A MESSAGE FROM THE Spirit of Truth UNTO All the World Let all that pant come and all that thirst come and all that mourn come for the Lord waits to shew Mercy By WILLIAM SMITH LONDON Printed for Robert Wilson in the Year 1663. A Message from the Spirit of Truth unto all the World O Ye People who have many Shepherds set over you and many Teachers heaped up amongst you and yet lie scattered up and down as sheep without a shepherd and are driven from mountain to hill where you neither get bread nor water Have you not heard some of them many years and followed them many dayes and yet your souls want satisfaction What is become of all your money that you spent upon them and to what purpose is all your labour in following them are not your burdens yet upon you and do not your sins remain within you and are you not in the Land where famine pinches you and doth your faith perswade you that there is no relief for you Is darkness so thick that nothing can remove it are the chains thereof so strong that they cannot be broken is sin so natural that you cannot forsake it are vain customs so prevalent that you cannot deny them are your eyes so shut that they cannot be opened are your ears so stopped that they cannot be made to hear are your hearts so hardened that they cannot be broken are you so far alienated from God that you cannot be converted are you so much defiled that you cannot be cleansed and healed Is this the faith wherein ye stand then woful will it be in the end thereof for the end of this faith will not be salvation to your souls but wo and eternal misery for with God all things are possible and there is no want of power in Christ to subject all the powers of darkness but there is want of true love in you to his Light and Power within you and therefore it is that your sins remain and your burdens lie heavy upon you that your eyes are not opened nor your ears unstopped nor your hearts converted and healed this is the ground of your misery and the cause of your grief and trouble because you hearken not to the Word of Life nor yeeld your selves to obey its counsel How often hath God tendered his Love unto you and how often hath his Compassion broken towards you but how have you kicked against his Reproof and have not hearkened when he hath spoken and yet you say you want power to overcome corruptions and to get victory over sin and because it is so with you therefore you are perswaded that there is no help for it in this life but so it must be whilst you live upon the Earth Is not this your faith and are you like to get victory over sin and to be eased of your burdens whilst you give way unto darkness that leads you into sin and yet you say you strive as much as you can to keep out of it and feeling something in you that strives against it yet notwithstanding you feel it prevail over you therfore you are perswaded that it can never be otherwise whilst you are in the body and so you say the flesh is weak and subject to failings and haltings and whilst you are in the body sin will be creeping in though you endeavour what you can against it and so it is and therefore you must come to the Spirit of God in your selves that beareth witness against the flesh and testifieth that the deeds thereof are evil for the flesh is weak and in the flesh there dwells no good thing and whilst you live in the flesh you cannot resist the fleshly motions but will be captivated by them and burdened with them but the Spirit of God in strong and able to subdue the lusts of the flesh and to mortifie all your corruptions and to breake down the body of sin and death under which you lye groveling and bowed down in sorrow pain and wo for whilst the flesh liveth and you live in it and walk after it you are under the Spirits condemnation for every motion of the flesh is contrary to the Spirit and by the lustings of the flesh the Spirit is quenched and greived and here you cannot be free from the Spirits reproof nor the Judgment of it for the Spirit condemns the lusts of the flesh and riseth in Judgment against every motion of it for being contrary one to the other there can be no agreement between them and therefore you may know that when you are reproved you are joyned to the flesh and obeying the motions of it and there the Spirit strives with you and checks and reproves you that you might not so swiftly run in the fleshly liberty which increaseth your misery and herein the love of God is commended to you in that he strives with you by his Spirit to stop your way in which you run after the motions of the flesh and by his Spirit he calls unto you in every reproof and is there not that in you that lets you see that you should not sin against God and grieve him Object If you say Yea but we know not how it can be otherwise we strive and endeavour as much as we can but we are subject to failings and though we do see that we should not commit such things as sometimes we do yet we want power to resist and overcome them Answ Now consider Why is it that you want power to resist and overcome Is it not because you joyn not to the Spirit which makes the Evil manifest for when the Spirit lets you see that the motions of the flesh tempt you to evil then you are not to yeeld your selves to the motions of the flesh but to the motion of the Spirit and so not to serve the flesh but the Spirit for unto which you yeeld your selves servants to obey you are a servant to it and by yeelding to the motions of the flesh you are a servant to it and there is your failings and your sin committed for in the flesh dwells no good thing it is the proness to evil and whilst flesh lives and you live in it your thoughts words and deeds are evil continually and though you may feel some strivings against the Evil and many times come under such Judgment that you say I will never do such things again yet not joyning with the Spirit to overcome the evil you want power to pay your vows unto God And is it not a sad thing that when you have sinned and that Judgment overtakes you and in the sence of Judgment you promise never to do the like again and yet do not pay your vows unto God but are found committing the same things again and that with as much greediness as ever do you not here break your Vow and sin against the Spirit that makes you sensible that you should do so no more and so add sin to sin first by
committing evil secondly by promising and not performing Now seeing your own striving and endeavouring and promising doth all fall short of performing and that you want power in your selves to overcome the evil that is present and so lie groaning under it and burthened with it and whilst the flesh liveth and corruption standeth it cannot be otherwise therefore you must come to the Spirit which is holy which is harmless undefiled and separate from sin in which is no sin and you must not quench it and grieve it by disobedience but unto every Repoof yeeld your selves and ponder seriously what it meaneth Art thou reproved by the Spirit then stand still and ponder it in thy heart What doth this mean am I doing that which is just and right or am I amiss and by standing still and pondering seriously what is meant by the Reproof thou wilt hear the express voice of the Spirit tell thee that thou art in the evil and thou must turn from it and forsake it and deny thy self and take up Cross This is the Spirit 's voice in thee and the Spirit is Truth Now when thou findest these things so hearken diligently to the Spirit there is thy Teacher and being willing to hear and obey the Spirit then thy soul will come to find life in the Spirit and so thou wilt begin to feel the Spirit 's power to draw thee to lead thee to teach thee to instruct thee and to strengthen thee by which thou wilt come to know that thy strength is in the Spirit and so thou coming to the Spirit which hath striven with thee and yeelding thy self to the drawings and leadings of it then thou wilt know the Spirit 's work in its own power and wilt feel it strive over the motions of the flesh and give thee strength to overcome them and so all thy own strivings and endeavours will come into silence by the power of the Spirit and the Spirit will condemn sin in the flesh and manifest its own life in thy mortal body and then thou wilt know That as sin hath reigned unto death even so Righteousness reigneth unto life by Jesus Christ Mark here is an overcoming Righteousness reigns unto life by Jesus Christ and that which reigns is in dominion it hath overcome and got the victory and so it is the power of Christ that overcomes the wicked one in thee therefore joyn to the power of Christ in every Reproof thou wilt find that whatsoever he doth reprove in thee by his power he will by the same power crucifie it for thee and so redeem thee out of all iniquity transgression and sin and set thee free from thy burdens with which thou art oppressed and here thou wilt feel Christ to do that which thou couldest not do for thy self nor any other for thee and then thou wilt know that the same which reproves thee for sin is thy Saviour from it and thy Redeemer out of all iniquity and as thou comest unto him and believest in him he will not cast thee off therefore let not thy sins withhold thee from coming to Christ for thou art he that he seeks And who hath more need to come unto him than thou hast it is thou that art diseased it is thou that art sick and therefore thy need is greatest of a Physician and thy wounds have most need of cure and what else can heal thee and cure thee but Christ the power of God and therefore his compassion is towards thee though thou art a sinner he would not have thee die and perish but would have thee come to him that thou mightest be healed and saved for he comes to save the world and not to destroy it and if thou diest in thy sins thy destruction is of thy self For Christ is not wanting in his love to manifest thy sins unto thee and to reprove thee but if thou art rebellious against him and wilt not come unto him then thou forsakest thy own mercies and thereby destroyest thy self therefore mind the Light with a careful eye and take heed unto it and thou wilt see thy Salvation to be in it and so know from whence thy Salvation cometh and there will be thy stop and cross to thine own way all thy hearts lusts will be crossed thy evil thoughts words and deeds will be all stopped and crossed by the Power of Christ and it will mortifie the flesh and all the deeds of it and here thou wilt feel Christ to give thee power over the world the flesh and the Devil and every motion of the flesh in its first rise thou wilt have strength in the power of Christ to beat it down and subdue it and so in the Power thou wilt know the daily Cross to thy will to thy wisdom to thy reason to thy corruptions to thy vanities to thy mirth to thy pleasures to thy customs to thy formalities to thy traditions to thy vain worship and whatsoever hath its rise and being from the motions of the flesh the Power of Christ will cross that nature and destroy it and so bring thee into death and all thy lovers with thee and crucifie all down together and here thou wilt feel the power strike over thy filthiness and thy own righteousness and stain the pride of the glory of flesh then in the power thy change being wrought and thou coming into union and fellowship with the Power thy strength will be renewed in God and his Commands will not be grievous to thee for whatsoever he doth require of thee he will give thee strength to perform it and so thou wilt know that the same which requireth the same gives strength to perform what is required and how canst thou then want strength and power when thou art joyned to Christ the Power of God who is greater and stronger than the power of darkness Wilt thou complain for want of strength and want of power and wilt thou now say I would do this or the other but I cannot I have no strength I have no power Oh nay if thou art come to Christ the Power of God thou wilt feel him to be greater in thee than he that is in the world and by faith in his Power thou wilt know that all things are possible for if Christ was not the greatest and strongest the Creation could never be restored nor the soul redeemed out of the fall but Christ is the greatest and Christ is the strongest for he is the first and he is the last therefore with him all things are possible and though in thy own eye some things may seem impossible yet with him it is possible who works and none can let it therefore whatsoever weakness is upon thee and that thou canst not overcome those things that do burthen thee Be not faithless but believe and look to Christ who is sufficient to help thee and relieve thee for thy weakness is want of faith and so thou staggerest at the Promises and appearances of
Christ and if he utter his voice within thee and say unto thee Turn unto me and live thou canst not believe that it is he and so the flesh vaileth thee and imbondageth thee by the secret working of the Mystery of Iniquity for now people cry How are we in bondage to the things that If I could tell what to do I would never go to the Worship that now is observed it is such a bondage to me and such a burden upon me that it makes me to mourn under it but what shall I do the Law requires it and I want strength to stand against it I would willingly deny it if I could do it and not come into sufferings but I must either do it or else I shall bring my self into trouble Now consider What is it that convinceth thee that the present Worship is not in the Truth and what is it that is burthened with it and would be free from it and what is it that reasoneth for safety and cannot deny it Read this distinction and then thou wilt plainly see that thou createst thy own bondage by giving way to thy own reason for that which manifests the Worship to be out of the Truth that is the Light of Christ and that which is burthened with it that is the Righteous Seed of God but that which reasons for safety that is the flesh and thou entering into conference with flesh and blood 〈◊〉 goest from Christ the Power of God and so thou hast neither strength nor power to deny and separate from that which is the burthen of the Seed and then thou seekest out excuses in thy reason and something will be taking care for Wife Children and Estate and the things of this life and reason will be ready to say If I should deny and separate I should be deprived of my Liberty and lose my Estate and so become a sufferer and I had better undergo the burthen than expose my self to suffering and though I do conform yet my mind not agreeing in performance I hope it will not be charged upon me as sin Oh! take heed for this is a greater danger then the danger of suffering or loss of thy estate for if thou by such reasoning think to save thy own life thou losest life eternal and that will be a greater loss unto thee then the loss of all things in this world and therefore let not such things prevail over thee for they will imbondage thee and cause thee to go heavily and if thou love any thing more than Christ thou art not worthy of him therefore thou must deny all for him and count nothing too dear to offer up which he requires of thee but let Husband and Wife go and Children go and House and Land go to follow Christ and yet love thy Wife and Husband and Children in their places and use thy House and Land in their places for in their places they are good and comfortable but if they lye in thy way for following Christ and that thereby thou art hindered for answering his requirings then they are sad and miserable and so they are to be denied and not otherwise And here thou wilt find strength and power present with thee and wilt be made willing to deny and separate from that Worship which thou art convinced is out of the Truth and which is thy burthen to observe if thou take heed to the Light and Power of Christ in thee it will open thy eye to look over a Prison or Estate or the nearest things that are unto thee it will let thee see that which is beyond them all a glorious Inheritance that never fades away a Kingdom that hath no end and therefore obey the Spirit of God in thy own conscience bow unto it there is the true Worship a Worship in the Spirit a Worship in the Truth worship God there all ye that desire to serve him And if you say Thus we would do but we want strength and we want power to do it Ans Oh cast away all your reasons and wait in simplicity and the Spirit will help you therefore come to the Spirit whosoever thou art and what condition soever thou art in if thy sins burthen thee come to the Spirit to ease thee if thy Worship burden thee come to the Spirit for strength to deny it and then thou wilt have power over all thy reasonings and all thy fears and all thy doubtings for the Spirit will help thee in thy greatest straits it will be thy strength in weakness it will comfort thee in feebleness and what is it that the Spirit will not do for thee if thou love it and come unto it I tell thee from true experience that it will do so much for thee as thou needst do nothing for thy self but stand still and eye the movings of the Spirit and so yeeld thy self to its drawings and leadings then it will save thee from sin and redeem thee out of iniquity it will ease thee of thy burdens and set thee free in the liberty of its own life and this is the work of God's Spirit which saveth by its Grace and therefore thy strength is to stand still and believe in the Spirit and in so doing thou wilt neither want strength nor power to overcome whatsoever corruptions do imbondage thee but the Spirit will release thee and give thee dominion to reign and rejoyce over thy enemies which have reigned and rejoyced over thee And now ye that are panting and hungring after the living Refreshment come ye also to the Spirit that ye in the Spirit may be comforted for God regardeth your breathings and your tenderness is before him therefore be not ye afraid to come because ye are weak and because ye are feeble and because ye see some failings and so mourn at the sight of them and judge your selves unworthy to come O let not these things discourage you but come though weak come though feeble come though thou seest some failings it is the Spirit must give thee strength it is the Spirit must give thee comfort it is the Spirit must overcome thy failings therefore come and delay not and as thou comest unto it then deny thy self and follow it and let not thy eye look any other way nor to any other thing so in the living Spirit thou wilt worship the living God who is a Spirit and there thou wilt feel his presence his virtue and goodness and that will answer thy breathings and satisfie thy hungrings and through the nourishment of the Spirit thou wilt grow in the Spirit and live in the Spirit and then there is no condemnation unto thee Therefore let every one come to the Spirit and be saved for the Lord waits to shew mercy He is pulling down the birth of the flesh and raising up the birth of his Seed and he is dear and tender over it wheresoever it breathes and therefore to the babe he saith come and to the poor and needy he saith come I will in no wise cast thee off and as this is his voice to the babe of Innocency even so he saith to the worker of Iniquity Depart from me I know thee not And here is a distinction in the Invitation unto the true birth he saith Come unto the false birth he saith Depart Therefore let the wicked forsake his way and the worker of iniquity depart from his iniquity then let the babe of Innocency draw nigh and come for thou art the babe which is tendered and therefore come in the drawings of the Spirit and drink of the Water of Life freely for the Fountain is open unto thee that thou mayest be refreshed nourished and comforted in the power of an endless life which hath compassion upon thee in mercy and loving-kindness And now all people hear the Spirits voice obey its teachings yeeld to its drawings and so come to the Church in the Spirit the Ministry in the Spirit the Worship in the Spirit the Unity in the Spirit and so serve God in the Spirit in which there is no condemnation and there the good Shepherd will lead you and his voice you will know from the voice of strangers therefore hearken and obey This is your day come yea let it be now and put it not off to another time for delays are dangerous and by delayes you may lose the time that now is and so lose your peace and happiness for ever therefore let the World go Pleasures go Will-worship go and come to the Spirit walk in the Spirit and live in the Spirit then no division any more but one heart one mind and one soul in one Seed of Life which is blessed for ever in which the Saints have communion together and in which true love peace and concord aboundeth where there is no more twain but one new man in Christ who reconcileth all things by himself and so maketh peace unto whom all come that of his Life you may be born without which ye can never enter into the Kingdom therefore come to Christ the saving health of all Nations the chief Shepherd and Bishop of the soul whose pastures are fresh and green whose invitations are full of love Oh let it win you let it draw you and overcome you that by his Power ye may be saved and by his Virtue ye may be healed and so inherit everlasting Life to your souls comfort without which you can never be happy neither here nor hereafter therefore consider it seriously the matter is weighty THE END