Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	body_n	lord_n	soul_n	15,609	5	5.1843	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A62901	A word of information to them that need it briefly opening some most weighty passages of God dispensations among the sons of men, from the beginning, and insisting a little upon the state and condition of the nations, wherein they now stand, and particularly of England : for this end, that men may remember themselves, and turn unto the Lord, and seek to be delivered from the mysteries of iniquity, to walk with God in fellowship and communion : to which (as pertinent hereunto) is annexed, An addition concerning Lord-Bishops, and Common-prayer-book : with a tender admonition to those called priests, or ministers : and also, a loving exhortation to those that have separated from their superstitions / by W.T.	Tomlinson, William.	1660 (1660)	Wing T1854; ESTC R16928	33,341	46

A Word of Information To Them that need it Briefly opening some most weighty Passages of Gods Dispensations among the Sons of Men from the beginning And insisting a little upon the State and Condition of the Nations wherein they now stand and particularly of ENGLAND For this end That Men may remember themselves and turn unto the Lord and seek to be delivered from the Mysteries of Iniquity to walk with God in Fellowship and Communion To which as pertinent hereunto is annexed An ADDITION concerning LORD-BISHOPS and COMMON-PRAYER-BOOK With a Tender ADMONITION to those called PRIESTS or MINISTERS And also A Loving EXHORTATION to those that have SEPARATED from their SUPERSTITIONS By W. T. LONDON Printed for Robert Wilson at the sign of the Black-Spread-Eagle and Windmil in Martins Le Grand 1660. A Word of Information To Them that need it c. GOD made Man at the first Upright and Innocent and Pure and Holy walking with him in his pure Nature in perfect peace and in boldness before him having his Understanding filled with Light and Knowledge from the Lord and his spirit possessed with the Spirit of the Lord. And therein he walked before the Lord in great liberty only in one thing the Lord laid a Restraint upon him Thou shalt not eat saith he of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil neither shall ye touch it for in the day thou eatest thereof dying thou shalt dye Gen. 2.17 and 3.3 Now there was no way for that old enemy Satan to rob Man of this happy peaceable innocent Condition but by getting him out of the bounds where God had set him for where no Law was there could be no transgression and where no transgression was death could not enter for death came in upon Man by sin Rom. 5.12 Therefore Satan that old Serpent sets upon Man here to allure and entice him and flatter him into a tryal of that which God had forbidden him by presenting a pleasurableness and profitableness in it Man yeelding the bound was broken that kept Man with the Lord and kept out death and misery And now Sin entering that is transgressing of Gods will and pleasure here with Sin Death entered and another spirit than before had possession in man even the spirit of the Serpent that got in and became Ruler in the Disobedience And now Death came over all in Man and over all Men. The flourishing state of his soul in Righteousness and Innocency that dyed a spirit of shame and fear that covered him and he now fled from the presence of the Lord. And death also must now come upon his body as well as upon his soul for to dust that must return Thus dying Man dyed according to the Word of the Lord. Yet now the Lord's mercies were not clean shut up from his Creature which he had made so excellent and given dominion unto over all other Creatures upon the Earth Gen. 1.28 but he leaves a way open still for Mans return unto himself thorow a promised Seed which was contrary to the seed of the Serpent and should bruise the Serpents head that enticing spirit that leads to Disobedience Gen. 3.15 So then here 's no returning now for Man back again from Death to Life but through that Seed that breaks the head of the winding disobedient spirit Now in this faln state Man lives and begets Sons and Daughters and multiplies and replenishes the Earth Thus the Earth is filled with Men and Women begotten in the faln condition And so as Men encreased and multiplied Sin also that encreased until the Lord repented that he had made Man and so drowned every living Creature wherein was the breath of life that lived and moved upon the face of the Earth Gen. 6.5 6 7 17. Yet in this sinking dying condition a Seed there was from the beginning that served and obeyed the Lord whose hearts were after him to return again unto him who wrought works of Righteousness and walked with the Lord as righteous Abel and Seth and holy Enoch who was translated that he should not see death And besides these a Generation that called upon the Name of the Lord and so were called the Sons of God Gen. 4.26 Yet these also in process of time wore out after that they began to corrupt themselves mingling themselves with the Daughters of Men Gen. 6.2 So that in the dayes of Noah only Noah was found Righteous in his Generation Gen. 6.8 9. whom the Lord therefore with his family reserved from the Flood to plant the Earth with after he had drowned the old world of the ungodly Gen. 7.1 Then again after the Flood as Men began to multiply so they corrupted their wayes again before the Lord so that in Abraham the eleventh from Noah which was about three-hundred sixty seven years after the Flood God began to gather to himself a People again out of the rest of the world who should bear his Name and so he called Abraham out from his fathers house and out of his own Country to walk with him where he would appoinc him Gen. 12.1 When Abraham was come out then the Lord blessed him and promised him to make of him a great Nation and that he would blesse him that blessed Abraham and curse him that cursed Abraham And said furthermore to him In thee shall all families of the Earth be blessed Gen. 12.2 3. So his Posterity in Isaac and Jacob were counted for the Lords Inheritance and owned by him above all the World and called his Son his First-born And by that name he required them of Pharaoh when he sent to deliver them out of the house of bondage Exod. 4.22 23. Then when the Lord had delivered them by an out-stretched Arm from under Pharaohs Bondage to lead them into the Land of Canaan which he had promised to Abraham When he had separated them from Egypt and brought them into the Wilderness of Sinai There he gave them Statutes and Ordinances a Miuistration of Laws written in Tables of Stone Of this Ministration Moses was made the Mediator between God and them and it was confirmed by many mighty Signs and Wonders The Miracles done in Egypt by the hand of Moses their passing therow the Red-Sea as on dry land Moses his fasting forty dayes and forty nights The terrible and dreadful Presence of the Lord on the Mount besides his going before them in a Pillar of Cloud by Day and in a Pillar of Fire by Night And many other Signs and Wonders all confirmed this Ministry given in the hand of Moses Notwithstanding all this and many moe great Signs and Wonders which they saw yet this People rebelled against the Lord and did not walk with him with all their heart but grieved him continually as he complained of them by Moses and afterwards by all his Prophets So that in the fulness of time God sought out another People to bear his Name and turned over the Promises made to Abraham to a spiritual Seed Children

are rendred nearer to the Greek who have spoken to you the Word of God whose faith follow considering the end of their conversation what 's that Jesus Christ the same yesterday and to day and for ever And Vers 17. he bids Obey such Leaders and submit your selves for they watch for your Souls they break their sleep and ease for your Souls as they that must give account that they may do it with joy and not with grief for that is unprofitable for you See they were such men whom the Apostle bids remember and follow and submit to as were of an exemplary Faith and of an exemplary Conversation which had Christ the Meek Lambe of God for the end of it Now such Leaders as these the Lambs are ready to follow and to submit to and obey them that thus go before them leading them by an unblamable Conversation and by the wholesome word of Truth But a Stranger they cannot follow they cannot follow a Proud Man a Scornfull Man an Earthly-minded Man a Deceitfull Man a Lording Spirit that seeks an Earthly Kingdome and Dominion and to have preheminence here Such they cannot follow As they are Babes and Little Children themselves so a Little Childe must lead them And so the Scripture of the Prophets is fulfilled which Prophesying of the Kingdom of Christ saith A Little Childe shall lead them Isa 11.6 One that 's Innocent Humble Meek Lowly in heart like Christ Pure Faithfull Unblamable in his conversation Such a One shall lead and such a One must he be that 's a Leader in the Kingdome of Christ Not a Great pufft up proud Lord. For he by his Example leads quite from the Kingdom of God whither the Lambs are going and leads into the Pomp and Vanities of this present world from which they are flying and against which he made others to promise and vow though he be the forwardest to lead into them How should the Lambs follow such a one judge you and judge as you will be judged Again further The Faith of our Lord Jesus Christ which is the evidence of things not seen and the substance or being of things hoped for This Faith I say is not consistent with Exaltation and Greatnesse and Lordship among the Ministers of Christ Therefore saith Christ Jesus to such How can ye believe who receive honour one of another and seek not the honour that cometh of God only John 5.44 You may see he looks upon such as out of the Faith For observe the ground of it lies thus His Faith or the Faith that he works which is the Faith of his Kingdome is not a dead blind thing such as the Faith of the world is But it is a clear sight Evidence or Demonstration of things not seen even of the things of his Kingdome which the carnall eye sees not nor the bodily eye Now where doth a man come to this Sight or evidence this open view as I may say of things spiritual wherein the Faith of Christs Kingdome consists Christ himself hath told us It is in a Low Place that is in a Low Condition the state of a Little Childe as of one new born And except a man come to this He cannot see the Kingdome of God For while the minde and heart of the Creature is pregnant or filled with desires and affections that are of this world there is no room for things spiritual and eternal to enter Neither doth he obtain the sight of them from the Lord for It 's to Babes that he reveals them Therefore a man must be emptyed and brought down as a Childe before God open to him the Treasures of his Kingdome God hides the things of his Kingdome and keeps them back from the High and Lofty who are big with Wisdome and Prudence and Learning and reveales them unto Babes praised be his Name therefore He replenishes the Humble and Hungry with Good Things but the Rich he sends Empty away The Proud he beholds a farr off his Eye is upon such a one to bring him low and abase him So that as men grow great and high and lift up themselves they go out from the place or condition of seeing the things of the Kingdom of God they go from the condition to which God shews them and to which he gives the evidence and demonstration of them inwardly by his Spirit and so this is to go out from the Faith of Christ which consists in this evidence or sight or demonstration shining into the soul and giving possession of the thing seen unto the soul And therefore how can ye believe who receive Honour one of another and go up into Greatnesse out of the sight of the Kingdom which is Spiritual The lower that the Creature becomes the more capable he is to receive of the Spiritual Treasure and the further he enters into the Kingdom that is Spiritual and not of this World but the higher he grows in this Worlds Pomp and Greatness and Glory the further off he goes from the Faith of Christ So that one may say to such How can ye believe And here we stand upon firm ground in denying the POPE who takes the title of Vniversal Bishop and in denying all other Lording Bishops followers of his steps I say we stand upon firm ground in denying them all as men gone far far far off from the Paths of such Bishops as the Scriptures own and are fallen under the temptation which Satan presented before Christ even the glory of this World And whither then can they lead us by their Example Consider it well The Kingdom of God consists of little Children saith Christ and a little Child must lead them and not such as are great and seek preheminence such are gone out from the Faith and follow the steps of Diotrephes who loved to have the Preheminence that thing which Christ had forbidden 3 Epist Joh. ver 9 10. shews you what he did He began to be a Wolf in the Church of Christ when he had entred into the love of Preheminence And so it must be with those that follow his steps It cannot be otherwise especially now since the Mystery of Iniquity hath formed and founded a Politick Kingdom for their great spirits to rise in in the similitude of the World though under the pretence of Christs Church And so they cannot be Examples to the Flock if they would but must be Devourers thereof The very Mystery that they have given up themselves into will force them to be Devourers and Scatterers of the Flock though some of them may have a pitty arising sometimes in their hearts and would not yet the Mystery of Iniquity is so deeply founded that it carries them on who come into it whether they will or no to help to bear it up against the Lambs of Christ As a Wheel in a Clock is forced on by the motion of other Wheels So it is in this great Mystery And so the Lambs cannot look upon any that manage a

against it and can they do any lesse now For they find it not suitable to that Spirit which they are born again of Judge in your selves by the Light of Christ Jesus and according to the Witnesse of God Is it suitable to the New Covenant a Covenant inwardly written in the heart by the Spirit of the living God in which a Creature is to be led of the Spirit and guided by the Spirit and in which he stands in Communion with God having accesse to God in that Spirit that gives him the feeling of his presence and teaches him what to pray forming in his heart strong desires and earnings after God and his Righteousnesse and forming in him a filial frame of Spirit in which he cryes Abba Father and in which he can draw near unto God as a Father Is it suitable to such a Covenant as this wherein God doth thus set at liberty inwardly his Sons and Daughters and enlarge their priviledges in the Spirit and give them such access to him to worship him in Spirit Judge in your selves is it suitable to this Covenant to annex to it a dead literal formal Common-Prayer-Book the Ministry of which may be performed without any measure of the Spirit of the New Covenant yea by such as are so far off from that Spirit in which the New Covenant and its Ministry stands that they make a mock thereat But the Common-Prayer-Book standing in Opposition to that Spirit which they mock at and despise and stand in opposition to themselves hence both standing in one ground They love it and hug it for being in the same ground that unites Hence it is that the Common-Prayer-Book gets so much affection and approbation from all sorts of debauched and wicked livers they can generally flock to that as to their own for it sprung from that root in which they stand both out of the New Covenant both strangers to the Spirit of God They being dead to the Life of the Spirit and not knowing what it is to be led thereby and it also being dead as to the ministring of the Spirit a dead thing which any dead man may perform and be accepted of by them that impose it though he be a Hater of the wayes of the Spirit of God A Drunkard Swearer Lyar any Prophane Person that hath not tasted of the Gifts of the Spirit of God given for Edification of the Body Yea Scoffers Scorners Deriders at the Spirit such as are so far off from the New Covenant of the Spirit that they taunt and kick at the very owning of the Spirit and blaspheme them that own it as may be proved by several Testimonies Yet such can perform that Ministry of the Common-Prayer-Book because it 's a dead thing suitable to their dead hearts and which they can do in their dead condition and well admit of without disturbing of themselves in their dead condition and can please their dead consciences therewith because it lets them be at rest in the death of sin where they delight to be unwakened under death And so Death is ministred unto by Death and Death delights in Death and the Dead are kept in their Graves by that which is dead As common experience hath daily given testimony For where are they that are awakened out of the death of Sin into the life of the Spirit by that dead thing But it 's even as a long over one asleep to keep them in that sleep It pitties my heart to see what deep Aegyptian Darknesse is upon the Hearts of many who thrust themselves into the Ministry as pretending for CHRIST And yet are so ignorant of the things that pertain to the Kingdome of God as that they understand not by what ability that Ministry is to be upheld But set upon it as in pursuit of an earthly Kingdome to themselves as indeed theirs is and that with such carnal supplies and furniture wherewith they have furnished themselves as any meer carnal Man may have who hath no savour of things spiritual Thou blind man that darest uphold such a dead Service and Worship Dost thou not know that CHRIST JESUS ascended up on high and gave Gifts to men for the work of his Ministry under the New COVENANT And were not all they that did Minister to minister as of that ability which God gave in and by the Spirit as a fruit of CHRISTS Ascention And so were not now to be Ministers of a dead Letter but of the Spirit by ministring to others in the Spirit as the Spirit ministred to them And so as the Covenant is spirituall so is the Ministry spirituall As the Covenant is not a Covenant written in Tables of Stone or Brass or Paper or Wood but in the heart by the spirit so the Ministry must answer it It must be also a Ministry not standing in Books and Writings outwardly read but in Gifts of the same Spirit And this the Apostles held out clearly in their Practice and Doctrine And let the Wisdome of Men reason what it will to the contrary and plead according to its carnal Understanding Yet seeing Christ our Lord and the Mediatour of the New Covenant and Establisher of the Ministry thereof hath appointed that it should be so namely that his Ministry should be performed by the Abilities of the Spirit which he ascended to give We ought therein to rest and not to strive against his Will and Wisdome nor to impose Inventions of men into any part of his Ministry So setting our will against his and our Wisdome against his For so to do is Whoredome of Spirit from Christ its Will-worship Idolatry Stubbornnesse Rebellion and the Prop of Antichrist a Cup of Fornication such as the Nations are made drunk with and upon which the wrath of God will come because of Rebellion therein against his Son Even as his wrath came upon Israel after the flesh for their wilfulnesse in following their own Wisdome and Traditions of other Nations and would not be guided by his Directions then under the First Covenant And their Examples are written for our Admonition If any say to me That Good men and some Martyrs have suffered for the Common-Prayer-Book I Answer I deny not but Good Men and Martyrs have suffered thus far on the behalf of it that is They have testifyed against Service in another tongue which they understood not and so born testimony for the Common-Prayer-Book against the Masse-Book which was in Latine that is as much as to say They have testified for the having it in a known Tongue against the having it in an unknown Tongue And so here was one step forward from the dismall darknesse of Egypt spirituall And their faithfulnesse in that was accepted of God and the rest winked at But now that the true Light makes more still manifest we are to testifie against that which is further opened to be evil in it and to be faithfull to that as they were to what they saw A Tender ADMONITION to

mindes Only take heed of those things that caused many to fall in the way and be not discouraged though Pharaoh seem to pursue you with an Hoste For the Egyptians may be hardened to pursue to their own destruction and to prosecute the Seed as if they would swallow them up Look to him that led you out and hold on your way follow the Pillar of smoke and of fire the Power and presence of God that his wing may be over you and take heed of murmuring at the difficulty of the way as some murmured and perished for Strait is the gate and narrow is the way that leadeth unto Life Take heed of unbelief for that enters not into the Promise It 's Faith that overcomes In that go on and make war with the enemies of your souls that are in the way spare none suffer no secret lust to remain alive in your hearts but let the sword of the Spirit come over them to mortifie and slay them and do not satisfie your selves because you have got into this or that Forme for What will that avail you if you go no further It 's the life and power that the Kingdom of God consists in See that you sit not down short of that Are you come to Truth and Faithfulnesse in your hearts so that the world finding your honest plain faithfull Conversation dare trust you and commit any thing they have to you in assurance that they shall not be defrauded or deceived by you If you be not but live in Covetousnesse and Deceit it s neither your departing from Egypt nor sitting down under any Form whatsoever that will do you any good For you are not yet come to the Kingdome of God which is in Righteousnesse and Truth Are you come to an unblamable conversation before men so that they have nothing justly to charge you with and to a good conscience before God which answers to the Light of the Lord in you and so accuses not Are you come to Mercy and to a tender compassionate heart that delights in it and seeks to save your fellow-creature and not to destroy the life of any but only to deliver it from that which would destroy If not the nature of the Saviour is not yet formed in you Are you come to the Light which lets you see your hearts and all the secret thoughts and intents and purposes of them and to love it and turn to it and follow it Are you come to the New-Covenant to receive the Law of God in the Spirit from Christ the Mediator thereof who is the Lord that Spirit that ministers it and so to hear the word that 's nigh you in the mouth and in the heart Are you come to feel the Anointing abiding in you which keeps you abiding in Christ as you are taught thereby and which discovers to you Seducings and Delusions of that spirit of Antichrist that works to lead you from it Are you come to that inward fellowship and communion with God which the Apostles of the Lamb enjoyed and sought to bring the babes of Christ unto Are you come to feel the vvorking of that Spirit of truth in you vvhich mortifies the deeds of the flesh which would hinder your communion with God Are you come to that spirit that renewes and sanctifies and changes your hearts and casts out the old man with his deeds and brings forth love instead of hatred patience instead of frowardnesse and hastinesse lovvlinesse of minde instead of loftinesse harmlesnesse instead of hurting pitty instead of hard-heartednesse gentlenesse instead of roughnesse faith instead of fear and distrust faithfulnesse instead of guile and deceitfulnesse temperance and sobriety instead of excesse and such like wholsom fruits as these instead of the contrary Are you come to that which thus strikes at Iniquity when it would appear in you and cuts it down and brings forth the contrary Are you come I say to that spirit vvhich is the Root from whence all good fruits do spring which is that good Land which flowes with milk and hony that Promised Land that true Resting-place If you be not come to these things How can you think your selves at a period How can you think that you are come to Canaan spirituall where such fruits as these grow How can you sit down as if you were already got into the good Land Come gird up the loyns of your minde and go forvvard vvith us Let us presse on to perfection having our faces still forward in that Kingdome the Treasures of which have no end And clogg not your selves with the love of this present evill world for that will presse you down and keep you back and be a weight to you Minde the one thing needfull and presse toward the mark of the high-Calling of God in Christ Jesus Will it satisfie you to break off from Egypt if you perish in the Wildernesse and fall short of the promised Land the Land of Peace and Rest even the Promise of the Father The Spirit of Truth the Comforter which leads into all truth and into that righteousness the work of which is peace and the effect of which is quietnesse and assurance for ever Isa 32.17 Will you make that a Possession for ever where you had but a Lodging place as it were for a night or two while the Pillar of smoke and fire stood over it Will you stay behinde the cloudy pillar when it is lifted up and gone forward Will you not go along with the power in which the Kingdom of God stands Doth not the Apostle call out of the Form when the Power is gone Come Let us go forward together not looking back again to Sodom as Lots Wife did who was therefore turned into a Pillar of Salt nor as they did who said Come let us make a Captain and turn back to Egypt whose carcasses therefore fell in the Wildernesse Remember Caleb and Joshua who followed the Lord fully with all their heart whom the Lord therefore set into the Land of Promise who pressed still forward when others began to hang back through fear of the lofty Giants whose Faith follow And take heed of lusting after evill things as they lusted who fell by the way Come down out of all Exaltation from any Form that you are got into be it what it will and come into meeknesse lowlinesse of heart humblenesse of mind gentlenesse in the fear of the Lord and become as Little Chidren for in plainnesse of Speech this is the way that our Captain is gone before us and hath left word for us to follow him in Take my Yoke upon you and learn of me saith he for I am meek and lowly in heart and you shall finde rest for your soules for my yoak is easie and my burthen is light Bear with me in my pleading thus with you For we would not have you lost who have borne the abuses of the world and the fury of a wicked and untoward Generation for Conscience sake Be not weary nor faint in your mindes nor say in your hearts Where is the Promise of his coming for one day is with the Lord as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day In his time he will come and not fail Happy is he that endures to the end waiting for him He shall reap that faints not My Affections are towards you who have seen the great Whores Cup of Fornication and have through sufferings broke off from her with us If you be low enough for our Company we would not lose you Is it not the same God that we presse after Is it not the same fellowship with him inwardly in the soul Is it not the same bread that comes down from Heaven which you would feed upon to the inward satisfaction and content of your souls which is the strength of our hearts and which we feed upon every one in his measure And do you finde it in your Form where you stick If not minde the footsteps of the Flock and which way God hath led them and where he feeds his Lambs and minde that which leads them and must lead you into the fresh Pastures where they finde food which satisfies Let go your partition Walls so as not to bear up your selves in your thoughts above others thereby as the Pharisees did and come into the unity of the Spirit where the everlasting Unity stands and which knits all the members of the body together and even from the highest to the lowest though scattered in many appearances So that our bounds lye not in form but in the spirit and where we feel the life If the Kingdome which you seek be not of this world but of another that 's invisible if it be within not without then you must come to that inward guide to lead you into that inward and invisible Kingdom which leads out of the things that unite you to the world namely the lusts of the flesh the lusts of the eyes and the pride of life and him must you follow out of these things into the Kingdom Call that Guide by what name you will Wisdom as Solomon did or the Light which enlightens every man that comes into the world or the Spirit or what other name soever it is named by in the Scriptures That you must obey and follow out of that which defiles and corrupts into that which is pure and holy and eternal For without holinesse no man shall see God nor come to have fellowship with him THE END