Selected quad for the lemma: virtue_n

Word A Word B Word C Word D Occurrence Frequency Band MI MI Band Prominent
virtue_n body_n soul_n unite_v 970 5 9.6533 5 true
View all documents for the selected quad

Text snippets containing the quad

ID Title Author Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) STC Words Pages
A47142 George Keith's explications of divers passages contained in his former books as also his free and open retractations of sundry other passages contained in the same, which may at present suffice for a reply to the late, as well as former books of Tho. Elwood, and John Penington, published against me, in respect of the most material things. Keith, George, 1639?-1716. 1697 (1697) Wing K163; ESTC R18950 49,736 50

There are 2 snippets containing the selected quad. | View lemmatised text

Emendations of Passages in my Book called Immediate Revelation not ceased First Printed in the Year 1668. and Re-printed with an Appendix in the Year 1676. I. AS Concerning the Term Immediate Revelation in the Title Page of that Book at which some are offended and which some misconstrue to a wrong sense never intended by me as if thereby I did signify such a Revelation as did give us the Doctrinal knowledge and Faith of Christian Religion and Principles thereof without the Holy Scriptures or other outward means of Instruction to obviate this offence and mistake I recommend to the Reader what I have said from pag. 38. to pag. 42. of that Book Where I distinguish of means Intermitting and Transmitting and show that it is the Intermitting means that hinder the Revelation to be Immediate but not the Transmitting and the same distinction I use in my Book called Divine Immediate Revelation Printed in the Year 1684. But in other words as discontinued and continued Moreover how far I did own the Holy Scriptures to be a necessary means to give us the true Knowledge and Faith of Christian Doctrines and Principles I refer the Reader to my Book Divine Immediate Revelation p. 〈◊〉 Where I say And if we except these Doctrines and Heads of General Religion common to us with the Gentiles which are revealed both to them and us without Scripture of all which notwithstanding the Scripture doth abundantly testify all other Doctrines and Heads of the Christian Religion which is a special Religion more perfect and excellent than the General and perfecting the said General Religion in true Christians are made known to us by the Scripture-means the Holy Spirit inwardly inlightning and inspiring us that we may understand the Doctrines declared in the Scripture and may savingly apply them with true and sincere Faith to the salvation of our Souls And here Note that in the words above cited I did distinguish twelve years ago betwixt Gentile Religion and Christian Religion tho some call this a New Doctrine in me so to dislinguish And seeing the word Immediate Revelation is no Scripture Term tho Revelation is and that it is not well understood by many I can freely consent that the word Immediate be not pressed or imposed on any But I do constantly assert as I have formerly asserted that the inward sensible Communications and Enjoyments of God and Christ that the Saints have frequent Experience of are not only beyond all Demonstration of words but are oft received without all present use of words in a deep inward silence of the Soul II. That I blame them who say that the Scriptures are a filled up Canon and the only Rule of Faith and Obedience in all things and no more Scriptures or Writings to be given forth from the Spirit of the Lord. And pag. 4. That I said tho no NEW ESSENTIALS ARE to be added yet a New and fuller and clearer Testimony may be added concerning the same old essentials Here Note the words may be added as importing the possibility of such a thing But whether God shall be pleased to add to the Books of the Holy Scripture other Books of the same Authority in any time to come before the End of the World I Judge it is not safe for me to determine either in the Affirmative or Negative but that it is possible he may do it ought not to be questioned of But that any Mens Writings beside that of the Prophets and Apostles are of equal Authority with the Scriptures ought not to be granted and that all Doctrines of Men however so much Illuminated ought to be subjected to the Rule test and touchstone of the Holy Scripture and tryed by the same I do assert as formerly I have done still leaving Room to the Spirit to give particular Guidance to the Souls of the Faithful with respect to their inward State and directing them in Particular Cases and Affairs as to things in themselves Lawful and not forbidden nor Commanded in General by any positive Precept and that I said no New Essentials are to be added is sufficient Proof that I held the Scripture did contain all the Essential Doctrines of Christianity III. As to my blaming them who deny that there is an infallible way whereby to discern the true Ministers and Members of Christs Church from the false To this I say tho such a discerning of Spirits was given at times to the Prophets and Apostles and others extraordinarily endued whereby to know Mens inward States without regard had to their Fruits yet the general way that Christ has given us whereby to know Men is by their Fruits of words and works whether Good or Evil. And whatever inward sense or discerning any may pretend to have of another Mans Spirit being bad yet we find no warrant from Scripture to receive an Accusation against any far less a positive Judgment without plain evidence of matter of Fact against them by credible Witnesses 1 Tim. 5. 19. For if such a thing be given way to in any Society that Men shall be Judged to be of a wrong Spirit only by the pretended discerning of Spirits that some may claim without any real Proof or Evidence of words or works that are really evil the most innocent Men may happen to be Condemned and the most guilty justified And even to know Men by their Fruits is a gift of the Spirit and proceedeth from a true Spiritual discerning that is given Universally in some measure to all the Faithful tho they have not always such due use of it but they may be and are at times mistaken IV. This Seed groweth up into a perfect substantial Birth which is Christ formed within the Body of Christ his Flesh and Blood which cometh down from Heaven and giveth Life unto Man which eateth it and feedeth upon it and it is called the Body and Flesh and Blood of Christ because his Eternal Life and Spirit dwelleth in it immediately Here Note by this perfect substantial Birth I did not mean as I now do not any substance newly produced even as in the Generation of natural things as Plants and Animals no new substance is produced but only a vital Union of substantial Principles formerly existing so by Christ formed within I understood and do still understand that a measure of the pure Life of Christ cometh to be United to the Soul and the Soul to it after the Soul is duly purified and prepared for such an Union by which Union that Soul becometh a Member of Christ even as the Hand is a Member of a Man's Body by its having the Life of the Body in some measure united to it and by Virtue of that Union actuating that Member and making it living and sensible And whereas I did call that inward substantial Birth the Flesh and Blood of Christ I did so call it only by a Metaphor or Allegory for with such Metaphors Allegories and Figurative Speeches the Scripture aboundeth in treating
be applied unto them which was figured by the Offering under the Law that was to be offered for every male child and by circumcision of every male child that sufficed also for the Female which was implied under the male SECTION III. Containing divers Explanations and Emendations of Passages in my Book called The Rector Corrected Printed at London 1680. And in my Book called Truth Defended Printed at London 1682. BY Christ his giving his Flesh for the Life of the World we understand both the offering up of his Flesh as his dying for us upon the Cross and also his giving us his Flesh to eat and his Blood to drink for even as the Priests under the Law were to eat of the Sacrifice and to have the Blood sprinkled upon them so Believers under the Gospel are to eat the Flesh of Christ and drink his Blood And pag. 26. Although the Saints do not eat the visible Flesh of Christ to wit by the Bodily Mouth and drink his visible Blood yet they partake of the benefit and virtue of both his Flesh and his Blood and the substance of both doth remain which is his glorified Body in Heaven and the virtue of which doth really extend unto the Saints both in Heaven and on Earth by which they are spiritually refreshed and nourished as with Meat and Drink and thus we do not divide Christ c. Here note that as by divers other Quotations out of my Books it hath been proved that I did not place all our Salvation upon the Light within excluding the Man Christ without and his Flesh and Blood that was outward and visible but that I did lay a great weight upon it so the like appears by this present quotation And whereas pag. 25. it is said and indeed it is very plain by the words of Christ that by his Flesh and Blood John 6. 50 51. he meaneth Only Spirit and Life The word said he that I speak unto you are Spirit and Life it is the Spirit that quickneth the Flesh profiteth nothing Whether the Word only being there is a Typographical Error or was an oversight in me for want of due consideration I hold it needful to retract and correct it and accordingly I so do and that it was at most an oversight in me for want of due consideration and that by it I did not intend that the Faithful did not partake of the unspeakable benefit of the Flesh of Christ that was outwardly Crucified and of his Blood that was outwardly shed and that the virtue of it did not extend unto them for that is above plainly affirmed but my sense was they were not to eat it with the bodily Mouth but by Faith so as to have the virtue of it conveyed unto them by a living Faith in him which virtue may be said to be Spirit and Life and the Words that he spake had a spiritual sense and signification and not such as the carnal Capernaumites did conceive Pag. 29. So we see he viz Hilarius findeth fault with the word Humane as well as G. F. Here Note That my bringing the words of Hilarius to excuse G. F. was not that I did not believe that Christ had the true nature of Man consisting of a true reasonable created Soul and a true Body for that I did always believe and that he did partake of Mary's Substance for so did also Hilarius believe But seeing Christ had a miraculous Conception and Birth above all other Men therefore I did judge that G. F. and some others with him meant only by blaming the word humane and humanity humane Nature as applicable to Christ that his Manhood Nature was more excellent than that of other men But I never thought that any of them denyed him as Man to be a Creature or to have been produc'd by Generation of and from the Properties of Man in Mary as some of them have But of late divers of the chief Teachers among the People called Quakers have used the terms Humanity and Humane with reference to Christ But what they understand by it is not easie to determine for if Christ's Humanity be not a Creature or created what is it seeing it cannot be the Godhead and T. Ellwood hath argued in his late Book That if Christ be a Creature he is not God But all who have the sound Faith believe that Christ as a Man is a Creature or created Being but as he is the Eternal Word he is God and not a Creature But this they think a contradiction not owning that Christ hath a twofold Nature essential to him the one uncreated as God the other created as Man and yet but one Christ therefore they have said That Man or outward Person that suffered at Jerusalem is not properly the Son of God So W. Penn expresly faith in his Serious Apology pag. 146. Pag. 37. Christ was once offered to bear the Sins of many and unto them which look for him he shall appear the second time without Sin unto Salvation Heb. 9. 28. Whether these Words may not very safely be understood and are not really meant of Christ's appearing in the Heart to destroy Sin I desire the Reader to consider Here Note The occasion of my giving this Sense to these Words in Heb. 9. 28. was in defence of G. Whitehead who had before that given the same sense to them and which Thomas Wilson whom I answered had blamed as a false Interpretation But at that time I knew not in the least that G. Whitehead had put that sense on that place in prejudice to Christ's coming without us to judge the World in his glorified Body and Person as since I have found for not only did he deny this place to be meant of his Coming without us to Judgment but any other places that his Opponents brought to prove his outward coming to Judgment he turned them all to his inward coming as that in 1 Thes 4. 15. and that in Matth. 16. 27. and brought that in John 14. to prove that Christ was not to come in Person or in a Personal Existence to judge the World Yet a little while and the World shall see me no more This positive unbelief of theirs which I had but of late discovered by a more narrow search into their Books hath awakened me I confess better to consider things that both I and they had formerly written and upon better consideration I declare I am convinced that the true sense of these words above-mentioned is of his outward coming the second time in his glorified Body to judge the World and it is called his Second Coming as denoting his former coming which was in his state of Humilation but his Second Coming shall be in a state of Glorification I shall not enlarge to give my Reasons at present why I so understand that place of his coming without us nor to answer largely the Reasons I gave in that Book that it was to be understood of his inward coming for