in tender love to your souls is my soul drawn forth, for I see there is a zeal among you, but is your zeal according to knowledge, whilst many of you are professing, preaching, praying and worshipping, and yet stumbling at, and con­tending against that in which alone all Worship, Pray­ers and Sacrifices is accepted in the sighr of God? there­fore this is the word of truth which I testifie unto you, that except your Worship, Prayers and sacrifices do pro­ceed and come from a measure of him in you who is the light of the world, in whom alone the Father is well pleased, you are but warming your selves at your own sparks which you have kindled, for which you must re­ceive of the Lord a lying down in sorrow: Therefore ye who are crying out of deceit and delusion; I say, be not deceived, for God will not be worshipped or served but with his own seed onely; therefore weary him not with that which is yours, and take heed of rejecting or slight­ting that measure of his own seed which he hath given you to serve him with, even that in you which moves con­trary to the world, and breathes after the Fountain from whence it came, that which searcheth the heart, yea, the [Page 2] secrets therein, and makes manifest the deceit and hypo­crysie thereof, this is the seed of the kingdom in you, which is like a grain of mustard seed, and this is the grace of God which bringeth salvation, and hath appeared unto all men for this end, to lead out of the dark paths of sin and death and this is the light which shines in the dark heart of man, but the darknesse comprehends it not; but men loves the darkness rather then the light, because it makes their cru­el deeds manifest: and are not many of you strangers to this light, having your hearts vailed over with thick dark­nesse, whilst you are professing and reading the Scriptures, and yet are questioning where they declare of, or direct to a light within? Oh how hath the God of this world blind­ [...]d the eyes of many, who are stumbling at that which is given them to lead out of darkness, even that sure word of Prophesie, unto which you might do well to take heed, as unto a light that shines in a dark place, untill the day dawn, and the day-star arise in your hearts; but how can ye professe that ye know God, whilst you are denying the light of his son within, in which the Father is revea­led, and by which that that may be known of God is made manifest in man; or is there another way to come to the knowledge of God, then by his light which shines in the heart, and gives the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus: Was not this the Apostles Doctrine, and the end of their Ministry, to turn people from darknesse to this light, that so they might come to know him in them who is the light of the world, for they who know him onely outwardly after the flesh, they murdered him in whom the fulness of Light, Life and power dwelt: because they knew him not that was [Page 3] from the beginning, the word of life, the rock of ages, the bread that came down from heaven, the flesh that was meat indeed, and the blood that was drink indeed, they knew not, neither had they heard the voice of God, or seen his shape, at any time, for they were erred and gone forth from that which would have made him manifest, even the seed of that kingdome within them, which they were seeking in observations without, and in the Scripture without they did think to have eternal life; but unto him that was the life, of whom the Scripture testified they would not come, but stumbled at the stumbling stone: now ye that deny that Christ hath enlightened all men with a light sufficient to lead to salvation, whose faith is, that God hath appointed a certain number before the world was unto salvation, and unto them he affords grace sufficient to bring them to the end appointed them, and that all others are reprobated to destruction, and yet say, that God gives so much of his grace to them, as may leave them without excuse, and that may be sufficient to con­demn but not to save them; notwithstanding, God decla­reth, That he wills not the death of him that dyeth, but rather that he would turn from his wickednesse and live, and that he hath given his Son a light into the world, that it through him might be saved, and that he would all men should be saved, and come to the knowledge of the truth, and that he is no respecter of persons; but though your faith doth stand in respect of persons, will you therefore make God to be like your selves, surely if you will but come down and own the wisdome of God, ye might in it see your Principles to be such that even strikes at the root of the Justice of God, limits his mercy, and makes him a respecter of persons, and rherefore do I bear wit­ness [Page 4] against it, and do affirm that Election and Reproba­tion is not in respect or relation to persons, but in the two seeds, between which God hath put enmity, there hath God past Election and Reprobation, and all men as they are in the fall in sin and transgression are under the curse and in the state of Reprobation, being joyned unto that seed where the curse and Reprobation is: therefore hath God in his love given his Son to redeem man out of that state, from under the power of the Serpent, again unto himself, and into his power and Dominion, who is the seed unto which the blessing is, and in whom the Election stands sure, unto as many as are in him, who is the light, and of whose fulness all have a measure, even of the grace, that brings salvation, which unto all hath appeared, and the grace of God is one, and is not divided, though some in their dark imagination [...] distinguish between grace suffici­ent, and grace not sufficient, or saving grace, and pre­venting or restraining grace; but I say the grace of God is perfect, and the least measure thereof is sufficient to save to the uttermost all those that give up themselves to be led and guided by it; but the sloathfull servant hides his Lords Talent, and then complains of his Lord, but he re­ceives his portion in utter darkness, whilst he that had im­proved his two talents, received his portion with him that had ten; and this I testifie that it is onely by grace that sal­vation is wrought, and not by any thing of mans own, for where grace is truly owned, there self is as truly denied in all its willing & working; for when that is owned and join­ed to, which is Gods power, then all mans work which he hath wrought, and all his fair buildings which he hath framed in self, in his own power and wisdome, though glorious in appearance, yet all must be pulled down and [Page 5] an utter desolation must be known & witnessed of what­soever hath been done out of the grace, out of the light, out of the life and power of God: And therefore I say to you again, Be not deceived whilst you are saying others are deceived & deluded; ye who are joined in that you call Church-fellowship, by the outward form of washing, try your selves by the witness of God in your consciences, whether you are yet truly come to the fellowship of the Church that is in God, which is the pillar and ground of truth; and whether you have known the baptism which is by fire; and have you felt the flaming sword of the Lord killing the first nature in you, that which hath eaten the forbidden fruit, and hath had its life in the pride, pleasures lust, and vanities of the world? And have you known and felt the quickening power of the Lord God raising up a seed, and bringing forth a birth in you which is not of the world, but contrary thereunto? And are ye by it led forth of the vvorld, out of the evil and vanities thereof, bearing the daily cross? Are you yet become as strange signs, vvonders and gazing-stocks in the Earth? Or are you not still in the vvorld, and joined vvith them in their vvayes of pride, pleasure and vanity, coveting to be rich in the things of this World, which can give no satisfacti­on to the soul? And are you yet come out of the customs and fashions of this world, such as are vain and idle, with­out any shew of purity or godliness, but manifest the heart unsavoury, and the tongue unbridled, yet are they cover­ed with the name of civil things? And are you not in the customs of the world, in respecting of persons, and in bowing and bending to them, or rather to a spirit of pride in them, which seek the honor of man; and thereby is that nourished and strengthened which must be brought [Page 6] down, and laid low, even the lofty looks of man; for there is nothing honourable in man but the image of God, and such as bears his image are humble, meek and lowly, and seeks not the honor of man, neither can such bow to that spirit of pride in any that seeks to be honor­ed; and this custom is covered with the Name of civil re­spect, or civil curtesie or carriage, and the like; but the eye that is pure sees the root to be corrupt, and it no bet­ter then a custom of the Heathen, and their fashions and customs are vain; and where the pure life of God is wit­nessed, there the heathenish nature is slain, and the vanity is trodden under foot: Therefore I say, Come all to the Witness of God, the light in every one of your consci­ences, where all may know and read their own conditi­ons, and that none may take up a rest, and sit down at ease in a profession without the life; but that such as profess the Name of the Lord might know his power who makes the sinners in Zion afraid, and brings terror upon the hypo­crites, and might know God to be a devouring fire, and everlasting burnings, in whose pure presence the workers of iniquity cannot stand nor abide to dwell, but such as have innocent hands and a pure heart: Therefore let every one that nameth the name of the Lord, depart from iniquity.