Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A60666
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The work of Gods power in man with something that the spirit of truth leads to practise, and what it leads to deny ... / W.S.
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Smith, William, d. 1673.
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1663
(1663)
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Wing S4346; ESTC R19003
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14,538
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19
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must arise and depart if ever you come to find rest in Christ And this is a truth which many can witnesse this day who sometimes were like-minded with you and did apprehend that they were that which indeed they were not when the mighty day of the Lord broke forth in them they were made sensible of the sparks of their own kindling and the light of their ovvn fire in vvhich they vvere vvalking and vvere made to cry unto the Lord in bitternesse of spirit vvho appeared to be a God gracious and merciful to them and vvith the Arm of his Power plucked them as brands out of that fire and in judgement and mercy hath gathered them into his own Covenant and in what principle stands your fellowship if it stand not in the Light Or can there be any true fellowship but in the Light Must there not be a perfect principle where there is a perfect unity And is not the Light of Christ perfect And must not the heart mind and soul be bound together in the Light if there be perfect unity Was the Saints unity and fellowship in any other principle Or did they hold forth unity vvith such as did not vvalk in the Light Or did they not labour to gather them into their principle and so into their fellowship That ye may have fellowship with us and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. Here vvas their fellowship in the Truth Light Life and Power of God and they did not say that they had fellovvship vvith such as were not in the Truth but they held forth the Truth that such as vvere out of the Truth might be gathered into the Truth and come into fellovvship vvith us Mark not that ye have fellovvship vvith us or vve vvith you vvhere you are but that ye may have fellovvship vvith us and this was true love in the Saints to such as were contrary-minded yet not such a love as could close in unity but such a love as did manifest pity and it is the same unto you this day For the Lord knows the labour and travel of all his faithful Servants Ministers and Messengers whom he hath raised in the power of his life to preach the everlasting Gospel upon whom the glory of his Life resteth how that they have not done his Work negligently but have run to and fro in the movings of his power to declare his everlasting Truth that all might be gathered to the Truth and come into fellowship in the Truth knowing in the counsel of the Lord vvhose servants they are that no perfect unity or fellovvship can be held in any other principle and they have never denied fellovvship vvith any that have come to their principle if it vvas in never so little a measure if it vvas in the Light and Truth they could have unity vvith them there yea vvith the vveakest breathing and lovvest desire after the Truth their souls have ever rejoiced to meet vvith any there and their love and tenderness have ever been abundantly manifested to all simple hearted ones though in practise they have lien different from them at present for they have fell to the Seed where it hath been and in tender compassion hath ever been ready to help and relieve the distressed but they could never speak peace to the oppression and God doth abundantly reward them for their service and labour of love and by the mighty Power of God through their Ministry many sons and daughters are come to glory who are in perfect love peace and unity together and established in everlasting righteousness in the unchangeable Seed of God So all must come to the Power of God that come unto perfect unity otherwise they are but in the changeable nature and in the changeable unity but where the power is submitted unto it works out the changeable nature of the flesh and raises the unchangeable nature of the Lamb and gathers the heart mind and soul into union with him and so makes a compleat and perfect body in his compleat and perfect life where all drinks into one spirit and feeds upon one bread And here the unity is held in the Spirit and it is sealed in the bond of peace Therefore feel the power of God in your selves that your minds be subjected into stilness and quietness for you are too full of business always thronging and cumbring your selves about many things which draweth you from the one thing which should make you happy Oh that you would once hearken and obey How well would it be with you to what it is For really there is a pity reacheth to you and many sad complaints are taken up for you considering what longings and pantings there hath been in many of you after God Oh remember the years past when your visitation was upon you and the springings of God's love was fresh in you then were you broken and melted and humbled before the Lord and you had a fervent zeal for God according to what you knew the day-star did rise unto you but you was not acquainted with it nor did not understand that it would have led you where the young child was and so not regarding you lost the sight of it and turned your faces towards the West where the Sun setteth in obscurity Oh! shall you not be lamented because of this yea surely you are and through the lamentation there is compassion to that which first breathed in you and through the compassion there is judgement issues forth to that Spirit which hath betrayed you and here I may include all such as have lost their first Love whether by apprehending Christ without them or within them for there stands the Traytor in all to draw the mind into apprehensions and conceivings and so from waiting upon God in the principle of his Light and Life there to be kept in the fresh sense and feeling of the pleasant streams that issue from the fulness and so to grow and encrease through the virtue and nourishment thereby received and how hath apprehensions and conceivings come over that sweet dispensation of Love yea and Life in measure which in years past was felt by many And how doth death reign in them And how is the precious Seed of God oppressed Oh that you would consider whoever you are that have let in apprehensions and conceivings of Christ whether you apprehend him without you or within you the birth of his life you do not know in that state for none can compass his pure life by any apprehension therefore let all cease from their apprehensions and conceivings and with the power of God silence all flesh and wait to feel the Work of the power in you and be faithful to the power and then you will know Christ of whom you speak and dare speak no more then what you can witness nay nor that neither but as the life moveth to do it for what good doth all your words that you speak with the old
all truth mark into all truth and being all there is nothing wanting which being attained in the leadings of the Spirit the soul comes into everlasting rest in God And so by the leadings of the Spirit there is a growth in the truth and a passing on from one degree to another until the fulnesse be enjoyed and all are to mind the measure of truth in which they stand and to answer the movings and leadings of the Spirit that in the truth they may grow and prosper for as the truth is lived in according to measure there is a growth to be felt and witnessed in it a growth in understanding growing up from children to young men and from young men to ancients and so in understanding come to be men not by apprehension and conceiving but by revelation and possessing and as the growth comes to be felt in the truth so there is a decay of all that which is out of the truth and that which hath been manifested by any practise out of the truth that comes to dye for as the root is destroyed so doth the branches dye and then the Truth brancheth forth in its own nature and manifests it self according to its nature and that is the principal of all good works and the good works which are wrought and manifested by it they are of God and being of God they are truth for there is not any thing besides him true And all good works that are wrought in him and manifested from him they are approved by him and so they that have true faith they have good works also yea such good works as may be seen of men So that the practise in the truth is from the principle of truth by all that are of the truth And though something of such a practise may be observed by such as are out of the truth yet that doth not make the practise in the truth to be ever the less glorious in it self for it is the principle that makes the practise true and not the practise that makes the principle true But where the practise of any doth wholly degenerate from the practise in the truth that principle doth plainly manifest its nature by what is practised and neither principle nor practise is true But where the practise of truth stands in the principle of truth there is the nature of the root manifested by the branch and so the Tree is good and the fruit is good And wil not many speak well of the Life of such as live in the practise of truth and yet speak evil of their principle and so would make the fruit good and the tree corrupt which thing cannot be for not any thing that is truly good can proceed from that which is evil as the ground of its conception So if the life of such as are guided by the Light do not answer their principle in all righteousnesse then people might have some cause to say that their principle is delusion and they a deluded people but if it be so as their lives do sufficiently demonstrate then let all people acknowledge that their principle is truth and that God is their God and that they are his people So let all people consider their way and behold what they practise for the Spirit of truth leads into all truth and so brings forth good fruit in all holinesse and righteousnesse of life and that life springs from the Spirit as from its root and is made manifest as it is the Work of God and it answereth the righteous principle of God in every man and that which is manifested by the Spirit of Truth and practised by those that live in the truth and also what they cannot practise as being out of the truth are these things following 1. They worship God in spirit and truth but the evil worship they cannot observe They bow to the Name of Jesus and cannot bow to any graven Image for the Name of Jesus is their life 2. They live a godly and righteous life walking in sobriety moderation temperance meeknesse gentlenesse patience love justice mercy and truth they do unto all men as they would be done unto 3. They honor God alone and honor all men in the Lord but they cannot give flattering titles unto men nor respect persons in the vain customs 4. They are conformable unto Christ but they cannot conform to fashions and traditions they cannot live in the lust of the flesh and the pride of life they cannot be excessive in meats drinks and apparel but what is needful they use it in its place but cannot use any more 5. They speak the words of truth and sobernesse but that which is out of the Truth they cannot speak for You to one is not in the truth but Thou to one is in the truth and they speak it as it is the Language of the Spirit 6. Their word is truth in what they speak and they faithfully answer what they promise but they cannot be bound by bonds of men to cause them to perform what they may require for by their word they are bound to perform if they make a promise for their word is truth 7. They testifie the truth when they are required but they dare not swear at all They love Christ and keep his command and they cannot answer what is commanded contrary for all his commands are righteous unto them and they chuse to obey him rather then men 8. They love the Lord God and one another but the wickednesse of the wicked their souls abhor They are truly tender to that which is good in all but they cannot join with that which is evil for the good is their rest These things with much more of this nature is practised by such as are led by the Spirit of Truth and is manifested from the Spirit as fruit of its nature and where it is not so the Spirit of Truth doth not lead and so people professe Christ but conform to the customs and fashions of the world which they that are led by the Spirit cannot do for the Spirit teacheth them to deny all customs of the world which are vain and not only so but teacheth them to testifie against the World and the deeds of evil which by them are observed and this is good fruit brought forth from the good Tree and is not like the corrupt fruit of the corrupt Tree and so the Tree is known by its fruit for thereby doth every Tree manifest its nature Now let him that readeth understand for this is declared that all may believe that Christ is the Power of God and that the Power of God is in man and that the Power of God worketh the Work of God for you that cannot endure to hear of the Light and Power of Christ within you wil not endure sound Doctrine but cry out against it as the greatest delusion and you say your Faith is in Christ without you and you be-believe that by his death he hath done all for