Godhead is dead because thou saist it is revealed in every man so then if that spirit in that body be not Christ without that body but both body and spirit make that man Christ Jesus And thou ownest salvation by that spirit onely without that body thou ownest not salvation by Christ O Jeffery why wilt thon deny the Lord that hath bought thee with his own blood and bring upon thy self destruction for the Godhead dyed not as I have told thee but that body was made a curse by dying that cursed death upon the Tree to take off the curse from them that believe that sacrifice for sin which was a sweet smelling savour to the Lord. By which body offered up he hath for ever perfected them that are sanctified which sacrificed body and offered up bloud if thou reject how canst thou have thy cursed sins pardoned thy defiled conscience purged for without shedding of bloud there is no remission But I will tell thee my Faith I do own salvation cometh alone by that man Christ Jesus the only Son of God who was born of that Espoused Virgin Mary who was Crucified at Jerusalem by which cursed death he did there make an attonement for all and full satisfaction to God the Father for the sins of all that believe in him from the heart and obey his holy will revealed in his word the holy Scriptures of truth that are able to make the man of God wise unto salvation 1 Pet. 2.24 Heb. 10.14 Joh. 20.31 Mat. 7.24,25 Gal. 3.13 I could mind thee with many more Scriptures if thou wouldst hearken thereunto The holy Spirit of God I own and esteem for it is that which First made me to see into my sins and my cursed estate by sin according as is made known in the Scriptures of truth 2ly It did shed the love of God abroad in my soul how that Christ had dyed for my sins 3ly He did help me to lay hold upon the hope set before me without whose help I can do nothing 4ly He did work in my Soul a cruel hatred against all known sins in thoughts words and works 5ly He did work in my Soul a great love to my God and to his Son Jesus to his Children to all known good in words and works in my self and others 6ly He did assure me of redemption of my soul and forgiveness of my sins through the bloud of my Lord Jesus that was shed upon the Cross for me 7ly He did seal home the promises of Eternal Glory to my Sonl promised in the Scriptures of truth to the Sons of God 8ly He did work in my Soul holy reformation and godly resolutions to do and obey whatever my God shall make known unto me to be his will and mind by his spirit and word the Scriptures and that unto death 9ly It did fill my Soul with praises to the God of my life night and day praising him in the spirit admiring his love to my soul in redeeming it with so great a price as the blood of his own Son 10ly The holy spirit did also comfort me and quicken me and made me greatly to rejoyce with Joy unspeakable and full of Glory the which spirit of my God still is with me and giveth me that peace no man can take from me by whose help my desire is to my God I might still be preserved and hold fast the precious faith which I have attained through the Grace of God and my Lord Jesus Christ until he shall come in flaming fire to render vengeance upon the wicked and punish with everlasting destruction from his presence them that obey not the Gospel of Christ and be admired of them that believe Thomas Manning This Testimony of mine is owned by God the Father by his Son Jesus by the holy Spirit by the holy Scriptures by the holy Prophets by the holy Apostles Thou provest thine by two of thine own Friends God the Father I know his Son Jesus I know his holy Spirit I know the holy Scriptures I know to be the mind and will of God but who these thy Witnesses be I know not but if they be Angels come from Heaven if they despise the blood of my Lord Jesus Christ or declare any thing contrary to his will revealed in the Scriptures of truth I do not own them Thomas Manning I received thy paper and thou saist as soon as thou hadst looked on a few words thou saidst thou soon espied my subtilty Friend I had no subtilty in my heart but I plainly wrote the things I own thou askest me how I can prove Christ in that body to be Christ without that body I can prove it both by Pauls testimony and also by the same spirit of God the which Paul did prove it by who told the Corinthians the Fathers drank of the Rock that followed them and that Rock was Christ and he also told the Colossians that the mystery which had been hid from ages and generations past was Christ within the hope of glory and also Christs visible appearance came in that present age but his invisible appearance had been hid from ages and generations past for Christ was with his Church in the Wilderness Again thou saist that body and spirit in that body maketh that man Christ Jesus Now the spirit in that body was the Godhead and thou saist that the Godhead dyed not and thou speakest true for so say I so then it was only that part which the Holy Ghost took from the woman the which died and not the Godhead which both was and is the spirit of God for it was God and the Woman that made the visible man Christ for he was made of a Woman made under the Law as saith the Scripture for Mary she knew no visible man Now cursed be that spirit that shall deny the blood of Christ or the end for which Christs body was offered up and blood was shed for I do believe that all the world were reconciled to God by the death of his Son and that all men were freed from their outward offerings for sin by that one offering and that after the shedding of the blood of that visible man Christ upon the Cross there was to be no more outward killing the sacrifice nor yet shedding of blood for remission of sins But this was not the flesh and the blood which Christ speaks of when he was upon the earth when he said He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood he dwelleth in me and I in him and he was then upon the earth as a man like one of us sin only excepted when he spake these words So Friend if thou knowest no other body nor blood to feed upon but that which dyed and was shed out of Christs body without the gates of Jerusalem thy Soul may perish for all the knowledge which thou hast of the Scriptures Now Christ in the days of his flesh exhorted people to believe in the Light and to bring their deeds
to the Light that so they might be made Children of the Light for he knew that they were Children of the Darkness and God he is Light and shews unto man his thoughts who said look unto me all yea ends of the earth and be saved and some of these words were spoken by the Lord in his Prophets before Christs body came into the world and the same that ever was the Saviour now is and not another for God is not changed neither is his salvation changed Again thou saist thou know est the Father and thou knowest the Son the holy Spirit Friend consider well what thou hast written and let Gods Spirit in thee try thy words whether thou hast thy knowledge of God and his Son and holy Spirit in and from the Spirit of Revelation for Christ saith no man knows the Father save the Son and he to whom the Son reveals him and Paul saith it pleased God to reveal his Son in him so then there is no true saving knowledge of neither Father nor Son but in and through the Spirit of Revelation so consider and let Gods witness judge in thee whether thy knowledge stands in the Light or in the Letter in the mystery or in the history in the word or in the words the which were given forth from the word for the words were given forth in time from the word which was before time was And so remember what the Jews said to Christ who had the Scriptures before the Gentiles how they said that they were Abrahams Children and God was their Father and they were Moses his Disciples and that God spake to Moses But they speaking concerning Christ said as for this fellow we know not whence he is and these were the blind professing Jews who had the Scriptures but they had neither heard the voice of God at any time nor yet seen his shape as Christ in plain words tells them and yet how great was their boasting and all this while they had but a blind zeal for a vail of thick darkness was over their minds and understandings Again thou saist the holy Scriptures thou knowest to be the mind and will of God then thy soul and mind and understanding they must be in the mystery and spirit of God which gave forth the Scriptures and if it be so with thee then I would desire thee to tell me these following questions 1. What is Eden and where is it and what was the Garden wherein God walked 2. What is the tree of knowledge and where it is and what is the fruit it bears and from whence doth the fruit come and what is that which feeds upon the fruit which the tree of knowledge bears and what were the eyes that were open in Adam and Eve after sin and transgression by them were committed And what were the Books which are to be opened and how many Books to be opened and what is the Vail which Paul speaks of which is to be done away and what is the enmity which God hath put betwixt the Woman and the Serpent Jeffery Bullock Friend Pauls Ministry stood in the Spirit and not in the Letter and he desired only to know Christ according to the spirit but not after the flesh for that which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the spirit is spirit as saith the spirit of God This following was given me from the Quakers to subscribe which I refused to do for reasons inserted FOr the clearing of the precious truth of God professed by us his people called Quakers from the occasion of reproach and stumbling given by Jeffery Bullock his pernicious doctrine in affirming That he neither expects Justification nor Condemnation by that Christ that dyed or was put to death at Jerusalem These are to certifie all Friends and Friendly people whom it may concern that we testifie against this Doctrine as stated by him as both pernicious and Antichristian and contrary to plain Scripture and the constant testimony faithfully born amongst us from the beginning for neither do we profess and preach two Christs nor yet own Justification by any other Christ or in any other Name but by and in the Name of that very one Christ of God to whom the holy Prophets and Apostles gave witness in the scriptures of truth who was miraculously conceived by the Holy Ghost overshadowing the Virgin Mary and was Crucified and put to death in the flesh without the Gates of Jerusalem but quickned by the Spirit whom God raised from the dead 1 Pet. 3.18 We must confess with the holy Apostles that even by him to wit that very Christ all that believe are justified from all things from which they could not be justified by the Law of Moses Acts 13.30,39 and that remission of sins Justification and Salvation as then preacht in the name of the same Lord Jesus Christ and by his Eternal power and spirit of God so the same is constantly believed and witnessed amongst us And although the best fense that we can suppose or gather as aimed at by the said Jeffery Bullock is that it is not only by the suffering and death of Christ nor by a mere literal knowledge of him as after the flesh that men can be either compleatly justified or saved from sin and death any more then the Apostles or primitive Christians were but by his life spirit and power operating in them And so by a living and spiritual knowledge of Christ as after the Spirit which though the truth of this we cannot but own and justifie yet this cannot excuse the aforecited Doctrine as laid down which denies both Justification and Condemnation by that Christ that dyed for that supposeth another Christ for that end and so two Christs And therefore the said J. B. ought to see his error and call back and recant of his words which have given occasion of stumbling in Sudbury Whereas the very Christ the Son of God is but one though he hath often and variously manifested himself from the beginning as both before he came in the flesh and in the fulness of time in the flesh viz. that body that was prepared for him to do the will of his Father in and since in spirit for the everlasting comfort and salvation of all them who believe in his name and power which by his divine Light within is livingly revealed And we confess that this Son of God our Saviour Jesus Christ our Lord was made of the Seed of David according to the flesh and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the spirit of holyness by the resurrection from the dead Rom. 1.3,4 And that that very Christ that came of Israel as concerning the flesh is God over all God blessed for ever Rom. 9.5 So that he is truly and inseparably God and Man according to the Scripture And even that very Christ who was crucified and slain hath God lifted up with his right hand to be a Prince
And that Giles Barnardistons Wife did tell Dr. Bucher further that the blasphemy that I held she trembled to hear it This Dr. Bucher told me so I rest your Friend Jeffery Bullock Friends What you have written in contradiction to my words it is both Romish and Antichristian Doctrine and contrary to the Scriptures of truth and form of sound words For it is no where written in the Scriptures that we shall be either justified or condemned by that Christ which dyed without the Gates of Jerusalem but it is written by Grace ye are saved and by Grace ye are justified and it is also written by the Light of the world ye are condemed and not by Christ that dyed without the Gates of Jerusalem Now that there is two Christs it is plain according to the Scriptures for there is both the true Christ and Antichrist Now Christs visible appearance among the Jews he was called Christ who through the eternal spirit in offering up his body he ended all the visible dispensations among the Jews but it was Gods invisible appearance throughout all ages the which brought unto the Sons and Daughters of men salvation to their Souls and he is called Christ within the hope of glory and the mystery that had been hid from ages and generations past Now the Prophets they did foresee the coming of that body which was the Son of God who was to be the end of all those bodily sacrifices by which the Jews did expect remission of sins Now the same God that raised up Lazarus when he was dead and also raised up Jesus or the body of Jesus do I own to be both my God and Saviour Now as concerning the Law of Moses it did not at all belong to the Gentiles but the Gentiles were justified by the Law written in their hearts and so must we or else we must be condemned for the Law made nothing perfect as to the Jews who had a command for it therefore the Gentiles could have no advantage by it who had no command for the observing of it but on the contrary they were reproved by Paul for observing the Jewish Ceremonies but where the Dispensations began there they also ended Now we do no where read of the name Christ before that visible appearance came into the world but God said look unto me all ye ends of the earth and be saved for I am be that shews unto man his thoughts and he did not bid them look unto him that was to come and this was God who prepared a body for himself the which was the Son of God by generation from God and as a Son he was obedient to the will of his Father even unto the death Now Christ he neither came of David nor yet of Israel not according to the flesh not as to his outward appearance as he was a visible man but he came of David and Israel both according to the spirit and this is the spirit whom God hath exalted both as a Prince and a Saviour first as a Prince to manifest his power to condemn both man and woman because of their sin and rebellion and disobedience against him and secondly as a Saviour both to redeem them and justifie them and also to save them if they come to have their minds turned to him and to believe in him and obey him for the Virgin Mary knew no visible but now far be it from me and cursed be that spirit that shall undervalue the sufferings death and blood of that holy just and innocent Lamb of God but yet I do not believe that ever any were redeemed from sin or purified cleansed purged sanctified or saved by that visible body that dyed or blood which was shed without the Gates of Jerusalem Now Paul he that was the Apostle of the Gentiles he defired to know no Christ after the flesh Now the Jews in the days of Christs flesh said that they were Moses his Disciples but as for this fellow we know not whence he is Now in the Apostles dayes there was certain Pharisees that had believed who taught the Brethren that except they were circumcised and kept the Law of Moses they could not be saved Acts 15. Now the Church of Rome saith that we must be justified and also saved by that Christ that dyed at Jerusalem and so saith the Priests of England and so also saith the body of the Quakers And Friends Antichrist he strives to bring in his Doctrine and also to be head over all those invisible appearances that comes from God but the spirit of truth saith that Condemnation Justification Redemption and Sanctification and Salvation it is by God alone who is Light and sheweth unto man his thoughts Now Pauls testimony was in the spirit and not in the letter but the Pharisees the life of their testimony it was in the Letter or Law of Moses who with their Doctrine bewitched the Churches and led them into errour as you may read Paul to the Galatians and also to the Corinthians how he tells them that Satan was transformed in his Ministers for the Book of the Scriptures both was and is the fruit which the tree of knowledge bears both in their days and also in ours they being opened by the spirit of truth Friends it behoves us all to look to our standing for Antichrist is already come in amongst us and Satan is already transformed into an Angel of Light amongst some of our Ministers as certainly as ever he was amongst the false teachers in the Apostles days and if you will not believe what I have written then mind well the writing of those Brethren which call themselves the Eleven Elders to the Churches called Quakers and see if they do not put themselves into equal power and authority with God Friends first the form and then Antichrist appears in the form but if there be no conformity to the form then there is no unity to be enjoy'd with them that uphold the form So Friends my dear love is remembred unto you all who expect life and salvation from God who is Light and is invisible and not from any visible appearances although they were good in their time I have written you an answer to a paper that was given me by Giles Barnardiston in short and I have also sent you another more at large The Answer from the quarterly meeting at Ipswich the 28 th of the first Month 1676. In the Quarterly Meeting the papers sent by Jeffery Bullock of Sudbury were publickly read and the meeting of Friends did unanimously own the paper given thee by Giles Barnardiston and also subscribed by other Friends to be sound and according to the Scriptures and Doctrine of truth held forth by us but as to thine in answer to it the whole Meeting did unanimously judge it to be erronious and contradictory to it self and full of Confusion and Darkness and thy spirit manifest to be wrong Given forth from the Quarterly Meeting to be sent to Jeffery
Bullock in Sudbury I do disown my self to be a Member of the visible Church called Quakers for these particular reasons and causes following neither do I desire to have unity nor to seek to have peace with the Church in those actions wherein they set up themselves as Judges among or above their Brethren as the Eleven Elders called Quakers have done First I disown all superiority of men Ministers or Elders in the Churches called Quakers or any who assume Authority to themselves above the rest of the Members to judge and determine things in matters of conscience the which thing only belongs to God in every one 's own particular 2. I disown my self to be a member of that Body or Church which saith He that is not justified by the witness of God in Friends is condemn'd by it in himself 3. Which saith That none are to Minister or Preach but such as are reconciled to the Church and have the approbation of the Elders and Members 4. Again I do disown both the censures and judgement of that body or Church who look upon themselves that they have both a right and power to judge of errours and yet have not power to convince the parties of their errors before they pass judgement upon them for those things which they call errors for Christ he convinceth both man and woman of their evils before he either judgeth them or condemneth them for their evils 5. Again I do disown my self to be a Member of that Church who will not admit me to take the liberty of my Conscience in matters of Doctrine and Principles in the Worship of God the outward life and conversation that being blameless and I being satisfied in my own conscience that the thing is both right and true which I do own 6. I disown my self to be a Member of that Church who will not admit me to believe and speak what God by his Spirit makes manifest in me for the Articles of your Church Faith and Belief they are concealed from me so that in plain English words with sense I cannot them neither read nor understand so that I question whether this practice of the Church doth not surpass plain Popery for they have given forth the Articles of their Faith as concerning Doctrine 7. I disown the resurrection of the power or the arising of the Seed or God in man or that ever the Seed or God was either in Captivity or Bondage or that it was ever lost or that the Light in man was ever blinded or the Image of God defaced or that the Seed hath been under the corrupt heart of man or that ever Darkness were over it or that ever God lost his Kingdom in man as he was in himself 8. Again I disown that to be any true Ministry for God who in their declaration do exhort both Friends and other people to come to a sense and to wait in a sense and to abide in a sense and continue in a sense for God is not a sense neither is his spirit a sense for the senses are things that were made by the power of God and in the power which made them they are to be exercised and so such Doctrine it is not only unsound but it is contrary to the Scriptures and also the spirit of truth and form of sound words for it is old Antichrists Doctrine the which Sathan brought in among his Ministers in this long night of Apostacy among the Gentiles when the Churches lost the injoyment of the Grace Manifestation or Revelation of the Spirit of God then they preached from a light and a sense for the Beasts of the Field they have both senses and knowledge and what preheminence hath a man above a Beast if he be not in God that made him for all things the which a man enjoys below the Light they are accompanied both with vanity and also vexation of Spirit for there is no other God Saviour Angel nor Spirit to be known in and amongst the Sons of Men but the Light that shews unto man his thoughts besides the Spirit and Power of Darkness and what God made in man in the day of his first Creation 9. Also I disown my self to be a Member of that Church who are gone from Christ the Light of the world within them the power which God revealed from Heaven in this our age and generation wherein alone Life and Salvation Justification and Condemnation is to be known and are returned back again to the professors Christ and Saviour who dyed without the Gates of Jerusalem who make it their work to declare against all salvation both by God and Christ the Light within the which the professors of this our age and time do 10. I disown all yoaks of bondage dictates or impositions whatsoever I disown your printing of several Books and imposing them upon all Friends Meetings throughout this Nation and enjoyning them to take them off a thing that I never heard of before amongst any people 11. I disown your enjoyning one Friend to match with another Friend or else you will not admit them to come together whenas God hath made all Nations of one blood and so remember that Moses took an Ethiopian woman to wife contrary to the command of God and yet God justified him for it and he also condemned both Aaron and Miriam for speaking against Moses for so doing Again the two Sons of Naomy they either of them took a Moabitish woman to wife and I never read they were reproved for their so doing and Ruth she proved a good woman So Friends I leave you to the witness of God that is in you for I little thought that ever Antichrist would have appeared with such an old Vizard as to raise up a body of Judges among us Quakers in matters of Religion and Conscience whenas we had suffered so much already by outward Judges because we made use of the liberty of our Consciences in the things of God Friends a thing which was never practiced among the primitive Christians Friends 1. What is the Tree of knowledge as it is in it self and what is the fruit it bears and from whence doth the fruit come and what is that which feeds upon it seeing it is desirable to make one wise and whether the fruit be all the same now as it was in the beginning 2. What was the Eden wherein the first man Adam was placed and what was the Garden wherein God walked after Transgression entred when he spake to Adam in the cool of the day 3. What is the Enmity which God put between the Woman and the Serpent and between his Seed and her Seed and what was or is the Woman 4. What was the Man that was drove out from God into the Earth because of Transgression seeing the visible body did remain in the visible Creation after his transgression as visible as it did before 5. What is the Image of God or what is the Soul of Man for there