controversie and gives the cause of God into the hand of your enemies which is a fearful abomination and the controversie is with that spirit which opposeth us in these things which we know are of the Lord. It is with the spirit that we must contend contend I say by the spirit of the Father in long-suffering and patience and good will towards all men and not with the weapons of this World in envie to any even with that spirit which doth oppose our meeting together to worship God and would impose Oaths things upon us contrary to our Consciences And these things are the main matters of controversie this day which the spirit of Christ in us must oppose being imposed on us by the spirit of the world So all Friends are to mind to be faithful to the spirit of Christ and its perswasions and against that spirit which is not of him for the opposition is between the two spirits and none must say the things required to be forborn or to be done are but small matters in themselves and may be done or not done without offence this king of reasoning may be dangerous and may easily divert from the obedience of Christ for we are not to look so much at the things in themselves which are required to be done or to be forborn as at the spirit which doth impose upon us in such cases against pure conscience if the spirit be not of God we must not obey it in the least things for this is indeed the matter of conscience not so much particular things or actions as the spirit that is not of God where it requires things against good conscience for whatsoever that spirit requireth be it little or much in respect of the action it must not be obeyed and that for conscience sake for this is a good conscience that cannot do nor conform to any thing which the spirit that is not of God enjoyneth though therefore suffering be inflicted on the outward man And last of all I do advise and exhort that ye have love and unity in the spirit of the Lord and one with another that oneness of heart and soul and spirit may be amongst us being bound up in the holy Covenant of the Father even willing to do or suffer one for another and in this spirit of unity the Lord will blesse us and make us strong and able to go thorow joyfully all our afflictions but if any strife or division be in the bodie it weakens the whole if one member vex another through discord this is not of the Father but contrary to him this is not for the safetie of the body but bruises it and woundeth it and may more afflict the soul of the righteous then all outward enemies and strife and contention arising out of our own bowels may sooner work an overthrow then all the oppositions that can come from men Oh therefore as a Brother to some and as a Father to many and as a Servant to all let me entreat and beseech that ye follow those things which makes for peace that ye love one another as Christ has loved you and that ye be like minded in all things even one as the Father and the Son are one and so shall the blessings of the Lord never depart from you For dear Friends the Lord hath never been wanting unto us but alwaies near at hand to fill us with his riches and treasure and are not we Vessels of honour is not his Name in our fore-heads are not we the flock of his fold Therefore let us honour him by the works of truth of love of mercy and all the works of righteousnesse let us bring forth fruits unto the Father thereby proving that we are true branches in Christ the Vine and let us give up to suffer all things patiently for the testimony of his Truth written in our hearts if we live let it be to him only and if we die lâ—t it be for him having the seal of his good Spirit in us that whether we live or die we are the Lords E. B.
A Tender Salutation OF Perfect Love UNTO THE ELECT OF GOD The Royal Seed the Saints of the Most High who have believed the Testimony of our Lord Jesus Christ and walks in the Light that hath enlightened every man that comes into the World LONDON Printed for the Author 1661. FRIENDS THis following Epistle being committed to me I have found it convenient to disperse it on this wise to the Churches of Christ for whose service chiefly it hath been written as I perceive and this being a time wherein each Friend in God ought to serve another and to be a strength and encouragement one towards another in the Wayes of God and therefore according to my duty wherein I stand bound to the lord and his Servants I have diligently endeavoured your benefit and edification in sending this unto you who accounts it my greatest honour to serve the Lord and his Servants Ellis Hookes To the Beloved Church of God that have believed and received the Testimony of our Lord Iesus Christ The true Light that Lighteth every man that cometh into the World IN the Name and Power of our Lord Jesus Christ blessed for ever that tender Salutations of my immortal Life is daily abounding towards you who are the true Flock of the Fathers Love and Care who hath begotten you to himself by his Word that lives for ever in us and with us that ye should be a People Chosen and Elected of him unto eternal blessings and to be a Praise and an Honour to him throughout the World by and through the virtue of his Life and Power and in the fruits of his Spirit brought forth by you all who are the only Children of that birth which is only the Lords Well dearly Beloved my heart at this time is filled in the Fathers Love with the dear Remembrance of you whom the Lord hath gathered with his Arm of power and in his Spirit do I desire the encrease of all mercies and peace and blessings unto you that you may be rich and strong and wise and mighty through the Lord Jesus Christ and receiving daily of his grace may ever be preserved constant and faithful in the heavenly calling unto the end And forasmuch as the Lord hath began his glorious work in the midst of you and gathered you out of the darknesse and ignorance and unbelief of this World where sometime your converse hath been while ye knew not the Lord and raised you up into the Light and Power and Wisdome of the Lord Jesus Christ having largely tasted of the same in the experience of his leadings through diverse Operations and Manifestations of his Spirit so that many of you have attained to a good measure to peace and rest with the Lord in your inward man Dearly Beloved seeing it is thus these things the Spirit of the Father in me traveleth to bring forth unto you for the end to comfort you and to confirm you and to edifie you in the saving Truths of the Gospel of peace 1. Consider what your former estate hath been an estate scattered like sheep without a Shepherd some of you dispersed into one false kind of Profession of Religion and some into another walking in such wayes as the Lord led you not in but ye were driven from God into the paths of Death and Darknesse and were led by blind Watch-men in the Hypocrisie and false pretences towards God honouring him with the lips while the heart was far away this was the condition of some of you and others of you were wallowing in the open prophanenesse of the sinful World and such was your estate wherein you were all strangers to God and were without him in the World and served the Spirit which leads Captive to Destruction and in that way you were strayed even in the separation from Gods being in the state of enmity against him till the Lord Jesus Christ the good Shepherd of Israel found you out in the estate of darknesse and brought you home from your strayed condition even unto the sence and feeling of his power and spirit in you which called you out of the wayes of sin and death and also changed you and regenerated you into the Inheritance of a better Kingdome and glory then that which is of this World and ye now know Christ Jesus to be your Shepherd his Spirit to teach you his Wisdome and Righteousnesse and Sanctification to dwell in you being partakers of the same through the eternal light which once shined in darknesse and the darknesse could not comprehend it but now it is risen in much glory and power and death and darknesse is swallowed up of life and light and the fruits thereof subdued these things are true and faithful unto many let all such rejoyce and be glad in the Lord who have thus seen his day and tasted of his power and are witnesses that the Kingdome is come which never fades away 2. Consider what the tender dealings of God towards you and his gentle leadings have been since he hath called you out of your former strayed estate hath not his light shined upon your Tabernacle with much clearnesse perswading your hearts fully of his way and truth hath not your hearts often been refreshed and your souls truly comforted by the refreshing presence of the Lord Hath not the way of life been made so clear unto you and the way of your peace so perfectly discovered that no occasion hath been left of unbelief or stumbling unto the upright in heart Surely the Lord hath not been wanting to you in any of these things but he hath so reached home by his Word and Spirit to your Hearts and Consciences with such full convictions and perswasions in the wayes of Salvation that no sincere heart can doubt or waver concerning the things pertaining to his Souls peace and comfort for so large and evident hath Gods Testimony been unto you ever since he first called you by his Grace that no man having sense and experience thereof but must bear witness that the Lord hath been good long-suffering full of Mercy and Righteousness towards all that fear him I am perswaded ye know these things and that the tast and virtue of the Lords Mercies and Power remains stedfast in your remembrance and enjoyment even his Mercies and loving Kindness that have been made manifest to you since ye have known the Lord who hath led you by the hand as a Father doth his Children and carried you in his Arms of Preservation and born you on his shoulders in all your afflictions insomuch that through his Power and Wisdom onely we are yet alive and the Adversary hath not prevailed against us though his attempts hath often been great to destroy us 3. Consider what is now your present state and standing How is it with your inward man In what life and strength and dominion is he Is he strong over all the corruptible or is he weak under corruption Is he in the growth of a perfect man
and Practise in that case hath been even to obey all men in all things either by doing or suffering it at any time ye are required to do any thing by any in Authority which is not agreeing but contrary to the Scriptures example of the Saints and the Spirit of Christ in your own consciences then ye are to suffer whatsoever if it be death it self rather then to obey and submit to the doing of that which is contrary to a good conscience this hath ever been our Principle and Practise since we were a People agreeing with the practise of the holy Prophets Apostles and Martyrs in all ages who rather did suffer grievous oppressions and persecutions then to obey any command of men in power by doing any thing contrary to the testimony of the Spirit of God in their own particulars let us all be like-minded this day not to do nor bend nor be in any wise contrary to the Spirit of Christ that dwels in us but rather suffer whatsoever may be imposed then to sin against that Light and Knowledge of the Spirit of Christ which he hath given us but let us keep a clean heart and a pure conscience to God-wards and therein we shall triumph over all in our inward Man though our outward man be afflicted and in this we shall have peace and comfort in God over all our Adversaries And as concerning your meetings the Lord hath given you the testimony of his Spirit in you for the verity and righteousness thereof though ye should suffer persecution for the same yet ye have the Spirit of Christ testifying in your hearts that this Way and Practise of meeting together as our practise hath been is of God and he Justifies us in the same and we have suciffient of assurance by the holy Spirit to stand faithful in that practise of assembling together to worship God First we have the testimony of Scriptures and exple of Saints in the Apostles daies to prove this practice of Meeting together The first Christians they met together in this manner and way as we do now they met in private houses and from house to house separate and apart from the Publique Synagogues and all other Sects and it is clear that we have the example of Saints and Scriptures proof for this our practise of meeting together 2. We have our own experience for this diverse years how that the Spirit of the Lord hath moved our hearts to assemble together and the presence and power of the Lord Jesus Christ hath been amongst us and we have tasted of the goodnesse and love of the Lord being so met together how often hath the Lord met with us and his countenance shined upon us and our souls have been refreshed strengthned and comforted in this practise of meeting together these things are true and may confirm us in this practise of meeting together and to be faithful to the end 3. We have the full perswasions of the Spirit of God lively and fervent in our hearts at this moment that we ought not to neglect the Assembling of our selves together but that God requires it of us and it is his will that his people meet together to worship him in Spirit and Truth separate from all the world even in one Spirit and in the Name and Power of Jesus I hope ye are all like-minded herein and that the spirit of Christ perswades your Consciences in the Truth of that practise therefore be faithful unto God herein and sin not against the testimony of Scriptures and example of the first Christians nor against your own experience nor against the admonitions of the Servants of the Lord who are the first fruits unto God since the Apostacy and have again and again in the Name and Spirit of Christ exhorted you to meet together wherefore be faithful to perform your duty of God in that particular whatsoever sufferings should be infflicted upon you by the men of this world And as concerning refusing to take any Oath ye know it hath been our Principle and Practise so to do since the Lord hath given us knowledge of his wayes and the spirit of the Lord that dwels in us perswadeth our hearts to deny all swearing both as it was practised under the Law according to the command of God in the types figures as it is practised among the Christians since the Apostles daies which is as now practised Idolatry and Superstition And I say the Spirit of Christ doth confirm our hearts in this truth even to deny all swearing and also we have the expresse command of Christ and of the Apostle Iames forbiding all swearing by Heaven and Earth and all other Oaths which bears witnesse to the truth of our refusing to swear at this day likewise we have the Testimony of many holy Martyrs and Prophets since the Apostles daies who denied to swear on any wise who suffered for such their Testimony All which evidences may justly confirm the hearts of Gods people at this day faithfully to hold out their Testimonie of refusing to swear at all seeing we have a cloud of witnesses that testifie with us the expresse command and Christ and the Apostle the Testimonie of diverse holie men in diverse ages who suffered for the same and the present perswasions of the Spirit of Christ in our own hearts All which are sufficient to give courage and boldness under all sufferings and afflictions that we may meet withall for refusing to swear Well Friends be faithful to God in these and all other things which God hath given you light and knowledge in and I do warn all to keep a clear conscience and not to sin against the light and knowledge that God hath given you either by denying to professe and practise that truth which the Lord hath perswaded your hearts of or by conforming to any thing which ye know is not of the truth and this is the way of eternal peace with God but if any shall through the temptations of the adversarie and for the love and fear of this world deny the Lord and renounce good conscience and be unfaithful such must bear the burthen of the Lords anger because of their back-slidings and revoltings from the waies of God True it is this is a day of great trial yet the Lord is strong and gives strength unto all his people that wait upon him And let us be mindful what our controversie is and with whom this day our controversie is for the Lord and his truth to do faithfully and suffer patiently whatsoever the will of the Lord is unto us not to renounce and deny the exercise of our pure consciences in those things that God hath perswaded our hearts of the truth of For if any this day should be unfaithful either by doing what they should not or leaving undone what they know they should do If any deny the Lord and his truth and conform to the false waies worships of men such loses the