his Spirit to profit withal, and that I have the gift of God in myself, fhould I not be left to act according as I am free and perfuaded in my own mind, in the things that relate to God; left, looking upon mself as obliged by what is revealed unto another, though it be not revealed unto me, I fhould be led out of my own measure, and act upon another's motion, and fo offer a blind facrifice to God?

Anfw. This is true in a sense; that is, if thou art fuch an one that canft do nothing against the truth, but for the truth, then mayeft thou fafely be left to thy freedom in the things of God: and the reason is plain, because thy freedom ftands in the perfect law of liberty, in the law of the Spirit of life in Chrift Jefus, and in the truth, which is Chrift Jefus, which makes thee free indeed; that is, perfectly free from all that is bad, and perfectly free to all that is holy, juft, lovely, honeft, comely, and of good report; but if thou pleadeft thy freedom against fuch things, yea, obftructest and slightest such good, wholesome and requifite things, thy freedom is naught, dark, perverse, out of the truth, and against the perfect law of love and liberty.

Qu. But muft I conform to things whether I can receive them or no? Ought I not to be left to the grace and Spirit of God in my own heart?

Anfw. To the firft part of the queftion, nay; to the laft, yea. But now let us confider what is the reason thou canst not receive them: is the fault in the things themselves? Are they inconfiftent with truth, or will not the truth own or affent unto them, or is the fault in thee? That is to fay, is it thy weakness, or thy careleffnefs? If thy weakness, it is to be borne with, and to be informed; if thy careleffnefs, thou oughteft to be admonished; for it is a dangerous principle, and pernicious to true religion, and, which is worse, it is the root of ranterism to affert, That nothing is a duty incumbent upon thee, but what thou art perfuaded is thy duty;' for the feared confcience pleads his liberty against all duty, the dark confcience

is

is here unconcerned, the dead confcience is here uncondemned; unless this distinction be allowed of, that there may be an ignorance or an infenfibility from inability or incapacity, or a dark education; and an ignorance and infenfibility, from careleffnefs, difobedience, prejudice, &c. So that though thou art not to conform to any thing ignorantly, yet thou art feriously to confider why thou art ignorant, and what the cause of such ignorance may be: certainly it cannot be in God, nor in his gift to thee; it must then needs be in thyfelf, who haft not yet received a sense for or against the matter, about which thou art in doubt. To the fecond part of the queftion; Ought I not to be left to the grace of God in my own heart?' Anfw. That is of all things most desirable, fince they are well left that are there left; for there is no fear of want of unity, where all are left with the One Spirit of Truth; they must be of one mind, they cannot be otherwife. So that to plead this against unity, is to abuse the very plea, and to commit the greatest contradiction to that very doctrine of fcripture, viz. That all fhould be guided by the grace

and fpirit of God in themselves;' for the end of that doctrine is certainty. "They fhall all know me, "faith the Lord, from the leaft to the greatest, And "I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me for ever, for the good of them, and "of their children after them,' Jer. xxxii. 39. "And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the ftony "heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart " of flesh," Ezekiel xi. 19. "And the multitude " of them that believed were of one heart, and of "one foul." Acts iv. 32. Is not this unity too? "I "will restore unto you a pure language; they shall "be of one heart, and of one mind, and great shall "be their peace. Therefore I must say to thee, Friend, What if thou wilt not be left with the grace and Spirit of God in thyfelf, nor wait for its mind, nor be watchful to its revelations, nor humble and

"

quiet till thou haft received fuch neceffary manifeftations, but pleadest against the counfel of the Spirit of the Lord in other faithful perfons, under the pretence of being left to his Spirit in thyself; by which means thou opposest the Spirit to the Spirit, and pleadeft for dif-unity, under the name of liberty; I afk thee, May not I exhort thee to the practice of that I am moved to press thee to the practice of? If not, thou art the imposer, by restraining me from my Chriftian liberty; and not only fo, but away goeth preaching, and with it the fcriptures, that are both appointed of God for "exhortation, reproof, and instruction."

Qu. But are there not various measures, diverfities of gifts, and several offices in the body?

Anfw. True; but therefore are not the members of one mind, one will, and one judgment, in common and univerfal matters, especially relating to the family and church of God? And indeed there cannot be a falfer reasoning than to conclude difcord from diverfity, contrariety from variety. Is there contrariety of bloods, lifes, feelings, feeings, hearings, tastings, smellings, in one and the fame body, at one and the fame time? No fuch matter: experience is a demonftration against all fuch infinuations. So that though it be granted, that there is diverfity of gifts, yet there is no difagreement in fenfe; and though variety of offices, yet no contrariety in judgment concerning thofe offices. Well fay the holy fcriptures of truth, "There is but One God: "the Lord our God is but One Lord: there is but "One God and Father of all things (that are good); " and there is but One Lord, one faith, and one bap"tifm;" and his light, life, and Spirit is at unity with itself in all: what comes from the light, life, or Spirit in one, it is the fame in truth and unity to the reft, as if it did rise in themselves: this is feen in our affemblies every day, and will be throughout all generations in the church of God, among thofe that live in the lowly truth, in which the pure fenfe and found judgment ftand: "God is not the God of con"fufion, but order :" every one in his order is fatif

fied, hath unity and true fellowship, with whatever comes from the life of God in another: for this precious life reacheth throughout the heritage of God, and is the common life that giveth the common feeling and fenfe to the heritage of God. Degree or measure in the fame life can never contradict or obftruct that which is from the fame life for the common benefit of the family of God. "The Lord is the "unmeasurable and incomprehenfible glorious Being " of Life," yet have we unity with him in all his works, who are come to his divine measure of light and truth in our own hearts, and live therein; and shall we not have unity with that which proceeds from a fellow-creature? In short, the faints way is in the light, wherein there is neither doubt nor difcord; yea, they are children of the light, and called light, and "The lights of the world," and can it be fuppofed that such should disagree and contradict each other in their exterior order and practice in the church before the world? O the bleffed feamless garment of Jefus ! Where that is known, these things can never rise. But yet again, "The just man's path is" not only a light, but a "fhining light," brightness itself: certainly there can be no ftumbling. It is also faid, that " light "is fown for the righteous;" then the righteous fhall never want light upon any occafion: and faith that beloved evangelift and apostle of our Lord Jefus Christ, "They that walk in the light have fellowship

one with another," I John i. Whence it is easy to conclude, they that go out of the fellowship, go out of the light: but if they that walk in the light, have fellowship one with another, what fhall we fay of those that plead being left to the light to juftify their not having fellowship one with another? And, which is yet worse, who fuppofe people may confcientiously and juftifiably diffent within themselves, and that by reafon of the variety of the degrees of the Spirit and grace that are given of God unto them; as if the leffer degree may diffent from the greater, because of its not being able to comprehend it. And to make this

principle

principle more authentick, fuch tell us, 'This is the ancient principle of truth;' and object, How will you elfe be able to maintain the Quakers principles?' The fallacy of all which, lieth (as I faid before) in not rightly diftinguishing between diverfity and difagreement, variety and contrariety; for this diverfity hath concord, and this variety hath unity. And it is a blindness that hath too much of late happened to fome, by going from the one life and spirit of our Lord Jefus Christ, first to fall into difagreements, and then plead for it, under the notion of diverfity of measures. I would ask all fuch perfons, who arrogate to themselves fuch a peculiar knowledge of the ancient principles of truth, or the Quakers first principles; ift, Whe⚫ther they believe there be a Christian body? 2dly, • Whether this body hath an head? 3dly, Whether • Christ be not this head? 4thly, Whether this head 'be without eyes, ears, fmell, and taste, and this. body without fenfe and feeling?' If not, Whether this head feeth, heareth, fmelleth, tafteth, differingly, and contraringly to itfelf? and whether this body ⚫ hath a contrary feeling at the fame time about the 'fame thing?' And if it be true, that the church of Christ, redeemed by his most precious blood to live to him, fee with the fame eye, hear with the fame ear, speak with the fame mouth, live by the fame breath, and are led by the fame fpirit, where is this difagreement, contrariety, or diffent about the things of his

church?

Qu. But the members of Chrift's church in the primitive times had different apprehenfions; as the apostles, and the people gathered by them.

Anfw. Pray let me know who they were, and in what cafes ?

Qu. The perfons were PAUL and PETER, and those Chriftians that differed about meats; and the fcripture is plain in the cafe.

Anfw. The difference between Peter and Paul (in the Acts) teftifies the weakness of Peter, and the place juftifies Paul's reproof of his too great compliance