excludes all that have not the Scriptures or mens Teaching from the saving Work or Change in them and confines all God's People as Children under Tutors and Governours that they may be alwayes learning and then when shall they know the Truth And of whom do their Teachers learn and receive the Understanding of the Scriptures 2dly To his saying That the Doctrine contain'd in them is the Rule of Faith and Practice He should rather have said A RULE subordinate to the great Rule of Faith and Practice to wit that divine Light which was the true Prophets and Apostles Rule in giving forth the Scriptures is now the true Believers Rule in truly believing understanding and obeying the wholesom Doctrine contained in them which none truly own but they who believe in the Light and follow and walk in the Spirit which the Doctrine of Christ and his Apostles directs men to His accusing us with opposing mens being enlightened and taught by Christ to their being taught by the Scriptures is not true unless he intended the Scriptures without Christ's Light within for we assert his immediate Illumination and Teaching in Opposition to mens preferring the Scriptures before the Spirit and excluding its immediate Teaching in these Dayes we do not oppose Christ's Enlightning men to the true Knowledge or Understanding of the Scriptures which proceeded thence His rendering the Spirit and the Word two several Causes that produce the same Effect viz. God's Working savingly upon men and his calling the immortal Seed of the Word 1 Pet. 1. 23. The Sword of the Spirit and God's great Instrument or Means by which the Spirit doth its Work upon Men meaning the Scriptures p. 18 19. In these is he greatly mistaken For first The Spirit and the Word are no such differing Causes for they are one and the immortal Word was before the Scriptures 2dly This Spirit or living Word doth work upon men both with and without the Scriptures as it pleaseth Howbeit the Spirit is immediate in its inward Manifestations and Discoveries and is only God's Gift And while this man hath granted That Christ is God and God every where present and so in all Men p. 20. He must grant an Immediateness both of his Presence Light and Teaching in Man or else he allows man no Preheminence above a Beast and endeavours to limit God to Silence in man unless when he hears outward Teaching or Scripture which cannot profit him without God's immediate Teaching and inward Speaking His accusing us with jumbling about Christ's being in all Men and saying that in Respect of his vertual Presence as Mediator as when he rules and operates in Men's Hearts by his Authority and by the Evangelical Law in this Sense he is not in all Men p. 20 21. And when did we ever say that he was in this Sense in all men that is as ruling c. or to dwell in the Hearts of all men by Faith But while 't is granted that as God Christ is every where present and so in all men it 's granted that he is in all men in some Sense and his Presence is immediate and though he does not rule in wicked mens Hearts by his Evangelical Law and dwells not by Faith in the Hearts of Unbelievers yet by his Light he reproves them for Sin often and immediately in their Consciences and his immediate Reproofs daily persue the Transgressors who rebell against his Light and there is both Vertue and Power in his Presence immediately to torment the Wicked and refresh the Righteous therefore he is not alwayes confined to speak by the Instrumentality and Agency of second Causes as this Opposer darkly imagins who neither rightly knows our Principle to state it nor doth clearly state his own but runs into a Multitude of Tautologies and Repetitions and Contradictions that a Body hath something to do to find out the Matter he drives at though one search his Book with a great deal of Care Memory and Perspicuity as for Instance He confesseth both the Work of the Spirit and Christ dwelling in the Heart and a being made one Spirâ—â— with him as also to a super-natural Revelation and Illumination in the Way of Salvation and the Presence of God every where and in all Men and yet opposeth the immediate Operation of Christ in men but saith He doth not teach Men now immediately in Person p. 21. And who saith he doth But if he teach men immediately in Spirit as to be sure he doth his own who hear his Voice it 's sufficient And this man confesseth in Rev. 2 3. That it is seven Times said He that hath an Ear let him hear what the Spirit saith to the Churches as every Man in the VVorld hath that is not deaf as also He adds That when it the Doctrine is communicated to them by VVriting as where it is so by Preaching yea saith he I had almost said or by immediate Revelaâ—ion p. 28. Reader observe here how uncertain variable and unstable this man is in his own Judgment and Principle for one while he opposeth immediate Revelation or Enthusiasm as none of God's Way or Method now another while he does assent to the hearing of the Spirit or receiving its Doctrine by immediate Revelation and so then the Controversie he seems to place not so much upon immediate Revelation as the Belief Obedience or Disobedience of the Doctrine and those Revelations which he confesseth 'T is possible Men may have from God as Balaam had and Judas and other Workers of Iniquity that prophesied and cast out Devils in Christ's Name had p. 28. But now you who deny immediate Revelation to the Church of Christ in these Dayes do ye not therein render the Church inferior to Balaam Judas and those Workers of Iniquity nay I may add to Adam after the Fall who heard the Voice of God and to Cain to whom also God spoak And I cannot understand how this Man can really own the Doctrine of Christ and the Apostles to be a Rule much less the Rule of Faith and Christian Practice as he asserts p. 22. while he saith That Christ Jesus doth not savingly enlighten all thos who yet are savingly illuminated neither by natural Light nor by super-natural Revelation in an IMMEDIATE Way and addeth Then it follows that such are enlightened by supernatural Revelation MEDIATELY or instrument â—â— p. 47. Note here Reader that he pretends to own super-natural Revelation but not in a immediate Way and a being savingly illuminated but not immediately and yet pretends to own that Doctrine of Christ and his Apostles which directs both to God's Teaching and Hearing and learning of the Father and coming to Christ for Life hearing what the Spirit saith and to wait for the Revelation of Christ from Heaven and to look for the Appearance of the great God the Father whom no Man knows but the Son and he to whom the Son will reveal him And therefore this man's denying that Christ Jesus
there any Virtue in Christ's Presence that is not in God's Presence Is not the Father Son and Holy Spirit one Being though different as to Relation and Degrees of Manifestation But how plainly contradictory is it one while to confess Christ's being in men his essential Presence as God to be in all men and yet that his Light in the Heathen or greatest Part of men is natural and created O monstrous Inconsistency He affirms that the Form of Doctrine delivered to the Christians to wit the Scriptures was to be the Rule of Faith and Christian Practice to rule and govern themselves by p. 22 23. And yet confesseth That those who are sincere make it their dayly Care and Endeavour to walk according to the Light and Guidance of that Rule that hath its Seat in their Conscience p. 40. Observ. Here he has found another Rule then the Scripture to wit the Light in the Conscience Though it is true the Apostles Doctrine contains Rules but the Light within that gave it forth was The Rule the Chief or Highest Rule for Guidance and Power and that wherein was the Power of Rule and Government to all true Christians He gives this Judgment against us viz. That in Truth there is no Light in us how much soever we vainly boast of it he sayes p. 40. And yet hath confessed That the essential Presence of Christ as God is in all men and that Christ doth enlighten every man with a Faculty of Reason or natural Light by which he hath acknowledged some Light to be in every man though it is true they that speak not according to the Word it is because there is no Morning in them yet it follows not that there is no Light at all in them for there may be some Light in them before the Morning Upon Joh. 1. 9. he saith that there is no such thing as that Christ so enlightens all men as with what he ought to believe and do in order to his Salvation without outward Teaching can be proved p. 41. And yet confesseth That Christ indeed as God doth enlighten every man by which he may know that there is a God that he is to be worshipped that he is placable and that this may be a Light sufficient to direct the Heathen to do as much as God expects from them if they live up to it But in Contradiction again He calls this a natural Light not sufficient c. p. 42. Observ. What! A Light sufficient to give the Knowledge of God and his Worship that he is placable and to direct the Heathen to as much as he expects from them and yet not sufficient to enlighten men with a Knowledge of what they ought to believe and do in order to Salvation Is not this palpable Contradiction That Men may by the Light within be directed to acknowledge and worship God and to as much as he expects from them and yet not be saved These can never hold together any more then that the Light in the Heathen may be sufficient to direct them to as much as God expects and yet not to believe in his Son for Salvation according to pag. 42. As if God did not require all men to believe in his Son when their not believing in him is the very thing for which his Spirit reproveth the World of Sin and he that believeth not in the Son of God is condemned already because he hath not believed in the Name of the only begotten Son of God And this is the Condemnation that Light is come into the World and men love Darkness rather then Light because their Deeds are Evil Joh. 3. 18 19. So that it is evident That Light is come into the World that men may believe in the Name of the Son of God and escape Condemnation Again he errs in saying Paul knew of no such Way to propagate the Faith as immediate Revelation and inward Teaching of the Light within after it was once set on foot in an extraordinary Way p. 46. And this he hath contradicted in his confessing That the Work of Grace in men is most properly attributed to God to Christ and that the Scripture attributes it to God to Christ to the holy Spirit p. 18. And also he had almost granted that the holy Spirit may be communicated to men by immediate Revelation p. 28. Observ. So then God may and doth work by his immediate Power and Spirit for the begetting men into the true Faith and it is only this Spirit immediately attending true Ministers that maketh their Preaching effectual for the turning men to the Word of Faith in their Hearts Whereas the Tenour and Stress of this man's Work is against Enthusiasm in the best sense even against being savingly illuminated in an immediate way and saith that the plentiful Effusion of the Spirit is far from giving any Countenance to our Opinion of the Spirit 's being given to teach men immediately by internal Illumination pag. 60. And on John 16. 13. he accounteth that this is not a Promise to guide all Christians by its immediate Motion but a Promise to his Apostles pag. 61. And yet in Contradiction to himself in this and in Concession to the Truth he in words assents to the Operation of God's Grace and good Spirit pag. 15. And that men are said in Scripture to be born of the Spirit to be born of the immortal Seed of the Word pag. 18 19. But then he is nconsistent again in accounting these different Causes he hath also confessed the essential Presence of Christ as God to be in men p. 20. And that in Revel 2. Chap. 3. it is seven times said He that hath an Ear let him hear what the Spirit saith to the Churches p. 27. And that Christ's Ministers are Ministers of the New Testament not of the Letter but of the Spirit p. 33. That he accompanies their Ministration with the Presence of his Grace and Power p. 38. And also he asserts to the inward Assistance of his Spirit p. 41. And saith It is the Spirit that beareth witness because the Spirit is Truth p. 55. And on 1 Joh. 2. Ye need not that any man teach you but as the same Anointing teacheth you he grants that the Apostle's Meaning must be That they needed not from him or any other man any teaching that could give them greater Assurance of any thing then that Anointing gave them of Jesus his being the Christ and of the Truth of that Doctrine that Anointing being God's Witness from Heaven pag. 68. And that the Spirit doubtless is not wanting to assist the sincere Endeavours of men in searching after the Sense of the Scriptures p. 69. Howbeit for men to be guided by the internal Teachings of the Spirit without outward Teaching this he calls our Wild Notion And yet citeth Rom. 8. 14. As many as are led by the Spirit of God they are the Sons of God p. 71. And Gal. 5. 18. If ye are led by the Spirit
of his Bishop it is evident for so much as it is good that a Deacon or Priest do live well and preach fruitfully Ergo he may proceed from Idleness unto the Labour Office of Preaching and so unto a better Life See here how plainly these things make for us and against our Opposer and his Gainsaying the Immediateness of Christ's saving Illumination the sending the Spirit to guide all Christians by its immediate Motions wherein his Opposition tends to Atheism and to reject the Saving Knowledge of God and Christ for that which may be known of God is manifest in man And the true and living Knowledge of him is by the Revelation of his Son the Enjoyment of whose immediate Power and Presence is beyond all Outward Teaching Words or Expressions Again It manifestly tends to Atheism to conclude that no Divine or Saving Illumination is immediately conveyed to man's Soul by his Maker but only by such mediums as the Scriptures or Man's Teaching for then what is Man and in what Capacity is his Soul before he either know the Scriptures or have man's Teaching or if there be nothing of a Divine Nature Life or Light in men immediately from God who have not those Outward Means how are their Souls Immortal and capable of Future Rewards And what better then a Beast doth it render man as to a future Condition to suppose he hath no Divine Life and Illumination from his Maker but only that all must be infused into him Instrumentally through his natural Organs or Sense And how should he receive a Gospel-Ministry or Advantage by it if he have no Gospel-Light in him before conveyed to his Soul immediately by his Maker himself To conclude this Introduction let these Positions be seriously considered First to Deny the True God who is Light is Atheism But to Deny his Immediate Light in Man is to deny the True God Secondly To oppose that which gives the Knowledge of God and his Glory in the Face of his Son and therefore to be without his Knowledge is Atheism But to oppose God's Immediate Illumination or In shining Light in man is to Oppose that which would give him the Knowledge of God and so to be void of his Knowledge Thirdly To Deny the Immortality of the Soul is Atheism But to deny the Immediateness of his Divine Life which is Light in the Soul by which it immortally subsists is to Deny the Soul's Immortality Fourthly And to go about to stop the Mouth of God from teaching his People Immediately is the very Way to introduce and set up Atheism Because of this Anti-Enthusiast his opposing the Immediateness of Divine Light Teaching and Illumination of God's Omni presence and his immediate Life in the Soul without which the Soul cannot Immortally subsist either in a State of Happiness or as to its own Being I therefore conclude him and all who are of his Opinion to be therein guilty of Atheism which I desire the Lord to give him and them a Sence of unto Repentance and the Acknowledgment of the True and Living God and Jesus Christ and his Light within unto Salvation From a Lover of Souls G. W. London the 22th of the 5th Moneth 1674. ENTHUSIASM Above ATHEISM OR Divine Inspiration and Immediate Illumination by God himself Asserted Sect. I. Divine Inspiration and Immediate Illumination Asserted BY his Title The Danger of Enthusiasm We must understand The Danger of Immediate Illumination from God or God's Immediate Teaching the Spirit 's Immediate Direction and Working Immediate Revelation and Inward Teaching of God's Spirit or the Light within the Spirit 's teaching Men Immediately by Internal Illumination Operation c. According to his own Explication See Danger of Enthus pag. 13 14 16 40 46. 60. So that he should have stil'd his Book The Danger of divine Inspiration then his Blindness would more plainly have appeared then by that hard Word Enthusiasm which we are not to understand in this Controversie according to the Heathen's Acceptation of it as Inâ—pired by their Gods nor as their Infused Oracles received and taught by their Idolatrous Priests or Sacrificers for these we never owned in Principle nor in Practice but Enthusiasm taken simply as a divine Inspiration or Breathing into by a Deity we do assert and contend for in the best Acceptation However the Word hath been used in Scorn Contempt by Popes and their Agents against Men professing divine and immediate Inspiration who have opposed the Apostatized Church of Rome and the Pope's limiting People to believe worship by Tradition His accusing the Quakers with being guilty of changing God's Method of bringing Men Salvation is as false as his Title contemptuously applyed against us For our asserting divine Inspiration and the Sufficiency of the Spirit 's Teaching and that Men ought to wait upon God's divine Illumination that they may be all taught of God as he hath promised This can be no changing of God's Method but in Order to the fulfilling of his own Promise which is God's Way and Method That all his Children shall be taught of him The old beaten Path of the Christian Doctrine p. 9. leads us to God's Immediate Teaching which they that oppose are all out of the Chrâ—stian Doctrine and Enemies to it As for E. Burroughs his saying His pure Spirit is put into the inward Parts to be the Rule and Guide of Life in all things and only by the Teaching of the Eternal Spirit is the living God known in the Creature c. And W. Penn's saying that our Belief concerning the Scriptures is that inward Testimony that we have received from the holy Light within us to the Truth of those Sayings wherefore the Scriptures are so far from being the great Rule of Faith and Practice that the Light of Christ within is both our Warrant and Rule for Faith in and Obedience to them And is this either contrary to God's Method or quite different from his Way as this Man grounds his Objections let the spiritually minded judge how he hath opposed the very Tenour of the New Covenant and God's Promise therein namely his Spirit put into the inward Parts which should guide into all Truth And this Opposer himself confesseth That Christians are said to be one Spirit with Christ and by this Spirit and Temper when given us we know that we dwell in him he in us and if any Man have not the Spirit of Christ in some Measure he is none of his p. 119. This is the Man that undertakes to overthrow Enthusiasm and doth not own God's Immediate Enlightning Teaching in these Dayes but counts it contrary to his Way and Method but now it is by the Spirit that we know that we dwell in him and he in us and he that hath not the Spirit of Christ is none of his See how the Man hath broke the Neck of his own Cause and surely if God dwell in us and we in
Covenant the Priests Lips were to preserve the Peoples Knowledge which yet was not exclusive of all immediate Teaching whereas in the Dispensation of the New Christ is both our King Priest and Prophet who is given for a Covenant unto the People for a Light unto the Gentiles and to be God's Salvation unto the Ends of the Earth Therefore to conclude that there will be alwayes need of Teaching by man's Ministry under the New Covenant is contrary both to the Tenour of the New Covenant the Tendence and End of Christ's Ministry Which was not of of man and to John's plain Testimony Yâ— have an Unction from the Holy One and ye know all Things the Anointing which ye have recived of him abideth in you and ye need not that any man teach you but as the same Anointing teacheth you of all things and is Truth and is no Lye and even as it hath taught you ye shall abide in him Mark here he sole Sufficiency and Absoluteness of the Anointing to those who walk in the Light of it and obey it Sect. IV. Our Clearness from Error and Incongruity about the Light within and our Opposer justly chargeable with both IT is true that we affirm the Light of Christ within to be an absolute Rule teaching men that follow it what they ought to know believe and do and that it is necessary to call upon Men to believe and obey it forasmuch as many do not But I must look upon this man's Inference upon us in this Case as supposing for Truth that which is a manifest gross and most dangerous and pernicious Error to be unjust viz. That we suppose it is not as well necessary to teach men by the Scriptures and by the Ministry to know and believe what is necessary to their Salvation as it is to perswade them to do what is necessary therete p. 83 84. Which falsly supposeth a Defect in the Light and in our Ministry directing thereto Whereas the Light of Christ is able to teach men to know believe and do what is necessary to Salvation and to open the Scriptures as Christ said Believe in the Light that ye may be the Children of the Light And how could they be such if the Light did not teach them both to know believe and practise what is necessary to Salvation yet that many men are not come into the Light though it shine in their Darkness is very plain while they rebel against the Light and know not the Wayes of it because they abide not in the Paths of it But what is this to those who are come into the divine Light and holy Unction within As for his charging us with Incongruity of Opinion and Practice dissembling the Matter Tergiversatton and Shuffling Inconsistency of Pretences and Practices Pretences for a blind a perfect Piece of p. 93 94 95. What 's now the Matter this man appears so envious and reviling where is the Incongruity but that men being taught of God himself by his Light and Spirit within now undâ—r the New Covenant need not be taught by men and yet for all that we take upon us to teach the People our selves p. 93. Here is no more Incongruity then in God's Teaching both immediately and instrumentally in both which his own Power appears and operates We take not upon us to teach People our selves nor to hold forth man's Ministry but Christ teacheth in us and by us also shewing forth his own Praise in a Testimony without him we can do nothing and hiâ— Presence goeth along with us in a living Ministry both to open the Scriptures and to shew men their Duty both in believing and obeying what is necessary and so our Gospel is not of man nor by man but from Christ and therefore not guilty of this man's unjust Imputation either of pernicious Error or Incongruity As for being against all other mens Teaching but our own p. 94. And yet for the Teaching of the Light within Unto this I say we are satisfied that our Ministry is from God and his Light and have no Reason to have any mens Teaching whatsoever imposed upon us which does not flow from the Light nor from God's immediate Inspiration and Teaching which they opposing their Ministry is but of man and by the Will of man And therefore it is no Inconsistency in our Principle and Practice to confess to the Teaching of Christ's Light within and to teach others as that teacheth us in order to turn them to the Light that they may be taught as we are and so to deny all meer mens Teaching who are not taught by the Light within but gain-say God's immediate Teaching in these Dayes as this man doth who also falsly accuseth us with this Error viz. That God doth by a Light created in every man sufficiently teach them what they ought to believe and do p. 87. But this is his Mistake and false Foundation on which much of his Structure is framed as also in p. 15. p. 41 42. he takes it for granted that 't is but a natural Light in men that we direct them to but this is contradicted by himself in his confessing That it is God Christ the holy Spirit by immediate Illumination of our Minds that doth shew us what we ought to believe and do and that this is our Notior p. 13. But his is not by God's immediate Teaching and Operation p. 40. So be sure God was not with him in his Study as his Teacher in bringing forth his Book against God's immediate Teaching and Operation And the man is grosly mistaken in concluding it to be a created natural Light in man whilst he confesseth We ground our selves much upon Joh. 1. 9. where it is said of Christ That was the true Light which lighteth every man that cometh into the World p. 41. whereas that true Light was neither created nor natural as a Thing made for in him was Life and the Life was the Light of men Joh. 1. 4. This Life was not created nor natural in that Sense but supernatural and divine However this man gives us his Sense of this Scripture cited viz. That Christ indeed as God Creator doth enlighten every man that comes into the World with the Faculty of Reason and Understanding by which he may know that there is a God that he is to be worshipped and that he is placable and the Difference between moral Good and Evil in many things p. 42. And this he calls Natural Light supposing it sufficient to direct the Heathen to as much as God expects from them but not sufficient to direct those that live under the Gospel to believe and do what they are bound viz. To believe Jesus to be the Christ the Son of God and Saviour of the World and that upon Pain of Damnation p. 42. Serious Reader Consider the Tendency and Import of these Things as first He grants that Christ enlightens every man that comes into the World with such a Light as
that he may know that there is a God that he is to be worshipped and that he is placable And 2dly grants this a Light sufficient to direct the Heathen to as much as God expects from them And is not this then in order to Salvation If they obey what God expects from them shall they not be saved See the man's Contradiction having before denyed that Christ lighteth every man in order to his Salvation without outward Teaching when here it is granted he enlightneth every man even the Heathen with a Light sufficient to direct them to as much as God expects from them But 3dly in calling this a natural created Light he egregiously errs for how should the Heathen or any man else know that there is a God that he is to be worshipped and that he is placable or be directed to as much as God expects from them by that which is natural and created when the Things of God are beyond the natural man's Reach and Understanding and only to be discerned spiritually 4thly Whereas this man supposeth two such different Lights from Christ in man viz. the one which he calls the Faculty of Reason and Understanding in the Heathen sufficient to direct them in the Knowledge and Worship of God and to as much as he expect from them and the other in them that live under the outward Preaching of the Gospel the first saving only to the Heathen the second only to the professed Christians the first sufficient to give the Knowledge of God and his Worship the second the Knowledge of Christ and Salvation by him I must deny his Distinction of two such Lights in men as unscriptural an unsound and I must tell him he hath brought us no Scripture-Proof to convince us thereof that there are two such different Lights in man thus limited or distinguished the one as from God to Heathens the other as from Christ to Christians and yet both directing to the same End to wit Salvation This kind of mangled confus'd Work is fit to darken Peoples Minds from the Knowledge of God and Christ and Salvation whereas that first Chapter of John is plain without any such confused Distinction about the Light or Division between God and Christ as this man makes about the Light for there it is In him was Life and the Life was the Light of men ver 4. And that was the true Light that lighteth every man that cometh into the World ver 9. Mark here this Life or Light of Christ is but one and the same forever the Light of men throughout all Generations yea he was that true Light that lighteth every man that cometh into the VVorld whose Life or Light cannot without Blasphemy be deemed natural and created Besides it appears gross Confusion and palpable Contradiction in this Opposer to conclude that Light not sufficient to direct men to believe Jesus to be Christ the Son of God and Saviour of the VVorld which yet is sufficient to direct the Heathen to as much as God expects from them that is to moral Goodness to know and worship God and consequently to lead them to Salvation for in every Nation he that fears God and worketh Righteousness is accepted Now how they should know and worship God and be saved without some living Knowledge and Belief of his Son Jesus Christ I cannot see nor understand since that by no other Name under Heaven can men be saved and he that believeth not the Son of God shall not see Life but the Wrath of God abides on him Joh. 3. 36. cited by this man who also confesseth the Son of God to be the Saviour of the World p. 42. Again no man comes unto God but by his Son who is therefore universally held forth and given for a Light to the Heathen to be God's Salvation to the Ends of the Earth and it is the World's Sin that they believe not in the Son of God and for this his Spirit reproves them But since it is granted that the Heathen by that Light of Christ in them may know and worship God and practice good Morality and as much as God expects from them it s granted that they may be godly and serve God by the Light in them but how any should be godly Men no Christians I must confess we are yet to seek and not like to have any Scripture-Proof thereof from our Opposer or any else of his Perswasion for it were as uncharitable to judge all void of Christianity who have not the Name Christian as it were untrue to reckon all Christians who have but the Name and Profession of Christianity seeing that it is not the Name or Profession outward that makes true Christians but the divine Life Power Unction and Possession of the Nature of Christianity inwardly as he is not a Jew that is one outward but he is a Jew that is one inward and Circumcision is that of the Heart in the Spirit and not in the Letter And as for this man's Knowledge of Christ that he has by Oral Tradition and that he reckons is derived down successively by outward Teaching without immediate Revelation or Illumination p. 47 84. It is no living or saving Knowledge such Method as this man proposes for the Knowledge of Christ as in Opposition to his Immediate Enlightning is not God's Means He talks something like a Papist and his Work against immediate Illumination tends to divert peoples Minds from God's inward Illumination and and from waiting for the Revelation of his Son in them And what is this but to lead People to be subjected under the Pope and Traditions although many of the Church of Rome have confessed to the Truth of divine Illumination and immediate Inspiration more then this man hath done though in Practice she manifests her self to be both apostatized and estranged from the divine Light within Sect. V. His silly Temporizing in espousing the Hireling Priests Quarrel against us AS to his wishing That we did not give too much Occasion to suspect our Integrity accusing us with making sad Out-Cries aginst the publick Ministry one as well as another without Distinction and that we seek to make them odious to the People for their taking Money of them as Rewaerd of their Labours and that we compare them with the false Prophets and bad Priests of old of whom it is said that the Priests preach for Hire and the Prophets divine for Money and then he alledges the Priests under the Law taking Money or Moneys worth as the Provision that God made for them which was Tythes and saith he when their Tythes were detained and kept back from them God accounted himself robbed To all which I answer that we have great Reason to cry out against that Ministry and those Priests who preach for Hire Lucre Tythes or forced Maintenance contrary to the Practice of Christ's Ministers who as they did freely receive did freely give And such as preach for Hire and force Maintenance suing