Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n
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A28169
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Tender counsel and advice to the flock of God everywhere by a lover of truth and righteousness, William Bingley.
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Bingley, William, 1651-1715.
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1697
(1697)
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Wing B2923; ESTC R18478
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19,834
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66
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Fleshly Wisdom of this World is Ambitious does what it does to be seen of Men will Fawn and Flatter to gain the Applause of of others but will Slight Contemn Undervalue and Trample upon those that are Sincere and it seeks its own but not the things of Christ Jesus nor the good of his Flock is not tender but is unnatural and cruel will Sacrifice the good of Souls and the peace of the Church to gain its own ends this is that Spirit which the Apostle Warned against (a) 1 Cor. 13. and is not to be suffered in God's Camp and therefore Watch against it and its Abettors where-ever it appears and look upon it as a deadly Enemy to God and True Religion and dangerous to the Peace of the Church which ought to be prefer'd above and beyond any private Interest whatsoever So that it is not Specious Pretences Fair Speeches Old Experiences nor Knowledge where that is lost that gave the Experience and did make known the Mysteries of God and did make tender whil'st in Subjection to it that will or can truly Promote the Glory of God or the Peace of his Church For the Holy Apostle was truly Sensible of this when he said Though I speak with the Tongue of Men and Angels and have not Charity I am become as Sounding Brass or a Tinkling Cymbal and though I have the Gift of Prophecy (b) 1 Cor. 13. and understand all Mysteries and all Knowledge and though I have all Faith so that I could remove Mountains and have not Charity I am nothing And though I bestow all my Goods to feed the Poor and though I give my Body to be Burned and have not Charity it profiteth me nothing for Charity suffereth long and is kind Charity envieth not vaunteth not it self is not puffed up doth not behave it self unseemly seeketh not her own is not easiy provoked thinketh no evil rejoyceth not in Iniquity but rejoyceth in the Truth beareth all things believeth all things hopeth all things endureth all things Charity never faileth Now that these Blessed Fruits and Effects of the Love of God shed abroad in our Hearts we may be found in that they may be as Ornaments upon us and we may Shine forth in them as Lights upon an Hill and as Candles in Candlesticks that others may see our good Works and may Glorifie our Father which is in Heaven And Zion may become the Glory of many Nations and Jerusalem the Praise of the whole Earth and the Borders of God's Sanctuary enlarged and the Truth Prosper and many gathered to it And as we keep in the Wisdom and Counsel of God Peace and Unity will be Promoted Fervent Charity Brotherly Kindness and Bearing one with another in a Spirit of Love will increase and thereby the Sincere Incouraged the Feeble Strengthened the Heady and High-minded Rebuked the Backslider brought back the Careless and Negligent awakened and stirred up to Faithfulness and Diligence that nothing but Love and Truth may have any place amongst us then shall God have his Honour and we the Comfort of the Power and Presence of the Living God amongst us And Friends you hnow the Lord hath raised us up by his Mighty Power and Quickened us who were dead in Trespasses and Sins to be a People to him to answer the End for which we were Created and also the End for which he hath Redeemed us from that Bondage in which we were held by the Power of Darkness and that is to Serve and Worship him Now you know God is a Spirit and our Lord saith to the Woman of Samaria (c) John 4. 23. The hour cometh and now is when the true Worshippers shall Worship the Father in Spirit and Truth for the Father seeketh such to Worship him Now as the true Worship stands in Spirit they that are performers of it must be in the Spirit that is they must be Spiritually-minded their Hearts and Souls must be turned to this Spirit waiting to feel the Work of it both to fit them by taking away and Purging them from every thing that makes them unfit for so great an Exercise as that is to wash from all Corruptions and to draw the Mind out of that which would defile it for whil'st the Heart is defiled it is not fit for this Worship As God is Holy so is his Worship and it must be peform'd by a Heart and Mind that is made so or else we shall have such a return as Israel had of Old by the Prophet (d) Isa 1. 12 13 15. When ye come to appear before me who hath required this at your Hands to tread my Courts Bring no more vain Oblations c. And when ye spread forth your hands I will hide mine Eyes from you yea when you make many Prayers I will not hear your hands are full of Blood So that it is in vain for People to approach before the Lord with an Earthly Corrupt Heart and Mind Man has nothing to do to tread his Courts till a Reformation in some measure be wrought and that they know Repentance and an earnest Willingness and Desire to have their Hearts Washed in the (e) Zach. 13. 1. Fountain which God hath opened which is the Life and Virtue of his Beloved Son For when the Prophet had in the Chapter before advised Verse 16 17 18. Wash ye make ye clean put away the evil of your doings from before mine Eyes cease to do evil and learn to do well c. then he saith Come now and let us reason together c. So that it is evident People must come rightly prepared or else they have no right to tread his Courts nor to offer any thing as a Sacrifice to him And therefore let every Mind especially when met together in our Solemn Meetings for it is not barely coming there and hearing what may be spoken there but every one must be turned in to the Gift of God's Spirit in your own Hearts and feel your Minds exercised in it and you truly subject to the Leadings and Dictates of it that you may be a Spiritual-minded People and it is in this Frame God is Worshipped for when the Mind is truly subject to the Spirit of Life it quickens and raises such a Soul into a deep Sense of the Dealings of the Lord and his Goodness and Mercies which have been very many and the many Deliverances and Preservations God hath wrought for us and in this sense the Soul truly Bows before him and Admires his Goodness and Adores him for it and here the Worship of God is perform'd acceptably and such feel returns of Peace into their Souls and thereby are opened and enlarged to Praise the Lord and Speak well of his Name and these grow as (f) Mal. 4. 2. Calves in the Stall and as (g) Isa 44. 2. Willows by the Water-Courses these are like a Tree (h) Psal 1. 3. Planted by the Rivers of Water they bring forth their
Plain-dealing this is not the way to answer the Witness of God in them nor to spread the Honour and Reputation of Truth And every one keep your VVords and perform your (q) Psal 15. 4. Contracts to the utmost of your Power that none may be injured or wronged but that Truth may be seen to have the Government of your Minds in all things for what will our Professing this Blessed and Just Principle and our Reasoning and Disputing for it and telling the VVorld what a Heavenly Divine Just Principle it is and what great things it will work in them that obey it how it will make them Just and Righteous and will make People careful what they do and savory in all their words I say what will all this do and abundance more and not shew forth these Blessed Virtues and Effects of it in our Lives VVhat will all our Professing and Disputing for it do VVill this be a means to Promote the Name of the Lord and Justice and Equity in the Earth Surely no It will rather lay stumbling Blocks in the way of the Enquirer and therefore let all Self-endedness and desire after Dishonest Gain be denied and laid aside and those Discountenanced and Rebuked who have given way to any thing of that Nature that those things that becomes our Holy Profession may be found amongst us yea every particular of us who Professeth this Holy Principle may shew forth the Virtue of it to all with whom we have to do by doing Justly and Equitably in the whole Course of our Lives And dear Friends we ought also to be careful that as the Truth is a Plain thing and calls to Plainness so we keep in the Plainness of it both in our VVords Deportments and every thing else and particularly that of the Plain Language seeing God has (r) Zeph. 3. 9. called us to bear a Testimony therein have a care that none let it fall for that is the way to go back and not forward I know there are some and I believe all whoever came rightly to the Truth came through Hardship and Suffering into this Testimony and could we have Peace or Ease in our Spirits whil'st we were endeavouring to find out ways to shun the Cross in this particular Surely no And God is the same he changeth not there is no alteration in him though Men may change and therefore he calls for the same Testimony still though it is unacceptable to the World for that Nature and Spirit loves Honour and Respect and it is a Cross to it when it is not given it and is ready to be disgusted with the Simplicity and Plainness that Truth leads into and I have seen a Snare hath attended some that when they have had to do with the World yea some I doubt not that have known better and have in times past stood in a Testimony in this matter have shun'd the Cross and caused the Offence thereof to cease by letting the Language of Truth fall that they might thereby render themselves the more acceptable to the World some for the sake of Gain and to Please those they expected Profit and Advantage by and others through a Fearful and Cowardly Spirit have fallen into this Snare and thereby have lost their Dominion in the Truth and have let in the Worlds Spirit over them and instead of Leavening them with whom they have been concerned into the Leaven and Savour of Truth the Leaven and Spirit of the World hath entered them and thereby Darkness and Insensibility hath gained upon them And this is a way that old Adversary and Enemy of Man's Peace takes who works by degrees to Darken and make Insensible those that God had once made Savory and at last brings to that Miserable State our Lord speaks of by way of Caution to his Disciples Ye are the (s) Mat. 5. 13. Luke 14. 34 35. Salt of the Earth but if the Salt have lost its Savour wherewith shall it be Salted it is thenceforth good for nothing but to be cast out and trodden under foot of Men For Men as Men trample upon such notwithstanding they may seem to like and encourage a Backslider in the Baulking and Flagging in his Testimony and there is great reason that such should be slighted and dis-esteemed for whoever will be False to God and Treacherous in the Testimony he has given them to bear for his Name and Truth upon the Earth there is no good ground for any to think that such will be true to Men But it is Faithfulness and Steadiness in the Truth and the Testimony of it that gives Favour with God and many times in the end Reputation among Men and therefore let none fell the Truth or the Testimony of it in this or any other case to Purchase the World and the Favour thereof for it will prove a Miserable Purchase at the last to sell Heaven for this World and not gain that neither Oh my Friends Stand Faithful and Valiant for God and keep up his Testimony though it be through Hardships and Sufferings and the Frowns of the World and your Reward will be Peace and Joy that is full of Glory and you shall have a Dwelling with the Lamb on Mount ZION that cannot be shaken And Friends beware of a Liberty which Truth allows not of I know if there be not a diligent Watch kept it will be apt to creep in by degrees and that which could not have been complied with as knowing it to be Hurtful will get hold upon us and the more it is given way to the more easie and familiar it will be till that Holy Awe which ought to be upon our Minds towards God and watch over our Words that they may be few and savory is lost and then a Fleshly Liberty will come in like a Flood and the Enemy will take advantages to Darken the Mind and Cloud the Judgment that things which heretofore were done contrary to our Judgments and for which we had some Trouble and Reproof will become easie and by indulging the committing of them and pleading for them many have run out to the saying Religion stands not in such things and at length from the very Appearance of Truth both in Word and Deportment and so have been lost and gone again into the World its Ways and Fashions and Customs to Swim in that Old Currant of Liberty and Lust they once were in some measure Redeemed from of whom it may be said as the holy Apostle Peter said (t) 2 Pet. 2 22. Pov. 26. 11. It is happend unto them according to the true Proverb the Dog is turned to his own Vomit again and the Sow that was washed to her wallowing in the Mire again This is a growing Evil and I Pray God a diligent care may be taken by all to prevent it both in the particular and in the general I mean by particular Every one to watch against it in themselves and keep in the fear of