Now the reafon he gives why he denies man any rule, power, dominion, government, or authority, either given, or committed to him from the Lord, as pertaining to the confcience in things relating to the worship of God, is because it belangeth to Chrift the light, the invifible power which dwells in men and women, &c.

Rem. All power in heaven and earth was given to Chrift, and belongs to him; that is freely granted.. But the queftion is, whether he hath not given of this power to his children, and his fervants and minifters, as his Father gave of it unto him? Doth not he give power to as many as believe in his name to become fons of God? Did not he make his apostles able minifters of the new covenant, in the Spirit and power wich he gave them? All power is given me in heaven and in earth, faid Chrift, Matt. xxviii. 18. Go ye therefore and teach all nations, &c. ver. 19.; but wait at Jerusalem for the power first, Acts i. 8. So when the power came upon them, it led them forth in their work, and they had power to gather, and power to build up, and power to govern and watch over the flock of God, over which the Holy Ghoft had made them overfeers, Ats xx. 28. And Paul speaks of the power the Lord had given him to ufe fharpness, even against thofe in that church of Corinth, who would not be fubject to him in that which he had received from the Lord, 2 Cor. xiii. 10. But this power was to edification, but not to deftruction. For though he had power from Chrift the Lord, and did by that Spirit, and in that power, deliver Hymeneus and Alexander unto Satan; yet it was not that they fhould be deftroyed by the Devil, but that, by feeling themselves out of the truth, and under the dominion of a wrong fpirit, they might come to true fenfe and understanding, and learn not to blafpheme the truth, nor the dignities whom God hath made honourable in the truth, 1 Tim. i. 20. And not the apostle only, but the church of Corinth, had a fhare in the fame power; and therefore the apostle, knowing what was given and committed to them, exhorts them, that in the name of our Lord Jefus Chrift, when they were gathered together, and his Spirit, with the power of our Lord Jefus Chrift, to deliver fuch an one to Satan: but this was not for deftruction, to destroy the foul; but to bring it back into a state of edification and falvation, which now, by departing from the truth, it was gone from. It was indeed for the deftruction of the flesh, but not of the fpirit; but that the fpirit might be faved in the day of the Lord Jefus, 1 Cor. v. 4, 5.

Secondly, The next thing I fhall obferve is this: he faith, There is no glory to be given to man, although he be born of the light.

Rem. That glory and honour is to be given to man, which God gives to man, who hath faid, Them that honour me, I will honour; and they that defpife me, shall be lightly esteemed, 1 Sam. ii. 30. He that brings his deeds to the light, they being juftified and approved there, he hath honour in the light. His deeds being made manifeft that they are wrought in God, that is honour enough for him, John iii. 21. The children of light feek VOL. II. Aaaa

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for glory, and honour, and immortality, and eternal life; and that glory and honour they have, and eternal life from God, Rom. ii. 7. They feek not the honour that is from men, but the honour that cometh from God only, John v. 44. the honour in the truth, in the life, in the power, which God gives them in the hearts of all that are truly fenfible and living. For honouring the Lord and his truth, how can I but honour thofe that are honourable in his eye, and who are glorious, in his truth! For indeed the children of light, the tender, the humble, the contrite and broken-hearted ones, are glorious in his eye, and the Lord doth exalt them in due time; for after the true humility, and in the true humility, they come to partake of the true honour, 1 Pet. v. 5, 6. And fo every true Jew, every true fervant, every faithful fteward, every true minifter, that is faithful in the use of his gift and talent, hath praise of God, Rom. ii. 29.; and they that are of God, honour thofe whom God honours, glorifying the Lord for them, and honouring them in the Lord, 2 Cor. viii. 18. Oh! how could this man fay, there is no glory to be given to man, though he be born of the light, when-as the king's daughter is all glorious within, and man in that birth is nothing but glorious in the eye of the Lord! Man, having finned, fell fhort of the glory of God; but coming out of fin, cometh into the glory again, and is daily more and more changed into the glorious image of the Son, from glory to glory, &c. 2 Cor. iii. 18. The aim of God is to bring many fons to glory, Heb. ii. 10.; and as they come out of darknefs and fin into light and holinefs, they come into the glory, and are in the glory. Is it not their glory in the Lord, and in his light, to be owned and acknowledged by them that are one with them in the fame light? They who love God, and honour God, cannot but love them, and honour them, who are begotten by him, and who are in an especial manner made use of by him in his Service, for the good of fouls, and for the prefervation and building up of the church. The apostle fpeaks of double honour to be given to the elders that rule well, efpecially they who labour in the Word and doctrine, and would (from the Spirit of God) have them counted worthy of it, 1 Tim. v. 17. How far is this man from the apostle's mind, who would have no glory given to any man, no not to the children of light, nor minifters in the light, who in the apoftles days were the glory of Chrift! 2 Cor. viii. 23. Yea, the just that live by faith in Christ, and are gathered by him out of Satan's kingdom into his spiritual kingdom, and walk in the light, as God is in the light, there light doth fhine in them, and they do fhine as the fun in the firmament; and they that are honoured by the Lord to turn many to righteousness, do fhine as ftars: and though one ftar differs from another in glory; yet all that come into the true nature and heavenly image of the Son, do come into a measure of the true glory, and have fome of the glory given them which God gave to Chrift; and in that are glorious, partaking of his Spirit, king

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dom, power, and holy dominion over fin and Satan, all which is truly glorious, John xvii. 22.

Thirdly, The third thing I shall obferve is this: he faith, All is to be given to Chrift, the light in man, unto whom alone it doth belong, who is the true minifter, and bath power in himself to teach all the fons and daughters of men, &c.

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Rem. That Chrift is the true minifter, that is not denied; but doth not Chrift, who is the true minifter in the power of the endless life, fend forth difciples and ambaffadors in the fame power, and make them, through his Spirit and power, able minifters of the NewTeftament? And they that hear them, do they not hear Chrift? And they that defpife or deny them, do they not defpife or deny Chrift? And doth not Chrift fay to the feventy difciples, He that beareth you, beareth me; and he that defpifeth you, defpifeth me; and he that defpifeth me, defpifeth him that fent me? Luke x. 16. It is antichrift that fo vainly pretends to fet up Chrift, or his light, or Spirit, or power, as to deny thofe that are fent of him, and minifter in his name. As man is in the fall, he is corrupt, and his works are out of God, and he is there to be denied, ceased from, and not accounted of; but in the restoration, in union and fellowship with the Lord, he is a worker together with God, and is there to be owned, and hath a fhare in miniftring out of the heavenly treasure that dwells in him. So Chrift was the great Minifter, who had the fullness; and they that have gifts from him for the work of the ministry, and who minister in and from the gift, and in that are able and faithful, are esteemed and accounted as minifters by him. So faith the apostle, As every man bath received the gift, even fo minifter the fame one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. If any man speak, let him speak the oracles of God; if any man minifter, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth; that God in all things may be glorified through Jefus Chrift, to whom be praife and dominion for ever and ever, Amen, 1 Pet. iv. 10, 11. And Paul faith, he was made a minister of the gospel according to the gift of the grace of God given unto him, by the effectual working of his power, Ephef. iii. 7. Now the gift is given, not to those that are wife after the flesh (unless that wisdom is firft broken); but to fuch as are mean, poor, weak, low, or fome way or other contemptible in the eye of man's wifdom, and easy to be difregarded and defpifed by men. Yea, it is hard to despise the man whom God fends, without defpiling his gift in him; and the gift cannot be despised or rejected, without defpifing or rejecting him that gave it, as the apoftle told the church of the Theffalonians, he that defpifed or rejected, defpifed or rejected not man, but God (who gives his Holy Spirit to them whom he fends forth to minifter in his name), I Theff. iv. 8. He had been beseeching and exhorting the brethren by the Lord Jefus Chrift, that as they had received of them how they ought to walk, and to please God, fo they would abound more and more. For ye know, faid he, what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jefus Chrift. Mark: the apoftle did not only turn them to the Word of life and power in themselves; but did give them Aaaa 2

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commandments from the Word of life in him, and they received of them whom Chrift fent forth, how they ought to walk, &c. ver. 1, 2. And life hath not loft any of its authority; but the power may teach and command others through any veffel when it pleafeth; and they that are the true fheep, know the voice of the true Shepherd, fpeaking either in their own hearts, or through any other inftrument unto them. And the voice of wisdom in any, is in every age ftill heard and juftified of her children; and he that is of God heareth his voice, in those whom he fends in this age, as well as in former ages; and he that is not of God heareth not his voice; and hereby the Spirit of truth and spirit of error is known in this, as well as in former ages, 1 John iv. 6.

Fourthly, The fourth paffage I fhall take notice of, is in thefe words: Wherefore, faid he, whofoever doth exalt Chrift the light, who is the true Minifter, before themselves, by Christ the light within hall those be exalted.

Rem. This is very different from what went before: for before he denied all glory and exaltation at all to man, although he be born of the light; here he fpeaks of exalting Chrift, the true minifter, before themselves; which doubtlefs every true minifter, and every child of light, cannot but do; and herein he confeffeth they fhall be exalted by Chrift the light. Then glory is given to them; and he that fees them thus exalted by the light, cannot but efteem them, as fo honoured and exalted by Chrift, and give them that glory which Chrift hath given them. And happy would it be with this man, could he fee the true church, which God hath brought out of the Wilderness, and beautified and gloriously built up to a great height; and the elders and minifters whom he preferveth, and is with, and makes ufe of in his fervice, and give them in his heart the honour and glory which God had glorified them with. But that he cannot do, till he come out of Babylon, and out of that dark and confused spirit wherein he wrote thefe things, into that light and holy Spirit of truth, which discovers what they are (to those that are in the truth), and condemns the ground and root out of which they sprang.

Fifthly, The next thing to be observed by me is this: He layeth it down as his judgment, faith, and belief, that whatever is written to the churches, ought to be written from God's infallible Spirit, and the Word of eternal life; wherein I am one with him: for what good can any thing do the living, but what comes from life, and from God's infallible Spirit, which alone is able rightly to exhort, advise, admonish, warn, and build up fpiritual? But his inference thereupon is that which is before me to take notice of Wherefore, faith he, your paper to the churches is not to be owned by the churches, inafmuch as it was written from a fight, or a fenfe, and from the fenfible part, and not in and from the Spirit of Revelation.

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Rem. God hath, in his holy church and living people, opened the eye that was once blind, and daily anointeth that eye, giving a true fight, and in the fpringings of life giveth a true fenfe; and that which giveth this, is the

Spirit of revelation; and what is written in this fight and fenfe, is written from the Spirit of revelation. And the called people of the Lord wait upon the Lord, that they may be kept in this fight, fenfe, and Spirit, in what they do at all times; but more efpecially when they confider of things relating to the churches, even to the welfare, holy order, and peace thereof, that God's Spirit may have its fcope every-where, and nothing else have place in the churches of Chrift. And though every one be not an eye and ear-witness of what is to be confidered of for the good of the churches; yet every one waits to feel things in the opening and springing life, and in that to speak, confider, or write. I have often seen the carriage of things after this manner, to the joy of my heart, and caufing of my foul livingly to blefs the Lord for it; and therefore may I, yea ought I, now thus to fpeak this teftimony, which the Lord hath livingly given me, being at this time required of me. Oh! that men knew the ferioufnefs and folemnity of our fpirits before the Lord, in our confidering things relating to his church, and how we retire out of man's wisdom (affectionate part, and comprehending part, as he speaks) to feel the fpringing life, and God's holy guidance there; and how the Lord doth fatisfy and bless us with it! So that we can fay, in truth and uprightnefs of heart, not we (as men) of ourselves do things on truth's account; but he on whofe fhoulders God hath laid the government rules and reigns among us; and things are ordered by his counfel and wisdom to his praife. And the peace and comfort of God's Spirit remains with us, in the midft of all the reproaches and oppofitions we meet with from that evil fpirit, which envieth and oppofeth us many This one word more is with me, as to this particular: God hath given believers, his church, senses exercised to difcern both good and evil; and those fenfes are not without the true life and Spirit, and every motion and action of them is in that life, and in that Spirit.

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And whereas he further faith: Whatfoever is written, declared, or given forth, in the fight, or in the fenfe, or from the fenfible part, it is not to be owned; for the fenfible part is that which hath been in the tranfgreffion with the woman, &c.

Rem. Herein he is greatly mistaken: for friends in truth do not speak, or write, or admonifh, or reprove, or give warning from that part; but from the fight and fenfe which God gives to his own birth; and it is the Spirit of God that gives both the fight and fenfe, and fpeaks through them; and those whose ears are circumcifed and opened know the voice, and give glory to God, and are obedient to his Spirit, when it gives advice and warning through any; which thofe that are in the comprehending part, and confider and judge in that, cannot have the fense of.

Sixthly, He faith, Antichrift will bring a veil over the understanding of men and women, and yet they, for the prefent, cannot perceive it.

Rem. This is very true. I would he and others, who are veiled by antichrift, did fee it; for then he would not efteem thofe veiled whom the

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