But now, this merciless butcherer of men, the devil, that he might be sure to make the soul fall short of glory, if possible, endeavours to persuade the soul that its state is good; that it hath the Spirit of Christ in it; and for a proof of the same, saith he, turn thy mind inward, and listen within, and see if there be not that within thee that doth convince of sin: Now the poor soul; finding this to be so, all on haste (if it be willing to profess) through ignorance of the Gospel, claps in with these motions of its own conscience, which doth command to abstain from this evil, and to practise that good; which, if neglected, will accuse and torment for the same neglect of others, both now and hereafter (Rom 2:15).
Now the soul seeing that there is something within that convinceth of sin, doth all on a sudden close with that, supposing it is the Spirit of Christ, and so through this mistake, is carried away with the teachings and convictions of its own conscience, (being misinformed by the devil) unto the works of the law; under which, though it work all its days, and labour with its might and main, yet it never will be able to appease the wrath of God, nor get from under the curse of the law, nor get from under the guilt of one sinful thought the right way, which is to be done by believing what another man hath done by himself, without us, on the cross, without the gates of Jerusalem (Heb 1:2,3; Rom 5:15). See also for this 1 Peter 2:24; Hebrews 13:12. The one saith, He bare our sins in his own body on the tree; the other saith, It was done without the gate.
And thus the poor soul is most horribly carried away headlong, and thrown down violently under the curse of the law, under which it is held all its days, if God of his mere mercy prevent not; and at the end of its life doth fall into the very belly of hell.
Again, That the devil might be sure to carry on his design, he now begins to counterfeit the work of grace: here he is very subtle, and doth transform himself into an angel of light (2 Cor 11:14). Now he makes the soul believe that he is its friend, and that he is a gospel minister; and if the soul will be led by what shall be made known unto it by the light (or conscience) within, it shall not need to fear but it shall do well.
Now he counterfeits the new birth, persuading them that it is wrought by following the light that they brought into the world with them. Now he begins also to make them run through difficulties: and now, like Baal's priests, they must lance themselves with knives, &c. Now, in 1656, Quakers were forced to conform to the laws of the world. Now they must wear no hatbands; now they must live with bread and water; now they must give heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils, which bids them abstain from marriage, and commands them to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving, of them which love and know the truth, as in 1 Timothy 4:1-3. Now they must not speak, except their spirit moves them, (I do not say the Spirit of Christ) though when it moves, they will speak such sad blasphemies, and vent such horrible doctrines, that it makes me wonder to see the patience of God, in that he doth not command, either the ground to open her mouth, and swallow them up, or else suffer the devil to fetch them away alive, to the astonishment of the whole world.
Object. But you will say, doth not the scripture say, that it is the Spirit of Christ that doth make manifest or convince of sin? (John 16:8).
Ans. Yes, it doth so. But for the better understanding of this place, I shall lay down this; namely, that there are two things spoken of in the scriptures, which do manifest sin, or convince of sin. First, the law, as saith the Apostle (Rom 3:20). 'Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: [viz., God's sight:] for by the law is the knowledge of sin.' Secondly, the Spirit of Christ doth make manifest, or reprove of sin, as it is written (John 16:8,9). 'And when he [the Spirit] is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me'; saith the Son of Mary, which is Christ.
Now the law doth sometimes by its own power manifest sin without the Spirit of Christ; as in the case of Judas, who was convinced of the sin of murder, which made him cry out, 'I have sinned'; yet at that time he was so far from having the Spirit of Christ in him, that he was most violently possessed of the devil (Luke 22:3,4).
Again, sometimes the Spirit of Christ takes the law, and doth effectually convince of sin, of righteousness, and judgment to come.
Query. But you will say, How should I know whether I am convinced by the law alone, or that the law is set home effectually by the Spirit of the Lord Jesus upon my conscience?
Ans. 1. Unto this I answer. First, when the law doth convince by its own power, without the help of the Spirit of Christ, it doth only convince of sins against the law, as of swearing, lying, stealing, murdering, adultery, covetousness, and the like. I say, it doth only make manifest sins against the law, pronouncing a horrible curse, against thee, if thou fulfil it not, and so leaves thee; but it gives thee no strength to achieve it completely, and continually, (which thou must do, if thou wilt be saved thereby). Now thy own strength being insufficient for these things, having lost it in Adam, thou art a breaker of the law. Here the law finds thee in thy sins, and condemns thee for thy sins: But gives thee no power to come wholly out of them; neither doth it shew thee thy right Saviour, to save thee from them (which is the Son of the Virgin Mary, the man Christ Jesus) but commands thee upon pain of eternal damnation, to continue in all things that are written in the book of the law to do them (Gal 3:10). And therefore if thou hast been convinced of no other sins, but what are against the law, for all thy convictions and horror of conscience, thou mayest be but a natural man, at the best, and so under the curse.
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