Letters in Two Parts, Part 1 · LETTER 149
To his Parishoners at Anwoth. (149).
Dearly beloved in our Lord.
GRace, mercy & peace from God our father & from our Lord Jesus Christ be multiplied upon you: I long exceedingly to hear of your on-going & advancement in your journey to the Kingdom of God: My onelyonly joy out of heaven is, to hear that the seed of God sowen among you is growing & coming to an harvest; for I ceased not while I was among you, in season & out of season [according to the measure of grace given unto me] to warn & stir up your mindes, & I am free from the blood of all men, for I have communicated to you the whole counsel of God: And I now again charge & warn you in the great & dreadfull name, and in the soveraign authority of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords; and I beseech you also by the mercies of God, and by the bowels of Christ, by your appearance before Christ Jesus our Lord, by all the plagues that are written in God's book, by your part of the holy city, the new Jerusalem, that ye keep the truth of God as I delivered it to you, before many witnesses, in the sight of God and his holy Angels; for now the last dayes are come & coming when many forsake Christ Jesus, & he saith to you, will ye also leave me? Remember that I forewarned you to forbear the dishor ouring of the Lord's blessed name, in swearing, b…spheming, cursing, And the prefaning of the Lord's sabbath; willing you to give that day from morning to night to praying, praising, hearing of the word, conferring, and speaking not your own words but God's word, thinking and meditating on God's nature, word and works; And that every day at morning and at right [at least] ye should sanctifie the Lord by praying in your houses publickly in the hearing of all; that ye should in any sort forbear the receiving of the Lord's supper, but after the form that I delivered it to you, according to the example of Christ our Lord, that is, that ye should sit as banquetters, at one table with our King, & eat & drink, & divide the elements one to another: The timber & stones of the church walls shall bear witness that my soul was refreshed with the comforts of God in that supper; and that crossing in baptisme was unlawfull and against Christ's ordinances; And that no day [besides the sabbath which is of his own appointment] should be kept holy, and sanctified with preaching & the publick worship of God for the memory of Christ's birth, death, resurrection & ascension; seeing such dayes so observed are unlawfull, wil-worship, and not warranted in Christ's word; And that every thing in God's worship not warranted by Christ's Testament & word, was unlawfull; And also, that Idolatry, worshipping of God before hallowed creatures, & adoring of Christ by kneeling before bread & wine was unlawfull; And that ye should be humble, sober, modest, forbearing pride, envy, malice, wrath, hatred, contentim, debate, lying, slandering, stealing, & defrauding your neighbours in grass, corn or cattell, in buying or selling, borrowing or lending, taking or giving, in bargains or covenants; And that ye should work with your own hands, & be content with that which God hath given you; That ye should studie to know God & his will, and keep in minde the doctrine of the Catechisme which I taught you carefully, and speak of it in your houses and in the fields, when ye lie down at night, and when ye rise in the morning; That ye should beleeve in the Son of God and obey his commandments, and learn to make your accounts in time with your judge, because death & judgement are before you: And if ye have now penury and want of that word which I delivered to you in abundance; yea [to God's honour I speak it, without arrogating any thing to my self, who am but a poor empty man] ye had as much of the word in nine years while I was among you, as some others have had in many. Mourn for your loss of time & repent: My soul pitieth you that ye should suck dry breasts, & be put to draw at dry wells. O that ye would esteem highly of the lamb of God, your welbeloved Christ Jesus, whose vertues and praises I preached unto you with joy, & which he did countenance & accompany with some power; and that ye would call to minde the many fair dayes and glorious feasts in our Lord's house of wine, that ye and I have have had with Christ Jesus! But if there be any among you that take liberty to sin, because I am removed from amongst you, and forget that word of truth which ye heard, and turn the grace of God into wantoness; I here under my hand in the name of Christ my Lord, write to such persons all the plagues of God & the curses that ever I preached in the pulpit of Anwoth against the childrens of disobedience: And as the Lord liveth the Lord Jesus shall make good what I write unto you: Therefore, Dearly beloved, fulfill my joy: Fear the great and dreadfull name of the Lord: seek God with me, Scotland's judgement sleepeth not, awake & repent: the sword of the Lord shall goe from the North to the South, from the East to the West and through all the corners of the land, and that sword shall be drunk with your blood amongst the first; & I shall stand up as witness against you, if ye doe not amend your wayes and your doings, and turn to the Lord, with all your heart: I beseech you also my beloved in the Lord, my joy & my Crown, offend not at the sufferings of me, the prisoner of Jesus Christ; I am filled with joy and with the comforts of God: Upon my salvation I know & am perswaded it is for God's Truth and the Honour of my King & Royall Prince Jesus I now suffer: and howbeit this town be my prison, yet Christ hath made it my palace, a garden of pleasures, a field & orchard of delights: I know likewise albeit I be in bonds, that yet the word of God is not in bonds, my spirit also is in free ward: Sweet, svveet have his comforts been to my soul: my pen, tongue and heart have not vvords to express the kindness, love & mercy of my vvelbeloved to me in this house of my pilgrimage. I charge you to fear & love Christ, & to seek a house not made vvith hands, but your father's house above: This laughing and white skinned world beguileth you; & if ye seek it more then God, it shall play you a slip, to the endless sorrow of your heart: Alas, I could not make many of you fall in love with Christ, howbeit I endeavoured to speak much good of him, & to commend him to you [which as it was your sin, so it is my sorrow] yet once again suffer me to exhort, beseech & obtest you in the Lord, to think of his love & to be delighted with him, who is altogether lovely: I give you the word of a King ye shall not repent it: ye are in my prayers night & day, I cannot forget you: I doe not eat, I doe not drink, but I pray for you all: I entreat you all & every one of you to pray for me. Grace, grace be with you.
Aberd. Sept. 23. 1636. Your lawfull & loving Pastor, S. R.