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Show Tbe Rife and Progrefs Vo.r;. 1. 1694-· of jof!r P~rents Care, or the Miod of Truth in your felves, or il! rhofe .~ that are without: Who, tho' they will not obey the Truth, have Sight :~~:~d Senfe enough to fee if they do that make a Profeffion of it. For where tlte DivinC Virtue of it is not felt in the Soul, and waired for, a{ld lived in, Imperfe8:ions will quirkly break our, and !hew themfelves, and derea the Unfaithfulnefs of fuch Perfons; and that their lnfid,s are not feafon~ with the Nature of that Holy Principle which they profefs. Wherefore, Dear Children, let me intreat you ro/iut yopr Eyu at the Temptations and _Al1urements of .tliis low and perifhing World, and nor fuffer,your AffelhonS ro be capuvated by thoie Lufts and Vanities that your Fathers, for rbe Truth"s Sttke, long fince turned their Backs upon~ , But as you believe it ~o be the Tturb, receive it into yoJir Heans, thit you inay become the Children of .God : So that it may never be faid of you as the Evangelijl writes ~f the Jew~ in hi~ Time, that Chrift, the true LiGhr. cttllll to hH own, hut hu own reetJvcd h1m not ; but to tU many as received bim, to them be gtJve Power to become the Chi!drrn of God; which were b8nr not of B/oao, nor of tbt WiU of the Flefo. nor of the WiU of M•n. hut oj GoJ. A molt ctofe and comprehenftve Paffage to this Occafion. You ex~ aOiy and fUcilliarly anfwcr to thofe proftffing ]er1u, in th:J.t you bear the Name of God's People, hy being the Children, a~d wearing of the Form of God's People: And He, by his Light in you; may 6e very well faid to come to his own, and if you obey it not, but turn your Back upon it ::md walk :1fter the Vanities of your Minds, you wi1l be of thofe that receiVed him not, which I pray God may never be your Cafe :J.nd Judgment. 'But that you may be thro11ghly ftnjihle of the many and great Oblig:uions you lie under to the Lord for his Love, and to your Parents for their Care: And with aU yo11r Heart, and all yo11r So11/, and aD yo11r Strtnlth, turn to tbe Lord, to hH Gift an~ Spirit in you, ttntl bear his Voice and oh~y it, rbot }OJI. ntay Seal to the Tej11mony of yo11r fat hen, hy the Trutb and Evidtnce of your own Experience; that your Children's Children ·m:ay blefr )OM, and tobe Lord for yt~u, as thofe that dcliver'd a faithful Exa111ple, as well as Record Qf the Truth of God unco them. So wiU the Grey Hairs of your Deu Parents, yet alive, go Jown to the Grove uith Joy, to fee you the Pollerity of Truth, as well :u theirs, and that not only their Nature but Spirit fhalllive in you when they are gone. I fh:tH conclude this Account with a few Words to thofe that are not of our Communion, into whofc: Hands this may come; efpecially·thofe of our own Nation. .ftftnbll, As you Jle the Sons and Daughtm of Alanr, and my Brethren after the fle!h, oft~n and earnefl l:.: :e been my Deftres and Prayers ro God on your Behalf, that you may come to know your Creator to be your Re .. Jumer and Rejlorer ~~the l(oly Image, that .throfgh Sin you have loft, by the Power and Spmt of h11 Son Jif11< Chrijl, whom he hath given for the Light and Life of the World. And 0 that you, who are called Chti· 1\ilns, would receh·e him into yo'fr Hearts! For there it is you want him• and at that D~or he ftands knockmg that you might let him in, but you do .flot open to h1m: You are/ull of other Guefis, fo tbat a Manger is his Lot among you now, as well as of Ol~. Yet you are full of Profeffion as were th~ Je.ws when h~ carne :Jmon~ them, who knew him not, but rej~lled and e'!)IUy mrreauJ btm, So that 1f you come not to the'Poffeffion and Expe· 11ence of what you profefs, all your Formality in Religion will ftand you in no Stead in *e Day of God's Judgment. I bef~ech yon ponder with your felves your Eternal Condition, and fee what T111t, what Ground and Found:nion you have for your Chriftianity : If more than a Pro~tffion, and an Hiftorical Belief of rhe Gofpel ? Have you kn?wn the Bnptifm of Ftre, and the lfoly Ghojl, and the Fan of Chrift tA.at wmnows a~a_y the Chaff in your ~tnds, and Carnal L11jls and it.ffe~ ll1ons? That D1vme l...eaven of the Kmgdom, that being receiv'd Lea· vens che whole Lump of Man, f.mUifying him thr;11gho11r in Body: Soul and VoL. I. Of the P~ople caUed Q11akers; an.d Spirit? If this be not the Ground of your Confidence you are hr :1 1694- mtferable Eftare. . ' <..rY'-J "You _w1ll far,,. ptrh:tps, that though yoU :~~e Sinners, and live in daily .... Commtffion ofS1n, and are not SanO:ified, as I have .been fpeaking yet y00 ... have Faith in C~rift, ~.ho _has born the C_urfe for yvu, and in hi~ you are Compleat by fauh, has R1ghreoufnefs bemg irnpured to yuu 1 But, my I;riends! let me in treat you nor to deceive your f~lves, info irn .. ' portan~ a Pomt, as .'s tha~ of your Immortal Spuls. If you have tr11e Faith tn .Chn~,. your Fatth. wtl_l make rou Cledn; it. will SJnClify you: . For the ~atnts Fn~rb was tbet_r V1Etory o Old: By this tl}ey ovefcame sin wirb .. 1 nr, and Smful Men wuhout. A~~ if thou an in Cbrift, thou wi!lkeft noc after th~ Flefh, b11t after the Sp1nt, whofe Fr?ir~ ~r~ Manifeft. Yea, thou art a J\cw Creatl!re: New made, New Fafhtoned \ nfter God•s Will and ~ould. r Old Thmgs are done aw~, and behold, all Things are become J\ew: l\ew Love, Dejir~s, W1U, II tflions- and PrafJ.qs. Jr is not an !onge~ Thou t~at Ji~eft; Thou Di o?cdi_ent, c:arnal, Worldly One; bur if· Js ~hrij11hat hvtth m thee 1 and to]n'e IS Chn!t, and to die is thy Eter11al Gat~ : Becaufe thou art alfured, T~ar thy Corruptible fhall put on Incor· rupuon,. and thy Mona!, lrnmo.rtahty, and rhJt thou haft a Glorious Houfe Etern.1:lm .the .Heal'e~ that wtll .never w~x Old or pafs away. All this follows bemg 1n Chrtll, as Hear follows fire, and Lighr the Sun. 1]1erefore have a Care how you prefume to rely upon fuch a Notion as t~at you are _in Chr~ft, r.hilfl in your old [aUen Nat11re. For what Corn:nu .. mon ha~h ~tghr wtth Darknefs, or Chrift with Bdiai? Hear what the be~ ~oved Dtfctpl" tel~s you: Jf we fay we have Ftborrfoip with God. und walk tn Darknrfs, we/;~, 11nd do nat the Tntth. This is, if we go on in a Sin~ ful Way, are Capti_vated by our Carnal Affeaions, and are not Converted to God~. we. walk m Dar.knefs, and Ctl'nliOI poffib't in that State have any Fe#or»fl!lp wuh q-od. ~hnft Clothc.r them, widi bu RighteoilfneJs, rh11t re· ee1?e hu Grace tn ~helY H~a:r~, a'!d J~ny ~hemf~lves, and rake up his Crof1 Jady, a-nd (oUow b~m. Chnfts _Rtghteoufnefs makes Men inwardly Holy; of H?ly Mtn~s,_Wtlls and PraEhces. lt is nevenhelefs Chrift's, becaufe we have ~r ; for It IS ours, not by N:uure, but by Fnitb and Adoption: lr is the Glfr of God. But Rill, though not ours, as of or from our felves for in tblt Senfe it is Chrift's, for ir is of and from bim1 yec it is ours' and mu~ ?e _ours in PoffeJfi.on, Efficacy and _Enjoymmt, to do us any Good ; or Chnft s R1ghteoufnefs wtll profit us nothing. It was after this Manner thac he was made ro the Primitive Chriftians, RighttoMjnefs S6ntliftcation Juflification and Redemption ; and if ever you will ha\'e the Comfort Kernei and Marrow of the Chrilt.ian Religion, thuS you muft come ro l~arn and obtain it. · Now, my Friends, by what you have read, :1nd will read in what fol .. lows, you may perceive rhatGod has vifired a Poor People among you with this faving Knowledge and Tcftimony : Whom he has upheld and en· creafed to this D.1y, notwithftanding the fierce .Oppofition they have met withal. Defpife not the Mea.nnefs of this Appearance; It was, and yet is (we know) a Day of fmaU Tbmgr, and of fmall Account with too many~ and many hard and ill Names are given ro it: But it is of God it came from him becaufe it leads to him. This we know, but we car.no~ make a· norher ro know ir, unlefs he will. take the fame Way to know it thJt we took. The World talks of God, bur wlm do they do? They pray for Power, but rejeO the Principle in which it Is. If vou would know God, and worthip and fetve God as you fhould de, you rOuft come to rhe Means he has ordained and given for that Purpofe. Some feek ir in Books, fome in Learned Men, but what they look for, is in themfelves, though nor of themfelvcs, but they overloo!t. ir. The Voice is too flill, the Seed roo fmall, :~nd rhe Light !hineth in Darknefs ; They .1re Abroad, and fo·cannot divide the Spoil: But the Woman rhar loit her Silver, found it at Home, after (he had lighted her Candle and fwept her Houfe. Do you fo too, and you ' S X 2 · !hall |
