Selected quad for the lemma: spirit_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
spirit_n	know_v	scripture_n	speak_v	7,222	5	4.9707	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A84760	A sober answer to an angry epistle, directed to all the publick teachers in this nation, and prefixed to a book, called (by an antiphrasis) Christs innocency pleaded against the cry of the chief priests. Written in hast by Thomas Speed, once a publick teacher himself, and since revolted from that calling to merchandize, and of late grown a merchant of soules, trading subtilly for the Quakers in Bristoll. Wherein the jesuiticall equivocations and subtle insinuations, whereby he endeavours secretly to infuse the whole venome of Quaking doctrines, into undiscerning readers, are discovered; a catlogue of the true and genuine doctrines of the Quakers is presented, and certaine questions depending between us and them, candidly disputed, / by [brace] Christopher Fowler & Simon Ford, [brace] ministers of the Gospel in Reding,	Fowler, Christopher, 1610?-1678.; Ford, Simon, 1619?-1699.	1656 (1656)	Wing F1694; Thomason E883_1; ESTC R207293	63,879	81

dispute rail out of the World and the most glorious practicall Truths of the Gospel out of mens Consciences as appeares daily in those whose learning Satan makes use of to defend and patronize their lusts So that there needs another kind of learning to settle these Truths savingly in the minds and hearts of men which the Scripture calls the revelation and demonstration of the Spirit But yet we must own Learning sanctified by the Spirit of God as a precious help and furtherance to the understanding of the Letter of the Scripture confuting Hereticall wrestings of them and convincing gain-sayers And we wonder whence all these that dispute against Learning from the Scriptures received those Scriptures whence they dispute but from the help of humane Learning Surely those holy men who brought down the Scriptures to our capacities by translating them into our Mother Tongue were not immediatly taught the knowledge of the Originall Tongues by the revelation of the Spirit but learnt it in Schooles and Vniversities and most of the truths of the Gospel which have been preserved to us from the violent hands of Heathen Philosophers and Hereticks have been very much as to means preserved by the disputes of learned men Julian the Apostate knew well enough that Schools of Learning were no small props of Christian Religion and therefore when he had designed a totall abolition of Christianity out of the world he attempted it by two wayes which your Generation unhappily follow him in suppressing Schooles of literature among Christians and taking away Ministers maintenance And whereas you say that the Apostles and Ministers of Sect. 39 Christ in Scripture did not serve an Apprentiship in any Vniversity to learne the Trade of preaching as you scornfully call it we answer they needed it not for they then received that by immediate inspiration which since that time we know no person Quaker or other ever attained in that way they became Linguists and Disputants per saltum which others since are faine to grow unto by degrees If you say the same Spirit dwels in you we say look you to that as to the sanctifying and saving graces of that Spirit for he that hath not the Spirit thus is none of Christs Rom. 8. 9 But as to gifts of Tongues and other parts of learning which were then by that Spirit bestowed in an instant on the first Planters of the Church we want an instance of any of you that can say so much of himself If you know any let us heare from you in the next who it is and if he be able to make it out to us we will believe him You say further that they preached but the Gospel which Sect. 40 Christ by his Spirit revealed in them and you quote two places of Scripture which speak of revelation indeed but not such as is exclusive to humane learning which is your drift Indeed in the first Paul saith that God revealed those things which eye had not seen c. to him by his holy Spirit And in the other 1 Cor. 2 10. Gal. 1. 16. he saith that God revealed his Son in him but it is not proved that in the last of those places the Apostle speaks of the Doctrine much lesse the holy Doctrine of the Gospell that Paul preached as if his humane learning contributed nothing to that but only of those inward operations that Paul experienced and therefore he shewes the effect of the revelation that it took him off from consulting with flesh and blood which we before acknowledge as well as you In the former of them the Apostle speaks of such a revelation of the Gospel as savingly enabled him to receive it feelingly to preach it as appeareth by v. 14. where he opposeth the knowledge of a naturall man which is by meer learning to that of a spirituall man which is by revelation yet not excluding learning For by the way you may observe that he doth not oppose a spirituall man and a learned man Paul himself was spirituall and learned too but a spirituall man and a naturall or unregenerate man who hath nothing but naturall faculties and humane learning to improve them And as to your assertion it selfe that they preached onely Sect. 41 that Gospel which Christ by his spirit rovealed in them if you mean thus that they preached nothing but what was immediatly revealed from the Spirit without any externall help the plaine Scripture will give you the lye For how often did Christ instruct them during his bodily presence among them And how did he expound the Scriptures to them going through all the Bookes then penned even from Moses to Malachi immediatly before his Assention Luke 24. 27. So that whatever may be said of Paul who was called and enabled to his Apostleship in a singular way untrodden by any of the rest we are sure all the rest were taught otherwise then by the immediate revelation of the Spirit only But we doubt yet another Snake in the Grasse of this faire Sect. 42 expression which Christ by his Spirit revealed in them and suspect it beares some analogy with that in your former Article of preaching no more then we witnesse the life and power of in our selves and which you call afterwards witnessing the condition of the Saints whose words we preach of which anon The best sense therefore which comparing your words with each other and all with the language of your other Brethren we can pick out of your expressions here is that you suppose they preached no more then what by spirituall experience the Spirit revealed in their hearts Which if it be that you herein intend we desire you to consider whether the Apostles did experience in themselves the Histories of the old Testament which yet they preached and whether they did experience in themselves the resurrection of the body the generall judgment and eternall damnation which they preached Whether John experienced the Prophesies of the Revelation in himself or no as some of Foot out of the snare p. 6. 13. you cant that the witnesses are slaine in us and must be raised to life in us and Babylon in us c. And of this stamp we doubt is that uncouth and odd expression of witnessing the Saints conditions which is one of the Sect. 43 phrases we told you before that we conceive needs interpretation though possibly you speak what you mean yet we know not what you mean by what you speak especially if we compare those papers which we often receive from your Disciples in these parts with what you here say But we will take you in the best sense and so to witnesse we suppose in your sense is to feele by inward experience the Saints conditions whose words we preach And without this qualification in your judgment we must passe for Ministers of the Letter only We doubt you understand not what a Minister of the Letter meanes We are sure by a Minister of the Letter the

you think fit to conceale not without some ground of suspicion that you were rather willing to pick out what you could best sport your self and your credulous Reader withall then to give a solid answer to his Arguments as they come from his hand with such animadversions as he is sufficiently able to make to the disingenuities of your reply will abundantly vindicate him and the Truth Onely we cannot but acquaint you that you have mistaken the mark very much in the arrowes of bitter words which your discourse levels with too much virulency against that holy man Had you dealt with one of those sorry things in black whose Doctrine and life are scandals to the Gospell and blemishes to their holy Profession you might have promised your selfe an easie beliefe from the Readers of your Book to whatsoever load of reproches you should have laid upon him but the man you deale withall is so well known for Piety Meeknesse Humility Heavenly-mindednesse tendernesse of conscience and all other Ministeriall Qualifications that you may as well perswade them the Snow is black as fasten those reproches upon him with any hope of gaining credit to your self or your book except amongst those who are either totally strangers to him or given up to so potent a prejudice against all that beare the name of Ministers that they can easily admit into their Creed whatsoever evill can be said of them But to more sober Readers and especially those of the parts where he lives you might be easily convinced had you any principles left to bottome a conviction upon that the unjust imputations you every where bespatter him withall will render you suspected in all the rest of your book for the falsehood detected in them And we must tel you withal that we cannot prevail wth our reasons or consciences to perswade themselves that you have that infallible Spirit which you pretend to dictate to you seeing we know you to be so grossly mistaken in the censures you spend upon him and divers of his fellow-labourers Nor can we judge that language inspired by the holy spirit of God when we consider that there is no Gall in that Dove that those holy men of God who wrote as they were moved by the H. Ghost tell us that Saints must put away all clamour and bitternesse and evill speaking Ephes 4. 31. and wrath That the wisdome that is from above is gentle Ja. 3. 17. Ja. 1. 16. and that if any man bridle not his tongue his religion is vain And lastly that if you be not a better Master of Language then Michal the Arch-angel or we deserve worse usage then the Devill himself the light in which the Apostle Jude spake will tell you but that you think him too low a Scholar to instruct you that have gotten through the Schoole wherein he was a Disciple that it ill becomes you to bring against your Antagonists a railing accusation But if that convince not you Iude 9. and your brethren of the incivility and irreligion of your tongues and pens in this way we shall refer you from Michaels Dispute to Enochs Prophesie wherein you will find that hard speeches will beare an Indictment at the last Assise as well as Vers 14. hard blowes And in the mean time we hope God will heare our prayers and free us from the mercy of your Hands who find what cruelty there is in the tender mercies of your Prov. 12. 10. Tongues Mean while in hope that a soft answer will turn away wrath Pro. 15. 1. and that we may set you a fairer Copy to write after when you next put pen to paper we shall endeavour by Gods assistance Pro. 26. 4 5. to answer so much of your papers as concernes us in common with other Ministers without answering your passions And Sir upon our first view of your Pamphlet we cannot Sect. 1. but tell you that if your Title-page were calculated for the Meridian of your Book you mistook your self extreamly For Tituli remedia pixides venena to let passe the Title it self wherein you abuse the glorious name of Christs Innocency to patronize your own guilt we cannot but wonder how Seneca an Heathen comes to be so great in your esteem that you that will not allow us to quote Hierome Augustine Calvin or Luther yet think your Book Epistle p. D. credited by the wrested Testimony of a Pagan Philosopher prefixed thereunto Sect. 2. But to let that passe and proceed to your Epistle which only because you direct it to the whole body of the Ministery we suppose our selves concerned in The rest of your Book because we are assured from your Adversary that he will speedily take it in hand we suppose you will give us leave to be so ingenuous as to leave to his able Pen without interpreting it any wise to proceed from any consciousnesse of our own weaknesse that we meddle not with it And here in the first place we con you many thanks for the charitable advice you begin withall and assure you that the more we think of the day and houre which in your entrance you mind us of and that account we must hereafter therein give to the righteous Judge of Heaven and Earth the more are we excited to the consciencious discharge of that office which however you revile we are sufficiently assured he will own at that day to be held by commission from him and the more are we encouraged against all that evill entertainment which for the discharge thereof we meet withall from men of corrupt minds 2. Tim. 3. 8. reprobate as concerning the Faith And we hope we shall take warning even from an Adversary to walk worthy of our high and holy calling and not wear our Livery to the disgrace of our Master But we are jealous that whatever use we may make of your counsell you intend it to far another purpose to wit rather as a slye way of casting reproach upon us by insinuating that we stand in need of being so advised then out of any intention to do us good by that advice I wish you were in your language is no other then I proclaime your are not Sect. 3. And although you tell us immediatly after that you will not undertake Epistle pag. 2. rashly to judge us or accuse us to the world from which crime of rash judgment you think your self sufficiently secured by comparing our works with our rule the Scriptures and then proceed as you think cum privilegio to misapply Scriptures to slander us yet we must retort upon you that which you give in way of advice to us that the hower is coming when all coverings shall be removed and the vailes pluckt off from Ep. p. 1. all faces and then we doubt not but you will be found not only a rash but a false accuser and that to the world in Print notwithstanding that colour and covering which you hide

word as written to have been a rule before it was written Although we shall not doubt to prove that those Patriarchs had the same foundation to build on and the same Law or Rule to walk by though they were not then committed to writing The Apostle tells us Gal. 3. 8. that the Scripture preached the Gospel to Abraham where it is observable that Abrahams light was Scripture light before the Scriptures were written 2. The question between us is not whether the Scriptures be the personall or reall ground of faith but whether as Mr. Thomas well distinguisheth it be the Doctrinall or declarative ground or foundation of faith This distinction whether you will admit or no we must premise because we would not be engaged to fight with a meer shadow If you will own the Scriptures to be a doctrinall foundation or ground of faith i. e. to hold forth from God those Doctrines which and which onely we are bound to beleive our dispute is at an end for we are of a mind we owne Christ alone to be the foundation or ground of faith personall or reall that is to be the person or thing that our faith is built on and the Scriptures to be the onely ground and foundation by way of Doctrine or declaration what we are to beleive concerning Christ and how to beleive on him We hope you will understand us we speak as plaine as we can to avoid cavills about termes All therefore that we are to prove in this question is that all things which vve beleive and do as necessary in order to salvation are to be such as are contained in the Scripture and to be judged by it whether they be so or no. We say All things which we beleive and do as necessary in order Sect. 62 to the salvation of our Soules are to be such as are contained in Scripture If not because to please you we must not argue from Scripture we desire you to satisfie us Q. 1. What thing necessary to be beleived or done in order to salvation there is which we may or must receive from any other Rule or build on any other foundation and what is that Rule or foundation We suppose you are bound either to allow our rule or shew us a bettor Or Q. 2. Whether what the Scriptures containe be sufficient to guide us to salvation or no If you affirme it then we shall think our selves well enough with our old Rule seeing vve may be saved and yet admit no other If you deny it you must out-stare these plaine Texts 2 Tim. 3. 15 16 17. From a Child thou hast knowne the holy Scriptures which are able to make thee wise unto salvation And all Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for Doctrine for reproof for correction for instruction in righteousnesse That the man of God may be perfect throughly furnished unto every good work And that of John wherewith he closeth his twentieth Chapter These speaking of the signes which Christ did are written that yee might beleive that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God and that beleiving yee might have life through his name Say not that this concernes onely the Gospel of John or if more onely the Histories of the Evangelists For then we shall make bold to conclude our Position à fortiori If there be enough in one or at most four Bookes to work faith and thereby bring us to salvation much more in all the Scriptures Q. 3. Whether the Scriptures of the old and new Testament be the word of God or no or do you owne no word of God but Christ We suppose here you will answer us as your brethren here do We dare not deny it for feare of the Law we dare not affirm it for then we deny our own principles We know not how you will answer it But we must tell you if you deny it we are sure the Scriptures affirme it of themselves else we desire to know what it is that is called the Word of God in the places following Mar. 7. 13. 2 Cor. 2. 17. 4. 2. What it is that David so often calls by the name of thy word Ps 119. whether Christ spake himselfe or the declarative word of God Lu. 5. 1. If you affirme it We ask further Q. 4. Whether it be not the duty of the Creature to beleive and be guided by the declared word of God rather then by any others word whatsoever Q. 5. Whether there be any such thing in the World as Heresie or Errour If there be not to vvhat purpose are all those Prophesies that foretell and Cautions that forewarne Gods people against them in the Scripture If there be may they be discovered or no If they may not how can it be a duty incumbent upon Saints to avoid them is there any avoiding of an undiscoverable evill If they may by vvhat rule but the written Word Q. 6. Whether there be any duty or sin in the World or no The affinity your Sect hath vvith the Ranters in Principles vvhich G. Fox acknowledgeth makes us beleive that some of you vvould they speak out must answer No but what a man thinkes to be so We vvill not judge the thoughts But if you be more sober vve onely ask you Q. 7. What rule vve have to judge of vvhat is Duty or Sin but the vvritten Law of God Is it the light of every mans private bosome This is the forementioned Ranting Principle Is it immediate Revelation For to this your brethren incline as may be seen in the Quaeries sent to Mr. Baxter of Kiderminster one of vvhich vvas Whether he owned Revelations or no And Naylers Answer to his Quakers Catechisme and that very strongly yea they pretend to the same mission from God to this or that place to do this or that errand which the Prophets had of old and to be limited in their stay in and departure from such places by the immediate commands of God * See Deusberies discovery and his owne confession therein That at Derby he answered the Major that he would stay there till the Lord ordered him to go out of Towne and when he was put out returned and staid till he was free in his spirit to depart p. 8 9. If you be of their mind vve further enquire Q. 8. What certaine token you have to know the commands of God from the commands of Satan seeing he can easily insinuate his suggestions by inward voices as commands of God According to the old Law of God to his people the Jewes Pretenders to a Spirit of Prophesie though they gave evidence of their pretended mission from God by signes and wonders and those coming to passe too yet were to be discovered and judged by the written word Deut. 13. 1 2 3. c. And in the new Testament the Doctrine of an Angell from Heaven is submitted under a curse to the Doctrine preached by the Apostles Gal. 1. 8. And we desire to know