Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n
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A26893
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A seasonable word of advice unto all the saints in England whereby they are exhorted to beware of Satans subtilties, and hold fast the words of sound doctrine / by J.B., a lover of the truth.
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J. B.
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1655
(1655)
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Wing B122; ESTC R32845
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20,027
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31
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in the Faith And Fourthly Hereby he causeth them to put private Interpretations upon the Scriptures applying them at their pleasures to particular Times Places and Persons Whereas the Scriptures and divine prophesies as they came not in old time by the will of man but holy men spake at they were moved by the holy Ghost so they are not to be interpreted according to the will of man with any private Interpretation but according to the mind and spirit of God which we can only find out by searching the Scriptures and comparing spiritual things with spiritual A Third way by which Satan bringeth many to a misunderstanding of the Scriptures and a perversion thereof is by keeping them in Ignorance of the present Dispensation they are under hereby causing them in Gospel-Times to walke chiefly by the Rule of the Law and to look for the performance and accomplishment of those things in their Daies which are not to be fulfilled until future Times This Satan doth by making use of Ignorant and unfaithful shepherds who knowing not the Scriptures themselvs or unfaithfully dispencing them somtimes contrary to the Convictions of their own hearts Light and knowledge to maintain their temporal Advantages and to keep up the principles of their artificial and scholastic Theology do impose such Doctrines upon the world that they lay the weight of a mans Justification upon his duties and performances thereby destroying as far as in them lyeth the Faith of our Lord Jesus Christ And although in their Doctrines and words they will speak of Justification by Faith yet in their works and practizes they deny it Laying heavy burdens works and duties upon men which neither they nor their forefathers were able to bear And hereby Satan causeth them either to omit or pervert and wrest those Scriptures which hold forth Justification freely by Faith in Christ without the works of the Law Secondly Satan doth by his Seducements and subtile Suggestions cause many to mistake diverse prophetical Scriptures as to Time by perswading them that the accomplishment of those Promises will be in their Daies And this he doth by taking Advantage of an earnest desire which is in many professors to see the fulfilling of those things which are conteined in those Prophesies because they are perswaded that thereby the Lord would be exceedingly glorified And therefore the Saints in these Times should very carefully watch over their Zeale which in most men is rather a passion then a Grace especially if it be fixed upon a wrong Object The Jewes were Zealous of the Law of Moses but being ignorant of the Law of the Gospel of Christ their zeale was dissalowed of by the Apostle saying Rom. 10.2 they have a zeale but not according to knowledge for they being ignorant of the Righteousnesse of God went about to establish their own Righteousnesse And so far did this zeale hurry them that they persecuted the most precious Saints of Jesus Christ Thus Paul persecuted the Church Luk 9.51 to 56. Phil. 3.6 and thus Satan took Advantage against the Disciples working upon their Zeale who were then Ignorant of their present Dispensation and work which Christ was then to do in the world For when Jesus Christ was to go to Jerusalem on a certain time he sent some before him who prepared his lodging in a Town of the Samaritans The Samaritans being professed Enemies to the Jewes finding that Christ intended to go to Jerusalem to worship refused to receive him Whereupon James and John moved with Zeale taking for example Elias the prophet but being at that Time ignorant of the work which their Master then came to do moved the Lord to command fire to come down from heaven to consume the Samaritans But the Lord answered Ye know not of what Spirit ye are of for the Son of Man is not come to destroy mens lives but to save them And assuredly Satan doth work thus in the world taking advantage of a great zeale which is in many Saints who are zealous of the glory of God and tender of his honour who set before them the Examples of many Zealous Saints who were acted by an immediate hand of God and they call for fire Judgements blastings and wrath upon many whom they see do dishonour God and as they conceive do carry on the work of Satan against Christ Not considering that yet we are under the tenders of the Gospel and a door of mercy is open unto all men To all sorts of sinners excepting those who sin against the holy Ghost to whoremongers and Idolaters to drunkards and blasphemers so that he that is a persecuter of Christ and his Saints to day may be a converted Paul to morrow Not considering that the day of wrath vengeance and utter destruction is the Day of the Lord the Day of his next coming and appearing Untill which time his Disciples should be merciful as their father which is in heaven is merciful who maketh his Sun to arise on the evil and good Mat. 5.44 45 46. and sendeth Rain on the Just and unjust Wherefore the Saints in these Daies should watch over their zeale and have a Care that it be bounded with love on the one hand and knowledge on the other and be circumspect that they fix their zeale on a right Object according to that of the Apostle It is good to be zealous or earnest in a good thing Gal. 4.15 16 17 18. We should zealously love when the Lord would have us do good but we should not hate zealously when the Lord would have us to love nor Curse when he would have us to blesse nor deprecate any when he would have us to pray for all Men. Satan having caught any in this Snare that is blinded their Eyes that they are not able to know the things that belong to their present Dispensation and having wrought upon their zeale and fixed it upon a wrong Object In the first place he doth deprive the Saints who are thus deceived by him of many gospel Comforts which do arise from the apprehension of the Love of God grounded upon free Grace and applied unto us by and in Jesus Christ Secondly hereby that is by altering the nature and property of true zeale which is alwaies attended with love knowledge and humility he increaseth spiritual Pride in them which may be thus discerned when they begin to have low thoughts of all men but of themselves and of such as agree with their Judgements when they seperate themselves from their Brethren supposing them to be Low flat dead backward and lesse zealous in the worke of God then themselves when they will passe a Judgement upon others and say this man is guilty of the sin against the holy Ghost this man is faln from the Faith and his former professions this man is an hypocrite this man is a Persecuter of the Saints this man is not to be pray'd for this man ought to be cut off again by reason of this
A SEASONABLE WORD OF ADVICE Unto all the SAINTS in ENGLAND Whereby they are exhorted to beware of Satans subtilties and hold fast the words of sound Doctrine By J. B. a lover of the Truth LONDON Printed by T. C. and are to be sold by George Wilford in Little-Brittain neere the Lame-hospitall 1655. To all the Saints in England who desire to acquaint themselves with those Scriptures which do discover the secret waies of Satan by which he doth seek to deceive in these last daies Christian friends WHose welfare I heartily desire do not dispise this friendly Exhortation which was written with much Care and Fear Fear least I should write any thing which should not be the Truth of God Feare least I should omit the writing of any Truth Feare least I should grieve the Spirit of any Saint Feare least I should neglect to acquaint the Saints with the Subtilties of Satan The Lord having put it into my heart to consider them In all Ages the Divil hath sought to deceive the Elect 2 Cor 11 1â—.15 And if in the Apostles daies there were deceitful workers who transformed themselves into the Apostles of Christ if Satan transformed himselfe then into an Angel of light and if his Ministers did then transforme themselves as though they were the Ministers of Righteousnesse we may be assured that in these daies and Ends of the World he will leave no way or meanes unattempted by which he may seduce If they who lived in those last times in which the Apostles were 1 Pet. 〈…〉 even they who were kept by the Power of God through Faith unto salvation had their Faith tried do the Saints now think to escape the like Trial assuredly Friends our faith will be tried even that Faith by which we shal be brought unto that Salvation which is prepared to be shew'n in the last Times that we may be found unto Praise and honour and Glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ 1 Tim. 4.1 In the last daies many will depart from the Faith for many will then give heed to Doctrines of Divils and Spirits of Errours And indeed none will stand and continue in those Daies in the Faith but they who have the Anoynting 1 John 8.18 19 20. the holy Spirit of God in them All others will fall under the Deceptions of that antichristian Spirit which then will be found in the world For they who never were really of God will then depart from him If they had been of him they would have continued with him If these be the last Daies If Satan will now endeavour to deceive those who professe the Lord Jesus If it be a difficult thing to discerne in these Times the Subtilties of Satan If he will leave no way unattempted and if his Rage and Malice will increase the nearer the End of his Kingdom will approach then the more Reason have all those that feare God to be circumspect in all things and to provoke one another not onely to attain unto the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ but to observe with diligence the cunning practises of Satan For a good souldier wil not only have respect unto that kingdom he fighteth for and to the Commands of his General but will with all Circumspection prudently watch over every motion of his Enemy And that I may move you hereunto I shall desire all the Saints of God to consider this Exhortation of the Apostle 1 Pet. 5.8 Be sober and watch For your Adversary the Divil as a roaring Lion walketh about seeking whom he may devour In which Scripture there are two parts 1. A double Exhortation Be sober and watch 2. The Ground or reason thereof which is likewise two-fold the first is exclusive to the Text and is to be found in the fourth verse being drawne from the Saints glorious appearing with their great Shepherd For thus saith the Apostle When your great Shepherd shall appear you shall receive an incorruptible Crown of Glory And then in the fifth verse he exhorteth them to humility in the seventh verse to cast their Care on the Lord and in the eight verse to be Sober and watch The second Reason which moved the Apostle to exhort to Sobriety and vigilancy is included in the verse and is Because their Adversary the Divil as a roaring Lyon walketh about seeking whom he may devour From the Premises we may safely draw this conclusion that The nearer the time is unto the Appearing of the great Shepherd and the nearer the Kingdom of Satan is to an End the more the Divil will indeavour to ensnare the Saints and manifest his Rage against them First this will appear by what is written in this fift chapter of the first Epistle of Saint Peter where the Apostle from the consideration of the next appearing of Christ and Rage of Satan doth admonish the Elect both the shepherds and the sheepe to Circumspection and Diligence Secondly the Truth of this Doctrine will appeare from that which we finde written by Saint John The Divil is come down unto you and hath great wrath knowing that he hath but a short time Rev. 12.12 for by the Power of Christ who overcame Satan Satan the Accuser of the Brethren who are by him tempted unto sin and by him accused thereof was cast downe v. 10. and his wrath doth increase because he knoweth his time is but short But short in the account of God and in comparison of that eternal weight of Glory which shall be given unto those who overcome his Temptations And if his Rage will increase as his Time will decrease then the Elect who live in the last Daies must expect to be assaulted more fiercely by him then the Saints in former Ages have been But Thirdly The truth hereof is experienced at this Day For although it must be confessed that Satan doth not at this Time move such heavy Persecutions against the Bodies of the Saints as he did in former Ages yet he hath in these daies put on more angelical Formes and shapes to deceive then in any former time These things being considered I will by the Lords assistance declare 1. Two Snares which Satan doth lay in these Times to intrap deceive and delude the Saints 2. Many cunning waits by which he doth attempt this Worke. 3. The End that Satan aimeth at the Advantage he getteth and the Inconveniences the Saints run into when they are deceived And 4. The Remedies which the Lord hath appointed both for the prevention of some that they fall not and the Recovery of others that are falne The first Snare which I shall mention that Satan layeth for those that professe Christianity is To bring them into a wrong understanding of the Scriptures and so in time to wrest and pervert them 2 Pet. 3.16 which he doth First by causing them to hold to the opinions of their Forefathers although they be never so contrary to the Word of God In all Ages men have highly esteemed