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Show 'I he Ch~iftian-Quaker aHd h/6 1673· Again; That the Divine Reafon toe have from God ~ an lnfallibfe Law, ~ not a Mortal Rule gtven by tbH or that Mortal; No. hfelefs PreceptM writ· , Chap. VIII. }V~,~~ephf~~~ Mi~~·~J~~~ but Immonal, being tngrilfJNI by rbe EJernal This is :tn undeniable Teltimony to the Law wri"tten in the Heart, as a more &ue/Jn:t Difpl1lfatiM, than that which is written in: Paper, or en· graven on Pillars. But fart~er, . . Phrt.Oion. X. Nor is Plutarch w.tnttng to the Proof of thts Affertton, on the Be- Prur. l half of the Gentile-Divinity, who thus delivers himfelf, fpcaking of the Principle of God in the C?nfc_ience : (/~ It is a Lzw (faith .~) ltPt rvritten in Tables ' ' Bookt, lnlt dwe11mg tn the Mmd~ always as a liVIng Rule, which never permits the Soul to be dtjlitMte of euz int(rior G111d1. Again, To Jrbaje thU anc~nt Faith. of .Manh.ind, and Natu,.fll &lief wbi~b is planted i11 aU Reafonable Souls, zs to overthrow tbt flrong 11ml tvcrlajlu;g Foundation of Virt11e. He is doubtlefs very zealous aod fcnSble, on the Beholf of an Inward Divine Principle. Dif. lib. r. XI. But be pleafed to hear whar Epiflctm fays in this Morter, who was Rp. 14. admired for his great Virtue and Living, and whofc: Memory is prefervLd in great Refpetl: among many who would think themfelves muc:h wrong'd if they fhould not be accounted Chri(tians, ( m )Wben you have /hut yo11r Gate;< (fairb he) and tnade it all Dark roitbin; that is to fay, are retired to your own Dwe!Ji1tg, tU alone, do not fay that you are alone, for you art not alone, b.ut God is Within : What need have you of outward Light to difcovet what is done, orto light to good ACtions,. who have God, or that Geniu5, or Divine Principle for y1)ur Light, as the following Words d.o farther im~~!r~bove all the Gentile$ that have been mention'd, I mean in Foint of plain and pofirive Expreffion. (for I wiU prefer the Life of none before rba~ Se/fdenying JUartyr Socntes) let us bear with great Attention what kind of Lefiure Seneca will read us UpGn the Subjea banclled, truly fome1hing very weighty. XII. The lt1ultirude, faith Senu a, i$ the worj1 .A.rgumen1: Ltt 111 int] Uirt what is befi to be dont, not what mojl ufuaUy is Jqne, and that "'9 f~ttlt tH i.n tbt fo.ffeffion of Everlajling Happinifs i not what is nUorttd t1J the Vulgar, the worfllnterpreters of Truth. (n) 1 have ( faith he) a dtartr a11d mort urtain Light, by mbicb I may judge the Truth from Falfoood : Tbat which appertaills to the Felicity of the So11l, tbt Erental M.ind ailJ direEl Senec.E.p.41, to; that wtUtbt Light uirhin, doubtlefs Seneca meant. Again, It it afoo/ifo Thing f or tbee.to wijh ubat by thee cannot he ohloinfd. God is near thee, and be is in thee. The Holy Spirit fiu or rejides within m, the Obferver of our Good aNd Evil .A.llirms; aJ bt i$ dealt with by zH, He deals wirh us. De:Bcnef. &t ytt farther, we hove thi$ (!!~1 Gift, faith Seneca, That Virtue (mean· .. •1· ;,g the Principk, or God) HATH, SENT HER LIGHT BEFORE INTO THE MINDS OF ALL; for even they that foUo"' Her not, fee Her. JVher~ olferue, Reader, bow bt confe.fferb to the Vniverfality of t he Li,gbt, yet lay$ the Fault of RebeUion n.tdinjl it, not upon the Light ( tU Jo 6Mf Ene· miu) but onfucb ot refuJe to f oUow it; implying their volunt11ry RejeOion (1) Becaufe whattver may be known of God it mnifeft: within ; for God kath fbcwtd it unto them: But becaufe they liked not to retaiu God in their Knowledge, God ga\'c th(:,ub to~~~e' t!.~~ft\~~hc:; ~~; ~~;~oderftand.tft my Thoughu afar uff: Wbithcr ~~)~~~ ~~ atk~o~~ir~~;/{V'::d•~·:::e~,h~i"y, ~ Plfo 1.19.-The Lord hath lbewtd vnto thee, 0 Man, what is Good, and what he deth require of thee, Mird, 6. 8. --In him we live, move, and have our lkiag. AS1 '7• 28.-such as Men Sow, fach lball they Rtap, G1l.6. 1·~:AN.t tm tketillt Ll&ht, whi'h inlight'Atth aU Naa);:illd, )olm •• 9· of VoL. l. Teftimony Statell and P'inriicated. if . ' u ' n:r. . • ~ 9-a o 11 .r .IJtllvtJtry ucovenu, Again, (o) Wonderell thoM that lJfen · D ~tO <Jttd I God comes unco Men: lvoY._ fJ.lhicb is more near b h ~T 1671· MAN ; and b( mak($ the Heart o/ every good Man h? fub~me! 0 ~ again he3~ him \ Not.hing ir cloftd from God; bt h wi:hin ou~taJ~~~~ "!:J f~~.YII1L be mnub mro. the Mid!l of our. Thoughts. And lallly, Every Man (faith E~ift:'J;. ~?K~·G~r mdued wirh thar, which if he forfake it nor, he fuall arife Epil\. l •· J HJMch morfe Weigh_ty, b Sober and Impmial Reader, ate thefe in· J uar ~mes o ~ the V1~tuous Gentiles, than the vehement Clamou1s and unch~mahle Exclama~tons of .e~pry Chriftians againft rhem ? Wh~ feem a~ ~f they ~ere afra1d ?f n?thmg. more than inherent Holfnefs, rho" of Chn!ls Wotkmg' Repuung 11 a kind of Undervaluing of his Blood to fee~ the IRWflrd Benefit of ic ; accounting us rhe greateR: Huetid s fo; af!ennn~ to the gre;ncft Truth, t9 wit, The Sufficiency of his Univetfal Lt&ht, m the Hearrs o~ Men,.. ro Salvation ; challenging us to prove it bY Scrtpture, or an~ Cred1ble Hlftory •. and. objeding the Heathens I orance and Idol~ try agamft the ~!Uth af Its D1fcoveries and £tficacy of fi?s Power .. Wh1ch tbe very .Gentiltt defend us againfi and confirm the Univcr• faluy and Power of 1t. ' CHAP. IX. Tbat .tb!t. lV:U not only the DoUrine and Faith of the Gemiles /Jut the vcr P£/"//'T.~nf!ofl<?rs, or F:nhers, both f o be/J, andJo expreft•J tbemfelve? rg t tyunomer productd f or Proof thereof : • B ~T/s I hdavhe hitherco fbewn: botb that the Gemilet believed ia On~ . o , an . ad a very clear Apprehenfion of the Litht or Divine Fnnctplt pl'!ttd .rn . .Mnn! from which all Heavenly Knowledge 'is derived . and b that thts .~l vtne. L1gh~, or Spirit, or Principle was by them alfened t o e the mop cert~tn G~1de, and lnfalJible Ruk of F.:Iith and Practice . an~ farrher, that tlle Scnprures produced do abundantly verify their nO: ~nnes; fo ~o the End the angty Men I have menrioned fhould not count 1t ~ Prophanmg of Holy Writ, or think I am the only Man that ever had ~hat favourable Apprehenfion of thefe Gentile-DoCtrines 1 am willing r6 1oftanc::e rome of the rnoft Prill_lidve and Approved Fathe;s of the Cbrifii~ an Church ; a~d by a. fhorc y1ew of what they belieyed in Reference to the prefent SubJeB:. Wtth thetr way of phrafing fuch Belief, we may the n:tore cl~arly percetve, ho~ far thofe Gentiles are by them reprehenfible, ~u~er wuh Refp~El: ro thetr Soundnefs in Judgment, or Expreffion . that 1f Jt ~ poffible, '!'e mJy fol~e their ObjeCtion againft the Univerfali~y and SuffiCiency of this Bletfed Light. • .. , • ..> •• I I. (a) Jaflmf~t Martyr, whom I therefore chufe to begin with becaufe from .• a Learned Phrlofopber, becoming an 1Jonefl Chrifli,m, and Con.ftanr Mar· ~rtft aftd tyr (f~om whence he was furn:~med Martyr) he could the berter tell us 123. '~ t ~e Difference of. rh.e Change : But fo far was he from reputing the Prin- C1ple o~ ~od wt.t~m Men, HereroJox, or inconfiftent wich the Purity of the. Chnfl:tal) ReJ1gton, tilat with no fmall Earneftnefs he therefore pleads agJtnlt: all Coercive Power upon Confcience, and the Pompous Worfhip of (~t) ~hold, theTaberrucleofGodbwirhMen, 1{~.'21• 3·-Hethat dedarerh unto Man hiS T~oughts, tlte .Lord, t~e God of Hoftsis his Name, Am~t• 4· 13, --While hL~:~ the Llghr, waNe m the Light, that ye may be the Children of the Li.;ht. God~ iont, 'fohn 12. 36. · - •. t John 1. ~· tu (•) I( ~h~ Reader. Will pleafe to inform himfdf of the ReaJons that induc'd 1 u/lin to of~n Ch~ifl:i~n, he WJI.l fi.nd the Li£ln. Wil~i1f acknowledged robe the Efficient Caure there· ' for 1t ~as. th~ Pnnc1ple of God m h1s Confcience chat continually pleaded the Cbrifti· f{t' Caufe wnhm him, an~ who a~ !aft:. overcominJ, '1u/li11 Belieres in ( brift, and Dyes fer un too. New what D1fgrace JS this to dle J.ight Within ( lhq |
