the creatures spirit is set a waiting for it and at last comes to enjoy it So in Free grace when God represents this truth to let man see he is Free in all his dispensations man being thereby convinced of it his heart is set a waiting for the enjoyment of the same within him which he sees in God above him that is above his reach of enjoying and so he doth not let him Rest though he see a truth until he comes to have the manifestation of it within him and in the power and life of it enjoyed by him So as the generall knowledge of Free grace before it be known particularly in the Creature by the manifestation of it from God will be no secure Rest or satisfaction for any soul First The creature in this condition may receive it with much joy as witnesse them Mat. 13. 20. yet be short of having the power This truth is very pleasant to many especially to those that have been the greatest workers for Grace whereupon their delight is much taken up either in hearing reading or discourse that tendeth to the declaring of this truth and it is a dispensation of God in some men but not a Rest unto them Now men who are made to Rest here may have high notions of this truth and may be more able to speak of it then those who have enjoyed it in a general manner but come to the particular workings of it in the soul and many prove shallow there only they declare it as they see it to be a Scripture truth But he that Enjoyes sees it to be an Experimentall and a Scripture Truth Now some men have learned what he beleeves and Rests upon it only from report or men declaring their experiences or what the Scripture doth relate of others but have not any Teachings of God what it saith according to the Scriptures in them by Experience And here sometimes man is not compleatly furnished to declare this Truth But one who doth enjoy truth within doth a little discerne where such a soul is to wit have heard and from hearing do declare and yet not brought into the Kingdome of Truth to see and experience it within himself Further Man may daily increase in the Notionary knowledge of this Truth wherein he may appear a Tall Cedar in his own eies and in the eyes of others and grow up into high Notions and Light and is able to speak of very high and glorious light yet if he here Rest it may prove in conclusion but a feeding upon winde and husks Furthermore In this knowledge of Truth may man solace and refresh his spirits continually in the apprehension of the same and yet it is but seeming not reall satisfaction or refreshment if he there Rest trusting to it to be God himself for want of information of the difference betwixt what is a Truth in it self seen so by me and a Truth mine manifested within me not knowing the foot-steps of truth without man from the foot-steps of truth within man not knowing a difference betwixt the deceipt of the heart in its deceivable workings making glorious Rests of that which is none and Truth nakedly discovered from or by God in the heart with its End and Testimony so as the creature is not satisfied with any thing though it be a truth without him until he finde the very being of that Truth within him Therefore whosoever he bee that reads these few lines Let him beware of these things following First that he judge not that to be a place of Rest to his spirits which is but in shew not enjoyed in substance nor absolutely passe sentence of any thing untill there be a Divine light within which makes it manifest Yea though they may come so far as to be convinced of truth of Free grace and for the transcendent Excellency of Christ in God yet Rest not until thou finde it in thy soul manifest from God then shalt thou seal it to be a truth yea thou shalt have it sealed up for Truths by the Spirit of GOD within thee Also to take notice I do not despise nor condemne this dispensation not to be of God first to see by Scriptures these to be Truths But There labour to unbottom and to un center any soul who meerly rests in the notion of them Thirdly To beware of condemning these things because they have no experience of them or because they come nigh them or because if they be Truths they have nothing left them but wait untill they see a Light within to discover the truth or fallacy of them to them Jer. 17. 9. and if so be they see not the deceite of their hearts or those false Rests in them we are speaking of yet do not condemn them who have both seen and known them as though they sought to destroy the foundation of God in Saints but look upon me as one owning any dispensation of God in its place proper to it The Eight false Rest THE Next Rest we desire to speake of in order to this is the Knowledge of Christ in the flesh Eithar considered as he is declared in Types and Figures under the Law or as he assumed nature upon him and so consequently dyed at Jerusalem Now for the first In reference to Types and Figures which at this time are the dispensation of Ordinances either practised before or since his Coming How many in our daies are they that meerly rests upon such shadows some practising of such Types as held forth Christ to come some in those that were practised after his Coming and here they satisfie themselves As instance the cry of most Wee enjoy the pure Ordinances of Christ wee are members of the Church of Christ we are partakers of those outward priviledges purchased by Christ Instance the peace and comfort they enjoy in them the glorying and the high conceite they have of themselves above others that do not practise with or enjoy them witnesse their deadnesse flatnesse when they want them and their life and peace in the enjoying of them witnesse their binding up in them and their whole Experience contained in this particular When I was imployed in such an Ordinance I was fil'd with joy or I was made to be satisfied with the seeing of God in it when the poor Creatuer it may be knowes not what God in all or any thing is but if it be enlarged or have some particular flashes of comfort it makes that to bee the presence of God and meerly under these fleshly parctises or carnall relations do many Rest satified But Secondly To Rest upon Christ come in the flesh is to Rest upon the beleeving the report the Scripture gives concerning him as being born of a Virgin and suffering and being buried and the like and if they beleeve this and can but heare enough of the Letter preached to this purpose they Rest as beleeving such a particular to be true and that is all that is required of them to
when this is come Eph. 1. 19. Mat. 24. 30. Sixtly Whether is it the Manifesting of God to thee that gives thee a right to the Promise and from this thou closest with God Or is it that sutablenesse in thee to the words of the promise that gives thee a being whereby thou closest with it If it be the latter it is not right For all Promises are in Christ Yea and Amen And He is the ALL in them and if he be revealed he gives a being to them yea to the creature to live in that being as He is the ALL in them So that the substance of every promise must come into the soule and be revealed in it before the form of words can truly pronounce comfort peace life happinesse or rest to it So as his Rest is not upon the form of words as in Letter expressed but upon the being of it which is God manifest Now many a heart doth feed upon huâ—ks out-sides and externall formes of words and fals short of being caught up into his glory and so resting in the being of all Truth Here it comes to passe that the Creature makes every thing a God and will shape and form out God according to its imaginations and so labours to dispossesse God and to set up its own shape in Gods stead Now promises whether they be sought or cast in they are to be no rest unto any heart for the words of the promise are like unto a figure or type it testifies something to be given to the Sons of men but when a soule is in the possession of those things then it doth not rejoyce upon the words holding out the thing but upon the substance of the thing possessed in the heart but many on the contrary hand for the want of this run after conpitionall promises and when it seeth not the condition of the promises performed in it he labours after a sutablenesse to them before not daring to apply them but when he hath got his heart into such a frame as he imagineth to be sutable to the condition thereof he Resteth there applying life and comfort from it concluding he hath a right unto it from this particular But if at any time he breâ—â—â— the condition his peace is gone because the cause of his peace was his exact performance of the condition of the promise Secondly But some are higher then this and they see a vanity in this and they lock upon Christ as the performer of the condition and if he can but beleeve Christ hath done it and then he hath a right unto the same whereupon he useth meanes to get his judgement convinced of this that Christ died for him and in Conclusion he gets himself convinced of the same and here rests concluding the promises are his because Christ is his when indeed both the ground of his conclusion and confidence is false and so he comes to be deceived Thirdly Another that Rests upon promises before Christs spirituall Coming is when a man hath laine in sad darknesse and bondage and hath a long time waited for a discovery of God and at last some apprehensions of Christ come into his understanding whereupon he stands convinced in his own judgement that Christ is his Whereupon he for the greater increase of his Rest Comfort and peace runnes to promises and applyes them as having a right to them in his own apprehensions by Jesus Christ Here is that which begets the strongest confidence that Christ is come in the Spirit which works that joy and peace the soule thinks shall never be taken from him whereas after a while man is not so quick-sighted nor so clear enlightned but it suddainly lyes in the grave as that which must vanish in the spirituall appearance of Christ in the heart Now this is the great design of Satan to keep the poor creature on the out-sides the husks and would have the Creature wholly to live below the glory of Truth which is the coming of Christ in the Spirit of glory But hearts truly principled before Gods appearance â—e made to waite for him from a great power of himself not in any of these things to rest before they in the glory of the spirit come to enjoy him Mat. 25 10. The thirteenth false Rest. THe next Rest in order to this is great strange and excellent flashes of God so I tearm them and a they the most appear yet they may be true or false resembled or reall First We shall speak of flashes of light in the understanding And neither touch them as they are true or false 1. If they be but flashes they are no reall manifestations of Christ in the Spirit and therefore in the first place They are not of a witnessing nature they bring no reall Testimony of God along with them but leave the creature dark and empty in and of this particular but Christs coming in the Spirit is not without a Witnesse which is both unresistible and satisfactory but flashes whether they are of God distinct or opposite they have no Testimony of the Spirit to witnesse the truth of God to man by the Spirit within man as man is below under the dispensation of a flash whether true or false So secondly They are not of a powerfull Nature they are very weake in comparison of the power of Christ coming in the Spirit For first They do not dispossesse Satan of his habitation whereas the coming of Christ in the spirit doth Mat. 12. 28 29. Secondly They do not dispossesse the Creature of living in himself or they do not carry up the Creature into the glory of God in the Spirit they being of too low a nature no more then flashes in a dark night can bring the Creature into the beholdings of and living in the glory of the Sun so that they are not compleat Revelations of glory neither powerful in effecting the same worke which is accomplished in the coming of Christ in glory 3. They do not satisfie the heart of any they may seemingly give contentment for the present yet the spirit not altogether satisfied whereas the coming of Christ in the glory of the Spirit doth fill and satisfie the heart of any in whom he appears Mal. 3. 10. Mat. 5. 6 yea his coming causeth a running over of the souls Cup yea it is uncontainable mans capacity not being able to receive or comprehend the same for the want of this satisfaction power or witnesse of the Truth of Christs coming he being but under a flash he runnes to Ministers and men of experience to hear their judgement being not satisfied in himself and according to their approbation and judgement he most commonly receives the more or lesse satisfaction and so â—ests whereas if it be Christs coming in the spirit a soul need not run to any Creature in the World to be satisfied in the Truth of what is discovered for HE comes with a Satisfactory witnesse which doth answer all objections and satisfy all doubts
Being which is Christ in God 2 Cor. 5. 19. so as now it acts in God and lives by God and is iaken up with God and cannot live in any thing else not as a Saint So that the truest comparison that can be made of such a spirit is the Needle and the Dove which truly holds out this to us First That Christ the Arke is the center and the sure being of the spirits of Saints Secondly There is no safety or true Rest for the beleeving spirit but in this Christ Thirdly That it is impossible for any spirit who knowes Christ truly to be his Rest being once touched by the divine and holy being of Saints to Rest below the same though many things may transform themselves within the Creature like unto it yet upon them he cannot Rest no more then can the Needle towards the East and West but it is truly known by such a spirit not to be his first being and originall and so disclaims it as Christ did Satan in his temptation but is carried forth the more in veheâ—ency of spirit flying continually without Rest untill he be got into the Arke which was the place from whence it came and in truth it is of usch a latitude as all the world is not able either to give Rest unto it or produce true or full contentment in it The fifth description of true Rest. FIftly It is the centering up of a spirituall man in a spirituall place not made nor created but a being of himselfe stands by himselfe having his dependency upon none else 1. Here is the subject matter of Rest and that is the spirituall part of man which is created again and born of the Spirit Iohn 3 3 for fiâ—st of all no uncleane spirit or thing shall come there Rev. 21. 27. nothing shall enter into it but that which is become sutable to it That which is borne of the Spirit is that which must enter into this Kingdome of Rest and peace Secondly This spirituality which is made in the Creature is produced by God possessed in the Creaure for as a carnall heart cannot live in God no more can God manifest himselfe in any unpure spirit so as God before he manifest himselfe to a Spirit he makes it sutable to that glory which shall in measure be revealed unto it So also before God give man rest in himselfe he sets man of himself to live in himselfe for no carnall minde or will can attain God before by God it be attained and before God manifest to the heart the Creature is attained by him he workes a glorious worke of the New Birth in him so that if man were carried up into God which is impossible before he be born of God there is such a disproportion betwixt the purity and holynesse of God and the corruption and carnalnesse of mens spirits that the Rest of the soul could be no Rest for there would be nothing but war and enmity so that God alwaies puls down mountains of flesh pride and self and makes the crooked waies of the heart plain Luke 3. 5 6. and brings down those false Rests and Christs in the Creature and so after makes known a glorious Center to the creature Now the spirit being made spirituall by being born again it is made spiritually to judge receive and discern the Truth of this glorious and spirituall Place 1 Cor. 2. 15. which no man in the flesh or by the flesh can attain to 1 Tim. 6. 16. whom never any man in the carnall mind hath seen nor can see So that mans Resting place together with the subject Resting in it must be spirituall and out of himself Now secondly This place of Rest is spirituall so that man if he be in any true Rest it is not carnall formes or ordinances which shall cease Neither is it the rarest Qualifications or expressions of creatures neither is it glorious apprehensions or puffings up of flesh no our Rest is beyond these as far as the light of the Sun is from the Candle He is an unexpressible spiritual being One who makes all things spirituall that are spirituall by that spirituality in the fulnesse of it that dwels in him He is the expresse Image of God Heb. 1. 3. yea he is God equall in Nature though inferiour in place operation or expression He is One in all things He is above all things and in him all things confist Col. 1. 17. So he being the fulnesse and the cause of spirituality he himselfe must needs be spiâ—ituall So that any soul centred up in him lives above all carnall Formes Ordinances Qualifications common holinesse or fleshly puffings up either in false apprehensions or in inward delusions He is none of these but is above these which is the spirituall mans Rest And this spirituall Rest is nothing but God who is all and none besides him who enjoyes all in himself and we in him and by virtue of our being made born and begotten of him we become one with him and of him So that now being borne of him it is impossible that the Nature of God in us can Best or be fatisfied but alone in him and by him it being of an everlasting and infinite nature but now as it is infinite and of God in us so it throws off all below God and wholly and alone returnes to him and Rests in him Now thirdly This Rest is not any thing Created or depending upon any other power but its own Christ as he was in the flesh is none of the Rest of Saints He is a Rest of them as he becomes one with them in the Spirit so as he is one with God and we with him One in God and we in him 1 Cor. 6. 17. Joh. 17. 21 22 23. Yea very God and we by him 1 Cor. 8. 6. 15. 45. So that he is a Spirit not made nor created but making and creating all things for and of himselfe Col. 1. 16. Rom. 11. 36. And all by him was created not as he was in any form or shape in the flesh without us not so to be a Rest but as he is God made manifest in the Spirit within us However men deem of him yet he is the Eternal Spirit and the Father of all spirits Heb. 9. 14. Though distinguished from the Father in divers acts shapes or formes yet he dwels substantially in the God-head and in whom dwels all the power and fulnesse thereof Col. 1. 19. 2. 9. And though he might be in the form of flesh as man yet then he was in the power and fulnesse of God as God So that he is in and of Himself and he that knows him aright knows that saying And he that is experienced in that spirituall union and conjunction will say That his Motion Glory Dependency and all others that can be spoke of dwels substantially in him and that by him now all things are both preserved and kept Heb. 1. 3. So as all other rests below this
a bundance of paines and diligence in the Scriptures and in books doe get abundance of knowledge and after it is gotten they Rest upon the same as though it were to enjoy the manifestation of God to enjoy much knowledge here they abuse a dispensation of God and transform it into another use then ever God ordained it for So that though a man have never so much knowledge yea though his knowledge be according to or attained in the Scriptures if he Rest there before he hath got it in the heart by expersence as he hath got it in the head for discourse his Rest is much below the substance of Truth For no man is to Rest in any thing without him so known untill it be within him and then he Rests not in God because declared in Scripture but upon God because revealed and experienced in him and so is fully known by him The third way whereby this Knowledge comes to be attained is from the declarings of the experiences of others he by the same stores himself with points of experience as well as points of Judgement and here he can speak all manner of Languages as well as those that enjoy truth in them so that he can speak of points of judgement with those that are for that discourse and points of experience with those that are for that having a form of both in his understanding and from that is able to make out himself as those who sweetly in the power of Truth enjoy God But for this latter he hath but stolne the word from his Neighbour hee hath got his experience to discourse of And this is the great deceit of mens spirits in our daies for when they hear of a precious high Truth of God which they never heard of before they either oppose it or else they get the form of it into their notion or understanding and the next upportunity they have they declare it as their own whereas though they were convinced of the truth of it yet they were to waite for the enjoyment of the power of it in themselves and that it might be sealed by the Spirit in them 1 Cor. 4. 19 20. But many conceive if they can but remember a truth though they have it not in the power of it in themselves that the very believing of it and assenting to it is the experience of it Bud these are those who have a form of God or the truth in their understandings and want the power of that truth in their Spirits And so many a soul rests in this very part of knowledge Now the Reasons of a souls resting here are partly these following First From a comparison made in his own spirit with others that are in lower dispensâ—tions or weaker in knowledge or discourse then himself but especially Professors who live in high thoughts of their estates and he thus comparing his condition with theirs and seeing it so far excell theirs makes his conclusion if their condition be happy then mine is much more in respect of what I have enjoyed more then they I am not any way inferiour to any almost surely I am in a happy estate if any The second Reason followes from the high estimation others have of him especially men of the rarest abilities and solidest judgements and this addes fuel to his fire of conceipt and makes his rest the more glorious And this is the reason that if at any time the approbation of those cease to be what it was that it occasions much distraction and want of peace within himselfe for when part of a mans cause of rest and peace is taken away no marvel then if part of his rest and peace go along with it Whereas he that rests in God is freed in the Spirit and is as Mount Zion which can not be moved Psalm 125. 2. Let mans apprehensions cease or encrease he is not lifted up by the one or cast down by the other but he hath a continuall testimony within himself which abides for ever The third Cause or reason of his resting upon the gifts of knowledge is from want of a right infâ—rmation of judgement in the difference betwixt a form of truth in the understanding and the power of truth in the heart not opposite to the other for though mans knowing God in generall or from heresay be a dispenâ—â—tion of God and good in its place yet it is not to be rested upon as though the soul had in this a reall enjoyment of God Now a man may know a thing in generall and may believe in it assent to it and obey it and make a large profession of it yet if he enjoy not God in that very thing it is but a dispensation below the power of Truth So that we see here that men may get things into the head before they be in the life and power of them in the heart which if rested upon brings with it a dangerous consequence As 1. It is the way to high security and such a security being but carnall as being without ground It is the way in the second place to a self-glorying and creature exalting and to the displeasing of God Thirdly It is the way to fall into all manner of loosnesse under pretence of freedome and knowledge of truth and that is no sinne though â—t do this or that For no marvel when a man hath no more then a form of God in the head and wants the power of God in the heart then that soul fals into a carnal loosnesse whereby truth is evil spoken of and the party thus doing justifying his action by his hardnesse of spirit which by it he is brought into And this is the reason why many when they have received high notioÌ„s and do hold them forth do walk very unlike truth is because they have it but in the head and want the power of it in the heart They have it from others or some other way and not from God and so they cannot stand in the day of temptation and so return like a Sowe to the wallowing in the mire 2 Pet. 2. 22. Again a Soul is further established in this condition from his dayly growth and encrease in knowledge he dayly growing in knowledge daily more established on his own bottomes though not so thought by himself This dayly encrease of knowldge in himself the benefit that sometimes is redounded to others by that doth increase the flame and ads fuel to the fire of this false rest The second excellent Part or Gift upon which men Rest is Prayer and this is made an Idol of by such parties who Rest upon it But first of all when a man sets his face towards God it would gladly pray but wanting this proper Gift it useth formes but after it sees the vanity of that dispensation and the emptines of it it now would gladly pray in the spirit and continually is complaining for want of matter to expresse In conclusion it attains matter to expresse and
As for instance The fountain and the streames The streames are an effect of the Fountain flowing from the abundance contained in the same so it is with God made manifest in the heart he being the Ocean or Fountain comprehending all streames within himself doth issue out of himselfe those streames of Sanctification or holinesse in conversation from himself thus abiding in the Creature So that a man may have the latter in as high manner though not in truth as he that hath God truly manifest and no way to be discerned but by the light of truth dwelling within which makes the truth or falshood of such things in this nature manifest and before the same enjoyed the Creature is in darknesse and it is as possible for a man to see twenty miles in a very darke night as for a man really to judge of the truth or falshood of his own condition before this light come in from God which expels those clouds as the shining of the Sun doth the clouds and here lies the darknesse of a heart when it is made to see the want of God it looks into the frame and disposition of mens spirits abroad who are under a name of profession and being much affected with them and drawn out in love to them it gets into such relations or society and it sees abundance of holinesse flow from their conversations now it being away to reprove that party not having the same conversation in holinesse of walking or power against corruption it cries out O that I were so holy in conversation as such a one is O that I had such and such a power against corruption as they have And could be alwaies discovering of good things as they are or could have my minde fixed upon heavenly things as they have O how heavenly doth such a one walke and this is his construction or application O if I could be but so I should then be at peace and Rest then I should think my condition happy but alas here is such abundance of carnall mindednesse and of corruption in my conversation and a wearinesse in things that are good here the creature takes up a daily complaint and to every Saint is making his condition known and cannot rest quiet untill he have resembled or attained such a measure of knowledge to discourse of God and so much power against corruption as to walke in conversation like those whose conversation did convict him and shame him Now having attained so much in shew and that now his affections seem to be bent upon good things that now God is his meditation and his continuall ponder that now when it s thus the creature hath much peace sometimes upon the view of the same and when it cannot walke thus it hath neither Peace not rest Now here the creatures heart deceives him and makes him rest upon that which may be in truth and not in truth or upon that which is given to change and abides not one and the same for ever Now all this a man may have and yet have nothing manifest in truth and though it might be said thar these are true in there place yet not appointed for rests but for effects of that which was in truth within for he that saith he dwels in him ought even so to walk as he hath walked Now holinesse in the highest degree as it flowes out from man is but an especial effect of the dwelling of the spirit of God or an effect of his rest in him not to be a rest but to manifest to others that he dwels and rests in God For to me that Soule who rests and dwels in God must have his conversation but especially his inward walking like God for to others that look upon a Saint thus pretending to dwell must judge of the same by that fruit that flowes from him in one kinde or another though it is not to be a testimony to himself who thus liveth he having another testimony which speaks or evidences peace 1 John 5. 10. upon more sure grounds yea and lets the creature see a ground or place of rest going as farre beyond this as the streames are short of the Fountaine and the body of the Sun beyond the least glimpse or shining thereof Man I may say who is resting in peace and quietnesse of spirit from these visible branches if they be true is one who still hangeth upon the outside of the Arke and like the Pharisees resting with glorious outsides and washing of the outsides of Cups more to be seen of men or justified before men then to be as an effect of that truth within made forth for the glory of God The one of these ends did Cain act for and the other end did the Scribes and Pharisees act for so that a house built upon such a foundation as this seems to be as glorious as that which was builded upon the Rock but it was not so safe for with every blast and storm that coÌ„es against such a spirit it fals into its former state it was in before thus builded so were the devout Women and golden Sepulchers and whited walls builded upon such considerations as these they were outwardly holy and seemingly pure but were within full of deadly poyson and were put for outward glory not adorned with the Spirit so it is very likely that the said spirit that Rests upon this seeming though thought by himself true holinesse is a soul altogether full of deadly poyson and deceite which in time may be discovered and then the Creature shall see another rest more sure and safe then this and shall lose by it yet Love shall save him though it be a fire for to burn up what of this rest was of himself so that I say such a soules foundation of rest shall fade as Solomon in all his glory First Then this Spirit thus resting is away to keep it below true assurance for in this rest there can flow no true cause or ground to the Creatuâ—e to be assured thereby Secondly For a man to rest here it will be but to make a house which ere long it may be God will batter about his ears and so prove labour in vaine as many can speak by sad experience Thirdly Whatsoever flowes from a man pretended to God before there be an inward revelation in that man of God and makes the same a true evidence of his enjoying this God thus revealed and so rests his thus doing is but his own righteousnesse and not the righteousnesse of Jesus Christ revealed by faith Fourthly That the party thus acting doth go no farther then a point of bodily exercise for what a man doth in point of holynesse pretending for God and after doth own it as a true evidence or any cause of rest as God To me it appears and in the judgement of Scriptures that mans action is but bodily exercise for nothing is or ought to be either rest or evidence of the true enjoyment of God in me
salvation and indeed so it is and something more But thirdly To Rest upon Christ come in the flesh is to beleeve from the Letter of the Scripture without any powerfull manifestation of the spirit that this Christ who did according to Scripture dye at Ierusalem dyed for them And here many satisfie themselves with very high conceits of their condition and here alone men Rest upon the bare Figure As if men under the Law should have made Circumcision and the enjoying of Sacrifices in that common manner they were performed to be a ground of Rest and so contented themselves in the use thereof as conceiving themselves to be made happy by the Type and Figure and not by that which was Typified out in the same So concerning Christs dying at Jerusalem it is a Figure of the spirituall death of the creature with Christ and also of this resurrection Now when we come to be buried with him into his death Rom. 6. 4. 5 and also come to be with him raised up from death that is into the clear enjoyments of God where we are made to live in the God-hrad from it living in us Iohn 14. 17. then do we fully understand and know this Christ and this eternal Life and not meerly for a man to conceive because the Scriptures dâ—e declare that this Christ is come and the Creature assenting to the whole history and believing of it that this is the knowledge of Christ which is eternal life for unlesse the Creature know him so to be to him that this eternal life to him Col 3. 3. 4. that as the Scriptures do declare him so to be in the knowledge of him so the creature findes it true within himself from the experience of him in his own soul his knowledge is but carnall not living spirituall knowledg for that man that Rests upon him as he is declared in Scripture before he be revealed within his soul both that mans Rest and knowledge is but carnall and fleshly for we see that all men almost in England or in any place where the Gospel is but published doe believe that he is crucified and is risen and this they know from the testimony of Scripture but doth every man know the minde and mystery of truth Doth God reveal it to every one Can any know the minde of God in these particulars either by the History or any other way but by the Spirit of God then it must he that before this Christ come to be spiritually known hee must be spiritually revealed within mans hearts 1 Cor. 2. 10. Gal. 1. 16. So that to hear of Christ and not to enjoy him from being revealed within is but very unsafe and unsound knowledge to Rest upon and that which brings not along with it eternal Life as witnesse 1 Iohn 1. 1 21 He clearly expresses that this Christ which is eternall life was made manifest unto them and as their knowledge of from which knowledge they had fellowship and communion with him 1 Iohn 1. 3. This knowledge is spirituall and according to Scripture spiritually revealed before it be truly and experimentally known now the Scriptures do not reveale Christ within any man neither doe they say to any particular soule thou such a one Christ died for thee but it is the same spirit which did declare the Scriptures which must reveal what this Christ is Secondly what the mistery of God in his so coming or what mystery God did hold out in the figure which was his fleshly coming too and for thee in particular And lastly Thou must doe as he did passe from death to life and from being buried with him before thou live in the Kingdome of heaven with him or indeed know what the Kingdome or place is which men carnally conceive to be above the Skyes though the spirituall knower of him knowes it in another place Now what is it for a man to fill his head full of the history concerning the birth and death of Christ unlesse this Jesus a Saviour or this Christ which is the light and glory of God be discovered and revealed within him suitable to that precious Testimony of Pauls knowledge of this Christ Gal. 1. 16. where he speaks of this Christ to be revealed within him for Christ as he was in the flesh cannot be revealed but Christ as he is in the Spirit or Christ as he is the great design of God typified out in the flesh and revealed in the spirit either as a light or as a life or as he is the breath of God or as he is the clear manifestation of God wherein man comes to know him to be his Jesus that is his Saviour or inward deliverer or wherein man cleatly beholds the Father in him and he in the Father John 24. 11. Which cannot be discerned as he was in the flesh but as he is in the spirit 1 Pet. 3. 8. that being a figure thereof we see this knowledge the Apostles wanted when they said Lord shew us the Father John 14. 8. they having no more knowledge of Christ but as he was in the flesh they knew not that the Father was in him and he in the Father John 14. 11. upon this knowledge were they resting when they said Lord it is good for us to be here Mat. 17. 4. when they would have been making Tabernacles of Rest before Christ did transfigure himself within but Christ bids them Arise let us goe hence as if he should say This is not a proper rest for you John 14. 31. It is a very low dispensation goe I will discover my glory to you by transfiguring my self within you then shall you see partly the mystery of my selfe then shall you more spiritually understand and know me And also sometimes the carnall and fleshly knowledge the Apostles had then put them upon carnal conceptions as in these phrases expressed when wilt thou restore the Kingdome to Israel And many more expressions as desiring fire might come from above where Christ tels them they knew not of what spirit they were the one place tels them they looked upon him as to be one who was to have a great power in the World namely To be an earthly King to live in outward pomp and glory the other doth signifie they understood not the great design of God in his coming so as they in this dispensation were very low as many are in our daies and would gladly have been resting in the knowledge they had which was Christ in the flesh that was known by them and declared and preached by them also but still they remaining under the clouds and ignorant of the mystery of Christ in reverence to his coming in the Spirit yet God was daily leading them to behold their ignorance and more into the mystery of Jesus So that though men pretend to escape the common pollutions of the world by such a knowledge of Christ in the flesh yet it is not a secure estate but a low dispensation which will
one with another witnesse their crosnesse of spirit what a smell of false principles this of Rests appears withall and truly argues much deceit and unpossessed like with God If one either hath attained higher or live in the use of Ordinances waiting for the reall enjoyment of God being lower why should that heart who hath either enjoyed more or lesse of God have such an unlikenesse of any thing of God in him seeing God is love and he that dwels in the lowest enjoyment of God dwels in Love but truly the being bound to formes or bound up in formes and the using of them before we be led unto them by God occasions all this Resting in and condemning of all that do not in all things walk up into and in the use of these formes and Church-relations which the letter of the Scriptures owns to be a dispensation of God But Secondly As this is the cause of and doth much savour to be occasioned either by our being bound up in them or falsly led out to them so also it is occasioned by the want of a divine principle within whereby that principle of God might command our formes and Church-relations and not formes and Church-relations command the soul so as the Soule onely seeing something in the letter wanting a divine light within to discover unto him either the time place manner or end by this it comes to passe why he is darke in and Rests upon and is commanded by and so bound up in the form required in the letter being ignorant of truth in the Spirit but to come more fully to the thing in hand This in my judgement was the Rest of the Church of Laodicea Rev. 3. 17. in her concluded riches yea in her insensible poverty and thus it prevailes with many a heart First when especially the Soul hath been much under the Law and hampred by the Law and so kept in a cloud from the view of Gospel-truthes and now come to see a clear truth in that which he so much opposed he is so taken up with it as he hath no peace untill he fals in obeying of it so gathers peace comfort and Rest in the same thinking he is now got into a very high estate and the very name of a member of a Church together with the greatnesse of the love of God in bringing this Creature to beleeve and obey who was darke opposite yea a despiser of the same this doth help forward his Rest in this particular Secondly It considers and reasons with it selfe now I am got into the communion of Saints and enjoy now their society which before it wanted fellowship with and also from consideration of the purity of the Ordinances it now enjoyes It before was alive in the use of corrupted Ordinances now it enjoyes them in the purity of them before in and amongst a mixed people he had fellowship with divels 1 Cor. 10. 20. now with Saints but truly though this be a Laodicean condition yet it is a false Rest for there is no true Rest either in the purest Ordinances or visible relations for these a man may enjoy and be ignorant of the enjoyment of God in them as the wofull experience of many will seal unto and testifle the truth of what we are speaking of Thirdly Another cause of Rest in these relations flowes from his continuall growth in Gospel light and his encrease and growth of knowledge and most commonly the whole bent of such a spirit is taken up with labouring after the knowledge of points of judgement and with matters nice and curious things which most commonly please the fancy and understanding and to know such things it is his continually study and end of all his labour when still he wants the life and power of Christ in his heart neither doth he know him but either by his profession or by hear saies not in any true way of experience Fourthly Another cause flowes from his conceived peace and comfort he enjoyes in the same and thus he reasons before I had no peace either in conscience within me or from Oâ—dinances practised by me but now I enjoy much peace in my condition when indeed he may have stopt the mouth of conscience his peace come in from a false ground not spoken from God but drawn forth or smagined in his particular practise Many a soul feeds upon an imaginary peace when it is ignorant of peace truly manifested in the heart and in this most commonly doe the affections blinde and bribe the judgement and so peace remaines onely in the imagination and not enjoyed by any powerfull manifestation But if mens hearts in Church-relations may so utterly be deceived then it stands in need of these ensuing cautions 1. Beware of making thy being a member of any Church to be either evidence to thee or ground of peace in thee neither let any conceive better of their conditions because they are in visible fellowships and neither let their joy or peace be the more unlesse they do uprightly enjoy more of the discoveries of God to them then they did before 2. Beware that thou thinke not thy outward uniting in a visible manner with Saints is an uniting thy spirit more unto God or God uniting himselfe more to thee or that for or in thy present practise thou art got higher to God lest thou Rest more secure in thy present condition then before for carnall security doth most commonly follow the most of men in those dispensations 3. Beware thou go noâ— before God leade thee for most commonly when God leads man into formes when he forsakes them he leades them out of them into that dispensation God will appear in therefore beware that thou be not led by thy own imaginations then thou shalt not be left in and bound up in formes but shalt continue in them so long as God continues in the same But many who live and make a God of their formes they neither know when God leads or not leads when God is present or not present it s all one if they can enjoy the desire of their hearts and that which speaks peace to them namely Their formes and Churchre-lations It is to them yea its life and happinesse in them But in the next place observe Though God do own all or the most formes and administrations yet it is but for a time untill a higher dispensation appear or the substance of that forme be enjoyed and then God departs from it and seldome or never appears in that forme any more especially if the soul be caught up into God for as the old Testament-formes which were of Gods own appointment and God was in them for the time they were to be used so also they were to cease 1. When the substance thereof was come Heb. 7. 18. 2. When a more glorious administration was and did appear then did God both depart from them and dis-own them an I they nowhere to be practised after these two did
to Rest below God as is sutable to a Soules condition so he brought in a promise to Christ He hath given his Angels charge over thee c. Mat. 4. 6. Here he came to apply himself sutable to the condition of Christ O when once a soul is brought into a Pinacle-condition wherein he is brought to see the glory of much then Satan labours to cause the heart to fall down and worship him he coming smoothly and bringing he promises of God along with him to back the truth of what he doth and here after the soul is betrayed by represented glory in a promise meerly cast in from Satan wherein the soul falls down and worships the very cunning working and the high exalting of Satan and in this condition he is brought to see and apprehend high things and is brought into a Pinacle to behold almost the glory of every thing made over by Satan to the Creature in a promise upon the Soules submitting to him and upon this Pinacle he sets him that is he causes him to Rest and so the poor heart being not wise in the Spirit is deceived and betrayed though the actions knowledge light joy Rest of this soul be glorious and for God in his own eyes yet it is but Satans transforming himself into an Angel of light resembling or coming in and working in the Creatures heart in the gloriousest manner and shape God works in But Secondly Others being wounded in Spirit and weary in soule for the want of any glimpse of God leaving no means un-attained to get his soul cured and unburthened and having rested upon many false props before and being unbottomed of them he tries this particular it being of a higher nature and more likely to speak peace unto him viz. a running to Scripture to finde out some particular promises sutable to his condition and having found out some sutable Promises either presently seems to speak to him from a sutablenesse in him so it may be being a conditionall Promise or else the soul meditates a while upon it and it runs much in his thoughts and at last he closes with it strikes this load and burthen at his spirit here he drawes comfort and peace from it yea it may be so much as indeed the soul is mightily overcome in his spirits with joy and can do nothing but rejoyce upon which he Rests builds his faith as he cals it and so concludes it to be a maniâ—estation of God I will nor deny but God may make these waies if in truth cause of support unto a soul in his travelling towards his Rest But for a Soul to strike sail cast Anchor and have all the waves in his heart stayed and his very wearinesse of spirit at this present put to a period is as if the children of Israel had stayed either beyond the red Sea or when God gave them Manna before they came to enjoy a reall possession of the land of promise though God did this either to refresh their spirits and so to under-prop them or else to give them it at the desire and repining of their spirits to see how they would use it or abuse it Now this being a description of a Saints spirituall travell though God should cause a glimps of glory or heavenly Manna to refresh a heart to be given to a soul in the view of a promise yet for a soul to Rest in this and make it his habitation it smels too much of mans deceite and abuse of every dispensation and a daubing up his spirit with untempered morter and so hatches Cockatrice Egs and weaves the Spiders Webbe so that it is but a kindling of a fire and manwarming himself in his own sparks whose conclusion shall be death and sortow and before ever the creature knows what true rest is by sweet experience he must be brought to a death in all these But from my own experience of the fallacy of my own heart and the contrariety of the false Rests that I have gone thorow I make bold to propose these ensuing particulars to such a heart not intending to weaken the workings of God in any poor heart though under low Administration but only to discover the nakednes of man in the way of his own heart And First of all When did the Lord manifest himself to thy soul and give thee a particular right unto and interest in this promise the application of which thou makest thy Rest Secondly How was God revealed to thy heart in this promise Or whether is it not the great necessity thou hast of it that makes thee fly to the promise and suck sweetnesse life comfort and Rest from it Or is it God in Christ clearly Revealed unto thee in the same For it was necessity that made many run to the Ark and hang upon the outsides thereof though none but those that were within were saved Scribes and Pharisees did challenge a propriety in God and all externall priviledges but it was but from a sutablenesse of holinesse they had to the promise and not Revelation of God in them discovering the truth of God in them Thirdly What inward Testimony of God hast thou for thy great joy peace rest And what is thy inward evidence that witnesseth the truth of what thou enjoyest For every one that beleeveth hath a Testimony within himself 1 John 5. 10. And every heart that hath ever seen the appearance of God within him hath found a lively Testimony coming along with that Manifestation of God which is the only proofe of the truth of what he enjoyeth and not any Qualification nor outward Testimony either of man or from man 1 Joh. 3. 24. Fourthly How was peace in this particular enjoyed by thee Was it from some inward voyce of God or discovery of the same Or was it from such a sutable form of words to thy condition either cast in or found out in searching Or was it from a clear Manifestation of the glory of God in thee sutable to those forms of words in the Scriptures without thee whereby the forme of words came to be made good to thee so that thy comfort peace satisfaction or rest do not flow from the forme of words as thou seest them in Scripture without thee but from the enjoyments of God within thee sutable to that without thee Fiftly What glorious power of God was made out in thy spirit in thy thus closing with promises Thy thus closing may seem to be done in power but the spirituall Coming of Christ in the manifestation of his glory is so great as indeed it is not ordinary but extraordinary in the heart of him that knows his coming A promise Closed with before Christ come in the Spirit may seem to be done in glory and power by reason it may be he could not before beleeve nor live in that freedome or joy he now lives in but the coming of Christ in the spirit doth so farre surmount that as indeed the other appears nothing
without us and workings within us is transforming himselfe now if ever And truly he within soules workes like God and there is no known distinction betwixt his transformings and Christs workings untill there be a true transfiguring of Christ in the glory of the spirit and this doth find out all the deceite both of heart and Satan for indeed there is no forme though never so glorious but he will transform himselfe in it there is no working of the spirit within man but he will resemble it so that none shall be able to know whether it be true or false within him or without him untill this Christ shall appear in light and glory and shall make the same manifest so as oftentimes his thus appearing is compared to the rising of the Sun and the dawning of the day which are degrees of distinguishing light which doth dissolve the imperfect light of the Moone and Starres and is a clear light of it self to rule and order to unfold and discover the truth of every thing which under the other dispensations could not be discerned and that is the reason that the Apostle tells them that they have a sure word of prophesie whereunto they doe well if they take heed And he tels them how long it was untill the day dawn and the day-starre arise in their hearts This saying untill prescribes and sets out the limitation of time and the accomplishing of the same as if he should say there is a most glorious day to be enjoyed in Saints which day shall appear but for your direction untill that day you have a sure word of prophesie unto which if God give you care thereof may be as a rule unto you It being a light shining in a dark place and though for the present you walke by the same yet Rest not there but waite for the spirituall coming of Christ within you which in this word of prophesie is held forth to you and then when he comes he shall be a perfect light within which light shall speake truth and leade the soul thereunto but in the interim Looke to that sure word of prophesie which declares and makes manifest the truth thereof This word of Prophesie was the Scriptures this day dawning and day-starre arising was the appearance of Christ in the fulnesse of the spirit within them So as he often in Scripture is called the bright Morning-Star and as concerning his spiritual coming he is sometimes termed under the notion of the day dawning or breaking as in Cant. 2. 17. and in many others onely to shew unto us that the breaking in of Christ into a heart is like the breaking of the light in the earth when the day begins to appeare and the night is expired as also the rising of the Sun to that purpose he is often called the Sun of Righteousnesse which shall arise and be seen in the hearts of men so that we see this coming of Christ yea himself is a true and glorious light of God in the spirits of Saints so as he makes all things manifest to such a heart whether true or false and this light shall cloath every Saints spirit and all inferiour and transformed lights shall be under such a soules feet triumphing over them seeing the fallacy of them Then First it is this light Christ within the creature who appeares as light which doth expell or dispell all those Clouds which are with creatures in whom he hath not appeared for as the Sun doth expell the clouds in the appearance thereof so Christ in his glorious shinings forth and breaking in into every believing spirit so as the creature before could not apprehend God by reason of these clouds that lye upon the soule now he apprehends him clearly the cause being by Christ taken away Secondly By this light Christ doth discover all the false Waies and Rests of the creature either in opposition to or being below the true and substantiall way of Rest so that this light Christ in his divine Appearances within the creature doth bring a day of losse upon many spirits when it discovers unto them the vanity of their spirits in running after the waies of their own hearts and here they come to see the emptynesse of formes or former flashes and now it may be all the soules knowledge and practise must lye in the dust and be unlearned so as this light brings the creature out of love with his own Wayes so that now he is free to be led according to the teaching of this light Thirdly This light Christ in its spirituall appearing in the creature doth reveale and discover the Father in this light Christ so as the heart clearly sees and knows the Father and the Spirit the son and the spirit One and the spirit to be both so as this light which in reference to name is called and tearmed Christ yet it is God in this light so that God is said to be light in him is no darknesse The Father is the fountain of light the son is the manifestation of light or the light made manifest now here the soul in whom this true light doth appeare doth know God and him thus sent into the heart by Jesus Christ so that Christ as he is the Rest of Saints is a divine revelation of light in which light and glory the creatures spirit solaces it selfe and rests with much delight in the same and out of this form after enjoyed will not Christ appeare but will be unto such a spirit an everlasting light that now as God lives in light so the creature lives in light also which no creature in the flesh can attain to who cannot be seen felt or heard in the flesh in this dispensation but he is above it consuming of it and continually advancing this light more more in the creature so as this light comes to be advanced and appears in greater fulnesse so shall the spirits who are centred in it be advanced by it and the greater this light doth appear in fulnesse the more perfect doth the souls Rest appear and the more shall the spirits be filled with it Fourthly in the fourth place this spirituall Christ or what he is in the Spirit when he comes to be the Rest of Saints He is spirituall and Divine Life without which no soul hath spirituall or eternal life enjoyed by him for as a man without the soul is dead so are all men without Jesus Christ within them made manifest so that Iohn very fully laies open this truth 1 Ioh 1. 1 2. for the life was manifested and we have seen it and bear witnesse and shew unto you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested unto us So that we see what the life of Saints is for that life which they here speak of was Christ Secondly we see the place where it centers before it is made manifest and that is laid open to be in the Father Thirdly the way whereby they knew it and also