of God according to your own belief or Profession in times past But if you say You joyn not with them though you hear them then I querie What do you amongst them What doth the Spirit of God lead you to hear and conform with those that speak by another spirit or do you think to benefit any thing by them towards God that you believe are contrary to God and if contrary to God then they are of the Wicked one and then the best of their Words and Works are sin for it is said The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord Prov. 15.8 21 27. yea and the plowing of them is sin And

then do you not sin in joyning with or hearing them in their sin which is the fruit of darknesse And in so doing do you not erre from the Scripture which you have professed your Rule which saith Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness but reprove them Eph. 5.11 and come out from amongst them and touch not the unclean thing saith the Lord 2 Cor 6.17 and I will receive you But if some of the Common-prayer Readers do preach sometimes according to the form or manner of your Teachers which you own and you think you may lawfully hear them in that Then I querie Whether they can serve two Masters in an hours time or do the Devils work in one half hour and Gods in another Or be the Ministers of Antichrist and of Christ both in one hour Or whether are they not of that spirit as those were which the Apostle speaks of who with good words and fair Speeches deceive the heart of the simple or may they not have a Form of the words of Godlinesse and yet deny and be enemies to the power thereof And do you not deny the Apostles Exhortation in the Scripture your professed Rule except you deny and turn away from them 2 Tim. 3.5 These things are not written to accuse you nor to condemn any thing that is good in you but rather to provoke you to be zealous in it and for it Also to put you in minde to consider That much of your zeal in times past sprung not from the power of God but from your own wills and strength which is manifested by the falling of it Now the power and arm of flesh is fallen from you that which is of men will come to nought But that which is of God Men cannot overthrow Acts 5.38 39. So every one that hath any sincere desires in you after God or tendernesse of conscience in you in this day of tryal take heed how you conform or bow to any thing contrary to that tender Principle in you for if you do it will murder those desires and also deaden and cool the true zeal that is in you which will not be the way for you to increase but decrease to God Therefore be revived in the true zeal of God which moves in you against every appearance of evil and be zealous for Sion the City of Holinesse the habitation of God and come out of Babylon the Mystery of Iniquity and abomination of the Earth and partake not of her sin for if you do you must taste of her Plagues the Lord God will not spare you For he wil burn her wals towers buildings both wood stubble stones and against the wals wil he dash break al her childrens bones Je. 51.58 And if then in or under her skirts you be found Then with his terrible dart he 'l smise you to the ground Therefore out of her coasts see that you haste and fly Jerem. 51.45 For all that in her live and dwel a perpetual death must die ver 57 39. But Sion shall stand safely for in her 's the corner stone Isa 28.16.61.9 And blest shall that man be that lays on it his foundation So all out of the darknesse come turn in unto the light John 12 35 36. For without it you cannot see to lay your building right So the Lord direct all the true desires After his life through the wildernesse and all the cryers Therein whose faces are turned towards Sion and make All the hard things easie before them and every crooked way strait That into Sions coasts they may come where none are crost but blest And a habitation they may know even in the Land of rest Wherein the Sabboth day is kept which never shall have end In these desires my soul doth rest in which I am your friend A word to those that were Persecutors in the time of their prosperity Remember you the days of your prosperity how t was said oft to you then That what you measured to others should be measured to you again But then you stopt your eares hardened your hearts and would neither hear nor see But now a day of persecution on you is come in which it fulfilled shall be For many by you were cast into prison their goods also destroyd Of Justice Equity Mercy or Law by you they were denyd Now thus in this day to you dont in this day it will be Unlesse you will turn to your vomit again and owne Idolatry Remember little Joseph was hated and persecuted of his Brethren what was the reason Because their Father lov'd him best therefore they grudged also because the Lord shewed more to him then to them for which they hated him the more Gen. 37.5 and scorned at him v. 19. and made a Conspiracy against him to destroy him yet the Lord was with him and blest him and brougth them down to bow before him and yet notwithstanding all this which they did to him he loved them freely his bowels yearned towardeds them and he gladly received them in the time of their distresse O Remember and consider this and be not envious against little Joseph whose love and bowels towards you yearneth which is and shall be manifested unto you For a famine is entered into your land and scarcity amongst your dwellings But Josephs habitation is in a fruitfull Land for his Store houses are full yea and his fatt● overflow Therefore be not stiff in your mindes neither think it a disgrace to receive at his hand for you must bow the Lord hath said it else you must perish in this dry and gloomy day wherein all the springs and rivers but what comes from the invisible will dry away at which Joseph shall drink and be kept alive which as the Willows of the Brook shall make his soul to-thrive Therefore come in the simple love take Joseph by the bend And he will lead you to the well which doth wide open stand Out of which the Streams of Life do runne freely Where all may freely drink for none needs to buy Isa 55.1 Praises everlasting Halelujah to Sion's King For out of him the living Rock the water pure doth spring Which doth refresh the weary and make glad the poor Therefore let him have the honour now and for evermore He that hath an eare to hear let him hear and fear For he that loves father or mother wife or children houses or land gold or silver life or liberty or any thing else better then the Kingdom of God in that state he must never come there Now he that conformes to Idolatry for fear of losing these things the fame is he that lovs them better than the Kingdome of God The 1 Epist of John 2 15 16 17. Jam. 4.4 This is the hard Saying that canseth the Earthly Minde to draw back John Whithowse Given from my hand the 19 day of the 8 Month 1662. THE END