A Wakening Call, Chapter 19
CHAP. XIX. Concerning true Charity or Love.
TRue spiritual Saints, in God's Gospel-Spirit, call'd Love, are the only right Performers of all Duty to God and their Fellow-Creatures, therein. They have a right Love to all Men (not known to be fix'd in Enmity to God and them) and a peculiar Brotherly Kindness to the Houshold of Faith, Christ's and their spiritual Brethren. Yet, are none reckon'd by Men, in their own Wordly Life and Wisdom, at best, so universally uncharitable, as reckoning all, below their spiritual Principle of true Life, to be in great danger of Damnation. Men, in the restor'd Life, Wisdom and Righteousness of their own Spirits, are ready to say to them, as the Disciples said to Christ himself, Who then can be sav'd, at all? Are all Mankind damn'd, both corrupt and righteous? This amazing Truth, renders Saints, in all appearance, the most uncharitable of all Men. If all the World wonder after the Beast, and worship the Dragon, that gives Power to his Human Beast, his false Prophets and Apostles (in their Wordly First-Creation Principles, at best, all Righteousness and Wisdom of Man) what a most uncharitable, censorious Creature, must the true Saint appear to be? Rev. 13. 3-7. If all that dwell on the Earth, fix and set up for entring into the Kingdom of Heaven, in but their own Earthly Life, in which none can ever enter thereinto, what must Christ's few in the narrow way, whose Names are written in the Book of Life of the Lamb, slain from the Foundation of the World, be accounted? v. 8. They that are of the World, in but the Earthly Life of the first Creation, preach up that, in the Righteousness, Wisdom and Glory of it, as a state of eternal Life; and the World, all in that Principle, hear and own their Doctrine, as God's Gospel-Truth. We are of God, says Iohn, he that knoweth God, heareth us: he that is not of God, heareth not us; 1 Joh. 4. 5, 6. What is Man's Wisdom like to say, to this? You are in the right Principle for Salvation, and all, short thereof, or contrary thereto, in a delusive Perswasion, doing, saying and worshipping they know not what. This is your most presumptuous, uncharitable and unwarrantable Opinion of others, and a justifying your selves, as the only true People of God. The First-Covenant righteous teaching and professing Jews said to Christ, they were born of God, and that he had a Devil, and was mad; Joh. 8.48. and 10.20. and 8. 52. Now we know that thou hast a Devil. Here's the Language of a First-Covenant People, fix'd in their own Earthly Spirit, concerning Christ himself and his Followers, by the Death of that, into the Life of his Heavenly; his Holy Ghost, they call the Devil. While the God of this World passes for the true God, with any, what other Language can be expected from them? If the World hate you, says Christ, ye know that it hated me, before it hated you; Joh. 15. 18. It was the highest Rank of Men, in the Worldly Spirit, a righteous visible People of God, that contradicted, blasphem'd and murder'd Christ himself. What can his true Followers expect? His chusing them out of the World, his transforming them, by death of their own Earthly Spirits, and Resurrection into the Life of his Heavenly, will render them hateful to all, fix'd in their own Earthly; ver. 19.
True Saints in Christ's Gospel-Spirit, can answer that Command of God, in Sincerity and Truth (Mat. 5. 44.) Love their Enemies, &c. They can truly forgive other Mens Trespasses against them. These are Commands, too hard for Man, in his own Nature and Spirit, at best, to answer. The right performing them is an infallible Evidence of their being born of God's Heavenly Creature-Spirit, or Holy Ghost; ver. 45. They that pray, God would forgive their Trespasses against him, as they forgive others Trespasses against them, in case they do not so forgive others, they pray, in effect, God would not forgive them; Mat. 6. 14, 15.
True Saints, on all accounts, are truly and universally, the only right Performers of all Duties to God and their Fellow-Creatures, by a true universal Charity or Love to all Men, not fix'd in Enmity to God. Such, 'tis their Duty, in Union of Mind with God, to hate with a perfect Hatred; Psal. 139. 21, 22.
Christ himself said, of our Nature in the Fountain-Purity of it, I can of my self do nothing; John 5. 30. The only doing Principle, for everlasting well-pleasing, active Obedience to the Divine Will, in me and my Followers, is my Heavenly Creature Gospel-Spirit of Grace and Truth.
Against this Spirit of Truth, God permits Satan to carry on his Mystery of Iniquity, by transforming his Earthly, into the likeness of Christ's Heavenly Creature-Spirit, that's God's House, and as sitting in that Temple of God, shewing himself to be God. And then, are his Ministers (preaching up the Righteousness of Man, only, for eternal Life) transform'd into the likeness of the Gospel-Ministers of the Righteousness of God; 2 Cor. 11. 13-15. They dress up Satan's and their Earthly, with all the Titles belonging to Christ's Heavenly Spirit; and are receiv'd and own'd, beyond all Dispute and Question, as true Ministers of the Gospel.
Where Satan, in and by his Party, among Men, sits on the Judgment-Bench (Rev. 2. 13.) and Gospel-Saints forc'd to stand at the Bar, all right Gospel-words, for their Defence, will be reckon'd matter of Condemnation to them, without any need of other Witnesses against them. Christ himself was thus handled. He has spoken Blasphemy, says the High-Priest, What think ye? Guilty of Death, say the Iews, as his Jury; on which they did spit in his Face, and smite him, saying, Prophesy unto us, thou Christ, who is he that smote thee, Mat. 26. 65-68. They not only condemn'd, but ridicul'd him, in their proceeding towards the murdering of him. This did they to him, who had that Spirit in him, which created all Angels and Men.
True Saints give no ground for any to despair of Salvation, who are not guilty of the unpardonable Sin against the Holy Ghost, in a fix'd wilful, unchangeable Enmity to the Gospel-Spirit of God. They also endeavour, by all Condescensions, Ways and Means, to bring them into the Knowledg and right owning of Christ's Gospel-Truth, in which, alone, any can be sav'd. Final Refusers of their Gospel-Counsels, will persecute them, for their Pains, as has been experienc'd in all Times. And, we are now drawing near to, yea, are in the worst of Times, since Noah's Flood, under the permitted Exercise of Satan's great Rage, because he knows he has but a short time, to the finishing of his Reign over Mankind, Rev. 12. 12. All manner of Wickedness encreases and abounds, more and more, continually; such Wars, Tumults and Confusions, of all sorts, as now are, have not been the usual Experience of former days. All tends to the running down the present Generation, towards that Midnight-darkness; a State, in which, Christ declares, that at his second Coming, he shall find the World, at near the same pass, Mankind were found in at the Flood; Mat. 24. 37-39. Luke 18. 8.
Under all these Discouragements, Saints have an infallible fore-head-Sight, what Matters will come to, on all Hands, at the winding up of all, in the final Love or Wrath of God. Then, the unwarrantable Charity of Men, warranting Salvation and Peace with God, in a Principle, where never to be found, will be sadly and remedilesly experienc'd by themselves and their blinded Followers, to have been the leading their Hearers into everlasting Destruction, with themselves. Then all Persons and Things, all Words and Doctrines, will be call'd by the right Names. Under Satan's permitted Reign, all things in Religion and the Worship of God, have been call'd by wrong Names, all along this World, and will more and more confidently be so call'd, to the full ending thereof. In these last Days, and near approach of the second Coming of our Lord, will there be more Scoffing at any such thing, and a more universal Disregard and Denial of the Spirit he will come in, than ever, 2 Pet. 3. 3, 4.