Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	holy_a	life_n	power_n	7,077	5	4.6413	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A65857	The conscientious cause of the sufferers, called Quakers pleaded and expostulated with their oppressors in this nation of England, and particularly in and about the city of London : and those in power that go about to transport, banish, or suppress them for their meetings, innocently informed, and impartially cautioned, from the innocent and oppressed seed of God, which herein calls for justice and equity, and utterly exclaims against severity and persecution for matters of conscience or religion : wherein first and principally is shewed, the use and end of the publick assemblies of the said sufferers, in answer to several objections against them, 1. with respect to their conscientiousness, as it being their duty to meet, 2. with respect to their innocency and peaceable deportment both to the nation and government therein / by G.W.	Whitehead, George, 1636?-1723.	1664 (1664)	Wing W1918; ESTC R20036	11,816	16

THE Conscientious Cause OF THE SVFFERERS called QUAKERS Pleaded and Expostulated with their Oppressors in this Nation of England and particularly in and about the City of London And those in Power that go about to Transport Banish or suppress them for their Meetings Innocently informed and impartially cautioned from the Innocent and Oppressed Seed of God which herein calls for Justice and Equity and utterly exclaims against Severity and Persecution for matters of Conscience or Religion Wherein first and principally is shewed The Use and End of the Publick Assemblies of the said Sufferers in Answer to several Objections against them 1. With respect to their Conscientiousness as it being their duty to meet 2. With respect to their Innocency and peaceable deportment both to the Nation and Government therein By G. W. London Printed in the year 1664. The Consciencious Cause of the Sufferers called Quakers pleaded c. WHereas it is asserted by some in Authority and such as have a hand in persecuting us and some others That we might keep our Consciences clear and enjoy the Liberty thereof if we would reduce our Meetings into small numbers as to meet four together besides the Families so as not to come under the penalty of the late Act. And some charge it upon us as obstinacy or wilfulnes● for meeting in any considerable or great numbers publickly and thereupon conclude that our Suffering is not upon a Consciencious account in this Case And to others it is a question whether or no we may with a clear and safe Conscience reduce our Meetings into such small numbers as mentioned since that we have appeared so publickly to hold forth our Testimony To which I answer We have a Record in Heaven and amongst men which doth clear and justifie us in this Case and therein our Consciences bear us witness as to our intent and end in our meeting and assembling our selves together That it is singly in tenderness conscienciousness and obedience unto the living God in the leading of his own Eternal Spirit for the glory and advancement of his Name and Truth And this our practice of Assembling together in the Worship and Service of the living God must needs be a matter of Conscience to us because we know it to be our duty as he requires and according to the practice of the former Saints and Christians who did not confine or limit themselves to meet onely four or five together because the Truth of God among them and his Gifts were free and not to be limited to mans will either in respect of time or place and the Gospel was not to be bound but as it was manifest in the Universal Love of God which is of a general extent to all so it was not to be stopt or tyed by man but all ought to be left free to have the benefit of it and this we know is manifest in and amongst us and in our Meetings have been those opportunities which the Lord God hath made use of many times to publish and make known his Name and Power in which hath been evidently known and experienced by the blessed effects thereof As 1. In that many in our Assemblies have been effectually convinced of the Truth as it is in Christ by the Testimony of God held forth amongst us and turned from the gross pollutions and wickedness which formerly they lived in and so from Satans power to God and from darkness to Light and have known Repentance unto Life and come to live Godly and soberly in this present world as his Grace teacheth 2. In that many of the dear Children of God and Lambs of Christ have often felt the Lord's Presence accompanying them in that duty of Assembling together in his Worship and that many times to their great Refreshment and mutual Joy Comfort and Edification and therein we have had opportunities to stir up the pure minds in one another and to communicate what the Lord hath given us to declare to the building up of each other in the most holy Faith against sin and temptations and the Life and Power of God hath had its course and flowings forth amongst us in our Meetings as thorow one body to our refreshment enlivening renewing and rejoycing of our souls both when the ministration of words in the Spirit of Holiness hath been publish'd amongst us and when we have waited upon the Lord in silence and so the Rivers of living Water which flow out of his belly that believes as the Scripture saith John 7. 38. we have often drunk together of and this living Water which our God hath opened the Fountain of must run in its own course and channel and must not be stopt nor limited nor driven back nor have its course altered by man's will or by the persecuting spirit because the Lord hath sent it forth and made it as a broad River And it is the more evident and apparant that the Lord's Power and Presence is in our Assemblies and that he hath made use of them for the spreading of his own Name and Truth and for the furtherance of his own work of Righteonsness that many might be turned from darkness to Light and from Satan's power to God because that the enmity wrath and malice of Satan in his instruments and unrighteousness among them so highly appears against them and Satan is so strongly at work against them whose work was and is to cast the Saints into Prison for the Testimony of JESUS Rev. 2. 10. as knowing that if this Testimony of Truth go on which greatly is concerned in our Meetings it will weaken and overthrow Satans Kingdom in men But he is not troubled nor disturbed at the many prophane and ungodly Meetings in this Nation at which wickedness is stirred up and increased such as Fools with their antick and bruitish postures upon Stages in the great Fairs and other places do gather People to where they have their foolish Playes Sports Fidlings Dancings c. for both these and many other prophane Meetings and Gatherings of People do please Satan and make for his Kingdom And as it is objected against us for meeting so publickly that we might reduce our Meetings into small numbers and meet more occultly and yet be clear in our consciences c. In like manner it might as well be objected against the Prophet Daniel that he might have prayed more privately and not with window open and three times a day as before after that King Darius had sealed a Decree that none should ask a Petition of any God or man for thirty dayes save of the King upon the penalty of being cast into the Lions Den when yet for all this Daniel in obedience to God prayed and praised God as before Dan. 6. And so our Meetings being in obedience to the Lord God and according to that Liberty which he hath given us we must not lose our Testimony which is for God therein but be faithful in holding it forth as he requires

this the manner of the present proceedings against us or such as are reckoned to be in Error and Heresie that instead of suffering them to dispute or to have those things fairly discust wherein they are by the Bishops and Clergy deemed erroneous and Hereticks from the Church of England their mouths must be stopt and they cast into Holes and Prisons some from their Ecclesiastical censures and proceedings in their Spiritual Courts so called against them after they have excommunicated men and procured those called Significavier's and Writs of Capias against'them And others are imprisoned and proceeded against in their Temporal Courts some to a Praemunire others sentenced to Transportation or Banishment as if they were Thieves or Felons that deserved death and not to return within the time limited upon pain of being proceeded against as Felons and Murderers and many of them taken by Souldiers and Armed-men out of their Peaceable Meetings and haled to Prisons and thus the Innocent are made a prey upon And what do such severe and unchristian-like proceedings against us tend to where both Bishops Priests Rulers Officers and so both the Spiritual and Temporal Ecclesiastical and Civil so called and the Military Forces also are thus severely at work against us but to destroy us if the Lord did not sustain us And moreover It was said in the Law of God to Israel of old Thou shalt not do injury to a stranger neither oppress him ye shall not trouble any Widow nor Fatherless-Child if thou vex or trouble such and so he call and cry unto me I will surely hear his cry saith the Lord then shall my Wrath be kindled and I will kill you c. See Exod. 22. 21 22 23 24. Now mark if God would hear the cry of the Stranger Widdow and Fatherless that were wronged and oppressed and be avenged on their Oppressors what will become of you that have a hand against us if you go on oppressing your Neighbours or those of your own Nation who are Free-born English-people And if you go on to separate and and banish Innocent men from their Wives and Children and so by that means you make them Widdows and Fatherless and expose them to ruine outwardly How will you answer this before the Righteous God of Heaven and Earth who will assuredly hear their Cry against you yea God will hear them even as they are his creatures that cry and groan under the Oppression and Injury done them for Justice at his hand being that they ought to have their liberty and interest in the Creation as well as your selves or others of their fellow creatures and then will the Just God bring Wo upon all that decree or act unrighteously to keep back the poor from Judgment and to take away Judgment or Right from his People that Widdows may be their prey and that they may spoile the Fatherless Isa. 10. And then what will ye do in the day of Visitation and Destruction to whom will ye flee for help and where will ye leave your glory ver 3. Will your joyning hand in hand or your forces together secure you from the stroak of Gods Justice No sure for if you go on without Repentance mark the end of these harsh severe cruel proceedings And mark the end of Oppressors and of the Wicked whose Rod and Scepter the Lord will break See Isa. 14. as that of the King of Babel the Oppressor for whom Hell beneath was moved to meet him and whose Pomp and sound of his Viols was brought down to the grave that worms might cover him Or that Lucifer who said he would ascend into Heaven and exalt his Throne above the Stars of God as such now in effect say who in a Lucifer-like spirit would rule over the Consciences of God's People and so set themselves above them who are his Stars which he hath fixed in the Firmament of his Power but he who thus exalted and presumed was to be brought down to the Grave and to the sides of the Pit who opened not the house of his Prisoners and he was to be cast out as an abominable branch for he had destroyed his Land and slain his People he was of the seed of the wicked which was never to be renowned Mark these things and consider your wayes and actions and what they tend to And if they who did not visit nor minister to Christ in Prison in that they did not visit those that believed in him were to depart into everlasting fire Mat. 25. What will become of you that imprison Christ in his Members inasmuch as you do it to his little ones that believe in him which he that shall offend any of them he had better never have been born And where will you hide your selves or flee for refuge in the great day of the Lamb's Wrath which assuredly will come upon them that make War against him and his Followers When the Kings of the Earth and the Great men and Rich men and the chief Captains and Mighty Men and every Bond-man and every Free-man shall hide themselves in Dens and in the Rocks of the Mountains and say to the Mountains and Rocks Fall on us and hide us from the presence of him that sits on the Throne Rev. 6. Then both the Masters and Servants or Bond-men in this work of Persecution and oppressing and injuring their-fellow creatures will not be able to clear nor excuse themselves before the Lord God nor the subordinate Ministers or Officers saying they do their Superiors or Kings service in what they do acquit them from the reward which they must have from the Righteous God according to their deeds who have had many Informations and Warnings in which the Spirit of the Lord God hath striven with this Nation but will not alwaies Which had not these things been laid upon me thereby I had not sent them forth Part of this was written in the 7th month 1664. in Southwark THE END