Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A60655
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A spiritual prospective glass Through which the rulers and people of England, may plainly see those things which concerns their peace. Being a manifestation from the Spirit of God, in love to all people. By one that desires the prosperity of truth, and the peace of the nation. W.Smith.
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Smith, William, d. 1673.
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1670
(1670)
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Wing S4333; ESTC R216948
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15,398
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21
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things as to the truth that is in them and that was the Sadduces condition concerning the Resurrection and Christ said unto them ye do err not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God for if they had known the Scriptures and the â—ower of God they would 〈◊〉 understood the truth of the 〈◊〉 and not erred in 〈◊〉 judgement and opinion for it was their judgement that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 no Resurrection and that 〈◊〉 their Error or mistake 〈◊〉 Christ opened the truth unto them saying God is not the God of the dead but of the living so truth is not to be concluded as to what men hold in their judgement and opinion seeing Christ reproved it 〈◊〉 error in the 〈◊〉 but that which is revealed in 〈◊〉 and spirit of God may be safely concluded to be the 〈◊〉 which is no error for he that is the light and truth did see the Sadduâ—â—â— error in what they held in the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and opinion concerning the Resurrection and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 there be for people to give up their belief to the judgeâ—â—â—◠〈◊〉 opinion of natural men as to spiritual things there can be no â—ore safety in so doing then for one blind man to be led or guided by another that is as blind as himself therefore I shall speak in plainness to the Rulers and People of England for their information in the things of God if happily the light may shine out of darkness in such where it shines in darkness and by darkness not comprehended that if it seem good to the Lord the day may break in them and the Sun of righteousness may arise with healing under his Wings Friends unto you all that are striving against the blessed appearance of Christ Jesus the Lord of Life and Prince of Peace this matter is offered in love to your souls and to the whole nation and though I well know that judgement lingreth not where wickedness aboundeth So I also know that God would not the death of a sinner but rather he would turn from his wickedness and live and this I deliver as a testimony for God and in this matter I shall not appear like Tertullus the flourishing Orator but like Paul the plain and true Apostle for in such weighty concernments the Fear of the Lord is to be minded and his counsel and wisdom to be obeyed and followed and in that I shall speak to the witness of God in all your consciences 1. The Almighty and Everlasting God created all things good man in that state was blessed and happy in the paradic of God and there his Soul enjoyed the benefit and comfort in the life and power by which it was nourished 2. The good and blessed state in which man was created he loss by disobedience and so was driven out of paradice to his Souls sorrow and heaviness and that is the state of all people in the first Adams transgression 3. The Almighty and Everlasting God promised a seed to break the Serpents head that tempted man forth of his good and blessed state in which he was created that man might be again restored into his first being of life 4. The seed promised was Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God who by the arm of his power is able to destroy the Devil and his Work and to bring Man again unto God and the good 5. The holy men of God in all ages did bear witness of the power of the seed in working deliverance from the power of the Serpent by which they came to witness Gods promise fulfilled and to live in the joy of his Salvation 6. There is no nation people or Language unto whom the seed doth not give light for the 〈◊〉 is Christ and Christ lighteth every one that comes into the World and his Light is a Witness in every ones conscience unto that which is good â—nd against that which is evil 7. Man believing and obeying the testimony of the Light of Christ in his conscience it worketh in power for his deliverance out of darkness where his Soul is in bondage sorrow and heaviness and restores into the good again where the Soul comes into peace joy and happiness and so Christ is the restorer of 〈◊〉 to dwell in Now as you profess your selves to be believers in Christ and so to be Christians it is necessary that you consider how far you can witneâ—s the promise of God fulfilled in you by the power of Christ and that you may fully examine your own conditions these following questions may be useful to you 1. Do you believe in the Light with which Christ lighteth you 2. Do you obey the Testimony of Light in your own Consciences 3. Do you witness your sin done away and the serpents head broken 4 Do you witness deliverance out of darkness and the house of bondage 5. Do you witness liberty in the power of an endless life 6. Do you witness the righteousness of Christ to be made your righteousness 7. Do you witness unity and peace in the righteousness of Christ. 8. Do you witness the goodness of God to satisfie your Souls 9. Do you follow peace with all men and holiness 10. Do you feel the peace of God rule in your hearts 11. Do you love your enemies and do good to those that hate you 12. Do you serve God in Fear and Rejoyce before him with reverence Examine your selves and your condition by these few questions for these good and holy things are witnessed by such as are regenerated and born again and except you be regenerated and born again you cannot enter into the Kingdom of God and can your Souls be satisfied out of Gods Kingdom and is it not the greatest concernment to know an entrance into the Kingdom of God where the Soul comes to be satisfied in rest and peace and comfort and happiness and so there is a coming out of the first Adams transgression as the light and power of the second Adam is obeyed in manifestation and operation for the operation of the light and power of Christ Jesus the second Adam makes a new creature and they that receive Christ in his light and power to come into Union with him they are new creatures and new creatures are Christians in Nature and Life and the Spirit beareth witness with their spirits that they are the sons of God and in such all old things are done away and all things are become new and so they are in the New Covenant with a new heart and a new spirit which God gives them and puts into them and these are the people who now worship God in the spirit and rejoyce in Christ Jesus and have no confidence in the flesh and so they answer the life and practice of new creatures and Christians in times past and this keeps the harmony and doth not break it for the same righteousness Unity and Peace runs as a natural stream in the same light spirit life and power that is in Christ Jesus and
matter and not willing that a wilful purpose should be judge in such a weighty concernment and will you say the Councel did not do well in agreeing to Gamalliel I hope not and if you conclude they did well then do you agree to him now in your great assembly for if they who at that time did not believe in Christ nor the Apostles doctrine were so easily intreated to let the Apostles alone and not to slay them as was purposed by them then how much more should such as profess a belief in Christ and the Apostles doctrine be perswaded and intreated to let those alone that now beleive in Christ and live in the Apostles spirit life and Doctrine this reaches the witness of God in you all if you will but bow your ear to the councel of it for the wisdom from above is pure and peaceable and gentle and easie to be intreated full of mercy and good fruits without partiality or according to the greek without wronging and without hyppocrisie Jat 3. 17. marke the wisdome from above is of a pure peaceable gentle ntture that may easily be intreated and so the mercy and good fruits are in it where none are wronged and that was the principle that moved in Gamaliel by the appointment of God for so good an end and it answered the same principle in the Jews which at that time did prevail with them to let the Apostles alone as to the thing they purposed against them and so there was a pure princidl of God in them all that secretly wrought in them to deliver the Apostles though otherwise they did not believe in it for life and peace Now let this be your pattern and example which produced such a good effect Act by this and walke by this that you may follow the principle of God in you as your rule to guide you that your purposes may not stend in wilful resolutions as not to be easily intreated for if it be so with you there is cause for you to question whether the wisdome from above direct you in your undertakings and if by that you be not directed you may soon erre in what yea doe nay you may possibly erre in all you doe for the wisdom of God in the sure foundation for all laws to stand upon and be ministred from and if law stand upon any other thing or bs ministred from any other thing it cannot clearly answer truth and righteousness either in the fountain or stream for where laws are made and ministred in a wilful resolution and purpose against a thing the matter is mostly resolvedly prosecuted to accomplish the thing intended and by such actions and paaceedings there is no sufferer can have any benifit of the law for his own right in cases of manifest wrong for where resolution is both rule and law it will carry the stream in its own channell with that force as nothing may stop it and this only law pretended to answer to the resolution and purpose intended Well Friends whatsoever you or any of you may purpose or intend ageinst us called Quakers of this you may be sure that we do not purpose or intend any harm unto you but really desire that it may be well every way with you and in this we can approve our selves to God and it cannot be disproved by you for ye very well know how we have behaved our selves amongst you and towards you for many years and you cannot justly charge us with any alteration as to our peaceable life and civil deportment but what we have been in love and peace and good will amongst you and towards you we are still the same for our principle doth not vary and change in its nature and life and as we are preserved by it to live in it we continue in the same mind and you have no cause to be jealous of us as seditious persons or contrivers of Insurrections or any way such as would do you the least wrong or injury or any body living and as we have never offered injury to you or you received any injury by us it is certainly below you as men to intreat us evil and we are very sure that wherein you purpose or intend any harm to us with a resolution to perform it that such purpose or intention will be much more against your selves if you do not stop the action and as you profess Christianity so it well be more honourable to your profession to cease from prosecution then to continue it that so in your day and time the Righteous and Godly Christians may sit under their own vine and under thir own Fig-tree in quietness and peace for wilfull resolutions and purposes never did good unto any and if you would do good to your selves and the nation then mind humillity and the fear of the Lord for the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdome and where wisdome orders there all things goes well but where wisdome is wanting their all things goes wrong and therefore it is your greatest concernment to wait for Gods wisdom to order you for wisdome is better then strength and if you take councell as is to be ordered by it then that which is wrong you will be willing to Right and that which is Right you will be willing to maintain and thereby take of all accasions by which the Innocent is vexed and troubled and that will not only bring peace to your own souls but also to the whole natios and so both your own souls and the nation will have comfort and happiness and there every one will have the benefit of peace as they came to injoy it and that is the onely end of this Spiritual Prospective Glass being set to your eye that you may look through it and see those things that will do your souls and the nations good but if you will shut your eye and not behold by what way good may come unto you and so follow your resolusions and purposes against the righteous then will the Lord lift up his arm against you and when it falls it will come heavy upon you for the Lord hath often signified his mind unto you by his spirit to have done you good you have had many tender visitations from the Lords servants in whom his spirit dwelleth and you have been faithfully warned wherein your own danger hath been concerned and it is desired that you might regard the Lord and not slight his kindness for though he be gratious and long suffering yet he doth not set his judgement aside where his kindness is rejected and itf you strive against him and his power and do not know it he may in his mercy remit your offence upon your repentance when you do know it but if ye know that it is the Lord and his power which ye strive against and that you will maintain your strife against him then will he come upon you in his own time and none shall be able to deliver you out of his hand and that you may not be ignorant that it is the Lord and his power that ye are striving against wherein you set your selves against his people called Quakers it is hereby signified unto you that it is only the Lord ye strive against in what ye do unto them for it is only the Lord that hath called them and separated them from the ways of men and appointed them to meet together in his fear to serve and worship him in his spirit and they fear his greatness and thinks upon his name and so keeps his ordinance or observation and what ye do unto them for their obedience and faithfulnâ—ss unto God he takes it as done unto himself and wherein you strive against them you strive against him and this will leave you without excuse in the day when God shall jxdge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ the Lord will have a seed to serve him worship him in his own way when ye have spent your strength to withstand his purpose and if you will not take notice of Gamalliels councel to observe it yet do not forget how God plagued Pharoah and overthrew him for his hard heartedness and that may bring you into a holy dread of the living God and into a humble submission to his light and power in all concerments and so in time be considerate in these weighty things as men of grave and sollid deportments for here is the truth plainly set before you with great regard and tenderness both to your own Souls and to the nation W. S. THE END