A Wakening Call, Chapter 17
CHAP. XVII. The ruling Power of Satan, over Mankind, all along this World, as permitted God thereof, under God's infinite over-ruling Wisdom and Power.
HE is so call'd in the Scriptures of Truth; God of this World. And he uses all his evil Angelical Subtlety and Power, for the blinding and deceiving Men, so as to keep them from any regarding or looking after God, for his Gospel-life, wherein alone any can be saved, or ever enter into his Kingdom, 2 Cor. 4. 3, 4. Christ himself calls him Prince of this World, John 12. 31. & 16. 11. & 14. 30. But, says of him, he hath nothing in me: nor shall be able to touch, or ever meddle with, so as finally to overcome any Partakers of my all-powerful Gospel-life, 1 Iohn 5. 18. Saints, therein, are Fence-proof against all the Gates, or Strength of Hell, all the Powers of Darkness, evil Angels and Men, Rulers of the Darkness of this World (Ephes. 6. 12.) in their own dark-spirited worldly Life and Wisdom, of the First-creation.
The first unpardonable Sin of the evil Angels, was their turning as they went, or were a while following Christ, towards that Life, he represented himself in, to them and the good Angels, and in the Passage thereto, by way of Death and Resurrection, in such Transactions as had pass'd in the Creature-part of his wonderful Person, before they were brought forth. In a contrary Demeanour to that of the good Angels, they turned as they went, in love to themselves, in their own self-chosen mortal Life, given them in their first Creation, in unchangeable Enmity to God, and the Heavenly eternal Creature-Life of their Creator, offer'd them, by a second. The good Angels did let down their Wings, ceas'd from the mortal Life of their first Creation, and Exercise of their own fallible Understandings and corruptible Wills therein, signified by letting down their Wings, in Conformity to their Head, in the Death of the first Creation, and Resurrection into the Life of the second. So, pass'd out of their own mortal First-Covenant Law-Life, into God's own New-Covenant Gospel-Life, of originally immortal Holiness and everlasting Righteousness; Ezek. 1.5-26.
The Devil and his Angels kept not their first Estate, but left their own Habitation; Jude 6. To Man's Wisdom, they, only, kept their first Estate, the Life and Things given them, in their first Creation. And, consequently, in the Wisdom of Human Nature, is Man ready to follow the evil Angels first Choice, as best. Here's the case of many, restor'd into the First-Covenant or First-Creation-Life of the Creature; ready to establish themselves therein, as a state of true Salvation. This Paul fear'd, and labour'd to prevent in his Israel-Brethren; Rom. 10. 1-3. At this dangerous Point, were the Corinthians and Laodiceans, in the delusive First-Covenant House of feasting and rejoycing (1 Cor. 4. 8. Rev. 3. 17.) as not, at all, needing any other Life, by a second or new Creation, for their everlasting Blessedness.
On the first unpardonable Sin of the evil Angels, they were immediately cast down to Hell, deliver'd into Chains of Darkness, to be reserved unto Iudgment; 2 Pet. 2. 4. They, by their Sin, fix'd themselves in their own self-chosen Life, in Preference and Opposition to the eternal Creature-Life of their Creator; and God, in his righteous Judgment, giving them up to, and thereby, fixing them in their own Choice, was a casting them down to Hell. In this Hell, and their Chains of Darkness, are they Rulers in this dark, mortal, first-Creation World. The Chains of Darkness, in which they are reserv'd to the Iudgment of the Great Day, are all Life, Wisdom, Righteousness, Excellencies and Perfections of their Angelical Nature, given them in their first Creation, as turn'd by their Abuse of all, into the greatest Wickedness, Madness and Folly, in unchangeable Enmity to God, and his Heavenly Creature-life, shewn and offer'd them, by a second. So are they in a state, in all Extremity, contrary to what they were created in, chang'd by Self-destroying Self-love, from a state of temporary changeable Obedience, to a state of eternal, unchangeable Enmity to God. An absolute Exclusion of them from the Kingdom of Heaven, is called a casting them down to Hell. God, not only gave them their Choice, but also, in the abusive Exercise of their self-chosen Life, a permitted ruling Power over Mankind, all along this World, as God thereof, under the restraining, limiting, over-ruling infinite Wisdom and Power of the true God, so as that he can never hurt any true Saints or Subjects of God's everlasting Kingdom. Yet, even Saints, for a time, are under their Power. Yea, he told Christ himself, all the Kingdoms of this World, and Glory of them, were his, offering all, as his greatest Bribe, to the true King in the World to come, in case he would fall down, own, and worship him, as God; Mat. 4. 8, 9. Luke 4. 5-7. Christ denied not, that all the Kingdoms of this World were at his Dispose, by God's most wise Permission. He that said this to Christ, in the Fountain-Purity of the First-Creation, and full of that Spirit of Grace and Truth, that's offer'd by a second, what will he not do to Saints before their experiencing any thing of Gospel-life, or when but in some little beginnings thereof, and Enemies within, Foes of their own House, in their own Spirits and whole Nature, in Union of Mind with him, in Enmity to God and his Gospel-Spirit, in themselves? He is permitted a Power of transforming his Earthly Spirit, into the likeness of Christ's Heavenly Creature-Spirit, that's the mysterious House and Temple of God; and, therein, to shew and assert himself to be God, the very infinite Divine Being; 2 Thess. 2. 4. And, herein, is he undiscoverable by the highest single natural Understanding of Man, in but First-Covenant Principles, tho, indeed, the worst of all Creatures, the supream Man of Sin, and Son of Perdition; v. 3.
This God of this World, who passes with Man, for the true God, will not be able finally to blind and deceive any but them that are lost; 2 Cor. 4. 3. If it were possible, he would so deceive the very Elect, by his false Christs, evil Angels, and his false Prophets und Apostles, amongst Men, transform'd into the likeness of Christ's true ones; 2 Cor. 11. 13-15. Clothing their own First-Covenant Law-Life, with all Scripture-Language and Titles, belonging to God's own Heavenly Creature, New-Covenant Gospel-Life, as the true Regeneration, new Creature, State of Grace, in which they have true Joy, and final Peace with God; Ezek. 13. 1-10. All this is confidently asserted, by Men, under Satan's lying Spirit of Divination. With such, the renew'd old Man, in the restor'd First-Covenant Law-Life, given in the first Creation, must pass for the new Creature, without all Scruple or Contradiction; and does so pass, in and with the most reform'd People or Churches of this World, in but First-Covenant Principles. All Worldly Preachers and Hearers, in but Worldly, First-Covenant Principles, confidently take Satan's other Gospel, that's no Gospel, for Christ's true; Gal. 1. 6, 7. 1 Iohn 4. 5.
Restor'd First-Covenant Law-Life, is so far from rendring any, Fence-proof against the evil Angelical Rulers of this World, that they make that, their strongest Hold, and Men, eminent therein, their choicest Instruments, to oppose, dispute against, contradict and blaspheme the Heavenly Creature-Life, and Gospel-Righteousness of God, wherein any can be sav'd.
Let Satan, in his superiour evil-angelical Wisdom, and Men in their inferiour human Wisdom, under his Influence, interpret the Scriptures, all, therein, shall seem to run current, for carrying on Satan's Design, to the everlasting Destruction of his blinded Teachers and Hearers, Leaders and Followers. That shall be preach'd up, as a State of true Salvation and final Peace with God, which, if fix'd in, will be found a State of unchangeable Enmity to God, and eternal Death to Man. All, establish'd in the First-Covenant Law-Life and Righteousness of Man, in unchangeable Enmity to the Gospel-Life and Righteousness of God, go on, to their dying moment, with their delusive Laodicean Confidence therein, to their sad long eternal Condition, in the World to come. Paul was confident, awhile, but not fixedly, wilfully and unpardonably, in his Law-Spirit of Works, against God's Gospel-Spirit of Grace, in true Saints; but, immediately on Gospel-Conviction and Conversion, gave up the Life and Righteousness of his own Spirit, in Sacrifice to God, in order to find all again with Usury, in God's eternal, everlasting righteous Gospel-Spirit of Grace and Truth; Phil. 3. 6-11.
Many, not only eminent in the Wisdom of Man, but under highest spiritual enlightning Gifts (receiv'd on their natural Understandings, amounting to a partaking of the Holy Ghost (Heb. 6.4-6.) in the all-discovering Light, but not the all-powerful Life thereof) are bewitch'd back again, by Satan, to set up for themselves, in their own holy Flesh, Righteousness of Man, Life of the Law, against God's holy Gospel-Spirit; refusing to submit to the Death of their own Spirit, at best, for the Life of his. This do they, tho they know Christ himself, crucified that Law-Spirit of Works, in the Fountain-purity of it, in his own Person (Gal. 3. 1, 3.) the preserving of which, was Satan's Attempt and Design upon him, by himself, the Jews, and Peter, to have set up his Kingdom, in; Luke 4. 5-7. Iohn 6. 15. Matth. 16. 22, 23. All's nothing as to our ever entring into the Kingdom of God, till we have that Gospel-Life of God, or a living spiritual Faith, working by Love to God therein; 1 Cor. 12. 31. & 13. 1, 2. Such a Faith, only, renders any, true Lovers and Beloveds of God; right Performers of all Duties, to God and their Fellow-Creatures. Such as look back, after all convincing Discoveries and Offers of Christ's Gospel-Life, for Justification with God, in their Law-Righteousness of Man, are fallen from Grace; Gal. 5. 4. Who hinders Men, or calls them back, from Christ's offer'd Gospel-Truth? ver. 7. The Devil and his human Instruments, that shut up the Kingdom of Heaven, excluding and denying all such Gospel-Truths, by which any can ever enter thereinto.
Satan takes Men alive, at his, and their own Will, in the restor'd Life and Righteousness of Man, as the highest Snare, by which, to keep them from ever looking after the Gospel-Life and Righteousness of God, therein; 2 Tim. 2.26. The Greek Original runs thus; That they may awake out of the Snare of the Devil, who are taken alive by him, at his Will. Christ requires all, to look after God, for his Heavenly Kingdom-Life, and everlasting Righteousness (Mat. 6. 33.) and complains, that no Man, while confident in his own Understanding, will answer this Advice, or seek after God (Rom. 3. 11.) for his Heavenly Creature-life and things, which lie quite out of the reach of all single natural Understanding; 1 Cor. 2. 9. Neither Morally righteous Heathens, nor First-Covenant Jews or Christians, regard or look after God, for his new or second Covenant-Life, in which any can be finally sav'd. But, where God wakens up any, out of their delusive Dream for true Happiness, in their own Righteousness, whether Jew or Gentile, and gives them a living spiritual Faith, working by Love to him, in his Gospel-Life, all such will find the Salvation of Heaven.
Satan deceiv'd Mankind, at best, in the Primitive Purity of their Nature, in Adam, assuring them, that holding fast the righteous Life, they were first created in, and walking in the uncontroll'd Soveraignty of their own Will and Wisdom, therein, they should be as Gods. 'Tis the peculiar Prerogative of God, so to live and be; and the unpardonable Presumption of any Angels or Men, to conclude and set up for themselves, in their own Wills, so as never to be subject and obedient to his. Obedient Subjects of God, will be eternally blessed; and all proud, presumptuous Self-exalters, to be as Gods, will fall under the everlasting Curse and Wrath of God.
He that prevail'd with the first Adam, in the Primitive Purity of our Nature, when he found the second Adam in the Fountain-Purity of our Nature, a little lower than his Angelical Nature (Heb. 2. 9.) he most presumptuosly tempted him, to fall down and worship him, as God. What Work is he like to make with Men, in but the restor'd Life, Wisdom and Righteousness of Man, with Filth of Spirit, Enmity to God and his Spirit of Grace, under all?
In awaken'd Gospel-Saints, while any thing of the Carnal Mind and Life of their own Spirit remains uncrucified, he will be continually kindling the sinful Lusts and Desires of that, his own Party, yet, in them, as Paul found; Rom. 7.15, 19. and 2 Cor. 12. 7. Hereby, does he endeavour to quench and extinguish the Mind and Life of Christ's Gospel-Spirit in them, keeping up the War of their Fleshly Mind, his Party in them, against their Spiritual Mind, Christ's Party, so that they cannot do the things they would (Gal. 5.17.) fully and constantly, till this War within them be finish'd, by a full extinguishing of the Life of their own Spirit, and Mindings thereof. Then are they freed from all Filth of Flesh and Spirit, too, for ever. Till then, tho they live in God's Spirit, they do not continually and constantly, walk, think and speak therein, as is their Duty and Concern; ver. 25.
In all this Combat and Danger, Saints, in a living Faith, know their Salvation sure, by a final Victory over all Enemies, without and within them. No Devils or Men shall ever be able to pluck them out of Christ's All-powerful Hand; John 10. 28, 29.
When the God of this World, with his Party of Men, find, they cannot prevail with Christ or his Followers, by any Worldly Bribes or flattering self-pleasing Offers, to turn from and disown any such thing as indeed is God's eternal Gospel-Life and Truth, then go they to work, another way. When all Allurements fail, they will, in the Exercise of their implacable Malice, try to fright them out of their Gospel-Profession, and, if permitted (as oft they are) to murder their Bodies, Christ himself was so dealt with by them, and warns his Followers to expect the like; Iohn 15. 20. & 16. 1, 2. Evil Angels and Men have a kind of short, self-pleasing Heaven, in this World; and Saints a short, and to their natural Spirit, unpleasing Purgatory-Hell, by which, cleans'd from all Filth of Flesh and Spirit. The former are ripening and fitting themselves for the eternal Hell, and God is ripening and fitting the latter, for the eternal Heaven, in the World to come. God's temporary Wrath upon them, bringing them into the lowest Hell, in this World, is his way, for delivering them, from the Wrath and Hell to come, that's eternal; Psal. 86. 13. & 116. 3. 2 Sam. 22.6. Nature in Saints is sorely put to't, in this Hell-work of God upon them, in this World; but know, God will not leave their Soul there, for ever; Psal. 16. 10. Tho chiefly spoken of Christ, will these words, at last, be found true, in Saints. All that God does to them, and all he suffers evil Angels and Men to do them, in their implacable Malice, does God over-rule, to their greatest good.
When Satan appear'd or stood before the Lord, before whom, he knew it was to no purpose (because impossible) to conceal his way of deceiving, in Ahab's case, he down-right acknowledg'd it, that he would be a lying Spirit in the Mouth of all his Prophets. And God said, Go, and do so; Thou shalt perswade him, and prevail also; 1 Kings 22. 22. Thus did he prevail, as God's permissive Hand, to the Destruction of Ahab. His four hundred false Prophets, pleas'd Ahab, to his Ruin, and were highly esteem'd; and, God's one true Prophet that counsell'd him for his good, was cast by him into a Prison, and fed with Bread of Affliction, and Water of Affliction; v. 26. 27. He hated Micaijah, the Lord's true Prophet, as not prophesying, what he reckon'd good, concerning him; but, loved and rewarded Satan's false Prophets, as pleasing to his own Will, and after his own Heart's Desire. So, Ieremy, who counsell'd King and People for the preserving their Lives, was cast into a Dungeon, where he sunk in the Mire, while Satan's false Prophets pleas'd them, to their Destruction; Ier. 38. 5, 6. God's one true Prophet, among the then only visible People of God, a fleshly First-Covenant Israel, found King, Princes, Priests and People, all, as one Man, against him, while Satan's false self-pleasing Prophets were listen'd to, and rewarded.
Satan, that acknowledg'd to God, he would be a lying Spirit in Ahab's Prophets, is so far from being discover'd by the highest Wisdom or Understanding of Man, in but First-Covenant or First-Creation natural Principles, that he will pass with them, there, for Christ and God most high, when, indeed, the worst of all Creatures; 2 Thess. 2,3,4. Where God permits this, and not only so, but, in Judgment, gives them up to Satan's Man-pleasing strong Delusions, for believing his Lie, rather than God's Truth, the Issue will be, eternal Death to their whole Beings, Spirit, Soul and Body, in a Resurrection of Damnation; ver. 10, 12. Men are either brought by Satan, in love to their own righteous earthly mortal Life, given them in their first Creation, to hate God's Heavenly Creature Gospel-Life, offer'd by a second; or by the electing Love of God, to hate their own Life, at best, so as to give it up, in Sacrifice to God, in love to, and as the only way for attaining and experiencing his New-Covenant everlasting Gospel-Life, by a second or new Creation; ver. 13. This latter is Christ's Counsel (Luke 14. 26.) in the Mystery of Godliness: the former, Satan's, in his Mystery of Iniquity. Satan's Counsel is, for sparing, saving and keeping the Life of the Creature, given in the first Creation: Christ's Counsel, is, for the Surrender and Loss of that, and all the things thereof, for the Life of the Creator, offer'd by a second, and things of God, therein. The keeping the former, in Preserence and Opposition to the latter, Christ declares will be the loss of all Life and Righteousness, God's and Man's too, on which, their whole Beings, Spirit, Soul and Body, will be laid down, for ever, in the Nakedness of their own unpardonable Guilt, under the unquenchable Wrath of God, for evermore; Mat. 10. 39. & 16. 25. Mark 8. 35. Luke 17. 33. Iohn 12. 25. Man, not only eminent in the First-Covenant Life, Wisdom and Righteousness of Man, but under highest spiritual enlightning Gifts, on his natural Understanding (short of the very Gospel-Life of Christ, or a living spiritual Faith, working by Love to him, therein) is yet within Satan's reach, to beguile, bewitch, and fetch back into an unchangeable Union with him, in the first Creation, and unchangeable Enmity to God and his Heavenly Life, offer'd by a second; 1 Cor. 12. 31. & 13. 1, 2. Gal. 3. 1, 3. & 5. 7. Satan would keep all Mankind, in the dead, corrupt State of Nature, wallowing in Mire as his Swine, spending and ending their Days in this World, in the brutish Lusts of literal Sodom. But, when cast out, as to this kind of Work in them, as fast as any are brought by Christ, out of such Filth of Flesh, into the Righteousness of Man, he attempts and frequently prevails to get into such mystical cleans'd Houses, and fix them with himself, in Filth of Spirit, unchangeable Enmity to God, and his everlasting righteous Creature-Spirit of Grace and Truth; and then, he has a sevenfold surer hold of them, than ever; Mat. 12. 43-45. Luke 11. 24-26. So comes the last State of that Man to be worse than the first, in his corrupt Nature. Mary Magdalen's and Zacheus's, in the Filth of corrupt Nature, were capable of Christ's true Salvation Gospel-Life, and such righteous Scribes and Pharisees utterly uncapable thereof, or, therefore, of scaping the Damnation of Hell; Mat. 23. 33. & 21. 31. Publicans are brought to justify God, and be eternally justified before him, while righteous Pharisees and Scripture-Lawyers, in restor'd Law-life and Righteousness of Man, reject the Counsel of God, for receiving his Gospel-life, to their everlasting Destruction, Luk. 7. 29, 30. & 15. 1, 2. & 19. 2-9.
Fixure in Law-life and Righteousness of Man, in unchangeable Enmity to Gospel-life and Righteousness of God, renders Men, mystical Sodomites, in Filth of Spirit, worse and more criminal Sinners than literal Sodom, in Filth of Flesh, Mat. 11. 23, 24. But, corrupt Nature or Filth of Flesh, fix'd in, with literal Sodom, is unpardonable, also. And, therein, do the greater part of Mankind, run their Race in this World, from their Cradles to their Graves. Take and put together all, of both the said Sorts of Mankind, in the broad Way to everlasting Destruction, under Satan's prevailing Influence, and they'l be found wonderfully to out-number, Christ's few in the narrow Way to Heaven, Mat. 7. 13, 14. Yet, will they be a numberless Multitude also, out of all Generations, Revel. 7. 9. Many of Satan's two Parties, fix'd in the corrupt or righteous Spirit of Nature, against God and his Gospel-spirit of Grace, oft die, without any Remorse or Fear, as to any By-standers Observation; without any right Knowledg of the true God, or false God of this World, Heaven or Hell, till in the latter, beyond all Remedy, for ever.
Yet, farther, Satan will not only exercise his permitted ruling and tempting-Power over Mankind, all along this World, but after his Imprisonment at beginning of Christ's thousand Years Reign on Earth, and his loosening out of it, at the ending thereof, will he, as his last and most transcendently presumptuous Attempt, rally up his Gog and Magog, his innumerable Multitude of evil Angels and Men, and in the transform'd Appearance and counterfeit Guise of Angels of Light and true Saints, besiege the New-Ierusalem-City of true Saints, in the very Glory of the Resurrection, Revel. 20. 1-3. & v. 7-9. This last Attempt of Satan and his Party of Angels and Men, will have no Success at all. Immediate will be the Decision of this intended Battel, by Fire from God out of Heaven, to devour them all; casting them, with the Devil that deceiv'd them, into the Lake of Fire and Brimstone, where to be tormented, for ever and ever, ver. 10. Then Creation ceases, and all Angels and Men good and bad, finally concluded in their eternal Conditions of Joy or Sorrow, unspeakable, in Heaven or Hell.