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Trying of Spirits in our age now, as in the Apostles' days, by the Spirit of Christ the Anointing within.

Showing also, that the Church of Christ hath authority and power from Christ, their head, to admonish, judge, reprove, and rebuke, such as make a profession of the truth, but do not walk and live in the truth. By G. F.

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DEAR FRIENDS, and brethren in the Lord Jesus Christ, who is your heavenly rock and foundation, and your holy sanctuary, your place of safety, who destroys the destroyer, and is our saviour, the chief bishop of your souls, to oversee you; and your great prophet that God hath 'raised up for you to hear in all things,' and the chief shepherd who hath laid down his life for his sheep;' who feeds his sheep with his heavenly food, and clothes them with his heavenly clothing, whom he hath bought with a price,' his blood; and that they might know his voice and follow him, who is from above,' and not of this world; whose voice is distinct from all the voices of this world, that are below; 'who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time;' who is the mediator between God and you; in whose name you have all salvation; in whose name, power, and authority, we meet that are his followers; and he is before all things, and by him all things subsist; who hath delivered us from the power of darkness. And God hath translated us into the -kingdom of his dear son, and therefore whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of Jesus Christ, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.'

For, friends, ye know the light God hath commanded to shine out of darkness, and hath shined in your hearts to give you the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ Jesus, which light is the life in him. Now, you have this heavenly treasure in your earthen vessels, which is of God, and have received the grace of God which brought your salvation,' and by which you are saved, and your hearts established in the election and covenant of grace.

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Now they that hate the light of Christ, and walk despitefully against the spirit of grace, such are of the birth of the flesh, which do persecute them which are born of the spirit. But as the apostle said, 'All that will live godly in Christ Jesus, shall suffer persecution;' but the Lord's portion is his people, and Jacob, the second birth, the election, who is the supplanter of profane Esau, he is the Lot of God's inheritance, to wit, Jacob. The Lord led him about and instructed him, and kept him as the apple of his eye; so tender is the Lord of his elect people. And again, the Lord saith, He that touches you, (to wit,) his elect or chosen people, touches the apple of God's eye.' So you

know the apple of the eye is a tender place. So the Lord hath a sense of all his suffering people, and is nigh unto them, and feels all their sufferings.

And now, friends, the apostle John writes a General Epistle to the church of Christ, as I do to you the church of Christ. Now, 'ye have an unction from the Holy One, and by it ye know all things;' and now, this unction or anointing within, which ye have received from the Holy One, which 'abides in you, ye need not that any man teach you, but as the same anointing teaches you of all ings, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, and does teach you, ye shall abide or continue in the son and in the Father, in whom ye have eternal life, according to his promises.' Now, all, since the apostles' days, that are gone from this anointing, and unction, and teaching within, that comes from the Holy One, such are gone and wandered from the Father and the son, and seduced from the anointing and teaching within, by which they should have continued in the son and the Father. But, my friends and brethren in Christ Jesus, that have the anointing and unction within you, which ye have received from the Holy One, and by it you continue in the son and Father; by this unction and anointing within you, the church of Christ knows all things, as the church of Christ did by the same unction in the apostles' days; and therefore, the apostles bid the church of Christ, by this unction, Try the spirits,' and bid them 'believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they be of God;' and they know the spirit of God from the spirit of error. So there you may see, with this unction they could try spirits, and knew the spirit of truth from the spirit of error. He doth not bid the church try their words only, but try their spirits, whether they were of God,' yea or nay; for many had good words and fair speeches, and deceived the hearts of the simple. And were not these a kind of Christians that served not the Lord Jesus Christ? &c. which the apostles warned the Romans of, in Rom. xvi. and such that had gotten the 'the form of godliness, and denied the power thereof, that were heady, high minded, without natural affections, truce breakers, &c. false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of them that were good, that were compared to Jannes and Jambres, that withstood Moses. So do these also resist the truth, men of corrupt minds, reprobates concerning the faith,' &c. And did not these go under the name of Christians and leaders, which had the form of godliness, but denied the power thereof,' which the church were to turn away from, and not to follow? And is there not of this sort now, that trouble the church of Christ, as they did in the apostles' days?

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And therefore, as the apostle saith, Try their spirits whether they are of God or no.' The apostle did not say to the church of Christ,

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Try them, whether they had the good words, and fair speeches, and the form of godliness, but try their spirits,' whether they be of God, yea or nay; and so, if they have not the power of godliness, they are to be turned away from. And therefore, with the anointing within, by which you may know all things, with it Try their spirits,' whether they be of God or no, and try whether they have the power of godliness; yea, such as have the fair speeches and good words, and the form of godliness, try their spirits whether they be of God, and whether they have the power of godliness; and if not, they are to be turned away from. And the apostle exhorts Timothy 'to avoid profane and vain babblings and oppositions of science, falsely so called, which some professing, have erred concerning the faith;' therefore the church is to avoid such things now, as then, lest they err concerning the true faith of Christ. And 1 Tim. vi. 20, 21. Phygellus, and Harmogenes, and Hymeneus, and Philetus, do not you think that these had gone under the name of christians in the apostles' days, though their words will eat as doth a canker, them that do receive them;' and such troubled the church of Christ then, and the same spirit now, which is to be tried and turned away from, and not only so, but to 'shun profane and vain babblings, for they will increase unto more ungodliness,' therefore that is to be kept out of the church.

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And the apostle exhorts Timothy to charge them, (to wit, the church,) before the Lord, that they strive not about words to no profit:' and therefore that strife which is to no profit, and to the subverting of the hearers, the charge now is for the church of Christ to shun such things, and if any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, and the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the doctrine which is according to godliness, he is proud, or a fool, and knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strife of words, whereof comes envy, strife, railing, evil surmisings, perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that 'gain is godliness, from such withdraw thyself.' So must all the members of Christ's church now in our age withdraw themselves from such that are destitute concerning the truth, though such may go in the name of christians, as such might do in the apostles' days, and troubled the church of Christ then, as they do now. But believe not every spirit, but try their spirits,' whether they have the power of godliness, yea or nay.

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Now the spirit speaks expressly, that some should depart from the faith,' (then they had it once,) and that they would give heed to seducing spirits, and doctrine of devils, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their consciences seared as with a hot iron, forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving, &c. for every creature of God is good, (mark, good,)

and nothing to be refused if it be received with thanksgiving, for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.'

For all things were made and created by the word, and all things upheld by the word, &c. And by the word of God, man and woman is sanctified, and it sanctifies things to them.

And do ye not think that these that had departed from the faith, and given heed to the doctrines of devils, forbidding marriages, and to abstain from meats, &c. went not under the name of christians, as too many such do now? And therefore the apostle saith, Try their spirits, whether they be of God or no, and whether they be in the power of godliness, and in the faith of God's elect.'

And the church of Christ now, as in the apostles' days, is to shun profane and old wives' fables, and to exercise themselves in godliness; for bodily exercise profits little,' or for a little time; but godliness is profitable unto all men, having the promise of this life that now is, and of that life which is to come.' So all that have a care of the church of Christ, will mind those things which are for the comfort and edifying of it.

And the apostle, his charge was to some, not to give heed to endless genealogies, which ministered questions, rather than to godly edifying, which is in faith,' from which some have turned aside unto vain janglings. And therefore foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender unto strife. These things the church of Christ were to shun then, and now, and follow godly edifying in the faith; for did not they go under the name of christians that turned aside unto vain jangling, and such that desired to be teachers of the law, understanding neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm? And, therefore, as the apostle said, 'Try their spirits whether they be of God, and whether they be in the power of godliness;' for that spirit that doth not understand what it saith of the law, cannot understand what it saith of the gospel so is not fit to be a teacher of either.

And the apostle exhorted Timothy, (2 Tim. iv. 3.) 'to preach the word in season and out of season, reprove, and rebuke, and exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine; for the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears, and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.'

Now were not these itching ears, and their teachers, that should turn from the truth to fables, a kind of christians, who could not endure sound doctrine, therefore their spirits are to be tried whether they be in the truth and sound doctrine; for the itching ears that will have teachers after their lusts, the spirit that hath tried them saith, they are turned from the truth to fables.

And Simon Magus, and Demas, that forsook Paul, and loved this present world,' and Alexander, had not they gone under the name of christians? But the spirit that tried them, saw Demas turned a worldling, and Simon Magus turned to his old wickedness again; and the apostle exhorts Timothy to beware of Alexander the coppersmith, 'which had done him much evil,' for he had greatly withstood the apostle's words.

So here you may see the apostle, which was a watchman, and tried their spirits, such as he had tried not to be of God, nor in the truth, nor in the faith, nor in the power of godliness, he exhorted the church of Christ, and the ministers, to beware, and to shun, and to turn away from such.

And the apostle exhorts Titus, to hold fast the faithful word as he had been taught, that he might be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convince the gainsayers;' for, saith he, "There are many unruly and vain talkers, and deceivers, especially they of the circumcision, whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not for filthy lucre's sake; they professing that they know God, but in works deny him; being abominable and disobedient, and to every good work reprobate: wherefore,' saith the apostle to Titus, reprove them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith.'

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Now did not these vain unruly talkers, whose mouths were to be stopped, which denied God in their works, and to every good work reprobates, did not these go under the name of christians? And are there not too many such in our days; unruly vain talkers, that deny God in their works, and are reprobates to every good work? For there are too many such unruly talkers and professors of God and Christ in words, but in their works deny him, and are reprobate to every good work. Such are against the practice of truth and religion, both in themselves and others, and therefore all such spirits are tried with the anointing within, not to be of God, neither now, nor in the apostles' days, nor in the power of godliness, therefore are to be turned away from; and all such that give heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth. This the apostle exhorted Titus not to give heed to, but to 'avoid foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions, and strivings about the law, for they are unprofitable and vain.'

And therefore whatsoever is unprofitable and vain, the church of Christ is to be turned away from now as in the apostles' day, for it is out of the power of godliness; and therefore try their spirits whether they be of God or no.

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And the apostle saith, Rebuke not an elder, but entreat him as a father; and the younger men as brethren, and the elder women as

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