soul it may so shine forth before the sons of men that they seeing thy good works may have cause administred to glorify our father which is in heaven It is not words now Christian although they were spoken with tongues of men and Angels when that worthy name is every where well spoken of but faith that works by love and love by works that will distinguish a heady from a hearty Christian Say not in thine heart that Christs Comands are low and his appointments carnall legal injunctions and at the best but neat for babes least hereby thine heart be declared to be vainly puft â—p in thy carnall or fleshly mind and to have too low and carnall conceits of Christ himself who is the injoyner appointer and commander thereof and shall ere long appear as Judge yea least hereby thou be declared ignorant or at the best forgetful of this one thing that it is the great design of God in Christ as to glorifie himself to admiration in poor sinful flesh so whilest he doth it to hide pride from man and therefore as he hath chosen not many wise mighty nor noble of this world but the foolish weak base despised nothings thereof so hath he suited his commands and appointments thereunto and intends through these foolish things so to cause his wisdome to shine forth as thereby to confound the wise through these weak things so to cause his power to appear as thereby to confound the things that are mighty and through these base dispised things that are not to bring to nought those noble glorious and excellent things of the world that are Thou mayst herein see gentle Reader that I have rather chosen to bear witness to the faith and order of our Lord and to shew unto the world but especially unto thee what is the mind of Christ in this time of his absence as to faith and obedience to shew I say rather what is truth which is but one than to bear witness against the ly which is so various knowing that the truth once established shall discover the falshood and light breaking forth shall scatter the darkness And whilest I lead thee forth to seek him whom thy soul loveth and longeth after who is also thy joy and thy Crown while I lead thee I say by the footsteps of those flocks that first trusted in Christ and were fed by such pastors according to his own heart as he gave them God forbid that thou shouldst be as one that wilt turn aside by the flocks of his companions and shouldst be found remaining either on the left side in a visible way of worship in deed but such as was neither appointed by Christ nor yet practised by them who first trusted in him or on the right in no visible way of worship or order at all either pretending that the outward court is given to the Gentiles and the holy City is by them to be troden under foot that the Church of Christ is now in the wilderness and the time of its recovery is not yet or else pretending that God is a spirit and so will in spirit be worshipped and not in this place or that in this way or that Well if thou beest in these waies misled I can no longer forbear in tenderness of spirit and compassionate bowels of love to stretch forth a helping hand thereby to try whether it be the good pleasure of God at this time to drop down a word of light and life and power into thine heart that thou mayest be there by awakned and quickned to be still saying within thy soul Lord what wilt thou have me to do so shalt thou hear such a saying as this Come out from among them Oh my people and be ye separate from them and touch no unsanctifyed thing and I will receive you and be a father unto you and ye shall be my sons and daughters saith the Lord God Almighty and also such a saying as this Blessed are they that do his commands for they have right to the tree of life and shall enter in through those gates of pearl into that glorious City Rev. 22. 14. and know that these are the commandments of Jesus sci As ye have received Christ Jesus the Lord so walk ye in him and behold I come quickly hold that fast which thou hast yea hold fast till I come And such as may be under the later disceptions let me intreat thee to ponder these words in thine heart sci That prophecies although marvelous plain and easy to be understood cannot warrant a pure conscience to neglect much less to cast off the commandments and oppointments of Jesus neither can the spirit of Christ direct or incourage the heart of a Christian to cast off his lordship no no the spirit of Christ is hereby distinguished from that of Antichrist in that he shall unfainedly confess that Jesus is the Christ and that this Christ Jesus is come in the flesh and when he is come according to promise into the heart of a Christian he shall not speak of himself but as a messenger his office is to gloryfie Christ by taking of him and his and shewing it unto yea writing it in the heart of a Christian so that I dare boldly say there is none for the exaltation of Christ Jesus the lord according to his last will and testament and for the nourishing a lively hope in the heart of a Christian concerning his glorious return I say there is none to that holy spirit of promise who being also the spirit of truth shall guide the souls of the Saints to worship the father as in spirit so likewise in truth and therfore that spirit that speaks of himself and is so far from taking of Christs to exalt and gloryfie him according as he hath foretold and his father intended that he takes from Christ laies him low and diminisheth his glory that spirit cannot be the spirit of Christ or that holy spirit of promise and for asmuch as the spirit speaketh expresly that in these later daies there shall be seducing spirits that shall deceive if it were possible the very elect of God whose incounter will not be so much with flesh and blood but with wicked spirits in high places let me therfore exhort thee in the words of that beloved disciple of Christ beleive not every spirit but try the spirits and that by this rule whether they be of God or no bring them to the wholsome words of the holy Apostles Prophets and son of God ye erre saith Christ not knowing the scriptures and the power of God let it be thy care Christian therfore to search the Scriptures and therein to wait for the power and glory of the spirit of God And look to thy spirit for as immediately before Christs appearing in flesh Satan in a large measure possessed the bodies of men that by his casting them out his power in flesh might appear So before his coming again in glory I have grounds
therein they that cannot interpret it by the other four nor yet by the Commission it self nor by the Commissioners faithful observance thereof in all other instances let them prove if they can these three particulars 1. That Lydia ever had a husband 2. In case she had that ever she had any children by him and if so then in the 3. place that they were not dead or so grown up that they might hear and receive the word gladly as well as their mother 3. A third argument to prove that a visible believer is the person that according to the mind of Christ is to be baptized in water may be taken from the order which the Spirit of Christ laies down faith and baptism in the scriptures of truth putting faith still in the first place witness Mark 16. 15 16. Mat. 28. 19. Heb. 6. Eph. 4. A 4 argument may be taken from the nature of the ordinance and a 5 from Johns Baptism Yea much more might be said to this point but this may suffice And also the only person that is to walk in the visible order of his house and so to wait for his comming the second time in the form of a Lord and King with his glorious Kingdome according to promise That he is the only person that is to enter into and walk in the visible order of his house will evidently appear if the order in which our Lord left his house when he went to his Father to receive his kingdome be duly considered for in his last will and testament we shall find it thus recorded when our Lord was about to be gone he gave order unto his Apostles whom he made stewards in his house of the mysteries of God to make him Disciples of all Nations and that such as were so made should then be baptized and so visibly planted into Christ and put on Christ and having so received him should walk in him observing all things whatsoever he had commanded the first thing wherof as touching order was to be added or joined one to another in the fellowship of the Gospel by a mutual professed subjection to the Scepter of Christ and being a company thus called out of the world from worldly vanities and worldly worships after Christ Jesus the Lord which is the proper English of these words the Church of Christ and is in other terms called the Houshold of faith should steadfastly continue together in the Apostles doctrine sci the consolation reproof and instruction thereof in Fellowship sci mutual support both inward and outward in Breaking of bread thereby remembring the death of our Lord whose soul was made an offering for sin as his flesh is meat indeed and his blood drink indeed by the help of the Spirit to nourish our souls and spirits up unto eternal life and in prayer one with and for another And that this is the absolute order which the Lord hath appointed in his last Will and Testament doth evidently appear both by his own precept and command and by the practice of such as first trusted in him and if so then neither infants of daies nor yet such as profess themselves to be believers in Jesus but refuse as a manifestation thereof according to the practice of such as first trusted in Christ to yield up themselves to be planted into the death burial and resurrection of Christ and so visibly to put Christ on as did the Christians of old I say such have no visible right to enter into or walk in the order of the Gospel of Christ and to conclude the point the argument stands thus They and they only have visible right to enter into and walk in the visible order of Christs house and so to wait for his comming whom Christ Jesus himself being the Lord of the house hath appointed and his Apostles being his stewards have approved of But such as first have been taught and made disciples or Scholars of Jesus and believers in Christ and afterwards have bin baptised or dipped and therby visibly lively planted into the death burial and resurrection of Christ are they and they only whom Christ hath appointed and the Apostles have approved of See his Commission peruse their practice Ergo They and they only have visible right to enter into and walk in the order of Christs house and so to wait for his comming the second time in the form of a King with his glorious Kingdom according to promise See for a farther confirmation of the last clause in the first Epistle to the Corinthians 1. 7. 1 The 1 10. 2. The. 3. 5. But to proceed He is the person that is also to wait for his Lords sending down from the right hand of his father in the time of his absence the holy Ghost or holy Spirit of promise and all this according to the last will and testament of that living Lord That this living Lord did promise when he left this present evil world that is in a great measure subjected to devils and went to his Father not only to return again but in the time of his absence as a testimony of his great love unto such as are called to be his disciples manifest the same by loving him keeping his commandments and as a teâ—â—imony of his loving acceptance at the right hand his Father to send down the holy Spirit which should be in them as a well-spring of living water flowing forth unto eternall life who being a Spirit of truth and sent by Christ who is the truth which God will exalt shall glorifie him take of him and his and shew unto them and so lead them from truth to truth until he hath brought them into all truth as a comforter or Spirit of comfort shall fill their hearts with joy in believing by bearing witness with their spirits that they are the children of God and by revealing unto them the precious things w ch God hath prepared for them that love him which neither eye hath seen nor ear hath heard neither hath it entred into the heart of man to conceive and as a holy Spirit shall set them apart that are justifyed by the blood of his Son unto the holy God and sanctifie them throughout in soul and spirit and body and as a Spirit of supplication shall help them to speak unto God and as a Spirit of prophecy to speak unto men that this Lord I say did promise unto his disciples who love him and keep his commandments in the time of his absence the presence of such a Spirit as this which hath supplies in him beyond what the â—oul lacks and that therfore they are to wait for this promise and for these supplies in his appointments will clearly appear 1. Out of the words of the Lord himself See Iohn 14. 15 16 17. so v. 26. chap. 15. 26. chap. 16. 7 8. so v. 13 14 15. five times in that night in which he was betraied doth he repeat that promise to his Disciples
that loved him and kept his commandments and that he intended the same unto other visible disciples that should love him and keep his commandments unto the end of the world will also appear for if the appointment of Christ sci the supper that went before and is exprest chapter the 13. and the prayer of Christ that followed after and is exprest chapter 17. did belong unto them that should believe through their word till he come again then this promise that is so often repeated between doth as well belong unto them as to these but the former is true See Iohn 17. 20. 1. Cor. 11. 26. therefore the later If the consequence be denied it will still be proved out of Christs own words See Iohn 7. 37 38. and the consideration even in reason of Christs exceeding love and tender care towards all his disciples that love him and keep his commandments and their sensible wants of the same supplies of the Spirit will clearly evince it 2. It will clearly appear out of the words of the Apostles of Christ See Iohns interpretation of these words of Christ Out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water This spake he saith Iohn of the Spirit which they that believe on him should receive for the holy Spirit was not yet because Iesus was not yet glorified John 7. 29. See also what they all say with one mouth after they had received this holy Spirit with power whereby they were furnished as Apostles or Embassadors of him that had all power in heaven and earth in his hand to go forth with the embassage of peace into all Nations and could deliver the mind of their Lord unto them in their own language Acts 2. 38 39. Repent and be baptised every one of you in the name of Iesus for the remission of sins ye shall receive the gift of the holy Spirit for the promise is to you and to your children and to all that are a far off as many of all these as the Lord our God shall call sci to repentance from dead works to faith in Christ Iesus to this visible manifestation thereof by being baptised and so visibly planted into the death buriall and resurrection of Christ for the remission of sins 3. This will also appear by the enjoyments of those that first trusted in Christ and visibly manifested their faith and love in and to the Lord by keeping his commandments The Disciples which were also called Apostles waiting in the appointment of their Lord at Jerusalem received and were filled with that holy Spirit with power according to promise See Acts 1. 4. compared with 2. 2. So that great number that were about three or rather five thousand souls that believed through their word and were baptized in Jerusalem and waited in the appointments of the same Lord that is to say together steadfastly in the Apostles doctrine and in fellowship and in breaking of bread and in prayer they also enjoied this holy Spirit according to promise See Acts 4. 31. The like may be found among the Saints in Samaria Acts 8. 17. in Ephesus Acts 19. And the same may be found among the Saints that thus put on Christ and walked in him among those that first trusted in him in all places See it in the Romans chap. 5. 5. and chap. 8. at large See it in the Corinthians Epistle 1. chap. 2. 10. 12. and 6. 11. 19. and ch 12. at large In the Galathians ch 3. 2. 4. 6. In the Ephesians chap. 1. 13. In the Philippians chap. 3. 3. In the Colossians chap. 1. 8. In the Thessalonians Ep. 1. chap. 1. 5 6. and chap. 5. 19. This promise is also found true in the litle children that Iohn writes to and is often repeated 1 Iohn 3. 24 4. 13. and in the 2. 27. he speaks unto them after this manner but the anointing speaking of this holy Spirit of promise which ye have received of him abideth in you and such is his supply that you need not that any man teach you but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things and is truth and is no lie even as it hath taught you ye shall abide in him And now litle Children abide in him c. And Iude telleth us that the very ground why some that had made a profession of the faith and order of Iesus caused divisions and offences contrary to that doctrine they had received and separated themselves was because they were sensuall not having this Spirit Iude 19 And as all this hath been proved by the last Will and Testament of that living Lord so is it also clear that his Will is not to be added to or taken from compare Gal. 3. 15. with Rev. 22. 18 19. which notwithstanding if any man shall attempt to do let him know this Lord is alive and will ere-long appear sufficiently able to avenge it 3. I testifie that every such servant of Christ Iesus may in point of liberty yea ought in point of duty to improve that talent which his Lord hath given unto him That it is their duty to improve the talent the Lord hath given unto them and that for that end it was also given will appear by those two instances of the Lord himself the first is Mat. 5. 13 14 15. Ye saith the Lord to his Disciples are the salt of the earth the light of the world c. neither do men light a candle and put it under a hushell but on a candlestick whereby he intimates that if it be far from the intention of men who are but weak and foolish in their intentions and actions to sight a candle which is for use and then to put it under a bushell and so make it useless then much further from the purpose and intention of God who is the father of lights to enlighten the spirit of a man which is the candle of the Lord and then to have that light concealed and with-held therefore it follows let your light saith the Lord so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorifie your father which is in heaven The other instance is in the 19 th chapter of Luke 11 12 13 14 15 16. to the 27. verse in which Parable is lively declared by the Lord 1. That that glorious Kingdome of God that shall certainly appear should not so immediatly appear as some thought it should for which end is the Parable spoken verse 11. and the first words of the Parable will prove the same thing for the Noble-man which is Christ Iesus the Lord must first go into a far counâ—ry to receive his Kingdome which is to the right hand of the Father there to sit untill all his enemies become his footstool and so return 2. Here is declared the order in which this Lord left this houshold when he went to receive his Kingdome he bestowed gifts or talents upon them and commands them as his servants in their severall places to occupy till he come
mind of the Lord to root up the wheat also 4. To countenance and incourage as through Gods mercifull hand on your hearts in some measure you do such as are faithful and upright in the land by this means shall a wide and effectual door be opened and so shall the word of the Lord which is the Gospel of Christ go forth run and be glorifyed through all those parts of the world that acknowledge your power and that which is of God shall stand encrease and be propagated and that which is not of God shall fall decay and come to nothing Thus shall you also accomplish the words of the Prophets of old in becoming nursing fathers unto the servants and children of God who under you shall lead a peaceable and quiet life in all godliness and honesty and shall be greatly obliâ—ged to improve their interest in the father of mercies by their presenting to him constant and earnest petitions supplications intercessions and giving of thanks on your behalf And for the furtherance of those worthy thoughts of your hearts they shall not cease to preach and declare to great and small what they have seen and felt and heard touching the Gospel of Christ and to pray the lord of the harvest to send forth faithful and painful labourers into his harvest which is also the constant hearty and earnest request of Your humble and faithful Subject JOHN CLARK To the Honored Magistracy the Presbytery and their dependency in the Mathatusets Colony in New-England The Author wisheth repentance to the acknowledgement of the truth as it is in Jesus Christ HOnored Friends for so without scruple or dissimulation can I call you some of you I honor for your parts others for your places sake and both for many good things I see in you and for evils reformed by you I call you friends for my love to you in truth is unfained neither are there I bless the Lord notwithstanding the discourteous usage which I and my friends received from you any evill thoughts in my heart towards you because I judge you were put upon what you did by a zeal I would not think unto private or caanall interests but towards God thinking thereby to do him service although I confidently believe and therefore boldly do affirm that his soul abhors it And that I may deal plainly with you as a friend I will tell you what in my heart I think and judge that such a zeal of God is not according to true knowledge or knowledge of the truth as it is in Jesus Christ which would soon take you off and free you from that soul murdering and blood thirsty lie I hope you will not be offended to see this Narrative brought forth into the publick view it being upon the point forst from me by your friends agent here seeing also the matter which is contained therein is of no less than of publick concernment was not done in a corner is the fruit of your zeal and that wherin I suppose you glory and count your selves herein a worthy pattern for all that sear the Lord to follow you and withall their might to be conformed to which if a truth I then save you a labour and further your design yea I publish your praise and glory but my own disgrace and shame but if a mistake and falsehood I shall then hereby give occasion unto your faithful friends whose words may be of more prevailing power and force than mine through prejudice for present are like to be to tell you friendly and yet plainly that you do but glory in your shame so that the time may come if so be the will of God that you may smite upon your thigh and say within your selves what fruit had we then of those things whereof we are now ashamed neither let it be offensive to your spirits to see my testimony for which thing sake among you we were shamefully entreated being also strangers to you and belonging to another jurisdiction where and by whose means divers of you and yours and such as have been of chiefest note and most highly esteemed by you have enjoyed curtesies with far greater liberties in point of conscience no man gainsaying let it not offend I say to see this testimony when none of you upon the oft repeated motion would come forth to oppose it then to be made yet more publick by the word of God and testimony of Christ Jesus the Lord to be brought forth into the open view of all confirmed and justifyed neither take it ill that fith I could not with freedom and upon equal terms speak with you and discuss these points for which we have been sentenced that then I have made bold to write unto you some few lines that thereby I might remind you least you let it slip that we were brought before you as by a hand from beneath so not without a speciall and good hand from above and that to be a testimony against you in these two weighty particulars first to bear testimony against your standing with respect to the worship of God appointed by Christ which in plain terms for it is not now a time to dissemble seeing the Lord is at hand is false and evil not the order of the Gospel of Christ as you pretend and therefore disorder confusion and that which in Scripture language is called Babel And secondly to bear testimony or witness against that way by which you maintain it which being chiefly as it appears by carnal weapons which cannot reach to the heart or spirit of a man which is the principal part and upon the point the whole in the worship of God without which there is no acceptance with him this I say must needs also be fals but yet far worse it being no way appointed or approved of Christ nor yet groundedly expected or practised by Christians who first trusted in Christ and therefore upon due examination will prove most unchristian yea Antichristian I shall use but these two arguments in this place to convince you The first wherof standeth thus That order and way to maintain it which neither hath precept from Christ and his Apostles in his last will and testament nor yet president or example among those that first trusted in Christ that order cannot be the order of the Gospel of Christ nor that way his way to maintain it But the order which you call the order of the Gospel of Christ and the way which you say is his way to maintain it hath neither precept nor president in his last will and testament The first proposition I suppose none of you can deny unless you can find a later than that which is called his last will and testament and as for the second the truth thereof will as easily appear if you bring your order and way to maintain it to the precept of Christ and practise of those that first trusted in him and first for your order what precept from Christ or
avoid a greater and further declares that the servant of the lord must nor strive but be gentle unto all men apt to teach not to strike patient in meekness instructing those that oppose themselves if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledgement of the truth that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil who are taken captive by him at his will according to which precepts of Christ we find the primitive Christians were meek and gentle and yet able by sound doctrine both to exhort convince the gainsayers who called not for carnall weapons to mannage their warfare but declared their weapons were mighty through God and either by the word and a good conversation wonne men to the acknowledgement of the truth as it is in Jesus or else left them wiâ—hout excuse together with the world unto the judgement of the great day of the Lord but now all men may see that your way is not only different from but contrary unto this precept of Christ and president of Christians and therefore cannot be esteemed any better than unchristian yet Antichristian Let not your adversary and mine Dear Countreymen fill your hearts with indignation and thoughts of revenge against him who in a faithful discharge of his conscience both towards God and you have made bold to deal plainly with you least my God to whom vengeance belongs repay it upon you and smite you with blindness of mind and hardness of heart that cannot repent but rather set before your eyes that memorable practice and worthy pattern of those noble Bereans and laying profits honor and prejudice aside if it be possible peruse my testimony and search the scriptures diligently to see whether the things contained therein be so or no if you find them so viz. confirmed and justifyed by the word of God and by the testimony of Christ Jesus the Lord then consider not I but the Lord from heaven calls upon you to break off your sins by repentance and let me hereby give you warning to take heed that you dispise not him that speaketh from heaven As touching the wrong and injury done to us you having thereby much more wronged your own souls in transgressing the very law and light of Nations doing as you would not be done unto it is in my heart to pitty you rather and to petition my Lord in heaven not to lay this sin to your charge than to complain against you or to petition your lords and ours here on earth for justice herein no no we have better learned Christ than so having also given up our hearts to be led by his spirit and to walk in his steps who when he was reviled reviled not again when he suffered he threatned not but committed his case to him that judgeth righteously and who knowes but that the spirit of judgement and the spirit of burning hath been or may be ere long in your hearts whereby you may be made affectedly sensible that the cause is the same or very little differing from this A poor innocent traveller passeth along the Countrey upon his occasions a man having strength in his arm findeth him frames himself offended with him for no cause he hath given him and because he cannot draw him unto his party either to rob or to kill or to say amen to his practises he therefore binds him and casts him into a pit and declares himself resolute there to keep him till he hath his blood unless he will deliver him his purse the man either hath not a purse about him or a heart to deliver it and being unwilling either to part with his blood or that the other should be so deeply guilty in taking it from him he meekly and earnestly thrice moveth the strong man for a discourse and humbly entreats him that he would not seek by the strength of his arme but by the force of some arguments to convince his understanding and conscience and so to draw him as a man to his party but the strong man delaies him and so puts him off whereupon a good tender hearted Samaritan passing by and perceiving how the case stood and that the strong man would have his purse or his blood without any dispute being moved with compassion to redeem this innocent blood from the handof the strong man he delivers him his own purse and so the man is released Take it not ill that I have used so much plainess of speech for my studie is now to speak plainly and neither flatteringly nor invectively and to use plain dealing with all men although I verifie the Proverb and die a begger for as I told some of your selveâ— and that in publick I abhor dissimulation neither can I account him a wise man who doth not hate dissembling or that doth love to dissemble and therefore saith Solomon rebuke a wise man and he will love thee c. and David the King saith on this wife let the righteous smite me and it shall be a precious balm I know instruction is grievous to him that is out of the way but what saith the wise man he that hateth instruction shall die Consider I pray what hath been spoken and turn not away your eye nor your ear nor your heart from instruction least that which was said by the prophet of old Isa 9. 14 15. 16. be in you verified which to prevent is the humble and earnest request unto the fathers of mercies of Your loving friend and Couutreyman JOHN CLARK To the true Christian Reader THou maist herein Christian Reader see and peruse thy destiny in this present evill world which seems in a great measure to be subjected unto devils through which thou art to pass unto that purchased possession and promised inheritance of the Saints in light which is in that better world which is not subjected unto Angels but unto the Sonne of God himself thou maist herein also observe and take notice of the hand by whom from thy heavenly father thou art to receive that bitter cup which he drunk off when he was here below for thy sake chiefly was this treatise brought forth into the publick view I hope not to discourage thee but to strengthen thine heart that thou mightest not fear any of those things which thou shalt suffer either from men or devils for thy testimony that Jesus is the Christ it being that which will shortly appear the only prevailing and victorious truth in all the world for herein shalt thou also see that worthy saying lively accomplished If ye suffer for the name of Christ blessed are ye for the spirit of the Lord and of glory resteth upon you thou hast a worthy name called on thee My hearts desire and prayer to God on thy behalf therefore is that thou maist enjoy such a plentifull pouring forth of that holy spirit into thine heart that thereby thou maist be inabled to walk worthy of it and having so bright a beam of the Fathers glory in thy
following meet again at the said William Witters in contempt to Authority you being then in the custody of the Law and did there receive the Sacrament being Excommunicate and that you did Baptize such as were Baptized before and thereby did necessarily deny the Baptism that was before administred to be Baptism the Churches no Churches and also other Ordinances and Ministers as if all were a Nullity And also did deny the lawfullness of Baptizing of Infants and all this tends to the dishonour of God the despising the ordinances of God among us the peace of the Churches and seducing the Subjects of this Commonwealth from the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and perverting the strait waies of the Lord the Court doth fine you 30 pounds to be paid or sufficient sureties that the said sum shall be paid by the first day of the next Court of Assistants or else to be well whipt and that you shall remain in Prison till it be paid or security given in for it By the Court ENCREASE NOWELL And now because his sufferings and the sence which his Soul felt of the Lords Support according to promise is affectionately set forth and commended as a token of his love in a Letter written with his own hand and sent unto those that have obtained like precious faith in London or elsewhere whereby by an experiment which God hath been pleased to give to him and us they may evidently discern that Iesus Christ is in point of tender compassions touching those that confess his name before the Sonnes of men the same to day that he was yesterday that as yesterday so to day it may be said as the sufferings of Christ abound in us so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ so that they which keep the commandements of God and Testimony of Iesus Christ may be hereby incouraged to fear none of those things which they shall suffer before they come nor when they look them in the face and begin the incounter with them be soon weary and wax faint in their minds but faithfully and hopefully expect they suffering for the name of Christ and as Christians that the spirit of their Lord and of glory shall rest upon them The words of his Letter followeth Unto the well beloved Brethren Iohn Spilsbury William Kissin and the rest that in London stand fast in that Faith and continue to walk stedfastly in that Order of the Gospell which was once delivered unto the Saints by Iesus Christ Obediah Holms an unworthy witness that Iesus is the Lord and of late a Prisoner for Iesus sake at Boston sendeth greeting Dearly Beloved and longed after MY hearts desire is to hear from you and to hear that you grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Iesus Christ and that your love to him and one unto another as he hath given commandment aboundeth would be the very joy and great rejoycing of my Soul and Spirit had I not been prevented by my beloved Brethren of Providence who have wrot unto you wherein you have my Mind at large and also by our beloved Brother Clarke of Road-Iland who may if God permit see you and speak with you mouth to mouth I had here declared my self in that matter but now I forbear And because I have an experimentall knowledge in my self that in members of the same Body while it stands in union with the head there is a sympathizing Spirit which passeth through and also remain in each particular so that one member can neither mourn nor rejoyce but all the members are ready to mourn or rejoyce with it I shall the rather impart unto you some dealings which I have had therein from the Sons of Men and the gracious supports which I have met with from the Son of God my Lord and yours that so like Members you might rejoyce with me and might be encouraged by the same experiment of his â—ender mercies to fear none of those things which you shall suffer for Iesus sake â—t pleased the Father of Light after a long continuance of mine in death and darknesse to cause life and immortality to be brought to light in my soul and also to cause me to see that this life was by the death of his Son in that hour and power of darknesse procured which wrought in my heart a restless desire to know what that Lord who had so dearly bought me would have me to do and finding that it was his last will to which none is to adde and from which none is to detract that they which had faith in his death for life should yeeld up themselves to hold forth a lively consimilitude or likenesse unto his death buriall and resurrection by that Ordinance of Baptisme I readily yeelded thereto being by love constrained to follow that Lamb that takes away the sins of the World whither soever he goes I had no sooner separated from their assemblies and from Communion with them in their worship of God and thus visibly put on Christ being resolved alone to attend upon him and to submit to his will but immediately the adversary cast out a flood against us and stirred up the spirits of men to present my self and two more to Plymouth Court where we met with 4 Petitions against our whole company to take some speedy course to suppress us one from our own Plantation with 35 hands to it one froÌ„ the Church as they call it at Tantoâ— one from all the Ministers in our Colony except two if I mistake not and one from the Court at Boston in the Mathatusets under their Secretaries hand whereupon the Court straitly chargeth us to desist and neither to ordain Officers nor to Baptize nor to break bread together nor yet to meet upon the first day of the week and having received these strait charges one of the three discovers the sandy foundation upon which he stood who when the flood came and the wind blew fell yet it pleased the Father of mercies to whom be the praise to give us strength to stand to tell them it was better to obey God rather than man and such was the grace of our God to us-ward that though we were had from Court to Court yet were we firmly resolved to keep close to the rule and to obey the voyce of our Lord come what will come Not long after these troubles I came upon occasion of businesse into to the Colony of the Mathatusets with two other Brethren as Brother Clark being one of the two can inform you where we three were apprehended carried to the prison at Boston and so to the Court and were all sentenced what they laid to my charge you may here read in my sentence Vpon the pronouncing of which as I went from the Bar I exprest my self in these words I blesse God I am connted worthy to suffer for the name of Iesus whereupon Iohn Wilson their Pastor as they call him strook me before the Iudgment
our friends house at Lin where we lodged it being two miles out of the town we were persued and also apprehended by the Constables under the name of erronious persons being strangers and by that power were caried after a full and clear manifestation of our unfreeness unto their Assembly then to Prison and after a while were also brought before their Iudgment seat in which two Assemblies to which we were forced they drew forth matter enough as they conceived to make us transgressors thereupon proceeded to sentence us without producing either Accuser Witness Iury Law of God or man whereby either we might appear to be guilty or they to be just and justified in their proceedings against us 2 After we were thus persued and apprehended under the name of erronious persons and strangers and by their Court condemned and sentenced as Herericks or scismaticks a motion being made by their Governour touching a discourse with their Ministers was readily accepted by us and often repeated and as often promised by them but yet could not be obtained as is here at large to be seen 3 Although through the mercifull hand of our God upon us we had wronged no man corrupted no man defrauded no man as he together with our Consciences then did and still to this day do bear us witness yet besides the exceeding great loss and detriment otherwise sustained we had all no doubt met with as cruell Scourgings as his faithfull servants of old had not the provident hand of our God so disposed the hearts of some of our friends to lay down our ransome by which two did escape and this did evidently appear in the third who came under their zealous yet merciless hands and received from them 50 stripes above the restraint of the Iews as writers report yea and such entertainment no doubt should strangers or Angels from Heaven yea Christ Iesus himself have received at their hands if they could effect it in case they should have come among them and not submitted as it is not possible they should unto that golden and glorious Image or likeness of the worship and way of God appointed by Christ which they have set up 4 When this faithfull Martyr and Witness that Christ is the Lord had born this fourscore and ten stripes cruelly laid on not only with a patient mind but with an exceeding great joy of the holy spirit as the spectators could not but discern and was loosed from the Post and was going to Prison again some being inwardly moved with joy in beholding the gracious support which the Lord afforded him as they have affirmed could not forbear to take him by the hand for which thing sake two of them were apprehended sentenced to pay each of them 40 s or els be whipt Let the Actors themselves and all that peruse their practice for cautions sake consider whether the spirit by which they are led thus to act be not very like unto if not the same which is seen Revel 13. Acting the second Beast that arose up out of the Earth which had two hornes like a Lamb yet spake like a Dragon and exercised all the power of the first Beast that was before him caused a lively Image to be made unto him and forced the Earth and them that dwel herein both small and great rich and poor free and bond to worship his Image and that no man might buy or sell save he that had the marke or the name or the number of his name Here is Wisdom and let such as desire from their hearts to live Godly in Christ Iesus and do as really expect to suffer with Christ in this present evill World as they do to reign with him in that good World which yet is to come let such I say consider and bear still in mind these expressions Revel 13. 10. He that leadeth into Captivity shall go into Captivity he that killeth with the Sword must be killed with the Sword here is the patience and faith of the S ints Rev. 12. 11. And they overcame him by the bloud of the Lamb and by the Word of their Testimony and they loved not their lives unto the death Rev. 6. 9 10 11. I saw under the Altar the Souls of them that were slain for the Word of God and for the testimony which they beld And they cryed with a loud voice saying how long holy and true wilt thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwel on the Earth c. Rev. 20. 4. And I saw the Souls of them that were beheaded for the Witness of Iesus and for the Word of God and which had not worshiped the Beast neither his Image neither had received the marke upon their foreheads or in their hands and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years And now forasmuch as it was boldly affirmed by a Solicitor for New-England and that in the Councell Chamber before that honourable Committee there assembled in Councell that men in New-England might freely injoy their understandings and Consciences provided they walk civilly among them and that they that suffered of late did not suffer for their Consciences but for some misdemeanor thereby endeavouring to possess those noble brests with that which is false therefore I think it necessary both for the Vindication of truth and to the end that such worthy persons may not be taken with or deceived by such unworthy reports so as to be drawn to countenance persons that walk in a way that they are ashamed in plain and open terms to prosess and acknowledge for these ends I say I think it necessary to produce their Laws at least such as speak to the matter in question whereby these two things will plainly appear 1 That they that will not or else in Conscience towards God cannot conform to their worship or suspend the worship of God as their Souls are perswaded are by the authority of their Laws to be forced to the one and restrained from the other and that the Magistrate is thereby not only justified in but also injoyned unto such a proceeding against them although the men otherwise walk not only as civilly or soberly as themselves but also righteously and Godly in this present evill World and are such indeed as are a Law to themselves 2 Although they have Laws thus to proceed to force all to their worship to restrain those that differ from them from that worship to which their Souls are perswaded yet in our case they were so far transported with zeal that what they did unto us they did without Law yea against those Cautions which their own Laws have provided Certain Lawes established in the Colony of the Mathatusets in New-England and drawn forth by constraint to prove that the Authority there established cannot permit men though of never so civill sober and peaceable a Spirit and Life freely to enjoy their understandings and consciences nor yet to live or come among them unlesse they can