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
the earth let the Children of light judge which by the Word of life which they have seen tasted and handled of can judge righteous judgement and so say in truth greater is he which is in us then he which is in the World to the fulfilling of the Scripture which saith The strong man armed keepeth the house untill the stronger then he comes which all the pleaders for sin are yet ignorant of so are to be silent and to the name of Jesus to bow and in the light to wait until they feel the working of that power in them wch bindeth the strong man and spoileth his goods and this is the power of God which saveth from sin and so leadeth the mind and heart by its power to plead against all sin and to plead for everlasting righteousnesse and in it to dwell by believing in the light And thus I have born my Testimony unto the light of the Lord against the darknesse of the World and to the righteousnesse of God against the unrighteousnesse of the World and all that plead for it whether they he gathered together and call themselves though falsly the Church of Christ or not gathered together for in the light they are seen to be all one as well now as in the dayes past who have stole the name but have lost the nature and so are dead whilst they live Luke Howard AND now all my dear brethren which are redeemed from under the Idol shepherds and gathered out of the false wayes and worships which are many in the World which are dear and near unto me in the Lord who hath visited us with the day-spring or the springing of the day from on high and by his eternal power in the word of life hath visited his own plant in us all to the raising up of the Prisoner of hope which can both patiently wait and hope for the Salvation of God I say unto you all dear friends in the bowels of everlasting love and tendernesse and as you tender the glory of our God and your own eternal peace dwell low in the fear of God and keep unto that in and by which you have been visited and forget it not by any means but keep to it that you may all be sensible in the feeling of a living principle of God born up in your understanding for to keep your minds alwayes staied on the Lord in the watch that the enemy enter not so will you find the seed to grow and the Prisoner of hope to be brought forth which comes to do the will of him that hath it begotten and visited and by the right hand of his power hath it brought forth which cannot live out of the presence of that God of power and life which begot it and brought it forth and this is the way of Gods salvation wherein it is revealed to all that wait for it And here all people and professors of all sorts come and try your hope If it be not the hope of Gods elect it will not stand you in stead in the day of the Lord when he appeareth to give to every man according to his faith but will prove you to be but the hope of the Hypocrite and that will perish eternally And therefore whilest you have time prize it and consider from which seed your hope riseth for that seed which can live out of the presence of God is not Gods elected one but is that which is cursed eternally and if that professe and hope it hopes in vain for it is reprobated concerning the faith of Gods elect and is cast out of Abrahams house or the habitation of the faithful for ever for it is that which gendereth to bondage and so to death and endeth therein and to the liberty or freedom of the seed of God it is a stranger for now consider this that seed or spirit which can live in pride cannot live in humility and that which can live in unrighteousnes cannot live in righteousnesse and that which can live in the service of the Devil cannot live in the service of God and therefore all you which can live in sin and unrighteousnesse in death and darkness and plead for it and yet say you hope for salvation with the Lord whose nature and being is in righteousnesse and purity in the immortal light and glory for righteousnesse is the girdle of his Loyns Are you not deceived by the deceiver and father of lies who will let you be Hypocrites and let you leap into a profession and steal the name of Saints and of being called out of the World so that he may keep his seed alive in you which cannot live but in transgression and therefore will plead against perfect freedom for by this the Devil knowes that if he can but get men to love sinne and transgression and to joyn thereto as to covetousnesse and pride and wantonesse and seeking honour one of another or any unrighteousnes for to serve him in and yet make a profession too then such a man is fit to make a Teacher and a Ruler in his Kingdom of darknesse and to plead for it against the light that so his work to murder the seed of God which is begotten in the light may go the more stronger on in the mysterie of iniquity for if the serpents seed in Cain which can imbrace this present World should offer a Sacrifice is it not from that ground which is cursed and is it not an abomination to the Lord as his murder is For if that seed or nature offer a sacrifice or if it slay a man is it not all one as to the Lord yea assuredly although by its sacrificing and profession it would seek to cover its sin and the ground from whence it proceedeth wherein its life lyeth which is nourished and kept alive by the dust threof which is all cursed for its sake he that readeth let him understand And therefore all people upon the face of the earth unto whom these lines may come this is that I have to say unto you all in love unto the seed of God in you all the Lord is my witnesse I lie not I say this unto you all If you will have eternal peace with your Maker bow down to that which may be known of God the light of Jesus Christ which is eternal which is made manifest in you and is daily shewen unto you which light is the grace of God which appeareth unto you and checketh you in secret when no eye seeth you and discoverteh the thoughts and intents of your hearts unto you before they are brought forth into evil actions the which if you receive it I am a witnesse for the Lord in this the day of his power that it will teach you to deny all ungodlinesse or that which is not like God which it reproves and brings you into the image of God or likenesse which is righteousnesse and true holinesse which it justifies but if you rebell against it assuredly it
the righteous power of life which in it is made manifest the tongue to bridle and the whole man to govern or else your profession is all in vain and it is cursed as is your pride and all unrighteousnesse for now for a proud and covetous man in his proud and covetous mind to professe Religion that doth not make him righteous nor change his heart nor yet his looking into the Scriptures of Truth and with that Spirit which leadeth out the mind to pride and covetousnesse read them over and imagine and think how the Saints in dayes past were separated from the World and so catcheth up something in his carnal mind which causeth him to get into some heap of people or other called a Church and so remaineth still ignorant of that which changeth the heart for that which changeth the heart separated them from the World and gathered them out of it and caused them to bear a righteous Testimony against the World and is the condemnation of all which believeth not in it and the salvation of all which believeth in it and profiteth by it and answereth its requirings by obeying of it and casting off every weight and burthen which doth so easily beset it that it may arise which will be made able through the power of him that reareth it to run with patience the race of righteousness set before it which race cannot be seen nor what is to be be cast off known but as the mind is stayed in the light which maketh all things manifest that is reproveable by it And therefore all you which love and serveth the unjust power which leadeth the heart and mind to sin and keeps the just under suffering under the power of iniquity in captivity to your lust to you I say it seemeth but a small thing to you to blaspheme the light of Christ which shineth in the heart and maketh all things manifest which opposeth the seed of God this you can call natural light or natural conscience as often as you please as the dark power moveth in your minds because your tongues are your own but such names the Scriptures never called it by so your blasphemy will rest upon to bear when the light must be your condemner and judge but this I know if you did not love your evil deeds and hate the light as the Scripture saith I am sure you would not so call it neither could you so blaspheme it For now consider this that spiritual wickednesse in the heart which maketh desolate the soul standeth where it ought not to stand cannot be made manifest by a natural light but that must of necessity be spiritual which maketh manifest spiritual wickednesse and leadeth out of it and this is the whole work of the power of darknesse to keep peoples hearts from believing in the light and to place a prejudice in the mind against it least it should make him manifest and the ground in which his power standeth and so his Kingdom should come to be destroyed which will be as the light is believed in and this Testimony I bear for the Lord unto his light against all the blasphemers of it in the whole world And therefore all you which are got into heaps and call your selves the Church of Christ and yet can plead against the light of Christ which leadeth into the Church of God which is in Christ Jesus the Rock of Ages as he is the light of the World Do not you manifest your selves to be gathered and separated onely in words and by a wrong Spirit and so by your fruits declare your selves but to be the Synagogue of Satan begotten by the prince of pride and father of lies who hath taught you to blaspheme to call your selves Saints in saying you are separated from the World and yet differ in your practise nothing from the World except it be to exceed them in wickednesse for to live in sin and to be able to plead for it the which many of them are ashamed to do and so the Publican and Harlot may enter into the kingdom of God before yee So upon a true search and weighing of you in the true ballance and measuring of you by a just measure I cannot finde you to be but the worst of men and the greatest enemies to the Crosse of Jesus which are this day living and not wrong you at all And this Testimony I must needs give of the greatest part of you that ever I met with that it is the greatest work you find to do to plead for sin and for to live in it as long as you live in the body so you shew what Lord you serve and whom you are willing to serve as long as you can serve him and yet you say you hope to be glorified with the Saints in light and to have an inheritance among them which are sanctified Is not this the hope of the Hypocrite and will it not perish for where will you be sanctified Not by imputed righteousnesse as you call it in your dark minds whilest you live in sin and sinning against the light and power of him who is the true light and power to destroy and take away sin and the ground of it And therefore this consider how you will by your principles escape holding of a Purgatory when you are dead let the wise in heart which live by faith judge so of the worst of men in practise and one with the Papist in judgement I find you to be and yet do you no wrong at all in so saying of you neither do I write this to upbraid you God is my witnesse but to make manifest your ignorance to the view of your understanding that you may see you are not separated as you say you are from the World but as the father of lies hath deceived your hearts and so made you a perfect Synagogue for himself to dwell in and among whilst he ruleth in the heart and guideth your tongues to plead against the perfect light of Christ Jesus the true Saviour of the soul from sinne and calleth it naturall and so undervalueth it as a thing too low for you to walk by and as if you had a higher light to walk by when thousands can witnesse to the glory of the Lord and the praise of his grace that the light which you call natural and low leadeth out of sin and giveth victory over it whereas that which you call a higher light and spiritual you are forced to confess doth not so lead you out of sin but that it leaveth a root for you to plead for and to remain un-cut up as long as you live And whether yours be the Lords Axe which cuts up the corrupt tree by the root let the pure witnesse of God in your consciences answer And so whether that which you call spirital and high or that which you call natural and low be the true light of the Lord which he hath given to be salvation to the ends of