A FEW Plain Words OF INSTRUCTION Given forth as moved of the Lord for all people whose minds and hearts are inclinable after the way of peace and rest with the Lord which the Leaders of the people in this age have caused them to erre from and have forgotten their resting place With a true Testimony for the Lord and his power which gathereth out of the World and against all gathered and not by the true Jesus the Saviour of the soul Gods Salvation and Rock of Ages from everlasting to everlasting And a Testimony against all blind guides and foolish builders which would make the word of God the word of faith in the heart and in the mouth of no effect by their own Imaginations and so bringeth forth the Hypocrites hope and so leaveth and people in Egypt and Sodom where they found them where our Lord was and is crucified And this is a true Testimony in righteousness born unto all the World for the Truths sake which is better then life it self by him who is known to many by name Luke Howard LONDON Printed for Thomas Simmons at the Bull and Mouth neer Aldersgate 1658. ON the eleventh day of the third Moneth 1658. as I stood at my labour in my outward calling with my mind staid on the Lord and my thoughts exercised in his Law which is light the state and condition of the deceived and the deceiving Preachers of these times came into my mind and their unrighteousness was laid before me as it had been many a time before by which the people have been and are deceived and perisheth for want of knowledge so I was moved of Lord in the clear spirit of truth to propound these queries for the seed sake which is kept in bondage in all people which are led by such blind guides to the making manifest some part of their unclean spirit which ruleth in them and in all people which are lead by them which liveth out of the Truth the which truth maketh free all which liveth in it and therefore is their anger kindled against all which are made free by it because they are in bondage to the spirit of this world and so have a life in another thing then in the truth of the Lord God who made the World and all things therein which dwelleth not in Temples made with hands neither is he worshipped by mens hands seeing he giveth life and breath unto all for that end alone that all should live unto him and praise his great and glorious Name which is known over all as all stand in the Covenant of life and light with him in which they were created And seeing that this God is very much professed and little known and lesse worshiped in the spirit and in the truth although there be so many worshippers of him in words of all sorts they all worshipping they know not what being out of the Covenant wherein they were created even of the light wherein the true knowledge and worship of God standeth and therefore as one which hath obtained mercy and by it brought into Covenant again do I propound these Queries in love unto all to consider of and let the witnesse of God in all consciences answer Quere 1. WHether God be not all light and in him is no darkness at all And whether this were not and be not the message which the Saints and Ministers of Christ were and are now to preach according to the Scriptures Quere 2. Whether Jesus Christ be not the light of the World and hath not enlightened every one which cometh into the World And whether all which believeth in his light shall not come out of darkness and feel and witness the light of light according to the Scriptures Quere 3. Whether God and Christ in the light be not one according to the Scriptures And although many may and do say so because it is left on Record by the spirit of Truth which dwelt in the Children of light yet whether any can come unto the true knowledge of it but by the mistery of faith held in a pure concience And whether all men be not without that faith by nature and whether any can come unto that faith until they believe in the light which shineth in the heart to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ which is eternal life as it is abided in according to the Scripture Quere 4. Whether Christ Jesus the Covenant of Light doth not proceed from the Father and God of Light as a free gift of grace unto man shining in his heart to make manifest with the Spirit of Truth the thoughts and intents of the heart for to keep man from the committing of actions which are evil which are first committed in the thoughts of the heart where the alienation stands And whether this be not the condemnation of all which are condemned that they turn from the Covenant of God and do not set to their seales by believing in it the Covenant of light And whether this the Covenant of light be not the way of God for all to meet him in and to work righteousness in by casting off the workes and deeds of darknesse which by the light in the heart are made manifest And whether all which doth joyn unto the light by believing in it doth not joyne unto God in Christ Jesus in the new Covenant which God maketh with his people which is written in the heart and put into the inward parts wherein the light shineth according to the Scripture Quere 5 And whether all unrighteousnesse be not sin and whether he which committeth sin be not of the Devil and whether he which loveth so to do be not brought forth into the image of the Devil and whether any which will not cast off what by the light is made manifest to be evil doth not love their sins and hate the light and so joyning unto the evil shut themselves out of Covenant with God in the light and so remaineth in the Covenant of death and darknesse and so under the bond of iniquity And whether any which therein stand be fit to preach unto others the way of God which is life and light and if any do presume to use their tongues to preach to others in that state then whether all such be not hypocrites and vain talkers intruding into such things as they never saw from the Lord in the Covenant of light but have learned it by nature and tradition and so are vainly puft up in their fleshly mindes and whether they are not those who shall never profit the people at all they having gotten as it were a form of Godlinesse but denying the power thereof which standeth in the Covenant of light and whether all people which have been followers of such be not to turn away from them and to turn to Christ Jesus Gods Covenant of light which he hath freely given as a free gift of grace unto all men
that will receive him to be their teacher and to learn of him alone according to the Scripture Quere 6. And whether all which love and live in sin and unrighteousnesse and yet will presume to preach the words of righteousnesse recorded in the Scripture of truth be not such as steal the words now as the false Prophets did whom the Lord was against And whether the Lord be not against them now as ever he was and whether they be not such as run when the Lord never sent them and so shall never profit the people at all no more then they did And whether all such Preachers may not as well be known now as in the days past by their fruits for can we gather grapes of thorns or figs of thistles now any more than they could then and may we not know them now by their fruits as they did then which preacht for filthy lucres sake and through feigned words and covetous practises makes merchandise of the people every one looking for his gain from his quarter that so he may feed himself with the fat and cloath himself with the wool but he starveth the flock and if any for conscience sake cannot put into their mouths they even prepare war against them now as they did then and of this sort are all such preachers as rebell against the light as the prophets Testimony of them is And are we any more to uphold them now then the children of light were then or are we not to bear our publick Testimony against them now as they did then according to the whole current of Scripture Quere 7. Whether all which liveth in the practise of that horrible and filthy thing which was committed in the Land of Israel as it is now in the land of England to the far exceeding of them as the Priest preaching for hire and the Prophets prophecying for money and the peoples loving to have it so be not as much now to be witnessed against as it was then And whether it be not as great an evil and as much to be taken notice of by our God now as it was then for his Witnesses to be evilly entreated now as they were then to the great shame of the name of a Christian who hath stole the name and lost the nature and so bringeth forth contrary fruit even such as the Lord will repay with vengeance according to the words of his Son Jesus Christ the same yesterday as to day and for ever the Rock of Ages and foundation of all truth according to the Scripture Quere 8. And whether all which live in sin and love so to do which can run from Town to Town and from Parish to Parish and from Ship to Ship for gifts and rewards and so preach as to get the peoples money by flattery and daubing of them up with untempered morter in telling them they are that which the witnesse of God in their consciences telleth them they are not and if they cannot so have the wages of unrighteousnesse the peoples money then they will take it by the force of a carnal pretended Law which is without all grounds for it but any way to have it will serve their turn Whether all such be not Rebels against the power of the Lord Jesus and against the Covenant of God wherein the sure mercies of David are injoyed and the glory of Israel is witnessed even the free covenant of light in which the true Prophets did and doth stand which as a light unto the feet and a lanthorn unto the pathes it compasseth the minds of all the Children of light and so guideth them out from under the teachings of all such evil-minded men and seducers for they wax worse and worse through covetousnesse so the one he buildeth up a wall and the other he daubeth it with untempered morter and so they keep up that alive which should be put to death and put to death that which should be kept alive and as the false Prophets ever did whose damnation slumbereth not according to the Scripture Quere 9. Whether all which live in sin and love so to do and yet will presume to use their tongues to preach to others from the words of the Scriptures of truth be not now as great theeves as the false Prophets of old were who stole the true Prophets words and said Thus saith the Lord when the Lord never spoke unto them and though they spoke true words yet they could not profit the people because they stole them and did not speak from the spirit of truth the life of righteousnesse made manifest in them and so although they did swear the Lord liveth which was true words yet they swore falsely and how can that spirit now speak Truth which could the speak nothing but falsehood hood although they did speak true words for now for a man which liveth in sin and loveth it for him to preach to another of the true Ministers lives recorded in the Scriptures because they lived according to their words which are true words that doth not make him righteous neither doth his words reach to the witnesse of God which is righteous in every mans conscience which heareth him and so none are able to learn righteousnesse by him because that spirit is head in him and speaketh the words which hath a life in sin and unrighteousnesse as covetousnesse pride and what not for from one root doth all sin proceed and so the blind leadeth the blinde and all must needs fall into the ditch according to the Scripture Quere 10 And so whether that which is given unto every man to profit withall and to lead man out of sin up to God be not by them murdered and that which the Devil hath begotten in man which is the seed of the Serpent whose life is in sin and therefore wil plead for it be not by them nourished and kept alive and this is just contrary the one unto the other and unto the promises of God unto man that the seed of the woman shall break the head of the Serpent and this was and is all that ever the righteous Ministers of God ever travelled and laboured for to bring forth the seed of the Woman whose name is called the Word of God to rule in the heart by which the creature was and is made able to do the will of God and here was and is the blessing of the promises felt as this birth is felt but the Devil who was the murderer from the beginning of this birth and abode not in the truth which is the light and in all which are from the Covenant of light doth he rule and labour to carry on his old work to keep people from believing in the light the Covenant of God wherein the ability standeth and is received to destroy and overcome the power of hell and death which is his Kingdom so can all the Children of light truly say greater is he which is in us then he which is in
the World according to the Scripture And thus have I in love unto the seed of God in all propounded these few Queries to the opening of the opening of the understanding of all which have not fully made shipwrack of faith and a good conscience but feeleth something yet left which hungereth and thirsteth after righteousnesse and unto it it the blessing is which will not be nor cannot be satisfied with the talk of the thing but must have the thing it self which is the substance or else it dieth which all which are covered with the shadow of are willing to set to their shoulders by words and actions to persecute but if in a blind zeal they kill the body and think they do God good service in so doing that will not excuse them but they fulfill the Scripture to their own destruction for the servant is not greater then his Master and our reward is with Him in whom I rest in my measure a friend unto all and known unto the Lord in it and to the sons of men by my name as to man Luke Howard AND now a few words unto all you which call your selves Churches gathered out of the World I matter not your names of distinction for that cover will not not hide you the nature and ground being standing which is all one and with the light of Christ Jesus you are seen and made manifest and unto the measure of the same light in you all in whom it is not yet put out I speak and write these lines for you to consider of Whether you be gathered out of the World yea or nay or by what spirit or power you are gathered together for this know that it is not sufficient for you to gather in a heap together and call your selves by the name of the Church of Christ and yet the fruits of the Sprit of Christ not to be found among you but that ground standing which bringeth forth briers and thorns both in you and your Leaders and all such fruit is but for the fire and the wrath of the Lord and therefore for you to pretend to practise such things as the Saints in the dayes past did practise by the leadings of the spirit of life which dwelt in them and so left them on record for the learning of all which are lead by the same spirit which can read them and understand them according as they live in the fulfilling of them for they were the Sons of God by faith in Christ Jesus and as many as are led the same Spirit of God they are the Sons of God now and none else and therefore consider whether the pure Spirit of the Lord have led you to gather together or your own spirits the which yet hath fellowship with the World and can joyn thereto and love the things thereof and this is a true Testimony that the love of the Father is not in such neither are they called out of the World It is true there was a cry once in the hearts of many of you after righteousnesse and there was in your hearts and mindes an inclining to satisfie it and that which cried after righteousnesse was the righteous spirit and seed of God and the manifestation of it was given unto you for to profit withall which cry was against unrighteousnesse for to have been separated indeed from under the burthen of it which did oppresse it as a Cart is oppressed with sheaves that so it might have enjoyed its freedom with the Lord in righteousnesse which is its life but now consider whether you have profited in this which was given unto you to profit withall or whether you have not profited and increased in your own spirit and so have this murdered and by your self-separation are grown harder and harder in sin and iniquity and so through the strength and subtilty thereof have learned how to live in it and to cover it over and to plead for it but wo be to him which covereth his sin and hideth his transgression for he shall not prosper for the hand of the Lord will search out the hidden things of Esau for now consider this in the fear of the Lord that that which in the dayes past bore witnesse against sin and cryed after righteousnesse hath not now changed its nature to become willing to live in sin although its voyce may not be so much heard as in the dayes past because the earth is grown thicker over it then it was yet that which was humble in you and then called for humility and wrought some tendernesse in you is the same still as it s hearkened unto and is not now become proud but beareth witnesse against it still as it s suffered to speak in you and that which was righteous and wrought in you some tendernes in the days past and cryed after righteousnes that it might have had a free life from under the bond of iniquitie hath not now changed his nature to become unrighteous to live in covetousnesse and pride and according to the course of this world to serve the times as oft as they do change and to seek the honour and glory and profit of this world and to joyn thereto but that spirit which can do these things is that which hath murdered this just one and slain the Lamb of God now as ever it hath done from the foundation of the world and here read your selves all you time-serving Professors And therefore as you prize your eternal peace consider of your latter end before it be too late when time shall be no more for then such fruits will be bitter unto you therefore whilst you have time prize it and answer the requirings of the spirit of the Lord by obeying of it and rebel not against it when these things are made manifest by it and sell not your birth-right therein for vain and unprofitable things which in the day of the Lord you will be ashamed of For this honestly consider of whether a foolish custom of words or practises in action or fashions of apparel which riseth out of the carnal heart be not vain and unprofitable although the heart may be so much drawn into the thing that the eye can scarce see or look or the ear hear but the spirit lusteth after all it seeth or heareth and whether the living therein be not rebelling against the light which sometimes checketh in secret for them and whether Rebellion against that that checketh be not as the sin of witch-craft which maketh the heart harder and harder and so much the harder because you are covered with a profession of the Saints life which you are out of and so are in the liberty of the flesh but wo be to him that covereth his sin for he shall not prosper therefore to the light which maketh all things in the heart manifest incline your ear and hear that your soules may live and to it bow and in it wait that you may be compassed about therewith and feel