heaven that Christ said is within the heritage of heavenly love is found and repossessed in mans soul for it is not so easily found as many usually suppose nor is it a work of one day onely but attained by much waiting in the light sweeping searching watching praying and silent mourning before the Lord and as the heart and conscience becomes purified then he shall finde that homely and peaceable presence of Jesus Christ the pearl of great price in the glimmering shadow of pure shining brightness in his soul But though Jesus Christ is so hid in the soul yet no man is any whit the better thereby that doth not there finde him and feel his operations spiritually but remains as it is written a reprobate whatsoever he may be otherwise And a great mercy it is to man that this Jewel was lost where it may be found again by the light in the scarching and watchful soul where Jesus Christ full oft calleth and knocketh by his privy voice stirring reproving and inviting the soul to a diligent search and withal to abandon other lovers vanities and entanglements that hinder the hearing of his voice for as it is said this daughter must consider and forget her own people and her fathers house of worldly thoughts loves cares and fears which hinder the soul that it can neither see him nor hear him and therefore all troublesome thoughts restless noise and imaginations are to be put away as Hagar the bond-woman that may not be heir with the son of the free woman for while the soul is in the bondage of corruption there is nothing within but black clouds and spiritual blindness with fleshly thoughts and desires crying against it in the dark conscience but as the inner eye of the soul is opened in the light which is of Jesus Christ in whom dwells all the fulness of the Godhead bodily there is that pure sight and sweet love of endless vertue and blessed rest which is found within the soul by the great and burning desires for him whereby all other loves and lovers are cast out and not suffered to rest in the heart which is a right seeking for him this hid Treasure And as this stirring and waiting in the light waxeth firm stable and unmoveable it will be holpen and comforted by inward and spiritual strength of love and sweet savour in the soul with light of continual springing faithfulness and assured knowledge of him and the powers of the thoughts onely upon him and freed from every other affection to rest in the sweet anointing which is the shadow and taste of Jesus Christ and the better any soul finds him the more it will desire him in cleanness of heart and pureness of conscience to meet him more singly in the same way he appeareth and wherein it hath seen and found him at first and other times since most savourly And though thou art altogether blind and seest nothing rightly in thy self or of the Godhead of Christ yet consider seriously what thou wantest and what thou hast lost for thy soul can have no true content or sure satisfaction but in God from whence it is and if thy heart say I want and would have Jesus Christ and nothing but him onely wait therein for him as not satisfied with that appearance and follow him as he leadeth thee and more and more press forward to know him and the power of his resurrection and fellowship of his sufferings and to be made conformable to his death and so grow up in him as he moves and grows in thee and yet know that when thou hast found the most of him in the highest ravishments of spirit as Peter and Iohn in the mount or as Paul mentioned thou hast not therein fully attained to him as he is in his joy for he is still above that any soul feeleth as the fountain of all joy and sweetness but thou art ever to know and feel a spiritual longing after him and a loathing of all things else and then thou wilt find him more worth then all things even then all visions and revelations though not without visions and revelations then all joy in heaven and earth if it might be had without him for thou wilt then say in thy soul as David whom have I in heaven but thee and I desire nothing in the earth besides thee as feeling and finding that his pure presence onely gives understanding to the simple he teacheth fools knowledge whereat the Nations are angry the people and their teachers rage and imagine a vain thing against him and his holy One as not willing to know him for fear of the Cross and the shame which he despised for the joy set before him and are therefore grieved that any others should Conversion is properly a turning from evil to good from lust to pure love which is God and this conversion is ever accompanied with repentance from dead works that are past and out of that nature love and liking wherein they were wrought to serve the living and true God and therefore it is not every turning of mans body and mind from one outward form or practice to another as it were thereby to serve and worship God for then the divers Political turnings of former and latter times would be conversion to him which he may not so accept because he changeth not but is the same at all times even the unerring Father of spirits and so to be worshipped in spirit and in truth and these are outward turnings from one act of mans will to another or from evil to worse as the Proselytes that the Pharisees made sevenfold worse then before whilst the ground of sin with its branches remain standing uncut down or toucht from whence such traditional turnings arise to oppose that one truth and good way of the Lord wherein all obedient souls are made free from such shifts and changes but while men have either not know the fear of the Lord or are departed from it left and lost the power of godliness and simple truth in themselves so that their salt is without savour their minds run abroad and their hearts are filled with fleshly desires loves and fears wherein they labour night and day to gain and keep the love and friendship of this world which is enmity to God with the profits and pleasures thereof and therein serve themselves like the beasts that perish and have their hearts oft filled with wrath and revenge like unreasonable beasts against others of their own kind when they are hindred of any their desired ends and likewise against such as so hinder them not therein unless by standing in their way as the Angel before Balaam and so touching their more quick and tender parts and that onely in love to bring them back into the light and fear of the Lord that their blind and dead souls might be lighted and enlivened to have regard to the honest principle of God in themselves and others that would rule all
Devil and man made might perish and be no more for the everlasting love of God in Jesus Christ is the true light and blessed day love and light being of and in him in whose light the children of the day see light and greatly rejoyce But they that truely seek him must be content to abide a while in the darkness for the darkness was before the light and the evening and morning were the first day and man may not suddenly come from the dark day which is the love of himself and this world into the perfect love of God in and to his soul and to see and feel spiritual things gaining victory in his thoughts to bring all into obedience because it is first night or darkness with him wherein the love of this world is shut out and the day springs from on high and visiteth and as the soul becomes quiet and still the light breaks forth more and more unto the perfect day as he becomes wholly acquitted of his sin and the favour of it But as there is a passing to this light through the evil day or night of darkness wherein is no pleasure but sorrow and sighing doubts and deadness of soul there is a blind longing after and thinking on Jesus Christ how good and blessed he is with desires to feel his love and be lighted with his presence as David sought God in the night to be hid though in pain from beholding the world and its false likenesses which so well please those that are blind in spiritual things and dwell quietly in this darkness wherein Satan cometh with his likenesses and light under colour of true light until the light of love by little and little break forth to him so dwelling in the shadow of death and shine through the darkness and death c. for there are many that would seem to forsake the love of the world and also would come to the love of God and his light to understand him but through this darkness they will not come to know themselves what they have been and are in their sinfulness against God to enter into themselves and view all things there with all wicked stirrings and risings in their hearts of pride envy anger and other evils and to wait desiring in the still silence and spiritual watchfulness to Jesus Christ as his Saints ever did but so soon as in their own wills they seem to have forsaken the world outwardly they presently think themselves holy and full fit for spiritual understanding and heavenly mysteries and that they love God perfectly and have received grace through the special gift of the holy Ghost for they are stirred and seem to feel knowledge as it were then given to them without great study before-hand and a hear of desire therewith to preach forth truth and righteousness and will run into words thereof as with great forwardness and zeal c. And this they hold for the grace of God and visitation of his blessed light before their souls pass through this darkness though this light of knowledge and heat of desire they feel cometh not of the true love of Jesus Christ but from the Devil and his transformings as being onely a fained light and likeness of the true light and Son of God whereby cunningly he leadeth blind souls into a presuming of being themselves righteous and abusing others as the Pharisâ—es did and so have no light of grace to them given by the holy Ghost for though the knowledge they have were in it self outwardly true yet by the Devil and mans own wit it makes onely a fained light of true things but not the light of the true Son nor approved of by his pure light in their Consciences and such men are so blind by these fained lyes and puffed up with spiritual pride that they see it not nor are willing to consider it but highten their hearts against the true light surposing the feeling in their own wills is perfect freedom of spirit and so like clouds without rain tossed to and fro bring forth one device eâ—rour and heresie after another which are known by their wild minds exercised in covetousnesaid this wiss s much vanity talking disputing contending about words rayling and reviling others and perfecuting them and yet will not be ashamed to say They do all this in charity and zeal for righteousness But as James said this wisdom is not from above but is earthly sensual and devilish and therefore this cunning that brings forth such Saints is not of the God of peace and Father of lights with whom is no variableness or evil speaking but such as Jesus Christ used not nor allowed in his Disciples but to do all in his spiritual light and faith in him which is a mystery held in a pure Conscience in the love and meekness of Christ Jesus for it is the fire of love that goeth before him to consume the enmity and evil works c. whereof such are ignorant as have not been smitten down from their height and haughtiness into the lowest degree of meekness and there purged from all spiritual filthiness without which they cannot endure the bright shining of spiritual light the precious liquor of the love of Jesus Christ because not purified in the heavenly furnace to receive the gracious light of heavenly knowledge and perfect love which is the true Son of rightcousaess with healing under his wings and he that thereby reforms in feeling through the dear light that springeth forth and ariseth after this darkness which is not well known but to the soul that travelleth in darkness and cryeth after light to shew it the right way and comfort it in travel therethrough for after true darkness where one firmly sets himself to forsake the love of this world and through grace come to a feeling and knowing of himself and keeps meekness therein he may not be destroyed by errours or fancies for the feeling of grace in that meek darkness teacheth the soul to be faithful and watchful against the enemies motions and subtil slights And it may so be and oft is that some have these workings and firm desires in them and yet remain doubtful thereof what the issue may be but such as they know it begets love and meekness are to keep it tenderly and pursue it fervently that no creature hinder it for this grace will ever be free from sin and worldly business that hinders it which cannot be until he be throughly dead to the world poor inward and outward and have fully forsaken the love of it without any worldly cunning covering or device whereby to be esteemed above others but rather despised of the world and all worldly men sets not his heart upon his own deeds or vertues nor loves nor allows any heart-risings against others for any matter or cause whatsoever so that he doth not disease nor anger any man willingly in word or deed nor pats any trust in worldly goods or friends for otherwise he cannot be
liberty in the will of Satan and the flesh to use or rather abuse the outward things upon their own lusts without any touch of Conscience as being unwilling to know what Conscience and the light therein means lest it should hinder their earthly happiness of glorying in their shame as men not in their right minds but bereaved of their wits not knowing what they are of whom they are to whom they belong what their business is here or how to gain content in anything but every Toy disquiets their minds every filthy lust takes hold of them and gets dominion over them leads them captive and they say they cannot help it some adding that if God had given them grace to forsake their evil ways as he hath done to some others then they should be happy and gladly leave their sinful courses and when God giveth them grace they will c. Now to such I say They speak truely but very wickedly that they have no grace and therefore none they will have though the grace of God hath appeared to all men but they continue still in their filthy love and delight in their lusts and that because they disable themselves to receive grace and neither wait to be prepared for the drawings of God in them nor take any heed to his leading or light that would shew them better but resist all so that they seldome feel any glimpse of the light of Christ neither are willing to suffer it to rest in or shine into their souls lest it should draw them from the great love and liking of this world and the lusts that seem so sweet to them But Do they say they want grace to resist sin and tentations thereto that do presently yeild themselves to sin upon the motions thereof These men have grace truely offered to them but they withstand it and turn it into wantonness and resist the true light and holy Spirit when it moveth and striveth with them as sometime did the old world whereby it becomes as natural to such men to commit sin as the Ox to drink in water and therefore think it impossible to withstand it but it is by reason of their custom therein and willingness thereto which doth so weaken and enfeeble their wills and affections to grace that they feel not the vertue thereof to resist the Devil or sin when he offers it to the soul and when they do feel inward smitings in their Consciences or as a heavy weight upon them they presently to quiet their Consciences flee to their vain pleasures and lustful practises even as beasts and Sodomites to eat and drink and rise up to play fill themselves with worldly solace and leave tokens of their jollity behind them from whence that general Question ariseth Do you love this meat or drink this or the other outward thing c. about which lusts many do so mightily spend their strength and employ their wits in striving to get needless wealth to satisfie this love this lust this god their bellies wherein they glory which tends to their utter loss in spiritual things and that when they have over-much unless they would employ it better and also cast it off and detract from their desires inordinate affections loves and likings that keep them from the love of God sight and feeling of Gods grace and way of restauration to the heavenly mysteries of his glorious Kingdom all bodily things being for support of bodily strength as physick for health with much Caution lest Iust step in with the use so could Paul beat down his body and others following his example therein as he followed Jesus Christ to the glory of God the Father IV. O ye Formalists that have in these days your ways in the aiery Element without footing or foundation that turn any way with every wind not knowing whither you go because darkness hath blinded your eyes and sloth so possess'd your souls that you are unfree and afraid to have your eyes opened in the light lest it should prove to your loss in earthly things and therefore do neglect the light and silence the voyce of Jesus Christ in your own and others Consciences by your formal and fleshly inventions of Conformity and bodily exercises that all are to perish with the using being as it is written after the doctrines and commandments of men c. from whence spring up the devised snares and gins to catch the innocent and Non-conformists that are not of your aiery minds without considering the commands of Christ Jesus the Lord of the harvest who said Let the tares and wheat grow together in the world until the harvest and again in these words Whatsoever yâ— would that men should do unto you so do you unto them or how he pleasech respectively to carry on his great work of soâ—ls to reform them into faith and spiritual feeling neither yet how you your selves or some of you are but newly released from under the yoke of your bondage and suddenly step up upon a stage of this world to shew your selves for a little season should not in any wise lay a like or greater yoke of bondage upon the necks of others then you your selves were able to bear and especially in these transient times when as it is written the holy God is pouring contempt upon all flesh and these fading glories are vanishing away ready to be left by you or snatcht from you before you have any firm hold of them but times and seasons are all in the Lords hands and his secrets with his saints and therefore in love to your souls consider well your way and be not high-minded but fear before the God of heaven and learn of him to be wise in this your day of tryal to understand what the good will of the Lord is respectively to you and let not love and meekness be mastered by any exalted peevish wrathful spirit of contention in you for he is now proving you that you might know what is in your own hearts and that others might see whether you will indeed truly incline your souls to him and his service so to act as you seem to pray to have his will done in earth as it is in heaven c. who will no more spare you then he hath done others in case you be found in their footsteps contrary to his one good way truth and life which those that have truly tasted the sweetness of cannot neglect whatever others do for the reasonable service is as it is written not a conforming to this world but a being transformed by the renewing of the mind To prove what that good and acceptable and perfect will of God is whereby he reforms mens souls through faith as pleaseth him into a perfect inward savour taste feeling and wise skill which the holy Ghost teacheth and planteth in the powers of the soul whereby he requites no hard harth or intricate service but what is according to right reason and the knowledge thereof to be received