A Guide to the Blind Pointed to Or a true TESTIMONY TO THE Light within Wherein some men are reproved others counselled and encouraged but all who are ignorant of their true Guide directed to the path of Life With a Friendly CALL to all Notionists and high Professors of Religion in what Form soever To come speedily down from their Pinacles lest they fall into temptation Also some Queries to the persecuting Ministers of the Church of ENGLAND VVritten for the Truths sake by T.F. The darkness is past the true Light new shineth 1 Joh. 2.8 See therefore that ye walk circumspectly not as fools but as wise Eph. 5.15 London Printed for the Author and are to be sold by G. Calvert at the Black-spread Eagle near the west end of Pauls N. Brooks at the Angel in Cornhil 1659. THE PREFACE READER ALthough I have bin for many yeers a true seeker of the kingdom of Heaven yet had I been one who had sate in the seat of the scorner or been disobedient unto the Light or motion of Gods Spirit upon those Waters in me which had neer over-whelmed my Soul I should have remained as most men still do in darkness even until now or else been like unto those who are a sleep in sin neither knowing nor beleeving any other state attainable in this life who yet notwithstanding are bold to say They see But blessed be the Lord God I am not of their unbelief but of that faith which overcomes the World Sin and the Devil Friend If thou art such a one to wit a sinner and beleevest thou canst not be otherwise here and yet will presumptuously say Thouseest Know thou That Christ Iesus came to make thee blind and that those who are blind and sensible of it might see And thou who art a sleep in sin and dead whilest thou livest Arise and listen thou to the voice of Christ and to his knock in thee if thou wilt live to God open the door of thy heart unto him betimes He it is who calls to sinners to be pure and to be perfect as our heavenly Father is He it is who cryed out to Jerusalem to be gathered under his wing and he also if thou will be gathered would gather thee O refuse him not for he it is who hath called me out of darkness into light and caused me to listen to his still voice within me and he it is who calls to thee also to return and live saying to thee as he did to Israel Why will ye die O House of Israel Now that thou mayest know I am none of those that cry Lohere Or Loâ—hers nor of the many Sects and divided Judgments in this Nation I shall briefly tell thee how many by-wayes I have past through and how restless I was in them all till I came to own the light of Christ in me First As to my Education I must tell thee it was such a was in the fear of the Lord into which I admonish thee to hasten and therein continue all the dayes of thy life for I assure thee there is no safety but in that state and in the pure life of innocency from which all men by disobedience are fallen It 's not talking of the holy life but living it that can give thee an entrance into Paradice for the flaming Sword is turned against the transgressor so that he cannot touch the tree of life much-less eat thereof but with the Serpent must feed upon dust all the dayes of his life O Make haste Friend to the life of Obedience and come down from the barren Mountains lest thou die for there is no bread to be had there Consult no longer with the Serpents carnal reasonings in thee nor with his numerous and busie Agents without thee perswading thee that purity is not to be attained here Oh! that thou wouldest consider that the Soul which sinneth must die and that as the tree falls so it lyes that there is no Repentance in the Grave nor any other Way to life but by keeping the Commandments of God Friend Thy Enemy is within thee therefore look at home keep the Watch well there and if thou canst pray that thou enter not into temptation for the Devil now goes about roaring like a Lyon and is seeking whom he may devour Oh! beleeve not those that say The best of Gods Children cannot be free from sin in this life for I declare to thee they are all of the black Army of Satan and for the support of his kingdom are they come to fight and to make War with the Lamb and his followers who walk with him in white Remember thou That without holiness no man shall see God and that the pure in heart and they only can see him And thou who art flown high in thy comprehension of aiery Notions without life thou must descend and dwell in the Low-valley where once thou hadst some sooting for thy safety is there and no where else Come thou into the cool of the day and hear Gods voice unto thee who chargeth thee with eating of the tree of knowledge of Good and Evil Thou hast lost thy state of happiness by hearkning to the Woman thy fallen Reason who is not to speak in the Church for thou hast suffered to be marr'd the holy Creation of God in thee and there is no way lest now for thee but to come to Christ Jesus the light of the world and life of man He it is though thou hast despised him because his appearance is low in thee who must repair the breach between God and thee but if thou reject him who is thy light and who would be thy leader thy stare is worse then fallen Adams was thou art now one with the Angel of false light Darkness will be thy portion as it is his for evermore Friend What I have further to say in this Preface may give thee some light of the crooked-wayes thou art not to walk in and therefore shall proceed to give thee an accompt of my wandring steps which the Lord hath now brought to my remembrance even from my Child hood The fear of God I say was before me even from my Youth so that when I was but a School-Boy I durst not omit my Morning and Evening Sacrifice of Prayer to God upon any pretence whatsoever Never did I swear an Oath but once since I was born and that was upon great provocation by a lewd Boy when I was about twelve yeers of age But such was the goodness of God to me then that presently after I had spoken the word I found trouble in my Conscience and condemnation for it many yeers after My Companions were mostly such as were sober and freest from scandal and I can truly say I remembred my Creator in the dayes of my Youth and was a true seeker of the Kingdom of Heaven from such time as I had an understanding to believe there was such a Kingdom to be sought after And when I
and that as long as they live they cannot be free from corruption and these sit down without hope and shall never enter But yet notwithstanding there is encouragement enough for the faithful Traveller when he remembers that there were two to wit Caleb and Joshua who were true Spyes and that notwithstanding the multitude of false Spyes that went forth to view the Land these as faithful Witnesses For God brought in their Testimony and said Let us go up at once and possesse it for we are well able to overcome it And these for their faithfulness to the Lord notwithstanding the false Spyes ill report of the good Land were brought to possess the Land which flowed with Milk and Honey but the rest perished in the Wilderness for their unbelief and their children were wanderers there fourty years Now Friend It is observable and very remaakrble That Caleb and Joshuah who did enter had another spirit then the false Spyes had and followed the Lord fully to wit the Spirit of Faith which overcomes the World and all the Enemies therein to the soul of men so that the Believer and his Seed shall possess the holy Land when all the unbelievers shall perish in the Wildcrness Numb. 14. And as for the glory of this holy Land or New Jernsalem of which Canaan was a Type and the Riches thereof none wil doubt but all Will confess the Land is good though some say too good to be obtained here or possessed in this life I say as to this I cannot but bring in my testimony and declare They are all false Spyes and false prophets that say the Enemies of mans soul are not to be overcome in this life and that the holy life is not attainable for he that gives Victory over one sin which I witness will give victory over all sins if I and thou be faithful Warriers in the Army of the Lamb I say our Captain is able to make war wth the Enemy and not onely give us victory but also an entrance into the Holy of holies within the vail here where no false prophet can enter but him who is the Priest for ever after the order of Melehizedeck Therefore friends go chearfully on your way in believing the Enemy is as well before as behind look not back neither turn to the right hand nor to the left but press forward and in due time you shall reap if you faint not 'T is the Faith of the Saints which overcomes the World and all difficulties which the honest Traveller shall find in his Journey towards the holy Land And that none may be discouraged that he meets with troubles and tryals let him remember The greater his tryals are the stronger had his Faith need be and the bitterer his Travels are the sweeter will his Rest be If some of the Servants of the Lord have through experience said That the sufferings of this present life are not worthy the glory that shall be revealed what will they be able to say when in is revealed It is better to suffer affliction with the people of God then to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season Therefore let us proceed on our journey with unwearied minds and in the strength and power of the Lord make war against all the Enemies of our Souls following our Leader and in the end we shall be more then Conquerors And because there are many pretenders to holiness who with fair speeches do deceive the hearts of people and by enticing words of mans Wisdom seduce many a well-meaning and honest-hearted Traveller who is ever and anon ready to question whether his way be right I do advise thee as thou lovest life and tenderest the true rest of thy weary soul keep close to thy Leader whose voice is low speaking in thee saying Go not forth wander not for this I declare That whilst thou art unturned to thy Guide within thee or art listening to the loud Voice and found of big Words without as I have been thou canst finde no rest though thou travel hard to obtain it A Word concerning the Resurrection THE Lord is risen indeed and hath appeared unto many among whom I am come to give you notice though a most unworthy Messenger That he is now come to exalt his Son in his saints and set him upon his holy hill glory for evermore But many there are who with Martha do look for the Resurrection at the last day without and so put the day of his Resurrection in them far from them as believing no such thing and saying How can this be when in the mean time Christ lyes slain in some of them and others are so far from the holy Life of Christ that they are dead in trespasses and sins and some twice pluckt up by the roots neither knowing their Saviour within them nor Without them Art thou one that knowest nothing of the resurrection of Christ in thee then know that thou art not to look out to a day without thee for the resurrection of Christ but in Spiritual Sodomand Aegypt where he lyes still crucified art thou to expect his resurrection to wit in thy own wicked heart Christ before his resurrection from the Grave told Martha and said I am the the Resurrection and the life he that believeth in me though he were dead yet shall he live and that he that liveth and believeth in him should not dye Dost thou believe this Arise then thou that art asleep in thy grave of sin fleshly ease or carnal delights and hearken to the voice of the Son of God in thee live for he who called Lazarus out of his grave of earth being naturally dead to life again will raise thee also and call thee out of thy spiritual grave of sin and denth if thou hearken to his Voice and obey his Call in thoe Christ Jesus after his resurrection appeared unto many of his Disciples with out them and they knew him not he being spiritual and after he had by many signal Testimonies made himself known unto them to be Jesus a Cloud received him out of the sight of those that stood looking after him Whereupon it was told them by two men who were in white that said To men of Galilee why stand ye here gazing The same Iesus which hath been taken up from you into heaven shall in like manner come again to wit in a Cloud for so he went up Now this Friend is a Mystery to the wise and learned men of this World oh that they knew it That the light of the World and life of men should come in a cloud but so it is and they are utterly ignorant of this mysterie though to the children of Light it is made manifest and revealed by the Spirit They can tell you that as Christ's first appearance to the World was in the flesh and the fleshly eye saw him so his second appearance is in Spirit and no fleshly eye can behold him he being now a spirit You
them not with mild perswasions but with cruel and merciless stripes upon their naked bodies with stockings stonings beatings long and tedious imprisonmets and other bitter usage which for shame I cannot mention And as if this had been too little I have caused some of them to be scourged twice or thrice for not bowing to my corrupt Will and worshipping me with their Hats off or for speaking to our blind Guide who calls himself a Minister And all this I have done contrary to the Law of the Land too and when I have so done I have with Passes sent them away as Vagabonds and Wanderers not suffering them though sufficient men and of good Estates near us to have a place in our quarters to dress their sore stripes deep wounds which my bloody Executioners have made upon their innocent and harmless bodyes nor yet a place wherein to rest their aking heads except in stocks dungeons close holes of little ease or filthy and stinking Goals amongst thieves and murtherers where many of them have finished their testimonies by death Now saith the guilty Magistrate This is the truth of my condition and thus have I served the Embassadors of Christ Jesus whom the malicious World cannot accuse of evil and my case is lamenable and the worse because what I have done was through the instigation of our Gospel-Minister as he called himself â—nd to please him who otherwise would not suffer me to be at rest crying out against them that they will undo us and our generation after us and render our Gospel to be Antichristian and our selves false Prophets as indeed we are and will make our nakedness and ignorance appear to all sober men if they be tollerated But that which is more considerable then all this I am afraid I have sinn'd the sin against the Holy Ghost which can never be forgiven and how shall I escape the damnation of Hell Friend Is this thy case indeed And art thou guilty so deeply as this in truth makes thee 'T is sad indeed Yet consider and for thy comfort I have this to say unto thee St. Paul was as great a Persecutor of the Saints as thou possibly hast been and as mad against them as the most of you have been or can be yet when the Light appeared to him and struck him from his horse or beastly nature of persecution he presently fell to the earth and with trembling and astonishing said Lord what wilt thou have me to do He did not as the blind Guides of this age say That the Light of Christ was natural and insufficient to guide him out of his darkness but he became obedient to the Light immediately though he saw no body consulting neither with flesh nor blood nor yet running to Gamaliel a great Doctor under whom he had been brought up for counsel but forthwith ceased from the sprit of persecution and obtained mercy So he being obedient to the Light became a true Disciple of Jesus and Preacher of the everlasting Gospel Acts 9. And now oh Magistrate know this That though thou hast been the greatest persecutor of the Saints amongst thy numerous Brethren and hast persecuted them until death as many in England have been for conscience-sake within these few years under a pretence of maintaining the Popish and Antichristian Law for Tythes and suppressing of Hereticks yet there is some hopes of mercy for thee also if thou canst in truth say That what thou didst then hast done ignorantly But if this be not thy case but hast wilfully transgressed and rebelled against the Light in thy conscience then O then â—hy condition is sad indeed and thou with the blind Guides art of all men most to be pittyed Examine therefore â—y own heart in secret and if thou findest that thou hast been a wilful Persecutor of Gods Servants cry mightily unto the Lord that the iniquity of thy heart may be forgiven thee and possibly thou mayest find hopes upon thy unfeigned confession and resolution to turn to the Lord and obey the Light within thee to obtain Mercy Cease I say from that Spirit of Persecution and become obedient for the future if peradventure thy fins may be blotted out A view of false Doctrines Or A Word of Reproof to false Teachers who boast that that they have the Original and yet are ignorant of the word of life FRiends to you all I speak who disown the Light of Christ within and count it a low thing a wo is pronounced unto you for your light is turned into darkness and your sweet into bitter and for the present see not your way before you the whole World lyes in wickedness and darkness is upon the faces of all who are led by you who preach for hire and divine for money contrary to the prophets phets and true Ministers of Christ you preach false Doctrine and practice persecution and therefore are you none of the children of Light nor Ministers of the everlasting Gospel You say That the best of Gods servants cannot be free from sin in this life whereas the holy Scriptures say Without holynesse no man shall see the Lord Christ himself hath preached perfection and hath commanded his Disciples to be perfect as their heavenly Father is perfect but you say No perfection is not to be attained here You say many of you That the Light of Christ in the conscience is natural not considering that he himself is spiritual and that his Light must of necessity be so too You say Revelation is ceased not considering this That no man knows the Father but the Son and him to whom the Son will reveal him You say No man hath the infallible Spirit now not considering That he that hath not the Spirit of Christ is none of his For where-ever the Spirit of Christ is it must needs be infallible and you that have not the infallible Spirit you are none of Christs and if so then consider with your selves whose childrern you are and what spirit guides you and whither for it cannot lead you into all truth nor any part thereof Some of you have been heard to say That the Devil is the Power of God and that the Gospel is not the Power of God no more then a Rose Cake and further That the Light of Christ Jesus is carnal and darkness Friends I hope better things of many of you but assuredly this Doctrine is damnable and pernicious to the souls of men And therefore I warn you to forbear preachihg in the Name of the Lord whilst you are of this Faith which I affirm is of the Devils and not of the Saints whose faith overcomes the World and who believe they must be holy as God is holy and perfect as their heavenly Father is perfect in their several measures They know that the Son of God is the Light of the World and life of men and is not darkness carnal natural or insufficient to lead them to purity as you declare And because I wil not