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spirit_n	ghost_n	holy_a	john_n	17,081	5	6.2026	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A47400	A discovery of some troublesome thoughts Wherewith many godly precious souls are burthened, and extreamly pressed: that like a canker eats out all their comforts, and keeps their souls under continuall fears and distractions. Together with a compound of some Scripture and experimentall cordials, for the refreshing of those who are sick of such a disease; and through the blessing of God, may prove medicinall, to the cure of some, and the comforting of others. By Daniel King, preacher of the Word.	King, Daniel, preacher near Coventry.	1651 (1651)	Wing K489; ESTC R216092	52,316	69

my friend O daughters of Jerusalem See now how this takes upon their Spirits Chap. 6.1 Whether is thy beloved gone O thou fairest among women whither is thy beloved turned aside that we may seek him with thee Mark how his hiding himself from his spouse conduceth to the calling of other poor souls to the seeking after Christ When they see them mourning and grieving and complaining and cannot rest without him thinks the poor soul there is some excellency in him that we see not we will certainly go along to seek him with these poor souls he is worth seeking after And so it sets them a flame after him also The third thought is when the Soul complains it hath none of the Spirit Thirdly The third Thought that riseth in the heart to trouble the soul and perplex it is this I have none of the Spirit of God Now Christ commands John 4. To worship God in the spirit And Gal. 5.16 Walk in the Spirit and ye shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh and Jude 20. Praying in the holy ghost But how should I do this that have not the Spirit feel him not working nor quickening nor comforting me my heart is so dead and loose and weary in duty never carried up to heaven how can I but be troubled When you are carried with a fiery Chariot into heaven then you think you have the spirit But when a man moves in a lower Region he thinks he hath it not I shall speak to this 1. Generally 2. More Particularly Generall observations to this case Generally thus 1. That it is a very good thing to have the Spirit or to miss it As in hearing the word in prayer conference Meditation c. Either to feel a man hath it or to feel he wants it And the worst of these is better then to rest in a duty shaped out of your own Brain consisting in an empty sound of expressions and words For ye must take heed ye do not content your selves with shadowes and phrases without the Spirit For God doth not know the meaning of such duties Rom. 8. 2. Consider the spirit hath a manifold work in the hearts of the children of God Now a man cannot reason from the want of such a fruit of the Spirit as joy or peace c. that therefore he hath not the Spirit Ye cannot reason thus A man doth not Laugh Therefore he doth not Live Weeping is a sign of life as well as laughter So it is in this Case The sense of sin may argue the Spirit of God to be in you as well as the feeling of Joy Zach. 12 10. I will pour upon them the SPIRIT of grace and the Spirit of supplications And they shall look upon me whom they have peirced and shall MOVRN for him as one mourneth for his onely Son And be in BITTERNES c. The Spirit is a Spirit of variety 1 Cor. 12. Giving to one this gift to another that gift to one Humility Poverty of spirit Self deniall Godly sorrow to another Zeal and Courage and Joy c. And so it is oftentimes in the same man sometimes it is tuning his godly sorrow sometimes his joy sometimes his fear c. And this is one ground of the variety of conditions the Saints are in as David sometimes ye find him singing on the uppermost branch of the tree and sometimes hanging his wing in the bottome of the hedg Sometimes calling upon himself to praise the Lord seven times a day Psal 119.164 And sometimes crying out that he was cast out of Gods sight Psal 31.22 So Job sometimes professing though he kill me yet will I trust in him Job 13.15 And sometimes changing his note If I had called and he had answered me yet I would not believe that he had hearkned to my voice Job 9.16 The Church spoken of in the Lamentations Sometimes lamenting my strength and my HOPE is perished from the Lord Lam. 3.18.22 and sometimes again confessing I have HOPE Paul had the spirit as well in his buffetings as in his rejoycings And David when he prayed restore to me the joy of thy salvation as when he felt it Psal 51. The Spirit led Christ to be tempted as well as supported him and brought him back into Galilee Luke 4.1 c. A man may have the spirit in the Fight as well as in the Triumph He hath the spirit that soweth to the spirit in Tears as well as he that reaps in joy Psal 126.5.6 Therefore you may be mistaken in saying you have not the spirit seing it works so variously 3. This spirit may exercise it self in thee in duties one way though it be not felt but another way as in prayer sometimes tuning thy love sometimes thy hatred sometimes thy humility sometimes thy joy Therefore do not wrong the spirit of God and say it is from home because you feel not joy Do not say it is idle for it may be working in another room tuning another grace If a man should alwaies touch one key he should never play various tunes Now our hearts are Gods Harps Rev. 14.2 and 15.2 And therefore if God should not tune them variously there would be no melody And if the spirit be not setting up a candle in thee it may be scouring of a candle-stick I mean If it be not filling thy heart with joy it may be preparing thy heart for joy 4. There may be workings of the spirit in the heart and yet ye may not perceive it is the working of the spirit As in a peice of blunt money that ye can see no mark upon you will say by the bigness it should be such a piece six pence or a nine-pence but I can see nothing upon it So there may be workings of the spirit that are not seen for the present and yet afterward when the spirit worketh another way then thou maist perceive that this was of the spirit Luk. 24. The disciples that went to Emmaus knew not Christ while he was opening the Scriptures to them which was the likeliest time yet they knew him in breaking bread And then they could call to minde the burning of their hearts by the way Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us by the way and opened to us the Scriptures ver 32. just as it is in our businesses in the world many secret providences which a man doth not see to be a providence till after by some other issue he cals it to minde and sees it a providence So God hath his glory at last As Zaccheus climbing up into the figtree what could a man pick out of it till afterward that Christ tells him he must abide at his house then it appeared to be a providence So in the Disciples being so importunate with Christ to stay when he made as if he would have gone further they saw nothing in it for the present but afterward when Christ

though he do not know it 1. I say The best state or Condition is for a man to be Gods and know it that he is so Though not to know it doth not cut up the mil-post and overthrow all though it may indeed take off the sailes I mean though it may put a man to a stand or make him go heavily yet it doth not prove his condition to be desperate A man is Gods two wayes A man is Gods two wayes By Election and Calling 1. By Election 1. By Election So a man may be a sheep not gathered John 10.16 Other sheep I have which are not of this fold them MVST I bring So that they are not yet brought and yet sheep which Christ must bring Therefore ye cannot make this conclusion that ye are none of Gods by Election 2. By Calling 1. Cor. 1.1 But Secondly A man is Gods by Calling And so he is a Saint For we are Saints by Calling Now the purpose of Gods electing is the calling of a man and the Evidencing of his Calling And therefore our Calling is effectuall and powerfull because it is a calling accotding to Gods purpose Rom. 8.28 And the purpose of God in Election is evidenced to us by Calling the first dawning and evidence of this love of God to us is this calling us to Christ 2 Pet. 1.10 Give diligence to make your Calling and Election sure So that the way of Evidence is from the second to the first Now it is best for a man to know himself Gods both wayes For though this assurance doth nor make a man to be a man in Christ yet it makes him to be a lively man in Christ for he is made a man in Christ simply by beleeving or taking Christ at the hands of God A double witness Now we are evidenced to be Gods both wayes by a double witness that gives evidence The evidence of our Spirit and the evidence of Gods Spirit Rom. 8.16 The Spirit it self beareth witness with our spirit that we are the Sons of God Now this Calling is evidenced two wayes Regeneration 1. By regeneration or being born of God Secondly by Adoption whereby being strangers we are made Sons by our incorporation into Christ For both these see John 1.12.13 As many as received him to them gave he power to become the Sons of God even to those that beleeve on his name Sons of God who are those Those that are born not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man but of God Now observe that the Sons of God by faith in Christ are Sons of God by the birth of the Spirit Therefore see whether your faith reach this or no They were born not of blood nor by the will of the flesh nor of the will of man but of God For prove one and prove the other Adoption Yet know that Regeneration and Adoption are two distinct things The one is the act of God towards us The other is the work of the Spirit in us But the Spirit of sanctification and the Spirit of Adoption are both one but they are two distinct acts The Spirit of Sanctification worketh in us a new life The Spirit of Adoption may rather be called the evidence So that prove one and prove the other Prove that a man breathes and by that you prove he liveth yet there may be a more proper proof as if he feel or see c. So that this is it that I would say That the witness of our spirit may properly be said to attest our Sanctification And the witness of Gods Spirit our Adoption And by both our spirit and Gods Spirit we are witnessed to be the Sons of God How our Spirits witness our new birth But observe that the witness of our spirits that witnesseth our new birth and Sanctification witnesseth it by Water and Blood 1. John 5.6.8 This is he that came by water and Blood even Jesus Christ not by water onely but by water and Blood And it is the Spirit that beareth witness because the spirit is truth And there are three that bear witness on earth the Spirit and water and blood and these three agree in one And it is by vertue of these two that our spirits do attest and witness that we are the Sons of God For blood and water all the Scripture over are said to purge and cleanse as in all the Legal Types yet God giveth to them an office of witnessing Properly they purge But they Witness by their work of purging This BLOOD the blood of Christ purgeth away the guilt of Sin as it bindeth a man over to hell and damnation This Water the Sanctifying Spirit of Christ purgeth away the love of Sin as it hath Dominion † Ezek. 36.25.26.27 Of both these the conscience of a regenerate man comes to be sensible in himself The sense of Blood purging by pacifying of his conscience that he cannot but look upon God with a conscience full of tranquility And the water purging by Sanctifyng him to make him walk with God out of the power of sin Now the witness of a mans spirit witnesseth that he is translated out of the guilt of sin and power of sin and then he is born again Objection But some may object and say This testimony may deceive Answer I answer If you consider the power of this blood and water in a man How wonderfully it removes a man from all inthralling lusts and how it compels him to walk in holiness yea the peace that riseth from blood-purging Sin which moves morally to holy walking and is full of infinite strength for the sence of the pardon of sin And that is an excellent adjunct unto and in Sanctification as can be the graces of Sanctification do determine the Soul to the wayes of God as a strong Byas sheweth which way the Bowl will go Consider that for one how the heart is moved in Gods way And that is by Faith and Love And then if you consider the respect or aim or end the new creature moves to That is In God for God and to God that he may be glorified Rom. 11. ult For of him and through him and to him are all things All things that are of him through him tend to him Consider all these together that they be in you the power of Moving how you are moved By Faith and Love And the end you aim at to glorifie God And it makes a good Testimony and witness that ye are the Sons of God The witness of Gods Spirit Now for the Testimony of Gods Spirit the Spirit of Adoption If we shall speak distinctly of it from our spirits for the spirit and water and blood are distinct though they agree in one 1 John 5.8 Now if you consider them distinct I conceive then the Spirit of God witnesseth by an immediate impression upon the Soul representing to the soul and conscience making you understand

and know that you are the Sons of God and heirs of God and Christ Which Spirit of testimony is gotten by faith in Christ by viewing eying and surveying Christ For because ye are Sons God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts whereby you cry Abba Father Gal. 4.6 Whose office is to attest ye are Christs So that here the office of faith is to look upon Christ and eye Christ that so we may receive the seal For a man must be a beleever else he cannot be a son but being a beleever and so a Son then comes the Spirit and witnesseth the same Object But this witness you speak of now this immeditate testimony may deceive also It may be some false fire cast in by the Devil as well as the other Answ The witness of the Spirit of God as it is the Spirit of God will alwayes clear it self by this That in the witness it gives to a soul it alwayes advanceth God and Christ in the eye of the Soul and it alway ripens and nourisheth sanctifying graces in the soul and makes them go glib like oyl to the wheels It makes our Faith Love Patience Humility Hope Self-denyall Joy c. whereby we walk with God as green and flourishing as flowers in the spring or as corn fields after a sweet shower Note Bastard-illusions of the Devil do alwayes tend to bastardends and do alwayes bring forth bastard-effects such as lift up a man with pride or boulster them up to maintain errour either in Life or Doctrine But this knowledge of a mans self to be Gods reacheth forth to God and acteth his spirituall habits sweetly 2 Cor. 5.1 We know saith Paul that if this earthly house of this Tabernacle were dissolved we have a building of God an house not made with hands eternall in the heavens we know it saith he And what effect had this upon their Spirits Why see vers 9. Wherefore we labour that whether present or absent we may be accepted of him This is far from that opinion that a mans knowing himself to be Gods worketh security no this makes a mans heart obey God as a Son And be sure the Devill in his counterfeit workings and witnessings will never draw the soul to God to aim at him but still to center in himself or to turn aside to errour or sin And this is to fight against himself and overthrow his own Kingdom which he will never do A caveat But now take heed of thinking your selves to be Gods when you are not for there is the danger to conceit your selves to be Gods when you are not Now ye may go long in this by reason of some counterfeit workings by reason of some Convictions or joy or common receiving of Christ ye may take your selves to be Gods when you are not But here you may bewray your selves if you will but search For 1. you may perform duties meerly to maintain your signs for a man may keep a course in a form of godliness to maintain his reputation with himself to maintain his signs that the heart shall not easily tax them to be rotten When a man hath not his end to enjoy walk with God so to be Gods 2. He may bewray himself by his desires after the fruits of the Spirit they may be earnest and if these desires were not in him he could not maintain his signs To desire graces as they are beneficiall to me and not for the service of them that I may come neer to God and seek them for him rather then for my self this is deceitfull I fear the reason why God gives not assurance to many a man that seeks long and earnestly is because a man seeks for himself and not for God Like the Bee that goeth into the field to seek honey to eat but brings it not into the Masters hive A man may be Gods and not discern it Secondly A man may be Gods and not discern it for these are distinct Ephes 1.13 In whom also after that ye beleeved ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise Mark after ye beleeved ye were sealed 1 John 5.13 These things have I written to you that beleeve on the Name of the Son of God that ye may know that ye have eternall life and that ye may beleeve on the name of the Son of God Mark the speech here I have written unto you that do beleeve that ye may beleeve What 's this Why you that beleeve with a faith of Adherence that ye may come to assurance which yet ye want that ye may KNOW that ye have eternall life Gal. 4.6 Because ye are Sons God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts whereby ye cry Abba Father First ye are Sons and afterwards cry Abba Father by the Spirit The being of a man in Christ goeth before his knowing he is so in order of nature for a thing must be before I can know it else I know a lie A Child must be the child of such a man before he knoweth he is so So it is in our spirituall relation Therefore ye cannot conclude ye are none of Gods because you want assurance for the present for ye may be Gods and know it not Object But some may say This is to preach liberty for every man may say so Answ I answer not so For this which is in such a child of God as doth not know it by clear evidence yet it is working and differeth him from all others in the world The seed of God hath a two-fold work in such a one 1. It maketh him an obedient man Isa 50.10 Who is among you that feareth the Lord and obeyeth the voyce of his servants that walketh in darkness and hath no light Mark A child of God though he be in the dark yet he fears the Lord and obeys That though he knows not himself to be Gods yet he would walk with God in every duty though he have chains and fetters oftentimes to hinder him yet in every duty there is a principle and tie of obedience yea and such as is mixt with Love For he seeth God lovely and that draws his affections to him and makes him willing to serve him though he be not sure of him 2. Though such a soul do not discern it self to be Gods yet it is acccompanied with earnest longings and earnest seekings of the manifestation of his face to him So that though he cannot yet make sure his Calling and Election yet he gives all diligence to make it sure as Peter speaks 2 Pet. 1. and that because he would be more usefull to God Herein a true Christian differs from all the idle and neuter professors in the world Why a man may be Gods and not know it Now a man may be Gods and not know it for these causes 1. Because he is in forming and fashioning for God for Gods Spirit that dwelleth in man makes ready the

work and have grown secure afterward and the want of such a thing perhaps may make thee more watchful afterward whatsoever course God did take to bring thee to Christ make the best use of it and it is the best for thee Scripture proofes that Christs converts differently But some may say will the Scripture shew that Christ brings in men to himself after different manners and measures I answer Yea It is clear by Scripture And for it Consider these things The word of God which is the ordinary means of † Rom. 10.14 mans conversion is compared to rain Deut. 32.2 My doctrine shall drop as the dew my speech shall distill as the rain as the small rain upon the tender hearbs and as the showers upon the grasse So Heb 67.8 For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh upon it and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed receiveth blessing from God But that which beareth thorns and bryers c. Now Rain cometh sometimes by sudden dashes sometimes more mildly like dew sometimes great drops and sometimes small sometimes fals violently is quickly over and sometimes more moderately and holdeth longer And if the ground be throughly soak't its no matter it may as well be by a mist Gen. 2. as by great showers So the heart may as well be mollified and softned by the Lords blessing in gentle drops distilled upon it as by a violent storm Our Saviour in Mark 4.26.27 seems to speak of somes conversion and growth in an insensible way the words are these So is the kingdom of God as if a man should cast seed into the ground Seed that is The word of God vers 14. Into the Ground that is into the man or heart as the parable before clears it And should sleep and rise night and day and the seed should spring up he knoweth not how Mark here is effectuall workings the seed takes place yet in such an insensible mild way he that sowes it knows not how which could not be if all that are converted to God were brought over by such violent storms as some are We read of Paul strucken down by strong hand Acts 9. But where do we read of any such conversion that Timothy had 2 Tim. 3.15 saith Paul From a child thou hast known the holy Scriptures which are able to make thee wise to salvation c. Luke 19. Christ called in Zacheus at once come down at once for to day I must abide at thy house Luk. 15. But the prodigal was fain to be starved out by degrees Some may be in such a case as they may be mightily presst at and wounded in the heart others may have the word dropped in more gently by gentle instructions as the Eunuch Act. 8. We read not of any such heart-breaking Rock-renting tempest that he had and yet faith truly wrought To conclude I conceive all that the Lord brings in he doth it by the blowing of his spirit John 3.8 The winde bloweth where it listeth and thou hearest the sound thereof but canst not tell whence it comes nor whether it goeth So is EVERY one that is born of the Spirit But whether it be a winde to break the Roks or a still winde whether a high winde or low gentle puffs that is in Gods choise whether a North winde or South-winde as Cant. 4. ult Awake thou North winde and come thou South blow upon my garden that the Spices thereof may flow out Mark it thou canst not say thy Spices flow not out because the North winde blows not The South may make them flow out as well The second ground of fear 2. Thou saist Thou hast some peculiar sin̄s that hang upon thee and have hanted thee a long time omission of duty Pride Lust Passion c. I Answer thou canst not conclude thou hast no grace therefore nor thy state naught because of this Gods servants have had corruptions hung long upon them yet true converts The Prophet Jonah had passion hung long upon him And Hebr. 12.1 There is mention made of the sin that doth so easily beset us What meaneth the weights that hang on and the sin so easily besetting us but that it continues long what means the continuance of the combat between the flesh and the Spirit but that corruption hangeth long See how Paul exhorts the Collossians Chap. 3.5.6.7.8 Mortifie therefore your members which are upon the Earth Fornication Vncleaness Inordinate affection Evil concupiscence and Covetousness which is Idolatry For which things sake the wrath of God cometh upon the Children of disobedience In the which ye also walked sometime when ye lived in them Mark They had walked in these and now did not live in them and yet they hung upon them still were not quite dead for he exhorts to mortifie them And ver 8. And now also ye put off all these Anger Wrath Malice Blasphemy Filthy communication out of your mouth Lye not one to another c. These Collossians were Saints Coll. 1.2 Yet these things were not wholly put off And Christ saith to his Disciples Are ye also yet without understanding Matt. 15.16 Importing ignorance hung long and Joh. 14. Have I been so long time with you and yet thou hast not thou known me Philip * Jonah was so selfish that he rebelled and fled to Tarshish And yet after God had broken him in hell how did his selfish passion hang on him again Iohn 4.1.2.3.9 But note this though thy corruptions hang long and be as pricks in thy side pierce thee and pain thee yet a sincere heart laboureth to make profit of his corruptions and infirmities What 's that 1. These occasion his godly sorrow as Paul Rom. 7.24 complaining of the evil that was present when he would do good and the law in his members rebelling and of sin dwelling in him and leading him Captive cries out ver 24. Oh wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this death See how low thoughts he had of himself because of this 2. By these Christ is sweetned to a sincere heart and by them Christ is kept within the veiw of the soul to keep the heart near to Christ Rom. 7.25 I thank God through Jesus Christ So then with my minde I serve the Law of God but with my flesh the Law of sin Mark here how precious and sweet Christ is made to the soul by the consideration of these corruptions 3. Here is some comfort though they stick long if God maintain the combat within thee The flesh lusteth against the Spirit and the Spirit lusteth against the flesh So that ye cannot do the things that ye would ye cannot saith the Apostle Gal. 5.17 If God keep them from raigning there is some comfort Rom. 7.25 With my MIND I serve the Law of God but with my flesh the Law of sin His minde was upon the Law of God There is force in sin as