Survey of the Spiritual Antichrist, Part 1 · Chapter 35

Survey of the Spiritual Antichrist · Part 1 · Chapter 35

p. 297CHAP. XXXV. Of communion with God, and serving him in the Spirit.

THere is much talking by Enthusiasts and Familists, of the Spirit, teaching in the Spirit. I shall therefore speake to to that: And,

1. Of the Propheticall Spirit.

2. Of the Spirituall life, and serving of God common to all Saints.

Hence these Conclusions of the former.

1. Conclu. All the Saints, as Saints are not Prophets, but some only called by God thereunto, 1 Cor. 12.29. Are all Prophets? Eph. 4.11. Christ gave some to be Prophets. Obey them that are over you in the Lord. 1 Thess. 5.12, 13.

2. The Spirit of prophesie is master of the man in whom he is, Rev. 1.10. I was in the Spirit in the Lords day. Heb. 13.7.17 1 Tim 5.17. 1 Tim. 3.1, 2, 3.4, v. 12. 1 Tim. 5.19. Rev. 1.16. Rev. 2.1.Heb 13:7Heb 13:171 Tim 5:171 Tim 3:11 Tim 3:21 Tim 3:31 Tim 3:41 Tim 5:19Rev 1:16Rev 2:1Hee saith not, the Spirit was in me, but I was in the Spirit as in a capacious house. Glory went round about me, above mee, below me, on every side of me. I was as a vessell casten into the sea, there is more of the sea without it, then within it. So these that are in a trance are said to fall, Numb. 24.4. from themselves. Hence that question, whether these that Prophesie doe know perfectly what they prophesie?

To which I answer, there is a twofold knowledge, one naturall and conjoyned with organicall knowledge;Of the knowledge of such as are under actuall vision in a trance, another intellectuall and abstract.

2. There is an evident intellectuall knowledge, and a more imperfect and darker knowledge.

p. 298Then if we speake of an organicall knowledge, the man under actuall vision knowes not whether he be in the body, or …ut of it, as Paul 2 Cor. 12.2. yea and Peter in a trance, not only could not see, heare or eat, Act. 10.10. but was wholly acted upon by God: but Act. 12. an Angel comes to him and loseth his chaines and causeth him gird himselfe and binde on his sandals, and he thought it had been a vision, and knew not that it was any thing but an intellectuall, visionall, representation, not a reall deliverance, till he came to himselfe, v. 11. yet something of a trance there was, for hee was not at himselfe, then we may see and act bodily with Angels, and walke and not know the necessity of what wee know, see or doe.

2. If we speake of a weaker Propheticall sight, since the light of Prophesie can let us see in the opened speces things to come, and we may know that we know them, & that they are revealed: but when the Prophets preach of new what they have seen in a vision, and prophesie to Kings and to men, they are in far other condition,Prophets not ever under actuall vision as Prophets, when they preach their visions to men, and in a far other case then when they are in a …rance a…d actu…ly see the visions of God. then when under an actual vision, because under an actual vision, I conceive they are not under the dominion of free-will. Jeremiah cannot chuse but see a seething pot toward the North, because the object naturally offers it self to the fancy, & God never threatneth a Prophet under pain of punishment, to see visions, for he cannot here wink and close the eyes of his mind. Balaam could not chuse, but see the visions of God, and the goodlinesse of Jacobs tents, Num. 24. and if the Spirit thus should act the Saints to pray, praise, hear with faith, I thinke their acts should not bee acts of free obedience, nor capable of a precept, nor the omission of these acts lye faire for a threatning, rebuke, or punishment.

But when the Prophets deliver these truths that they did see in raptures and visions, they doe not ever speake these truths to men, and preach them by a Propheticall rapture, but by the Spirit of grace sometimes, or by a common Propheticall gift, as in wicked Prophets, not that Prophets doe actually publish their visions and Prophesie, not as Prophets but as godly men, I have not that meaning, but that an immediately inspiring impulsion of an actuall extasie doth p. 299not ever lead them to preach. So God never doth command and threaten men to see the visions of God, for here there is no place for free election, but God chargeth and commandeth Jeremiah to preach the truth, which he saw in a vision, Jer. 1.17. Thou therefore gird up thy loynes, arise and speake unto them all that I command thee; and he threatneth him in case of disobedience, Be not dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them; and he comforteth him in the following words, 18. Behold I have made thee this day a defenced City, and an iron wall. So the Lord speaketh to Jeremiah also, c. 15.19, 20. then we need not say necessarily that Jeremiah did actually prophesie or see the visions of God, when he saith, ch. 26.15. of a truth the Lord hath sent me to you: at least there is no warrant to say that when the Prophets doe speake and publish their visions to these to whom God hath sent them to Prophesie, that they are in the act of publishing and preaching to men, under the same actuall and immediate impulsion of the Holy Ghost that they are under while they are in a trance, and actually see the visions of God, as Jeremiah was c. 1.11.12. when hee seeth these visions. Ieremiah only obeyeth Gods command, and relateth his visions that he had seene before, and did this by the Spirit of grace common to other beleevers by which he was inclined to bee faithfull in speaking, what he had heard and seene: and the like I say of Micajah in preaching to Ahab, and of all the true Prophets, who did not ever from a Propheticall instinct, utter or preach to men the things they had seene in extaticall visions, but often from a principle of grace by which they were to bee faithfull to him who sent them, and durst not preach smooth things, nor conceale the visions of God. False Prophets as Balaam and Caiaphas doe out of a Propheticall impul…on both see and speake the visions of God, and are punished of God, for speaking Propheticall truths which they cannot chuse, but must speake, for they preach them not, because they are awed of God, and dare not heale the wound of the daughter of Gods people with faire words, but beside their intention as Balaam did, Num. 23. ch. 24.

And thus it is not necessary, when Prophets reveale visions that in that act of revelation, they see them to be true p. 300revelations, with only a Propheticall light. And because the Propheticall light is not perfect, but infused ad modum recipientis as we are capable to receive, the speces of things may be objected to the Prophets understanding, and they see them as things, but not in the spirituall signification they stand under; so Iohn saw seven starres, and seven golden Candlestickes, but knew not that the one noted the seven Angels of the Church, and the other the seven Churches.

Prophets see not really the things themselves present, offered to them in the visions of God, but only the speces or images therof in the decree of God or some other way.The way God offers the speces to the understanding is not knowne to us, but it is sutable and congruous to the nature of Spirits. Yet doth not God let the Prophets see the things themselves, but only the intellectuall speces for 1 King. 22.17.19, 20. compared with v. 28. cleareth that Israell was not really scattered, nor Ahab really killed at Ramoth-Gilead, but only visionally, for Ahab then should really both be dead and alive, & Israel scattered, & not scattered, at the same time, which involveth a contradiction, yet Micajah said he had seene the one and the other: then he saw the visionall images printed in the revealed decree of God, or some other way offered to his imagination. Now this Propheticall Spirit doth not act the Saints in beleeving and praying, or the like, as Antinomians would have all to be Prophets but the Spirit of grace and supplication, of which these considerations may serve to cleare truth between us and Antinomians, who runne the way of Enthusiasts.

Hence, 1. That we may more exactly know the nature of worshipping God in Spirit and in the letter.

We are to consider 1. a spirit is opposed to that which is a body and bodily and externall,The Spirit opposed to that which is bodily and to that which is externall. as Luke 24 39. Handle mee and see, for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as you see I have; thus they call Christ in the flesh, not a spirituall Christ. David George, and H. Nicholas call him a fleshy and a literall Christ, because such a Christ (say they) commeth under the senses, as if Christ, because true man in the flesh, who was filled with the anointing above his fellowes, and because he was cloathed with our flesh, could not preach and pray more spiritually then David George or H. Nicholas.

2. A spirit is opposed to that which is literall and externall, and is only a signe, a forme, a sound, and hath nothing of p. 301life and spirit in it, Ioh. 6.63. It is the Spirit that quickneth, the flesh profiteth nothing, the words that I speake unto you, they are spirit, they are life. The Spirit there is opposed to carnall, these of Capernaum dreamed of an orall, carnall, materiall, bodily and externall eating of Christs flesh, and drinking his blood, Christ refuteth that, and sayeth it was the Spirit of Christ, not his bare flesh that quickneth dead sinners, and that his words spoken, v. 54, 55, 56. Of eating the sonne of mans flesh, and drinking his blood, must be taken spiritually, not carnally and grossely, and so Antinomians falsely impute to us that we expone all tropes and allegories, that should be exponed spiritually, in a carnall and literall sense.

3. 2 Cor. 3. The Spirit and inward working is opposed to the letter and outward working; and so externall and outward worship only and in the only letter and sound of words, is opposed to the spirituall and internall worship in life and power.

But if yee speake, in sensu composito, only and meerly,How externall Ordinances are contrary to the Spirits acting, and how not. externall and literall working is hypocriticall, when there is no heart-worke, and it is as if a painted man should speake, no heat, no warmnesse of breath commeth out of his mouth, this acting, is no Ordinance of God, but an act of hypocrisie, so we doe not plead for externall reformation in concreto, nor for the reading, hearing, meditating, and preaching on the Scriptures with this positive act of doing these hypocritically, if we speake againe in sensu divi…o, of the word in the letter, and Scriptures, in themselves not including the Spirit, or any influence thereof in, or with the word, we judge these two, the word and the Spirit to be subordinate, not contrary, and see not but we are to stand for, and defend all Ordinances in themselves, Scripture, reading, hearing, praying, Sacraments, as in, or of themselves Ordinances of God, and of divine institution, though as they are such the Spirit joyn not with them, nor doth the word of God make any such opposition between them, as that some Christians should bee under these externall Ordinances as being more legall and lesse spirituall, and others beyond & above all Ordinances externall, and taught of God immediately, because they are (forsooth) …nder all-spirit▪ and purely spirituall, and so taught of God, as p. 302they have no more need of Ordinances, then learned Doctors have to read the horne-booke, as Waldesso saith. But how the word and Spirit are particularly united, happily, is more then the learned and godly can define.

I should thinke the word and Spirit are united, as the King and the Kings Law revealed to his Subjects are one,Three wayes of un…n between the word and the Spirit. as we say the King is in every Court, in regard the Kings Law is there, or the Master is with the servant in his masterly authority that the servant carrieth, when he speaketh in the name of his Master. So as when Ieremiah and Esaiah, yea, or any faithfull Ambassador speaketh in Christs name the word and will of God, God is said to speak by the mouth of those his holy Prophets and servants.

2. The word and the Spirit are united as the principall and instrumentall cause, as Christ is where his word is either converting or convincing, and because the way of Christs working by the word is much in a morall way, as by a signe conveying the thing signif…ed by his Spirit.

Therefore the 3. way how Christ, or his Spirit is in the word, may be thus: Christ cloatheth himselfe with the word or Scripture read, or sounding in the eare, as the thing signified is in the signe, as the King carries himselfe to the minde and affection of his Spouse in a farre Countrey by the pourtrait of the King, or by a friend, an Ambassador, or foreign by whom she is married to him though shee never saw the King himselfe in face and countenance.

And when Christ is in our hearts by faith, and we regenerated by the immortall seed of the word, 1 Pet. 1.23. after this new birth,How the word remaineth in the new birth, and how it passeth away. there remaineth something of the word, some other thing passeth away; that which remaineth is the thing signified in the word, or produced by the word, which is Christ formed in the heart by faith, or the new creature. But the characters and letters we read, the sound of preaching wee heare, remain not, but are transient and passing away things, they are not limbs nor members of a new creation, the speces or images of the word may remaine in the memory, but in the new creature there is nothing transient or corruptible such as figures, letters, signes, and sounds, as when a grain of wheat is casten into the earth, the husk passeth away and rotteth, p. 303but the substance of the graine remaineth and is turned into thee stalke, blade, and eare of growing wheat, and (though these expressions and similitudes come short of the thing it selfe) Chri…t is pleased thus to convey himselfe through words and sounds as a chariot, of his owne appointing, which we must not neglect except we would dispise God, and so Christ lodgeth himselfe in the heart passing through the outer gates and senses, eyes, taste, and feeling in the Sacraments, and the eares in the word preached.

But what ever here I speake of the Spirits actings, not seperated from the word, let me not be mistaken as if I did thinke that every acting of the Holy Ghost should goe along in an exact Mathematicall length and breadth, with the letter and sound of the word, as if the word were the bellowes, the Spirit the hand, that stirreth the bellows; for though all utterings and stirrings of the soule that flow from the Spirit be warranted by the word, yet I am assured some are, and have beene, even in our time, so changed from glory to glory, as by the Spirit of the Lord, that their faces have shined like the face of an Angel they have been at singing and a desire to shout for joy, yea to leap and dance, and have been so filled with the fulnesse o… God, that they could not speak, and have been like vessells filled with new wine that wanted vent, that one said Lord, hold thy hand, thy servant is an old vessel and can hold no more of thy new wine; and another cryed, Full, full, pained with a fulnesse of God with marrow and fa…nesse, Heb. 3. which I am sure is the joy unspeakable and glorious, spoken of 1 Pet. 1.8. and the begunne fulnesse of God, Eph. 3.19. and a bodily soule-sicknesse for Christ, a fit of the swoone that Iohn fell into, Rev. 1.17. And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. It is true that was a Propheticall extasie in Iohn like that of Daniel, c. 10.7, 8, 9.15. in which the operations of the bodily senses, or organicall actions were suspended; so as the Prophets in these cases could not eat nor drinke; so by proportion here I know some stricken with palenesse, trembling, and deprived of the use of the body for a time which I judge to be a trembling at the word: one a dying said, I feel a strong ranke smell of perfume, and the sweetnesse I feele, but cannot p. 304speake. Another said, I injoy, I injoy. Another, I see heaven open and the high throne prepared. Another, could doe nothing but smile and looke like heaven: All these to me are the over-banke and high tydes of the Spirit by way of redundancie acting on the body, because of its neare union with the soule, and I know warranted by the word, produce no new doctrine; but how the word and Spirit in these actings are united and move together, I confesse I am ignorant.

2. We professe we hate with our soules that Christians should adore and fall downe before an inke-Divinity, and meere paper-godlinesse, as if the Spirit were frozen into inke▪ and dead figures, writings, letters, or as if naked languages of Hebrew, Greeke and Latine, could save us. The Kingdome of God is not in letters, nor in externalls, but in life and power. The glasse of the Physitian workes not the cure, but the oyle in it. The Doctors written directions in the sicke-mans pocket helpes him not a whit; no man shall lay the only outside of ordinances lower in the dust then we. All the obliging power is from the letter of the word, all the strengthning physicall power, by which we are inabled to act, is from the Spirit that worketh with the word, and if we speake properly, a beleever is not under an obliging and morall commanding power, because the Spirit acts them in prayer or beleeving, for the naked Spirit, as the Spirit is not a morall rule to me to act by, nay it is not to me the Spirit of God; now when the Canon of Scripture is closed, but as the Law and the Testimony, goes along with it, for by the Law and testimony, I know now that it is no deluding Spirit, but the Spirit of God, but all the commanding and morally obliging power is from the word as it noteth the sign and the will of God signified: for I must obey, because God intimates his will to me in the word, and I am strengthned to obey from the acting of the Spirit of the Lord.

But Saltmarsh Sparkles of glory, pag. 245. refuteth this, in the Protestants generally. Outward Ordinances are commands of Christ, and therefore to be done, because they are commanded, and that they are sanctified by God and by his Spirit, and that we are to wait on God in the use of means, his reason (which Swinkfield used also) is, that spirituall things are not by Ordinances conveyed into the soules of men.

p. 305Now Antinomians deny outward Ordinances to be commands of Christ that oblige to obedience, for p. 243. the meere Commandements or letter of Scripture, is not a Law to a Christian why he should walke in duties, but the Law written in our hearts (he saith) and he citeth Rom. 6, 14. Rom 7.1, 2, 3, 4. because sin hath no dominion over us, and we are not under the Law, but under grace, and under a new husband Christ, being dead to the Law.

Ans. The outward Commandement sure is neither sinne nor the dominion of sinne, nor is the Law sinne, God forbid, the Law is holy, just and good, Rom. 7.12. and the unconverted stand under an obligation to outward Commandements, though they want the Spirit, or then the unconverted cannot sin more then the justified, because these that faile against no commandement sinne not, and Christ hath laid upon justified David, Peter, and all beleevers outward Commandements that we sinne not, We are to wait on God in the use of outward Ordinances, though the Spirit worke not ever with the word, nor upon our hearts1. Joh. 2.1. v. 26. that we keep our selves from Idolls, though the Spirit act us not to abstaine from sinne, otherwise no man can sinne whether unconverted or justified.

2. Christ bad his Apostles write, and yet hath not inclosed his Spirit in inke and paper, then the written Command must be an Ordinance sanctified of Christ, for blessed is he that readeth. But whereas Saltmarsh will have the Commandements of the Gospel not to oblige the elect to obedience except the Spirit goe along with them, in that they conspire with Arminians and Pelagians, who will have the Covenant of grace an unjust bargaine, as obliging to things unpossible, except God bestow sufficient grace on all; and againe they must say none unconverted are condemned for not beleeving that Gospell, because it is unpossible in the letter, as well as the Law to any, except the Spirit worke in us to will and to doe.

3. He denyeth that we are to wait on outward Ordinances, or on God in the use of means, which hath a double sense:

1. As if we were to wait for conversion from only outward means, or as if the letter of the word, the sound of mens voice, the seales or Ordinances of themselves could worke faith, or of themselves convey spirituall things to p. 306the soule, this we teach not. But we teach that faith comes by hearing, not internall hearing, for that is conversion it selfe, but by hearing of a sent Preacher, Rom. 10.14, 15, 16. But the way of Gods conveying spirituall things by the word preached we dare not determine: but sure we are to wait on Ordinances externall, as the man waited thirty eight years at the poole for his health, though not the pool, but the Angel troubling the water healed all that were healed; and while the Eunuch reads and heares Philip expone Esa. 53. the Spirit acte…h upon his soule, and while Lydia heares, the Lord opens her heart, while Peter preacheth the word, the Holy Ghost fell on all that heard the word, Divers wayes of the Spirits concurring with the word.Act. 10.44. Act. 8.34, 35, 36. Act. 16.14. while three thousand heare Peter, the Holy Ghost pricketh their heart and addeth them to the Church, Act. 2. that they gladly receive the word, v. 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42. the inward opening goeth along with Gods outward teaching. By Saltmarsh his way, we are nor to heare the word, nor to wait on God in the use of any meanes, nor to use any meanes and commit the successe to God, but to waite on extraordinary raptures, and inward teaching (say they) not on outward meanes, but our wating on the outward meanes piously used is all in order to the breathing of the Spirit of life and the inward word (say we) as some saile and seeke the wind both at once; and doth this offend Familists, that we serve and wait on the Lord for the desired harvest? and that some wait on the tyde and then saile: so is Saltm. angry that we heare, preach, read, (though the unconverted doe not these spiritually) and in the Lords good houre, wh…n the Angel commeth downe and troubleth the water, the Spirit lifteth up the sicke man and puts him into the water, and he is healed: Protestants generally are not ashamed to owne this as the way of God. 1. In hearing and outward means, no man is to limit the holy One of Israel to his time, the time of the Fathers teaching, the third or the twelfth houre is not knowne to us, but all our life it is our duty to lye and watch at the posts and gates of wisdome, Prov. 8.34.

2. We are not to idolize meanes, and to take Scripture, or Ordinances for Christ, they are creatures, not Christ, and of themselves cannot save; then let us use the meanes, not give p. 307them any higher place then means, neither think all is done if we use means: thus it's not Christ without us, but Christ within, that effectually saveth us.

3 Nor is the acting of the Holy Ghost so as if the word must first stirre the spirit of God, but by the contrary, as the Poole of Bethsoida moved not the Angel, to bring him downe, but the Angel came downe and stirred the Poole; so the Spirit first stirres and blowes upon both our spirit, and the word, and then the word, and we both are inlived; for any stirring upon the word, and blowing of the North and South-wind upon the flowers, and Garden, to wit, the soules of the elect, is first and principally from the spirit, for the spirit is the Authour creator and in the immediately inspired Organs, the Prophets and Apostles, the Pen-men, and the Spirit, devised and dictated the the words, letters and doctrine of the old and new Testament, 2 Tim. 3.16, 17. 2 Pet. 1.19, 20, 21. Luke 1.55, 70.

2 Its he that sends Messengers to speake in his name Esa. 48.16. Esa. 6.1, 2, 3, Jer. 26.12.

3 When we doe not actually heare, or partake of Ordinances, the Holy Ghost bringeth the word to our remembrance, and wakens up the memory and faith of the word, by works of divine providence Joh. 16.13. Joh. 14.26. Joh. 2.21.22.

4 The Spirit acts by rods, judgements, and afflictions, Deut. 30.1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Hos. 5.15. Luke 15.15, 16, 17. Yet so as hee reviveth the memory of the word preached, read, and heard and worketh in, and by it.

5 In praying, promising, threatning in the fervour and zeal of God, there cometh upon the soules of the servants of God some strong and mighty propheticall impression, and violent impulsion that they speake and prophecie what otherwise they would not, in cold blood speake, and God hath made good the words of his servants, which as it is not ordinary, so it must be tryed.

Familists have no ground to dreame that Jeremiah or John intended a contrary betweene the outward teaching, as a killing letter, and the inward teaching, as the only quickening of the Spirit, excluding the letter, and all teaching of men, because the one said, Jer. 31.34. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying know the Lord: for they p. 308shall all know mee, &c. and the other said, 1 John 2.27. And ye need not that any man teach you, for the same anoynting teacheth you of all things, and is truth.

1 The Authour to the Hebrews c. 8. applyeth the saying of Jeremiah to Christ and his dispensation under the Gospell, and the former Covenant to the law and dispensation of the old Testament, so as if it prove any thing, it must be against all teaching of men, by men, by the Apostles, Evangelists, Pastors, and Doctors which are certainly bretheren teaching bretheren, and neighbours instructing neighbours, which close subverteth the end of Christs ascending to give some to be Apostles, &c▪ for the perfecting of the Saints, for the worke of the ministery, for the edifying of the body of Christ and that to the end, till we all come in the unity of faith, &c.

2 It must be against the writing of the new Testament, and the teaching and doctrine of the Prophets and Apostles, upon which we are built, Jesus Christ being the cheife corner stone. Eph. 2.20.

3 The Authour to the Hebrews applyeth this (they shall be all taught of God) to all new converts, under the New Testament, and the same doeth Christ John 6.45, 46. But Saltmarsh and his Familists say only the perfect ones and these that are all Spirit are beyond and above all Ordinances of man teaching man, Sparkles of glory pa. 247.87. Yea John should in writing this epistle contradict himselfe, for he was a man, not God who wrote, and hee saith even to these who had the anoynting in them in the same place, ver. 26. These things, have I written to you concerning them that seduce you, 1 John 2.1. these things write I unto you, that ye sin not, and ver. 12, 13, 14. He professeth, he writeth to little children in Christ, to young-men, to fathers, then either John wrote what was not needfull, to wit, that a man should write to anoynted ones; or then John was more than a man, or then in writing that he might teach the anoynted, he contravened what he wrot in all his exhortationes, and teaching in these three epistles, and the Evangel, and the Revelation.

Againe, it is a cleare Hebraisme of which there be many in Johns writings, for the Hebrews deny positively when they intend to deny only comparatively, or secundum quid, as when God and men are compared together, or the action of God with men, Ps. 127.2▪ the sense is, so great shall be the abundance p. 309of the Spirit of grace (would Jeremiah say) under the New Testament, that rather God himselfe shall be the teacher, then one man shall teach another, there shall be such exuberancie and seas of knowledge under the Messiahs Kingdome, and the new Covenant, above the Covenant God made with his people, when he brought them out of Egypt: And yee need not (would John say) so much that men teach you, so full, so rich, so glorious is the Anointings teaching, it is like to this, Hos. 6.6. I desired mercy and not sacrifice, yet sure he desired and commanded sacrifice, so he exponeth it. I desired the knowledge of God, more then burnt offering, and Christ exponeth it so, Matth. 12.7. that mercy to the life of the hungering Disciples, who plucked eares of corne on the Sabbath, is more then externall observing of the Sabbath; yet doth not Christ deny positively the externall observing of the Sabbath. So 1 Sam. 8 7. They have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me. Certaine it was, they rejected Samuel, and would not have him, to judge them, but would have a King. But the words are to bee exponed in a comparative sense, though they be spoken positively, that is, rather, or with a more hainous measure of disgracement and reproach they have rejected me their Lord and God in Covenant, that I should not reigne over them, then my servant Samuel, 1 Cor. 15.9, 10. Not I, but the grace of God with me, that is, not I so much, who am but a weake man, but far rather the grace of God, was the cause why I outstripped all the Apostles in labour. And 1 Cor. 3.7. So then, neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase, that is, he that planteth or he that watereth, is nothing, in comparison of God; yet the planter is something, he is the Minister of Christ, and Steward of the mysteries of God, 1 Cor. 4.1. Paul saith, 1 Cor. 1.17. Christ sent me not to baptise, but to preach the Gospel, yet Mat. 28.19. he sent all the Apostles to baptise also.

Nor can we beleeve that the word of God hath two senses, one internall, spirituall, more excellent, and perfect, that doth affect the heart, and is divers from the literall and genuine sense; and another written sense of the letter that is lesse excellent, and but preparatory for the more excellent, as Arminians falsely impute to us. Sim. Episco. par. 1. Thess. 17. dispu. 2. But as it is the opinion of Enthusiasts p. 310falsely imputed to us, because we teach that there is a nece…sity of the supernaturall illumination of the Holy Ghost, to cause us savingly know and beleeve the one onelyonly true and literall sense of the Scripture, with an evidence of light spirituall and supernaturall, which we knew before with a common, naturall, and literall light and evidence, which is not wanting in Devills, otherwise they could not beleeve and tremble, apprehending Christ as their tormenter, and in many wicked men, or then they should not be inexcusable.

2. The Scripture could not say they know God, Joh. 7.28 Joh. 3.2. &c.

3. Nor could they mocke and scoffe at the wisdome of the crosse, if they were void of all knowledge of the doctrine of the crosse as they doe, 1 Cor. 1.18.23, 24. 1 Cor. 2.14. this opinion we lay at the doore of the Antinomians, and judge to be absurd.

For 1. The unregenerate man were obliged to beleeve and apprehend one sense of the word, and the inlightned another different sense, whereas both may literally know one and the same sense that Jesus is the Sonne of God, and Saviour of the world, and the one beleeves and the other scoffes, mockes and stumbles at the word, Matth. 11.25. 1 Cor. 1.18.25. 1 Tim. 1.15. 1 Pet. 2.6.7.8.

2. Then should these words, (Christ is God and man the Saviour of bel…e…ers) have one sense to beleevers, which they receiving by faith, saveth them, and another to others, that Christ is not man, but onelyonly God, as manifested in a Saint, is Christ the Saviour of Saints, but not the man that on Mount Calvery dyed, and bare the reall punishment due to us by divine ju…tice for our sinnes: for the spirituall sense is either all one with the literall sense or diverse therefrom; if all one we have our intent, if diverse, no man can have certainty of faith.

For 1. How can we be assured by any supposed Spirit or internall rapture of minde, that this is the true sense of the Gospell. That Christ is but God, or the anointing of God suffering, afflicted, and dying in the Saints, when the words in the letter doe beare the just contradicent, that he was a man like us in all things except sin.

p. 3112. The Scripture should be no light to our eyes, no lanthorne to our feet, if it have two senses; for how should we with assurance of faith and an undoubting conscience in all wee beleeve in all we practise, doe all? for how shall poore people be resolved which of the two senses to follow, since contradictory senses were offered to them, for Protestants literall sense and Familists spirituall sense, are as contradicent one to another as yea and no, light and darknesse.

3. Since Familists deny that they are infallible in exponing any Scripture, and yet the Spirit doth suggest these spirituall senses, that Antinomians and Familists boast off, and …at immediately acting on our soules as dead, pa…sive org…ns without discoursing, reasoning and arguing, which to …e is the very Propheticall immediately inspiring Spirit that carried the Prophets and Apostles in seeing the visions of God this must be a Spirit that is fallible, and a Spirit that immediately suggesteth and teacheth untruths to some, and …o others, such truths and senses as may admit of a further light, and of a retractation and a beleeving of the very contrary, and so a Spirit both fallible and infallible, like to the Spirit immediately inspiring the Prophets.

We take literall exposition sometimes as it is exposed to figurative and typicall, and in this sense we condemne such as presse all borrowed metaphoricall and allegoricall speeches in Scripture according to the letter, whereas these by analogie of faith must have a spirituall sense, and yet the grammaticall and the spirituall sense are opposed, as Ps. 72.16. There shall be an handfull of corne in the earth upon the top of the mountaines, the fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon, Jer. 31.12. Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together to the goodnesse of the Lord, for wheat and for wine, and for oyle, and for the young of the flocke and the herd.

These words and the like, Calvin and our worthy Reformers, Musculus and Luther (of whom Saltmarsh saith, they had but little discoveries of the Spirit, because Calvin wrote against his fathers the Libertines, Luther against Antinomians, Bullinger against the Anabaptists, and the Enthusiasts) in regard of himselfe and the Family of love, (as Barrow railet… more against Calvin then any Jesuit can doe.) These words (I say) our p. 312worthy Reformers expone of the spirituall glory and fruits of the Spirit under the Kingdome of the Messiah, because the the Scripture cannot beare another interpretation which saith, Rom. 14.17. The Kingdome of God is not meat and drink, &c. So we detest their grosse and literall exposition, who expone Christ, as meaning that we must dismember our body, when he compared the renouncing of our vilde affections to the plucking out of our eyes, and cutting off our hands and feet, because this literall and grosse exponing of Scripture is contrary to the sixt command, Thou shall not murther, and wee say here that figurative speeches have no literall sense, but that which they would have, if they were turned into modified and simple expressions, though none more then Enthusiasts and Familists reject all literall expositions, and so cast away Scripture, Ministery, reading, hearing, because the Scripture depresseth all these and calleth them nothing in comparison of the operations of the Spirit that are above nature. But that the literall and spirituall sense are one and the same and the Letter and Spirit subordinate, not contrary, we affirme: for Scripture hath not two senses, but the grammaticall and native sense that the words offer, without violence or straining of Scripture, is the true meaning of Scripture: indeed there be two evidences and lights that manifest one and the same sense, as the naturall man seeth the true sense of the same Scripture with the naturall, literall and star light of meere naturall reason, and the evidence of a naturall, literall, orthodox Spirit, and the renewed man seeth the same sense with the supernaturall, spirituall, and Sunne-light, and spirituall evidence of a Spirit of grace above nature.

Hence, how farre the spirit, and spirituall actings of the Holy Ghost are opposed to externall,How the Spirit is opposite to the lette… and to externals. literall, and naturall actings and the letter of the word, and externall ordinances. to what is said I adde th…se considerations

1 To preach (the like I say of praying, hearing, and the using of all ordinances in their kinde) with the wisdome of words, 1 Cor. 1.17. with excellency of speech with the loftines, high riding, and soaring of words, or humane eloquence, and wisdom, a predominant starre shining in al fa…se teachers,The spirit contrary to human eloquence. especially in Enthusiasts, Familists, and the like, who give out that they speake p. 313coales, and fire-flaughts, when it is but wildfire 2 Pet. 2.3. Rom. 16.18. much in request now) to preach (I say) so loftily, is contrary to preaching in the evidence or demonstration of the spirit, so Saltmarshs Sparkles of glory, Gortynes dreames, H. Nicholas his writings are farre from any spirituall or heavenly forcing and convincing power, they have great swelling words like globes or balls of capacious swelling bagges, or blathers of wind, but every word is not a pound weight, but a wandering cloud, a fleeting aire, (such as the spirit, pure spirit, discoveries of the spirit, hightenings of pure, free grace, all God, all Christed, fully, and purely spiritualized Saints, that live not on any of these creatures below, no not on ordinances) are ordinary to them. But then, 1. They speake none-sense, that others more heavenly then themselves not understanding them, may go for carnall, legal, literall men as not having the spirit, and so not able to understand or judg of the things of the spirit, wheras they are the only spirituall men that judg all things, in the mean time they know not what they say, & speak contrary to the Scripture, & to sense. 2. They have a sort of high & lof…y speaking, but far from the Scripture-stile, that as it is high, yet runneth with Christs feet and pace in the simplicity of Jesus Christ, now their eloquence is a combing, decking and busking of Christ, and the beauty and glory of the Gospel, which is, as if you would cloth the noon-day-sun with a gowne of cloath of gold, set with rubies and precious stones, or as if one would make a purple coate of fine pure silk, to a faire Rose or Lilly; the Sun and the Lilly are twise more beautyfull without these, then with them.

2 To speake in the spirit, is to speake with power, life, majesty, in a peircing way in the power of God,foreign. 1 Cor 2.5. and this is not a naturall power. Again to speake or preach in the letter, is to speake drily, coldly, deadly,To speake drying and coldly is not to speake in the Spirit. or if it be with sense and affection, it is naturall, like Cicero, Demosthenes, but without the majesty and some what of heaven, and Christ in the tongue, like a very Scrib and Pharisee in the chaire, not as Christ who spake with Authority, for when pursevants were sent to take him with bodily violence, he tooke them with heavenly power they could not lay hands on him, but returned with their apoligie, never man spake as this man, suppose the same sermon and th…se very words in matter and sense had come out of p. 314the mouth of a Pharisee, they had lost the Majesty in his tongue, I confesse every hearer cannot know this, and a spirituall Preacher can no more cause a naturall eare heare this, then yee can write sounds, or your eyes can discerne the sweetnesse of honey where the tas…e is only judge, and a bas…rd Spirit may goe on far to counterfeit the true Spirit, but in the manner of speaking, he comes short, but so nigh he can come, as, if it were possible, he would deceive the very elect, Matth. 24.24. and keepes many elect, and many precious Christians in England this day captives under the power of abominable heresies, but God shall (I hope) rescue them, and seek out his sheepe that are scattered in the darke and cloudy day.

3. That which excludes humane industry, and much of the actings and ratiocinations of man in the first moulding of heavenly truths, is most spirituall. So the Prophets were inspired foreign carried, rolled, moved, acted immediately by the Holy Ghost, for God used not reason, or humane discour…ing as an intervening organ or acting instrument to the devising and inventing of spirituall or Gospell truths, 2 Pet. 1.20, 21. but yet this immediately inspiring Spirit spake written Scripture, commanded the Ordinance of actuall prophesying, commanded the Prophets to write, and the people to hear and to read the words of the Prophesie, Antinomians and Familists conceive that now, when divine truths are framed and come forth to the immediately inspired Scripture,That which is most spirituall excludeth most of us, yet not alwayes our discoursing and arguing part. that the same immediately inspired Spirit must act the Saints as meere passive organs, to preach in the Spirit, immediately to pray, to heare, to write in the Spirit; but then Familists should be as infallible, as the Prophets, both in preaching, praying, interpreting Scripture, but the ordinary actings of the Spirit doth include and carry along the actings of reason, minde, will and affections, but elevated above themselves.

The Spirit is contrary to wilde and carnall logicke.The Spirit is opposed to carnall and wilde logicke and ratiotinations, and so all carnall thoughts and sinfull foreign discourses, are Sathans fortifications and Souldier-works against the knowledge of God, 2 Cor. 10.5, 6. 1 Cor. 2.1, 2, 3, 4. 1 Cor. 1.17. but the Spirit siteth upon and acteth reason to make our whole service foreign reasonable p. 315service, yea and all the Scripture is a masse and booke of discoursive refined reason, unbeleevers are foreign absurd, unreasonable men, going against sense and sound reason. And the spirit goeth on in a perswading way, 2 Cor. 5.11. Gal. 1.10. Paul Act. 13.43. perswaded them to continue in the grace of God, Act. 18.4. he perswaded the Jewes and Greeks, Act. 19.8. hee perswaded the things concerning the Kingdome of God. So doth the Spirit carry us along with exhorting, Act. 2.40. 2 Cor. 9.5. 2 Thess. 3.12. 2 Tim. 4.2. Heb. 3.13. 1 Pet. 5.1. Jude. v. 3.

5. Amongst the characters of a spirituall state and condition. Some concerne the state, some the actions. For the state, a renewed man is said to be in the Spirit.The expressions of the spirituall estate.

Gal. 5.25. If ye live in the Spirit, let us also walke in the spirit. So as the Spirit is the life of the man, in his spirituall walking; so are we, as touching our state, said to receive the Spirit, Gal. 3.2. Rom. 8.15. to be borne of the Spirit, as receiving a new spirituall nature, Joh. 3.6. Gal. 4.29. and the Spirit said to dwell in us, Jam. 4.5. and the spirit is given to us, Rom. 5.5.The Spirit determineth the actions of the spirituall man according to their specification, or nature and kinde.

For the actings; the Spirit determineth the action according to the nature and specification, and rendereth the action spirituall, so as they are led in their conversation by the Spirit, and so are knowne to themselves to be the Sonnes of God, Rom. 8.14. If ye mortifie, through the Spirit, the deeds of the flesh ye shall live, Rom· 8.13. Paul was pressed in Spirit, and testified to the Jewes, that Jesus was Christ, Act. 18.5. Apollos fervent in Spirit, spake and taught diligently, Rom. 8.25. For wee through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousnesse by faith.

6. The exercise of spirituall acts is managed most from the Spirit, when there is more Spirit, and lesse Law in our acts of obedience. But that this may be rightly understood, give me leave to distinguish in the Law.

1. Directive and obliging light revealing the binding will of God.

2. The setting of it on with power and life upon the minde, will and affections.

3. The compelling rigor of the Law in exacting highest and superlative perfect obedience in thought, word and deed, and the terrifying threatning.

p. 316How obliging Law and a free Spirit consisteth together.Directive and obliging light being the commanding will of the Lawgiver revealed to us in the written word is not contrary to the Spirit, but written to us by a divinely and immediately inspiring Spirit, as all Scripture, and as the written letter of the Gospel, 2 Tim. 3.16, 17. though to us naturally fallen in sinne in the second respect, or in regard of the setting on of this directive obliging light upon the soule with power and life to produce actuall obedience, the written and preached Law as Law, and as a Covenant of workes is void of the Spirit, and hath no more power to cause us obey then dead and spiritlesse figures and characters, written on …one can worke men to bow their necke to obey the Law of God, 2 Cor. 3.6, 7. yea but so the written and preached Gospell externally proposed without the Spirit is a dead letter also. I grant the Gospell in its letter both promiseth a new heart and a new spirit, which the Law as the Law doth not, and, when the Spirit joynes with the preached Gospel, and the Law also doth prepare the sinner for Christ, by the word of the Gospell the Spirit is given, and so the Apostles and Pastors, are Ministers of the New Testament, not of the letter, but of the Spirit.

But 3. The Law in compelling under the paine of eternall death to superlatively perfect obedience, hath the Spirit by accident and extrinsecally conjoyned with it, as it is the Spirit of the Mediator that makes use of it to cause the broken man see his unpayable, and to him, impossible debts, and cause him heare the tinkling and noise of the fetters and chaines of hell, that he may flye to the Gospell-surety, which the same Spirit reveales to him in the Gospell. Now this is an extrinsecall use of the Law.

For 1. The Law should have its intire and perfect essence and full operation in rewarding or punishing, if we suppose there never had beene a surety for sinners, nor a Gospell.

2. Its a Gospell-spirit that makes this use of the Law above its nature, for that, which can but reveale to the broken man, debts unpayable by him, and incloseth him in an eternall jayle, and gives no strength, nor way of redemption, cannot have of it selfe any influence to lead the broken man p. 317to a surety. But this the Law doth of it selfe, hath not of it selfe one fourth part of an ounce of Gospell-courtesie, or grace, to bestow on the sinner.

But 2. The compelling rigor of the Law, as touching perfect and eternally active and passive obedience, must bee considered in its severall branches, as it commands perfect active obedience, or as it obligeth to passive obedience, it respects two sorts of persons; the man Christ, in the dayes of his flesh, and the elect Angels; or 2. fallen sinners.

In the former consideration, the Law, in it selfe as the Law, eternally and immutably presseth perfect active obedience, but gives not strength to obey, but supposeth strength to these, to whom it is first given: but if so be that these to whom it is given, have abundance of the Spirit and strength to obey perfectly, as Christ in the dayes of his flesh and the elect Angells have, the Law, in its highest rigor of commanding perfect obedience, (it is not properly rigor, though we must use the word, but strictnesse) hath no compulsive power over them; for ye cannot say that a willing man, or a man delighting to obey God, is compelled to obey God.

But if we speake of man fallen in sinne, who is unable to performe perfect active obedience, the Law stands over him in a highest pitch of morall compulsion: for whether he be willing to obey or have the Spirit, or be unable and void of the Spirit, the Law standeth above him exacting a summe of ten thousand talents from him, that cannot pay the hundreth part of halfe a talent, or an halfpenny, as he ought.

And the man, out of Christ and under the Law, is still compelled in both active and passive obedience; the letter of the Law and this ministration of death without the Spirit hailes and draws him, as the literall prisoner fettered by a extremely exacting Law void of all Spirit, and conferring no saving strength on him to doe or suffer, the penalty of the Law.

And for the beleever in Christ, the rigor of the Law is abated, not that the Law, as the Law, requireth lesse of him then absolutely perfect obedience, but because in what hee comes short in performing of new obedience, from a new p. 318principle, to wit, a Gospell-spirit in him, he is pardoned in Christ, and the rest is accepted for Christs sake, as if it were obedience.

Now in this new obedience, the Spirit so oyleth the wheeles of free-will as obedience, in its kinde, is as free, connaturall, delightfull, being sweetned with the love of God, as if there were not an awing Law, but a sweetly alluring and heart-drawing free love, so that the beleever obeyes with an Angell-like obedience; then the Spirit seemes to exhaust all the commanding awsomenesse of the Law, and supplyes the Lawes imperious power with the strength and power of love; if we suppose there had been no Law commanding Christ absolute obedience, yet if we suppose a meer directing light,How morall compulsion of the Law is exhausted by the freenesse of a Gospel-spirit of love. without any compelling, to shew him what is good and agreeable to Gods commanding will, so did Christ obey perfectly from a principle of love, and so doth the justified beleever give obedience, though imperfect, yet sincere to what is Gods will? then it followeth:

1. The higher and larger measure of willingnesse, or the more superlatively the will be bended, the light of a divine Law shining on the minde and will, the more of the Spirit, (because the Spirit is essentially free, Ps. 51.12. 2 Cor. 3.17.) the more freenesse: and the more freenesse, the more renewed will in the obedience: and the more renewed will the lesse constraint, because freenesse exhausteth constraint, and especially when constraint looketh toward eternall punishment, and the Law compelleth, under pain of eternall death, those that are under Law-obligation,Threatning had influence on the will of the first Adam, not of the second, or of confirmed Angels. to obey. Now fear of eternall wrath is wholly swallowed up, where a free spirit of love and strong delight to obey, intervenes between obedience and such feare, as is cleare in the man Christ in the dayes of his flesh, and the confirmed Angels: and though I doubt nothing, but feare of the second death was in its way, and so farre as was congruous and convenient for a state of sinlesse innocencie, to worke upon the will of the first Adam and Evah to deterre them from sinning; otherwise that threatning of God (In the day thou eatest thou shalt dye) had no intrinsecall end, nor was it rationall, which cannot be said: yet Law-threatnings had no influence on the will of p. 319the confirmed Angells, much lesse on the perfect and holy will of the second Adam, which was so filled with God, so balasted with so many talent weights of sweet delight and free love, Ps. 40.7, 8. Joh. 4.34. as Angels and Christ obeyed, without any eye-looke or glance of their thoughts to Law-threatning. And the justified beleever… now obeying as a Sonne, not as a bond-slave, yeeldeth willing obedience, from a free leading Spirit, the Spirit of adoption proper to sons, who obey their father, out of an instinct of love, not out of a principle of commanding awing and terrifying Law, as slaves under bondage doe obey their masters, Rom 8.14, 15, 16, 17. And the Law of the Spirit of life commeth in into the place of the compelling and cursing Law (not that the directing and obliging power thereof is removed) and acteth a beleever to obey, as if there were no Law over him at all, and freeth him from the Law of sinne, from the dominion of the Law in binding him over to a curse, Rom. 8.2. Rom. 7.1, 2, 3. as if there were not a Law given to a justified man, 1 Tim. 1.9. And looke how wee say the willing free obedience of men consisteth well with the necessity of Gods absolute decree, so sweet delightfull freenesse of a Gospel-spirit led by God, does well consist with the necessity of an obliging and strongly commanding Law, though the sting of the cursing, and threatning be removed.

7. Now the fond conceit of Waldesso, consideration 63. is utterly to be rejected, for (he saith) the Scripture shines as a light in a darke place untill the day-star arise in the heart, The place 2 Pet. 1. untill the day-starre arise vindicated, as making nothing for a naked light of the Spirit without the Scriptures.2 Pet 12 Pet. 1. and then the man hath no more need to seeke that of the holy Scripture, which departs of it selfe, as the light of a candle departs when the Sunne-beames enter, even as Moses departed at the presence of Christ and the Law at the presence of the Gospell. But (foreign untill) noteth not a certaine time of the removing of the light of the word▪ since Peter there preferres it to the revelation at Christs transfiguration. Matth. 1.25. Joseph knew her not untill she brought forth her first borne, it followeth not, ergo he knew her after, so Matth. 11.13.15. the Law and Prophets are foreign untill John, then no more Law and Prophets after John, it followeth not, Matth. 12.20. he shall not breake a bruised reed, foreign; till he bring forth judgement to victory, therefore p. 320when he has brought forth judgement to victory, he must then break the bruised reed, and be no longer tender to weak ones, Matth. 14.22. he constrained his Disciples to goe to the other side till he send the multitude away: then he sent not the multitude away, when the Disciples were come to the other side? it is absurd. So Matth. 16.28. they shall not taste of death untill they see the Kingdome of God come, ergo, they shall live no longer then they see the Kingdome of God come? it followeth not: Matth. 22.44. Sit thou at my right hand till I make thine enemies thy footstoole, ergo after Christs enemies are subdued, he shall sit no longer at the right hand of the Father: Joh. 5.17. My Father worketh untill now and I worke, foreign ergo my father works no more after this in his providence, in governing the world; what more absurd? 1 Tim. 4.13. Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine; then must Timothy read, exhort and preach no more after Paul is come? The place presseth us to wait on the Ordinances and hearing, untill the day-starre, the saving light of the Spirit (that goeth before the Sunne and day-light of the vision of glory) shine in the heart, to make the word effectuall: for though candle-light and sunne-light cannot concurre to make one light, because the lesser light evanisheth and disappeareth at the comming of the greater light, and the moon-light or starre-light of faith cannot be mixt with the noonday-light of glory, 1 Cor. 13.11, 12. no more then the knowledge of a young child, and of the same, come to be an aged man, can be in one and the same man; yet the light of the Scripture & the light of the Spirit may, and must necessarily be together, and are no more contrary, as Waldesso and Familists vainely suppose,How the Spirit is called the day-star. then the light of the Sunne without, in the aire is contrary to the visible faculty of seeing within, in the eyes; the Spirit is by a metaphor called the day-starre, for the Spirit is not formally light, but effectually only; for it is that faculty by which the eyes of the understanding are strengthened to perceive the things of God; and therefore called the spirit of Revelation, Eph. 1.17. the eye-salve is not properly the light that makes colours visible, though I may say to a dim sighted man when I give him an excellent eye-salve, see I give you the light of your eyes. When I give him but that by p. 321which his seeing faculty is strengthened to see perfectly: that Scripture is not to be layed aside upon pretended sufficient light of the Spirit, without the Scripture light, is cleare, Rom. 15.4.

2. Because the perfectest beleevers have patience and comfort in the Scripture, meditating in it day and night, Ps. 1. and are strengthened through reading againe and againe the premises, lest they faint Ps. 119.49.

3. Because the Scripture, to every new reading and hearing suggesteth some new thing of God, as a fountaine that can never goe dry, Ps. 119.96.92, 93.72. 2 Pet. 1.13, 14, 15. Phil. 3.1.

8. That saying, The more of the letter, the lesse of the Spirit, hath truth, as touching the only and meere letter rested on and confided in: but is not simply true, that the more of the knowledge of the letter the lesse of the Spirit, but the more rather of the Spirit.

9. The nearer to glory, when we shall be all-spirit, and have nothing of a Temple and of Ordinances,how true that is to be taken (the more of the letter, the lesse of the Spirit) and what truth is in it. and of the mirror or glasse of the word, the lesse literall we are, that is, we repose the lesse on the letter, and are the more spirituall, as the nearer to the morning, the lesse of starre-light, 2 Pet. 1.19. 1 Cor. 13.10, 11, 12, 13. But it followeth not that the nearer beleevers are to an immediate vision of glory, the lesse knowledge they have of the letter of the Scripture, (though this knowledge of the letter shall fully be abolished at the dawning of that morning) for the nearer it bee to the full harvest, the more abundance of the first fruits, and yet when the full harvest commeth the first fruits cease and give place to the harvest, and the more of the morning twilight, the nearer day, though the morning twilight evanish when the perfect day commeth; yea the nearer that the dawning of the morning face of God shine in at the windowes of our soule, when we are in the child-birth paine of eternity, the more of the knowledge of the will of God we have, in regard we are, 1 Pet. 3.14. to grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and this knowledge doth include, not exclude the knowledge of the letter.

p. 322The Spirit is not a part of the rule of faith or of the word; the Spirit is not the word, the word is not the Spirit, but the Spirit is that which maketh lively and effectuall application of the word to our soules; as the Mason is not the art of building, but he is regulated by the precepts of art and reason, and tyes himselfe to the following of art in all the workes of building; the word is that which tyeth us as our guide, rule, conduct, but the Spirit goeth along in a reall uniting of our hearts to Christ (as it were) enclosed in the word, and in applying the word to our heart, and so is called the anointing.

10. The spiritualty of our soules is in a sort of dominion over the letter of the word, when our soules are transformed into the things contained in the Gospell, and we are changed into the spiritualnesse of the word, so Rom. 6.17. the Gospell is called a forme, a mould, a signet, for looke what letters and characters are in the signet of silver or brasse, these same characters, in length and breadth and just proportion, are instamped on the wax or the paper, the Gospell containes the Lord Jesus, How we are changed into the same spiritualnesse contained in the Gospel.his image the lineaments of Christ in a new minde, new will, renewed affections, knowledge, love, meeknesse, patience, lowlinesse, &c. it is a morall containing of Christ, as the signe containeth the thing that is signified by the signe, the Spirit instamps and forms (as it were) another Christ, that is, his living spirituall image in our soule, Gal. 4.19. a new ingraving of the new worke and new creation of the second Adam, 2 Cor. 5.17. on our hearts,Jer. 31.Jer 31 which is called the Law in the inward parts, when wee have the same stampe and image of Christ, and are changed over into the Gospel, not into the letters of the Gospel, or into the externall words, but are new-moulded into the Spirit, and new spirituall nature of the second Adam, and are borne of the Spirit, Joh. 3.5, 6. the word is called the seed, 1 Pet. 1.23. the tree is vertually in the seed; the new birth, and new Spirit we receive in regeneration is in the word vertually, as the thing signified in the signe; so are we said, 2 Cor. 3.18. to bee changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. And the Spirit lookes to his copy or sampler, and looke what lineaments, legs, limbs, proportion of members p. 323are in the second Adam, these same the Spirit by the word preached, draws and frames in us, now the second Adam, the man Christ, in his spirituals, is the first borne of every creature Col. 1.15. Christ is the master peece, the flower and glory of the Acts of God, in creating new creatures after the second creation, and there is framed on him holinesse, lowlinesse, meeknesse, humility, patience, heavenly mindednesse, and the spirit according to this glorious mould draws the legges, armes, and all the severall limbes and members of the new creature in the Saints, and he makes efficaciously good, that part of the word: Learne of me that I am meek and lowly, Mat. 11.29. let him take up his crosse and follow me, Matth. 16.24. let this minde be in you that was also in Christ Jesus, Phil. 2.5. so doth the Spirit change us unto al Spirit, and this is the right Christing of the Saints, when the Lord by the word Spiriteth, and of new, Natureth us over againe into new spirituall children like our brother the fairest among the Sonnes of men, holy, heavenly, spirituall, meeke, lowly like Christ, though because of in-dwelling sin in all, all the new Creatures come farre short of the first coppy. And when we are thus changed and made spirituall, the Gospel is acted on us, so are we spiritualized into Christ and made one with him by faith and planted into the similitude of Christ Rom. 6. now the letters and characters or sounds of the written and preached Gospel are transient things, but the Gospel and new Covenant in the glorious promises & spirituall priviledges contained therin stand stil as the everlasting rule according to which we are daily more and more conformed till we become one spirit with the Lord. And because the continuation of the lif hid up with God in Christ, is a protracted thread of continuall dependence by renued acts of faith, of patience and comforts through the Scriptures, of growing in faith, the word must give a daily new objective life to our fa…th, and the renued acts thereof; for faith is our victory, 1 Joh. 5. and we overcome by the word Rev. 12.11. if Antinomians can give us a time when we shall be secured from the fiery-darts of Sathan on this side of heaven, we yeeld that the sheild of the word is to be layed aside, but that we know not, see Ephe. 6.15, 16, 17. 1 John 2.14. 1 Pet. 5 8, 9. Were we indeed made perfect, intire, without spot or wrinckle of indwelling sin in this life, and such as wee can sin no more. as Antinomians vainly p. 324boast of themselves as Towne, Eaton, Salmtarsh, Den and Crispe will hereafter teach us, I could yeeld there were some more colour or hew of reason to say that we are, being justified, invested in a state of all and pure spirit, beyond the orbe and sphere of all necessitie of Ordinances, and Scripture, because pure spirits need no characters or letters of Scripture, seals, or other ordinances, no more then learned Doctors need the Horn-book, to use the vaine comparison of John Waldesso. But we must go in over the threshold of heaven, holding the booke of the Old and New Testament in our hand, growing in knowledge, till we be perfected with him who dwells in light inaccessable: and so there is not any thing signified, and holden forth to us in the scripture; nor promised or prophecied in the Covenant of grace Deut. 39. Ezech. 11. Jer. 31. Ezech. 36. Heb. 8. but the coppy extract or the double thereof is written, ingraven and created in the souls of the elect in which sense the assumption of this syllogisme.

Whosoever beleeveth shall be saved.

But I, John, Marie beleeve. ergo.

Is in Scripture and the same spirit of faith and the beleeving spoken of by Esaiah, Ieremiah. Ezechiel, &c. The same circumcised and new heart that they prophecied of, is in Iohn, Mary: and so the Spirit worketh the same new heart, and the worke or act of beleeving in length, breadth, figure, limbes, parts (to speake so) that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament promise, as a Painter draweth the portrait, head, face, eyes, cheeks, mouth; whol body in colours, & al by looking on a liveing man, now how the man Iohn or Mary, in a reflect knowledge, can prove the same to his owne comfortable assurance and peace, is another thing. But here is no new discovery of God or of the Spirit, which Saltmarsh calleth for, Sparkles of glory pa. 194, 195. for he complaineth that there hath beene no reformation further (in this Assembly at Westminster) nor any higher attainment in these things (points of doctrine as to justification, sanctfication, faith, &c. the ministery, word, Sacraments, which they call meanes of salvation) then the Bishops made and the Synods in England formerly. We grant all, we know no new cut, nor other new way of justification, then the way David and Paul were justified Rom. 4.1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Psa. 32.1. and we glory p. 325that wee adde nothing to Articles of faith contained in the Scripture, we only explicate them, and vindicate these Articles from the false glosses of Popish Bishops, and the same that Saltm. objecteth to us, might any object against the Canonicall Epistles of Iohn the Apostle, and say, This fellow tells us only of some outward things, We know none of the Familists new discoveries of the Spirit, that are not warranted by the word.and outward Ordinances of Christ precepts of love to the brethren of doing righteousnesse, and all these but written with paper and inke too, we see no higher attainments then these that the Prophets Christ, and Paul, and Iames and Peter told us, he tells us nothing of any purer or more glorious discoveries of God or the Spirit, or Iesus Christ, or our union with the Spirit, or glory as to spirituall things and Christ risen, but as to Christ in the flesh or under the Law, of which these Ordinances were a signe ▪ we grant' wee can reveale nothing but old truths, and we cannot give to Saltmarsh any other new cut or fragment of truth, but what the Scriptures, held forth.

2. Wee can but hold forth outward things, that is, truths of ancient faith, spoken by sinfull men and printed in paper, and these of Christ both dead, risen and ascended to heaven; and wee confesse we can but baptise with water, and can but build, plant, water, and are but underworkmen and instruments of words, formes, sounds, printed books, and the Prophets and Apostles received these and no other thing from the Lord, but our Master can doe more, he can, and doth by our weake labours, and the foolishnesse of preaching, give the holy Spirit. If Saltmarsh can give purer or more glorious discoveries of God, of his Spirit, Christ Jesus, &c. let him take H Nicholas and Da. George to helpe him, let us heare them, produce your reasons, &c. for we ever urge this, these new discoveries of God or the Spirit, are either revealed in the word, or not revealed; if in the word, then are they but outward Ordinances, such as former Synods have discovered, and so according to Saltmarsh, to be rejected, if they be not revealed in the word, they must be additions to the word, and so unlawfull, Rev. 22.18. Deut. 12.32. Prov. 30.6.

2. The Spirit that comes with new positive doctrines without the word, must prove it selfe to bee from God by signes and miracles, as Christ and his Apostles did.

3. Isaiah, Malachy, prophesied of John Baptist, though hee p. 326did no miracles. Let us see the like warrant, for these new discoveries.

4. This Spirit must be tryed by the word, as Christ was willing to make the Scripture judge,Act 9.23. Act 26 23. Luk 4 20, 21, 22, 23.Acts 9:23Acts 26:23Luke 4:20Luke 4:21Luke 4:22Luke 4:23 whether he was the Messiah or no, Joh. 5.39. Paul out of Moses and the Prophets proved that Maries sonne must be the only Saviour, so did the rest of the Apostles.

5. Wee are commanded to judge them cursed impostors, and not to receive them in our house or bid them God speed, who bring any new discoveries of God or the Spirit, which is not the doctrine that Paul and Iohn received from the Lord, Gal. 1.8. 2 Ioh. v. 10. 1 Cor. 11.23. But Familists will have the Scriptures to beare witnesse to us of, and to reveale, the Father and the Son; but for the holy Spirit, he must be revealed without the testimony of Prophets and Apostles, though Christ our dying friend hath left us his will in his last testament confirmed by the death of the Testator, and forbids us to expect any farther revelation, Heb. 1.1.9.16.17.27.28. Rev. 22.12.18.19.

Is it not safer to beleeve the Prophets and Apostles, upon whose word and doctrine, we are builded as living stones and a habitation to God, Eph. 2.20, 21, 22. then to relye upon the word of such seducers, as H. Nicholas, Del, Saltmarsh, and the like, who come in their owne name, and bring neither word nor workes to witnesse their doctrine, not so much as Simon Magus and the Antichrist, who bring wonders and living miracles to evidence that they are sent from God? Familists have no escape but to say that their new discoveries are revealed to them by the Spirit to be contained in the spirituall and allegoricke sense of the Scripture. Now undeniably the Scripture hath a literall sense, and here it hath a mysticall and spirituall sense, and so many senses, as the Papists teach. So Bellermine de verb. dei. l 3. c. 3. Thomas p. 1. art. 10. So Cajetanus ibid. Alp…onsus a Castro. l. 1. adver. her. Lyra in 2. Reg. 7 Bucanus in Theolog. Scolastic. part. 2. c. 3. q. 5.

11. The same Gospell-truths in the manner of preaching and delivering of them may be spiritually by some, and literally and dryly published by others;How du…ies are … in the G…spel. and nothing is thereby either added or taken away from the substance of truth. But p. 327duties commanded in the Law are then pressed upon the consciences of the hearers in a legal way, when they are forced upon the consciences of the people upon legal motives, Law-obligations, threatnings of curses & sad judgements, but they are then spiritually preached when they are pressed upon the hearers in a terrible Law-way; but for that end discovered to them, that they may be chased into Jesus as to the Gospel-sanctuary, and City of refuge to such as runne themselves out of breath to be in the bosome of our Saviour.

2. They would be pressed so spiritually, as there may bee still a pointing at a pardoning ransome, and a healing and curing spirit, & so that all obedience must be new from new principles of the Mediators grace, and upon Gospell motives only, not from Hagar and the covenant tending to bondage.

Nor 3. upon the same necessity and account they were to be performed by vertue of a Covenant of workes.

What I before said toucheth the question whether the formall and last object of our faith be the word of God, or the anointing, strength saving, grace and eye-salve of the Spirit (as some Schoolmen, Granado and others affirme the latter) but the word is the formall object of faith, the saving grace or anointing the efficient, by which we are anointed, inabled and quickned to beleeve the word: now the eye-salve or anointing is not that which we see and beleeve, that which we see is the saving Gospel-truths we beleeve.

Saltmarsh with Familists denying the Scripture to bee the word of God, will have the inward supernaturall grace and anointing to be the only obliging rule of faith, otherwise (saith he) its in vaine to write bookes one against another, for we then but set letter to letter, argument to argument, reason to reason; but all in vaine without the Spirit, as if Christ in proving the resurrection against Saduces, Paul in proving justification by faith without works, against such as turn the grace of God into wantonnes, had not set letter to letter, argument to argument, and all in vaine, for they remained still blinde; yet Christ and Paul convinced and silenced these obstinate wranglers, by the word of God, without powring the Spirit on them, without whose power they remained unconverted and hardened against the truth, the formall object is that into p. 328which our faith is resolved when we give a reason of our faith, as thus, for what cause or formall motive doe you see with the eye of faith; and believe that Maries son is the Messiah, & only Saviour ye do answer, because so saith the Lord in the Old and N. Testament, and that is the true object, but yee doe not give an account of your faith, when yee answer I beleeve it because I have eyes within inlightned, because that is not to answer what is the true object of your faith; if any aske you, upon what morall grounds goe you to Rome? yea give no reason, if yee answer, I goe to Rome because I have a will and a locomotive power in the nerves and muscicles of my body to move; for now you answer by the efficient cause when the question is made of the formall objective cause. If any aske, why doe you see colours in daylight? yee doe not answer, because I have eyes and a seeing faculty; but to the former you say, I goe to Rome for such businesse, to the l…tter I see colours in day-light, because they are seeable, and colours cloathed with light before my eyes: so 1 Ioh. 5.10. He that beleeveth on the Sonne of God hath the witness… within him, that is the beleever hath objectively the the truth stamped in his heart, but the anointing by which he was inabled to receive the testimony and truth, is not for that the object or the thing beleeved or received, but the saving helpe by which wee are strengthened to beleeve and receive the testimony, the inward speaking of God to the heart, as Augustine saith, lib. 11. confess c. 3. sine strepitu syllabarum, without noise of words, is the saving apprehending of Christ and Gospell-truths, but it is not the thing or object savingly apprehended: the day-starre in the heart, is not the Gospell-truth that wee see and receive, but the light of Christ inabling, and the Spirit strengthning the soule to beleeve and receive these Gospell-truths; for without the day-starre and Spirit, no man can see these truths.

A…l the Gospell to Antinomians a m…ere killing letter as the Law is.12. Upon the principles of Antinomians and Familists, these and the like Gospell-promises, I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit: Behold I make all things new, a bruised reed shall hee not breake; Come to me all yee that are weary and heavy laden, and I will ease you; Him that commeth I will in no wise cast away, but will raise him up at the last day; Yee that have no mony come buy, and eat, &c. p. 329are as literall and legall being written and preached, and as carnall (for they value them to be but outward ordinances) as this, Cursed be every one that abides not in all that is written in the Law of God to do it; or as the very Law and Covenant of workes, which promiseth not any new heart, but presseth the Law in its condemning rigor in the old heart: for the Gospell is but a form to them, and these Gospel-promises of pure free grace as opposite to the Law of works in their gramaticall sense, are but carnall, legall, fleshly outward visible formes, 271. now to us, the promises of free grace in that which they signifie and promise are no killing letter as the Law is but the ministration of the Spirit and of life, except wee say, the promises of the Gospell are but faire lying words, and that God intends to keep nothing he promises to us, and no more to give a new heart in Gospel-promises nor in the Law, which undoubtedly is false; when we consider the word of God, especially the Gospel, the spirituality thereof above and beyond all letters and characters, appeareth in that,

1. The Author can be none other but God an infinite and glorious Spirit.

2. The matter spirituall, so heavenly, as the imputed righteousnesse of a slaine Saviour justifying the ungodly,The word spirituall beyond figures and letters, in every consideration. eternall life by a despised and crucified man bosomed in an union with God, a spirituall communion with God, mortification to every thing eminent to the creature, the hidden manna, the white stone, the new name, the flesh lying down in the dust with the seed of the hope of a glorious resurrection, the invisible imbracements of Christ, love-sicknesse for him, joy in tribulation, &c. all smell beyond characters, paper, inke, or any thing visible.

3. The forme is spirituall, if we consider the Majesty, Divinity, the omnipotencie of God (as it were) instamped on it.

4. The end and intrinsecall effects are most spirituall, for it changeth men into spirituall and heavenly Citizens of another world, deadneth them to the created glory of the creature, peirceth between the marrow and bones, even the Law, part of it is sharper then a two-edged sword, peircing even to p. 330the dividing asunder of the soule and spirit and to the joynts and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart, Heb. 4.12 carrieth along Christ to the soule, casteth in a lumpe of love in the heart, that contrary to nature and all the strong impressions of nature, it stampeth and sealeth eternity, heaven, apprehensions of glory beyond all the visible sensible borders of time, dayes, life, royalty, fathers, mothers, children, wives, lands, inheritances, and that on the tables of the soule. It is in upon the Spirit, downe in the reines, and yee know neither doore, window, nor passage, it came in at: then how doth the Spirit act with the word? so all the actings, motions, turnings, ebbings, flowings, various ups, downes, high tydes, hell-downe-castings, heaven-visits, raptures of love, signes of joy, actings of morning-dawnings of eternities glory, are more hardly discerned, then the growing of the bones in the wombe of the woman with childe.

The Spirit determineth the actions of the spirituall man according to the exercise of them.14. For the exercise of spirituall acts, through the Spirit, we then testifie a spirituall being in Christ, when the straine of our conversation runneth most in a heavenly communion with God, and we have our City-dwelling and conversing in heaven, our love, our heart, our life, our Lord, being there and upon these grounds as risen with Christ, wee are there, Phil. 3.20, 21. Col. 3.1, 2, 3. Matth. 6.20, 21. Heb. 10.19, 20, 21.

2. When we savour much of the Spirit, and the breath that comes out of the mouth, comes from the abundance of the Spirit in the heart, & the speech is much the language of Canaan, Isa. 19.18. & smelleth of a savoury heart, Col. 4.6. Eph. 4.29, 30. And though humane wisdome & learning in the Scriptures that is meerly literal, be not of it selfe not idolized contrary to the Spirit, but is capable of being spirituallized & heightned above it selfe, and is actually gilded & skied with saving light comming from God in the face of Christ, yet when the Spirit reignes, all knowledge, learning, and arts are hunted for only in order to a saving communion with God, and when in the creature and gifts the spirituall man feeleth and tasteth nothing of Christ, but misseth Christ in all these, they are as tastelesse to him as the white of an egge, yea all dry, p. 331sapelesse, dead, his Lord Jesus is not in that empty grave, and therefore his heart lodgeth not a moment there, Cant. 3.1, 2, 3, 4. Phil. 3.7, 8, 9. yea the spiritual man fathers no good upon the empty creature, 1 Cor. 3.8. the creature smels of flesh and vanity to him, Zach. 4.6.

2. Ordinances, inherent righteousnesse, saving grace created, because creatures are saluted by him as creatures, he gallops by them as a Post that seeth them not to be his home, but a far other poore, lean, and despised nothing in comparison of Christ, in point of confiding, or glorying: for the gold-bracelets are not the bridegroome, the Spirit aimes, pants, and breaths after a personall enjoyment of God himselfe in Christ. The joy and comforts of the Holy Ghost to him, are but accidents, created chips, and fragments that fall from Christ.

3. The Spirit carrieth the soule from the sight of all things as from visible objects, things created of God, up to the bosome of God, and there the spirituall soule loves, lives, breaths, dwells.

3 When the outward senses suck spirituall apprehensions out of earthly things, from the Well of Iacob Christ draws a consideration of the Well of life, Iohn 4.13.14. Paul possibly from his Tent-making, draweth thoughts of the falling of this Tabernacle of clay and our being closed with our house from above, 2 Cor. 5.1, 2. so the outside of the creature, the skin of it that lyes before our senses is turned into inward and spirituall thoughts of God. Because the beleevers sense of smelling is spirituall and draws all in to God. And mind, will, affections, thoughts, intentions, tongue, yea, and the naturall actions of eating, and drinking are spiritualized, and for God and his glory.

Nor could I thinke that as touching the order of marshelling and drawing up our spirituall thoughts and actions,The order of acting in supernatural actions, often from the spirit· as why we doe this spirituall action first, this second, this third, why we marshall this Petition first, this second, but this ranking is not so bound up by the rule of Scripture; but a spirituall soule in the order of his acting, secundum prius & posterius, is carried on by the only free blowings of the spirit of grace, It's true, the acts must be regulated by the word, that what we petition for, p. 332must be lawfull, and must be warranted from the sound Doctrin of the Gospel according to the proportion of faith, but the ordering of them often cometh from the Spirit of utterance and so immediatly as it's hard to say at least ordinarily & in a set constant rule, there is any consulting with Scripture, reason, memory, art, but the immediate breathing of the spirit ordereth and ranketh all. And these fit words like apples of gold, not others, which meets, hic & nunc, at this time, with the heart of a sinner and catcheth Matthew, Peter, Saul, floweth from Spirit-worke.

2 This Major Proposition, whoever beleev… shall be saved, is certainly knowen by the light of Scripture, when the Spirit is pleased to open the eyes, to cause us to see and beleeve, savingly this trueth

The assumption of a syllogisme of our reflect acts of knowledge of our spiritull state is at lengh proven only by sense and the testimony of the spirit without discoursing.But this assumption.

But I beleeve. Is proven not by the shining light of Scripture, but in the kind of reflect knowledge that is cleare by the light of the spirit, reflect knowledge, I take, is the immediate birth of the Spirit, in so farre as it is reflect, for when it is to bee proven by discourse and another syllogisme, thus. He that loveth the brethe… beleeveth. But I love the brethren, ergo, I beleeve. The assumption which is not ever cleare but often needeth an higher proofe, must either bee made good by another Scripture, and so in infinite, or ye must come to some immediate light, comming only from the spirit, ye cannot go in infinite, for ye leave the soul in that case in perpetuall doubting, and therfore some immediate light there must be to discerne such a thing as this, which is not knowen, by the light of nature, for the object is supernaturall, and the light of Scripture doth not serve the turne if we speake of a reflect knowledge on which the conscience doeth rest without any further proofe, because the scripture prooveth not to you, that either you, such a man, by name beleeveth, or that the characters of beleiving, to wit, that you John, Anna by name, love the brethren, that you know him, because you keepe his commandments more than it doeth evidence the same to any other by name, and so except your name were in Scripture, nothing can be proven by light of Scripture, as touching the truth, and evident and cleare reflect knowledge of the assumption. But I p. 333beleeve, except you say a major proposition can prove an assumption, and make this a good consequence all that beleeve are saved, ergo, John and Anna are saved, which is no good consequence, & can not settle the conscience, or that this is a strong consequence these that keepe his commandements, those that love the Brtheren, know Christ savingly, and are translated from life to death, ergo I John, Anna, we are by name such as know Christ savingly, and are translated from death to life; either must the assumption I, John, Anna, we are such as keepe his commandements, and love the Brethren, be proven by Scripture, which is unpossible, except your name were there, or then by sense and the immediate light of the Spirit. But the truth is, from the book of nature yee may prove, all that have life and perfect eyes see and discerne colours, but except it be in the booke of nature, that John, Anna, have life and perfect eyes, or except by your owne immediate light of sense and life, yea prove that John, Anna, have life and eyes, ye cannot make good that John, Anna, doe see and discerne colours, if they shall thereof doubt.

2. Our Divines upon warrantable grounds of Scripture say as I know, he that beleeveth shall be saved, by light of Scripture, and I know that I beleeve by the testimony of an inlightned conscience; so I know that I see colours both from the shining of the Sun, and from my owne sense convincing me, even so I know by Scripture, and Cain knoweth, he that hates and maliciously killeth his brother Abel, is condemned. But that Cain may know he hateth and malitiously killeth his brother Abel, he needeth not to have it proved to him by Scripture, his owne conscience can prove it.

7. If then the question be,How far the Saints are to leave room for new light. whether or no the Saints doe so grow in knowledge, that they must ever leave place for new light from the Spirit?

I answer in the sense the Sectaries intend, it is most false: for John, Paul, and the Saints know and are perswaded that Christ, God man dyed for sinners, rose for our righteousnesse, justifieth the ungodly that beleeve, &c. & other manifest Scripturall truths, not fundamentall, as that there were eight persons saved from drowning in the arke: so as it is blasphemous to say they leave place to a new light of the Spirit to beleeve the contrary of p. 334these, to wit, that Christ God-man dyed not for sinners, as Familists teach, and that he rose not for our righteousnesse, that he justifieth not the ungodly that beleeve in him; and that there were not eight persons, but only two saved in the arke. For this were,

1. To lose the old true light, to get a new false light.

2. This were to subvert all certainty of faith, and to doubt of all we beleeve.

3. This were to make the Spirit of truth the doctor and teacher of lyes and untruth, for of two contradictory truths the one must be false: but God is light and truth, and there is no darknesse in him, and so the Spirit cannot teach two contradictorie wayes

If we make the question whether are we to know and learne so by the Spirit, that we must grow in knowledge and light of old truths to know them more distinctly and with a higher measure of farther knowledge which is new, not in nature, but in degrees; we acknowledge in this sense new light, because, there are new consequences and deductions of the Spirit from the old truths implicitely, and more darkly known which were not so distinctly knowne before, and so after ages hath more light then former ages, and that because,

1. The least of the Kingdome of God is greater, in regard of saving light, then John Baptist, the greatest of Prophets.

2. Under the N. Testament, its said, they shall not teach one another, but they shall be all taught of God, Jer. 31.34▪ Esa. 54.11. which was fulfilled in part in Johns time, and when the Apostle wrote to the Hebrews, 1 Ioh. 2.27. Heb. 8.10. and the Spirit is to be powred on all flesh, as was prophesied, Ioel 2.28, 29. and fulfilled Acts 2. when the Holy Ghost was sent downe, as Peter saith,Many new deductions from ancient truths may be known which were knowne before only implicitly and in the an e…edent not distinctly. but I judge, though the day began then, yet it was but the morning & dawning of the Christian Summer season, that is to endure to the end of the world, and therefore I crave leave to doubt, if these Prophesies bee fully and compleatly accomplished, Esay 2.1.2. as touching the peace that shall be under the Messiahs Kingdome, or that which is Esay 11.6, 7, 8. especially that v. 9. For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea, and that of Isaiah, ch. 30.18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25. and that v. 26. Moreover the p. 335light of the Moone shall be as the light of the Sunne and the light of the Sunne shall be seven-fold, as the light of seven dayes, in the day that the Lord hindeth up the breach of his people, and healeth the stroake of their wound: and that of Isaia… ch. 54. and ch. 60. c. 61. c. 62. and of divers other glorious Prophesies, which I humbly conceive, God shall fulfill at the incomming of the Jews to their Messiah at that resurrection from the dead, when Antichrist shall be fully destroyed, and the riches of the Gentiles added to the Jewes, there shall be one shepheard and one sheep-fold and admirable unity and peace like a river among the Saints, and though Sectaries of old in Germany, & now in England, doe it by the Sword, we have no prophesie that that shall be the way of God, or that Christ shall have a personall, externall visible glorious reign on earth, and the Law of God is exceeding broad, and containeth the unsearchable riches of Christ, for who knoweth all the glorious deductions and eonsequences of knowledge contained in the word? and who can binde up the Spirit that he should not reveale more of Christ, and more yet till the knowledge of the Spirit cover the earth? But this new knowledge is of ancient truths, and the Spirits ancient truths made out in broader and larger consequences, and not such as destroyes the former articles of Protestant Re…igion, in the faith of which, millions are arrived safe to heaven, and are now up before the throne.

Saltmarsh in his late giddy treates, gathers these articles of Protestant Religion together, and as chalke stones casteth them away, and will lay a new foundation, and put in a figurative Saviour of H. Nicholas and make a new building of his owne.

15. Nor is the preaching of duties,Preaching of duties or of externall worship not contrary to the teaching of the Spirit, as Antinomians dreame. yea even of such as are externall and obvious to the eyes of men contrary to spirituall teaching or worship in Spirit, for then should it have been our Saviours intent, Joh. 4. when hee will have us to worship him in spirit and truth, to remove in the New Testament vocall praying, bowing of the knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus, contrary to Act. 20.…6. Paul kneeled downe and prayed with them all, Eph. 3.14. and he should not charge us, Doe this in remembrance of me, and obey these that are over you; p. 336if it were so; yea all the exhorting of the Apostles that children obey parents, servants their masters, brethren admonish one another, should be against the discoveries of the Spirit to the Apostles and and Saints, upon which ground Antinomians will have all the government of the Church, inward and in the Spirit and invisible, as if one and the same worship might not both bee externall and spirituall.

And now the Army send Laws to the Parliament to remove the penall statutes against all hereticks, what ever they bee, Arrians, Libertines, Davi Georgians, Familists, Antiscripturists, such as deny there is a God, a Saviour that bought them, Antinomians, and what hel can devise, that their impure conventicles and Churches may be tollerated through out all England, except only Popish Recusants and found and proven to bee such, because the Papists dis…urbe the peace of the state, yet under the decke, this lyes hid, that all Religions, being professions of the outward man, are indifferent and no sinne in any worshipping of the Devill, or any creature.

Yea there is nothing to be builded in favour of Familists on the Apostles words,What the Law of the Spirit of life …s. Rom. 8.2. For the Law of the Spirit of life, is indeed the indwelling Spirit of sanctification, mortifying the lusts of the sinfull flesh, called a Law in opposition to the Tyranny of sinne, and this Law as it is in Christ, is the Law of faith and of the new Covenant, by which wee are freed from the dominion and overmastering power of sinne and life, and as the Law is in Christ, we are meritoriously freed, as in us, we are freed by begun sanctification, as a new Master freeth us from subjection to the old.

9. We are then spirituall, when we observe the wayes and various actings of the Spirit in externalls also,Characters of a spirituall condition. as how God suggesteth motions into some by the crowing of a cocke, as by it the Lord caused Peter to awake, and by the appearing of a Star, some come to Christ by the working of a miracle or a wonder or rare providence in Church and state others are converted.

2. When we observe the Spirits various dispensations in leading some through hell and deaths and despaires to heaven,Other characters of a spirituall dis…osition. Ps 88.15. and that from their youth, and in feeding others with the flower of wheat, with the hony combes of p. 337inward and spirituall feasts of joy and consolation, filling them with marrow and fatnesse. When the Spirit ebbes the f…owes to the sense of a beleever goeth and commeth, casteth downe and benighteth the soule, and againe shineth in glory and beauty.

3. When we obey the breathings of the wind, and yeeld with chearfulnesse to the comforting, shinning, witne…sing, sealing, inlarging of the heart with boldnesse and accesse, to the overjoying, strenthening, quickning directing, inlightning, confirming works and acts of the Spirit

4. When we obey from freenesse and the sweet at…ractions of grace, from a Spirit of love, not of feare and Law-bondage.

5. When we try the spirits: for the dumbe knockings of revelations without, or contrary to the word, are not from God, and when we can judge that fire, heat, eagernesse of affection in praying for a way, a sect, a warre, when wee hate the contrary sect, Presbyterian, as we imagine, is not spirituall boldnesse and freedome of heavenly accesse to God through Christ.

6. When we inclose not the Spirit or God in the letter or sound of words, nor obey for the awe of dead characters or sounds, but formally are led because the Spirit goes along with an obliging precept or promise, and we adore not dead characters and sounds, but tremble at, or submit to the word, for the thing signified, and doe not seperate the signe and the thing signified:Sparkles of glory, p. 271. therefore Saltmarsh is farre out when he denies the distinction of Gospel-ordinances in opposition to legall ordinances, because (saith he, p. 270.) nothing is pure, spirituall divine-Gospel, but that which is light, life, glory, Spirit:The written word to Familists is as a type or shadow of the ceremonial law that perisheth: but wee hold the word written and preached to be the everlasting Gospel. for hee taketh the fruit of the Gospell and the spirituall efficacy of the Gospel for the Gospel. But as the Law is one thing, to wit, he that doth these things shall live thereby, is truly Law, and actuall obedience to this Law is a farre other thing so the Gospel (he that beleeveth shall be saved) is truly Gospel and a Gospel way to salvation, but actually by the grace of Christ to beleeve is a farre other thing.

Saltmarsh saith, the letter and outward forme is a thing that perisheth with the use, which is spoken of meat and drinke, that p. 338waste away while we use them and as Christ saith, Matth. 15.17. enter into the belly, and are casten out with the draught, not of the written Gospell which perisheth not as meat and drink, but both in the letter, and the thing signified hath indured since Moses and the Prophets were, and shall doe to the end of the world, and in regard of the thing signified, Christ the yea and amen of all promises (which we doe not seperate from the signe and letter) is an everlasting Gospel, Revel. 14.6. and the word that endureth for ever, and perisheth not, as corruptible things doe, 1 Pet. 1.23, 24, 25. such as are meat and drinke that are made for the belly, and shall be destroyed with the belly, so the Prophets dye, but their word doth not, Za…. 1.5.6. yet Saltmarsh telleth us the minde of the Familists as some of his Sparkles of glory, 247. that outward ordinances are perishing and evanishing shadowes, such as circumcision, sacrifices and old Testament Ceremonies, for as these past away, when the …dy Christ came, so shall they at the comming of the Spirit, and they being the beholding of God in a glasse, 1 Cor. 13.12. there comes an administration of all-Spirit, in which these glasses must be broken then we must say, reading, hearing, preaching, Scripture, seales are as unlawfull now to Familists, as falling from Christ, and denying of the comming of the holy Spirit, for to use Moses Ceremonies now, were to fall from Christ, and to deny Christ to be come in the flesh.

2 Christ is with his Disciples to the end, in preaching and baptizing Matth. 28.19,Ordinances of the written word, and preaching are to continue to the end. 20. and Paul chargeth Timothy to keepe inviolably, and unrebukably this command of prophecying, preaching, sound doctrine, reading, meditating▪ 1 Tim. 4.14, 15, 16. to teach and exhort, 1 Tim. 6.1, 2. and of governing the House of God, by Elders that labour in the word and doctrine and some that labour not in the word and doctrine, 1 Tim. 5 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, &c. even to the appearing of our Jesus Christ 1 Tim. 6.14.

It is knowen that Swenckefeld denied the Scripture to bee the word of God, and made only the internall instinct of the mind the word of God, so saith Palladius de heresibus hujus Temporis, and his owne writings, and so doe Saltmarsh and Del.

When the Holy Ghost highly extoll…s the word of God ▪ and recommends it to us; he cannot meane the internall word p. 339or the Law of the Spirit of life written in the heart, but the preached word, Act. 6.4. we will give our selves to the ministery of the word, that is, to preach, and not serve tables, it cannot be a ministery of the internall word, and law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, that internall ministery is not given to Paul or Apollo, who are nothing, Joh. 14.25· the word which you heare is not mine, this was not the internall word, Acts 13.26. to you is the word of salvation sent: 46. it was necessary the word of God should be spoken to you: the internall word was not spoken to them, for they blasphemed, 2 Thess. 3.14. if any man obey not our word no…e such a one: none can disobey the internall word, Jam. 1.23. if any man be an …earer of the word and doe it not: rebelling against the Lord is rebelling against his word, Num. 20.24. because yee rebelled against my word, yee shall not enter into the land, Isa. 30.12, 13. because yee despise this word—this iniquity shall be to you a breach: not to humble our selves at the word is not to humble our selves before the Lord, 2 Chro. 36.12. Zedekiah did that which was evill in the sight of the Lord his God, and humbled not himselfe before Jeremiah the Prophet (speaking) from the mouth of the Lord, Mat. 10.32. he that denieth me (saith Christ) before men, I will deny him, but Mark. 8. v. last. he that shall be ashamed of me and my words, &c. to be ashamed of the truth and word of the Gospel then,Sparkles of glory, 314, 315. is to be ashamed of Christ, and to deny him. What then shall be said of that which Saltmarsh saith? all outward administrations whether as to Religion, or to naturall, civill and morall considerations, are only the visible appearances of God as to the world, or in this creation, or the cloathing of God, being such formes and dispensations as God puts on amongst men to appeare to them in: this is the garment the Sonne of God was cloathed with downe to his feet, or to his lowest appearance — and to worship such an adminstration when God is gone out of it, is to worship an Idol, an image, a forme without God, or any manifestation of God in it, save to him (who as Paul saith) knowes an Idol to be nothing, 1 Cor. 8.4.

Ans. Would Saltmarsh and Del give us Annotations on the Bible, they should furnish us with many monsters in Divinity: here he maketh the garment wherewith the Sonne of God was cloathed, Rev. 1. all the formes of worship wherewith God manifested himselfe to the Jewes under the Law, to Christians under the Gospel, yea to the heathen that had p. 340but naturall and civill Revelations of God. Divers wayes and formes of worshipping of God, and of leaving these formes, and ascending higher and higher, from natu…ll, to civill and morall Religion, fr…m thence to Law then to Johns baptism, then to Christ in the flesh, then to pure Gospel, then to poore and all-Spirit, or Familists phancies,Shall wee aske a warrant for playing thus on visions, types, allegories? Familists tell us, the Spirit taught them so.

But 1. what Spirit made Christ the Son of God Mediator to appear to heathen in their Poets-Religion, their idolatrous images and false Gods, for they worship devills, not the Son of God, Levit. 17.7. Deut. 32.17. Ps 106.37. 1 Cor. 10 20, 21.

2. Is not here a saying of every man in his own Religion? and a saying revelation of God in the workes of creation?

3. What ground of so many circles and new formes of Religions, a naturall, civill or morall Law, Joh. Baptists way, Christs way in the flesh, the Spi…its way, which is (say they) after Christs ascention to heaven, all glory, without ordinances, at all? the Scripture tells us of none but Law or Gospel, and the Sonne of God is in none of these, without Law or Gospell that we read of.

4. That we worship God in all these formes acceptably, in the heathens way of adoring Jupiter and Bacchus wee know not.

5. Wee know not what this meanes to worship the Law, the heathens Religion, the Gospell, we know no worshipping of created things, of word, Sacraments, figures, Scriptures, reading, all these being meanes of tendering worship to God, not things worshipped, Christians worship none but God.

6. It must be Idolatry to a Familist to worship God in hearing, Sacraments, reading, praying, for God hath left all these to him, and he lives in a higher way upon the Spirit without Ordinances.

7. But to him that knowes an Idoll to be nothing, as Familists doe, an Idoll is nothing, because Idolatry and the sinnes of the outward man, adultery, lying, swearing, forswearing, a tongue speaking vanity, a right hand of falsehood, are no sinnes, because done by the outward man, and Saltmarsh and his fellow-libertines, have that much knowledge of the Spirit, as to know adultery is no adultery to a …ustified man, or an Elder of the family of love, and that which is …dolatry to an unrenewed man, to adore figures and formes, is no Idolatry to renewed men who have knowledge that an Idoll is p. 341nothing, not any externalls to Familists, the wickedst prankes hell can devise are no sinnes, and sinne is but an opinion, know then killing of your father, and bowing downe and adoring the devill to be no sinnes, and lay by conscience of sinne, as Dav. George, and Anton. pocquius, and such swine teach us, and they are no sins. But these words, we know an Idol is nothing, hath another sense, as before I cleared.

16. Another speciall signe of a spirituall condition is mortification,How mortification is a signe of a spirituall condition. which is not merely and onelyonly in a totall abstinence from sin or hat…red of the world, Heathens void of the spirit of Jesus, upon morall principles, of their moralizing Phylosophy of Plato, Socrates, Seneca …an goe farre on this way: But when a beleever seeth him selfe, and his life incorporated in Christ and his crosse, Gal. 2.20. I live not, but Christ lives in me, not because his deadnesse to the creature cometh without being procured (as Waldess… consider .92.345 saith) or sought with human industery, for though human industery it's alone, yea, or helped with supernaturall Gospell-truths, or some common grace can neuer produce any, but a bastard mortification. Yet acts of sanctified reason and Industery spiritualized with the infused life of Christ, and informed with the pure light of f…i…h beholding Christ crucified, doe worke mortification; But then our Spirit must be as dead to these acts, as acts, as if they were not in us in the poynt of reffect feeling and confiding in them, not I, but grace, not I, but Christ in me.

2 The powers of the body or outward man by the soule-redoundance of actings, stand or lye dead to sin, Rom. 8.9. But yea are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if so be that the sp…irit of God dwell in you. i:d: And if Christ be in you the body is dead, because of sin, or for sin, but the Spirit is life because of Righteousnesse: The body is a part of the flesh, and in so farre as it is renewed with the soule, there is not that fire and fervour in bodily actings of sinne as in a man void of the spirit, because though flesh and body both act too strongly in sin, yet are these powers blunted and the senses doe not so welcome lusts as once they did, but the spirit is life or lively, as touching righteousnesse both to be acted and laid hold on by faith, so the renewed man is in a manner greived that he must satisfie his naturall life, yea so that he could rejoyce, if he were deprived of his senses, p. 342or at least, were freed from extreame quicknesse of fervor in his senses apprehending their delighting objects: hence cometh in the mortified, a sort of holy challenging of his liberty, as a servant made free can tell his old Master, he now owes him no service, so the spirituall man saith, Rom. 8.12. Therefore brethren, we are debters not to the flesh, to live after the flesh, we hold now of a new Lord, and are vassals to the Spirit of Jesus.

3 If the soul be much spiritualized, and have much of Christs life in it, the man is much satisfied with the active mortifying defrauding of his lusts and fleshly pleasures, and there is much will, and so much life of God, in subduing the body, in Covenanting with the eyes, in bearing downe, and subduing the flesh 1 Cor. 9.27. But I keepe under my body, but how? As those that runne a race for a Crowne, there is much will in such a running & sweating for the garland, and much consent and eagernesse of mind, that the flesh, body, musecls, and loco-motive power pay for it, so doe spirituall runners for the incorruptible Garland, this argues deadnesse to that flesh which loves to sleep & lye rather then to sweat for a …ools birds-nest that it sees not, and in so doing, he deadly suspects his owne will of selfe-seeking, which is a singular note of deadnesse, for he trembles for feare that selfe came in with the spirit and cry halfe mine 1. Cor. 9.25. every one that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things Temperance of the mind is much affraid of vaine-gloriation.

4 There is much will also in joyning consent with suffering Gods wil: so rejoycing in suffering, argues that Paul desired much that the power of Christ might rest on him, 2 Cor. 12.10. therefore I take pleasure (here is much deadness… of will to satisfie flesh and selfe▪ and much life of will to joyne actively with God in suffering) in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christs sake: but he suspectes himselfe in this deadnesse, ver. 11. I am become a foole in glorying, he checkes himselfe, that he may suffer for Christs sake, not for his owne sake, and the more dead the wil… is, the more mortification and the more mortification, the mo… o… the spirit, and the lesse of the flesh is in the man, Rom. 8.7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16.

p. 343Reader, thou hast here, though I intended it should have been printed with the rise of Henry Nicholas (but it came later to my hand) a Petition or Protestation of the Familists which was printed and spread in England, an. 1604. and is said to have been presented to King James.