41. Nay, thou vile Man, God draweth thee to be His Child \ but thou wilt not ; the soft Cushion in Evil is dearer to thee than to be so readily parted with. Thou preferrest the foy of Wickedness to the foy of God. Thou art wholly swallowed up in Self still, and livest according to the Law of Sin, and that hindereth thee. Thou art unwilling to die from the Pleasure of the Flesh, and therefore thou art not in the Filiation . God draweth thee to it, but thou thyself wilt not.
42. O how fine a Thing would Adam think it, if he might be taken into Heaven with this Will of the voluptuous Flesh about
'him, and have the Child of Wickedness , that is full of Deceit, set upon the Throne of God. Lucifer also would fain have had it so, but he was cast out .
- 43. It is a troublesome Thing to mortify the evil Will ; none are willing to do it. We would all gladly be the Children of Qod, if we might be sowith this rough Garment of fallen Nature about us. But that cannot be. This World passeth away, and the outward Life must die; what Good can the Adoption in the mortal
- * Body of Flesh and Blood only do me ?
44. If we would inherit the Filiation , we must also put on the New Man which can inherit it, as being like the Deity . God
5 6 The JFay to Qhrist .
A,_
will have no Sinners in Heaven , but only such as are boin anew and become Children , and so have put on Heaven .
45. Therefore it is not so easy a Matter to become a Child of Qod , as Men imagine. Indeed it is not a troublesome Thing to him that hath put on the Filiation, whose Light shineth ; for it is Joy to such a one. But to turn the Mind and destroy Self there is a strong and continued Earnestness requisite, and such a stout and steady Purpose , that if the Body and Soul should part asunder by it, yet the Will would persevere constantly, and not enter again into Self \
46. A Man must wrestle till the dark Centre , that is shut up close, break open, and the Spark lying therein kitidle ; and from thence immediately the Noble Lily-branch sprouteth, ac from the Divine Qrain of Mustard-seed , as Christ saith. A man must pray earnestly , with great Humility , and for a while become a Fool in his own Reason , and see himself void of Understanding therein, until Christ be formed in this "new Incarnation.
47. And then when Christ is born, Herod is ready to kill the Child , which he seeketh to do outwardly by Persecutions, and inwardly by Temptations, to try whether this Lily-branch will be strong enough to destroy the Kingdom of the Devil , which is manifested in the Flesh .
48. Then this Destroyer of the Serpent is brought into the Wilderness , after he is baptized with the Holy Spirit , an'd tempted and tried whether or not he will continue in Resignation to the Will of God. In which Temptation he must stand so fast, that, if Need require, he would leave all earthly Things , and even the outward Life , to be a Child of Qod.
49. No Temporal Honour must be preferred before the Filiation. But he must with his Will leave and forsake it all, and not account it his own , but esteem himself as a Servant only in it, who is to obey his Master . He must leave all Worldly Propriety. We do not mean that he may not have or possess any Thing; but his Heart must forsake it, and not bring his Will into it, nor count it his own. For if he setteth his Heart upon it, he hath no Power to serve them that stand in Need with it.
50. Self is but a Slave to its temporal Possessions, but Resignation hath Rule over all that is under it. Self must do what the Devil will have it to do in Fleshly Voluptuousness and Pride of Life ; but Resignation treadeth it all under with the Feet of the Mind. Self despiseth that which is lowly and simple; but Resignation sitteth down with the lowly in the Dust. It saith, ‘ I will be simple in myself, and understand nothing, lest my 1 Understanding should exalt itself and sin. I will lie down in
Of "True T^e sign at ion. ^7
41. Nay, you vile Man, God draws you to be His Child \ but you will not ; the soft Cushion in Evil is dearer to you than to be so readily parted with. You preferrest the foy of Wickedness to the foy of God. You are wholly swallowed up in Self still, and livest according to the Law of Sin, and that hinders you. You are unwilling to die from the Pleasure of the Flesh, and therefore you are not in the Filiation . God draws you to it, but you yourself will not.
42. O how fine a Thing would Adam think it, if he might be taken into Heaven with this Will of the voluptuous Flesh about
'him, and have the Child of Wickedness , that is full of Deceit, set upon the Throne of God. Lucifer also would fain have had it so, but he was cast out .
- 43. It is a troublesome Thing to mortify the evil Will ; none are willing to do it. We would all gladly be the Children of Qod, if we might be sowith this rough Garment of fallen Nature about us. But that cannot be. This World passes away, and the outward Life must die; what Good can the Adoption in the mortal
- * Body of Flesh and Blood only do me ?
44. If we would inherit the Filiation , we must also put on the New Man which can inherit it, as being like the Deity . God
5 6 The JFay to Qhrist .
A,_
will have no Sinners in Heaven , but only such as are boin anew and become Children , and so have put on Heaven .
45. Therefore it is not so easy a Matter to become a Child of Qod , as Men imagine. Indeed it is not a troublesome Thing to him that has put on the Filiation, whose Light shines ; for it is Joy to such a one. But to turn the Mind and destroy Self there is a strong and continued Earnestness requisite, and such a stout and steady Purpose , that if the Body and Soul should part asunder by it, yet the Will would persevere constantly, and not enter again into Self \
46. A Man must wrestle till the dark Centre , that is shut up close, break open, and the Spark lying therein kitidle ; and from thence immediately the Noble Lily-branch sprouts, ac from the Divine Qrain of Mustard-seed , as Christ says. A man must pray earnestly , with great Humility , and for a while become a Fool in his own Reason , and see himself void of Understanding therein, until Christ be formed in this "new Incarnation.
47. And then when Christ is born, Herod is ready to kill the Child , which he seeks to do outwardly by Persecutions, and inwardly by Temptations, to try whether this Lily-branch will be strong enough to destroy the Kingdom of the Devil , which is manifested in the Flesh .
48. Then this Destroyer of the Serpent is brought into the Wilderness , after he is baptized with the Holy Spirit , an'd tempted and tried whether or not he will continue in Resignation to the Will of God. In which Temptation he must stand so fast, that, if Need require, he would leave all earthly Things , and even the outward Life , to be a Child of Qod.
49. No Temporal Honour must be preferred before the Filiation. But he must with his Will leave and forsake it all, and not account it his own , but esteem himself as a Servant only in it, who is to obey his Master . He must leave all Worldly Propriety. We do not mean that he may not have or possess any Thing; but his Heart must forsake it, and not bring his Will into it, nor count it his own. For if he setts his Heart upon it, he has no Power to serve them that stand in Need with it.
50. Self is but a Slave to its temporal Possessions, but Resignation has Rule over all that is under it. Self must do what the Devil will have it to do in Fleshly Voluptuousness and Pride of Life ; but Resignation treads it all under with the Feet of the Mind. Self despises that which is lowly and simple; but Resignation sitts down with the lowly in the Dust. It says, ‘ I will be simple in myself, and understand nothing, lest my 1 Understanding should exalt itself and sin. I will lie down in
Of "True T^e sign at ion. ^7
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