SECT. II. "There is none other name under heaven given amongst men, whereby we must The head of J. W.'s chapter IV runs thus: "Is the sacrifice of Christ held in proper estimation by the Society of Friends?" In this chapter, page 170, J. W. says: "We find in the description which William Penn gives of the early Friends, that they professed to give their 'TESTIMONY' to a principle in man, which they held up as the only blessed means of Salvation, instead of the preaching of the gospel, or making any reference to the scriptural doctrine of the offering of the body of Christ once for all.-Heb. x, 10.” Before giving from William Penn the paragraph, which J. W. thus represents, it may be stated, that the above quotation is copied exactly from J. W., not only as regards the words of it, but the characters in which they are printed; and I confess that I have read this position, and the paragraph from W. Penn which J. W. subjoins as an illustration of that position, more than once before I could believe he intended one to relate to the other; but this confounding of things which are essentially distinct, appears often to be the foundation of J. W.'s perversions of the Principles of Friends. J. W. is treating on "the sacrifice of Christ," and the quotation he introduces from W. Penn, treats only on the regenerating power of Christ revealed in the heart; and will J. W. venture to assert that it is by "the outward offering of Christ once for all," that any man is "born of the Spirit;" without which our Lord declared a man "" cannot see the kingdom of God?" Or is it either fair to infer, or logical to deduce, that holding up the necessity of the quickening virtue and power of Christ inwardly revealed, convicts W. Penn of denying Christ outwardly manifested, as the "ransom for all ? " 1 3 J. W.'s quotation from W. Penn is as follows: "And as their testimony was to the principle of God in man, the precious PEARL and LEAVEN of the KINGDOM, as the only blessed means appointed of God to quicken, convince, and sanctify man; so they opened to them what it was in itself, and what it was given to them for. How they might know it from their own spirit, and that of the subtle appearance of the evil one; and what it would do for all those whose minds should be turned off from the vanity of the world, and its lifeless ways and teachers, and adhere to His blessed light in themselves, which discovers and condemns sin in all its appearances; and shows how to overcome it, if minded and obeyed in its holy manifestations and convictions; giving power to such to avoid and resist those things that do not please God; and to grow strong in love, faith, and good works. That so man, whom sin hath made as a wilderness, overrun with briars and thorns, might become as the garden of the Lord, cultivated by His Divine power, and replenished with the most beautiful plants of God's own right hand planting, to His eternal praise." By the very words of the early part of this quotation, which J. W. himself has printed in italics, it is most obvious that the "PRINCIPLE of GOD in man," and "the precious PEARL and LEAVEN of the KINGDOM," are, by W. Penn, considered as one and the same thing; which is the basis of all the following remarks that he makes, and which he confirms towards the close by referring the culture of this "SEED," which is also the seed of the kingdom, to "the LORD's Divine POWER." To avoid being misunderstood, I would distinctly premise as my own belief, and what I have no doubt was the belief of the early Friends, that I not only acknowledge the propitiatory character of the OUTWARD offering and "sacrifice of Christ;" but in the most unlimited sense of the term universality, that CHRIST "DIED for ALL." But I must distinctly state my apprehension that this sacrifice, "the propitiation for the sins of the WHOLE WORLD❞—and the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit, are two quite distinct things, though they co-operate to the same end, the salvation of the soul; the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit, being essential to carrying out the benefit of the outward "sacrifice of Christ" to its completion. This is a very awful theme, but when a spirit of confusion and of consequent error so pervades any, as in addition to heaping calumnies of the deepest dye on his fellow Christians, it occasions him also far to exceed this, and even to ridicule * what others solemnly believe to be the manifestations of the Holy Spirit himself; surely the most minute discrimination between those two Divine and awful distinctions of the ONE only source of salvation, is then authorized, not only in a feeble endeavour to "justify the ways of God to man," but if possible to correct the error of judgment in the mistaken writer. Under these solemn impressions, I ask :— I. Is the "sacrifice of Christ," or is "the precious PEARL and leaven of the kingdom," "appointed of God to quicken, convince, and sanctify man," and effect the great work of regeneration? II. Does "the outward offering of Christ" nullify this work of the Spirit, without which "a man cannot enter or see the kingdom of God?" or is not the office of that offering and sacrifice quite distinct from this inward work; since it is: 'If we walk in the LIGHT as God is in the Light," that "the BLOOD OF JESUS CHRIST his Son cleanseth us from all sin?" III. Does "the sacrifice of Christ,” cultivate the heart, SO that man whom sin hath made as a wilderness, overrun with * In page 154, J. W. quotes these words from G. Fox: "Take heed to the LIGHT within you, which is the LIGHT of CHRIST," and yet J. W. says, in page 368: "They have thus as they suppose, a light within them, but it has, in very many instances, proved ITSELF to be an IGNIS FATUUS. " briars and thorns, might become as the garden of the Lord ?" Or is it by His blessed Light in themselves," by "His Divine POWER WITHIN, that the hearts of men are replenished with the most beautiful plants of God's own right hand planting, to His eternal praise?" IV. Though by his precious blood "the Lamb of God" can "take away the sin of the world; " yet does "the outward offering of Christ" effect this, without the conjoined influence of the "quickening" power of the Holy Spirit, by which alone a man can be born again," and without which "he cannot see the kingdom of God?" V. Are there not then most obviously two distinct offices for the Redeemer of men to perform, the one without us, and the other within us; each equally most essentially component of the adorable system of human redemption? It may be that this clear discrimination may be more fully substantiated by looking at the decided distinction which the Scripture makes between the "Spirit not by measure ”—“ the FULNESS of the GODHEAD," and that manhood in which this "fulness dwelled bodily." I. Did the Holy Spirit in "all the FULNESS of the GodHEAD," endure the agony in Gethsemane ? II. Was it to this "FULNESS of the GODHEAD," to whom an angel appeared, strengthening Him," whilst enduring this agony? Or was it to "the MAN CHRIST JESUS?" 99 III. Could it be "the FULNESS of the GODHEAD?" or was it "the MAN CHRIST JESUs," who, under the extreme feelings of our nature, and in the acme of baptism for a sinful world, exclaimed on the cross: "ELOI, ELOI, lama sabachthani! My GOD, my GOD! why hast Thou FORSAKEN me! IV. To finish these solemn inquiries:-Could it possibly be "ALL the FULNESS of the GODHEAD?" Or was it the holy manhood of JESUS our LORD, who uttered the language: "IT IS FINISHED,-bowed his head"-and DIED! So complete, however, was the union of "ALL the fulness of the GODHEAD" with "the MAN CHRIST JESUS," that we have very abundant testimonies in the Sacred Records, of a similar import to these words of Peter to the Jews: "God hath made that SAME JESUS whom ye have CRUCIFIED both LORD and CHRIST!" Since we can, through this incomprehensible union, with strict propriety, apply to our Lord and Saviour, either the Godhead or the Manhood; so in like manner are we warranted by Scripture, to ascribe with equal propriety, though not in an exclusive sense, our salvation and redemption to the outward offering of Christ, or to the inward revelation of His name and power: "The mystery which had been hid from ages and from generations;" but which through this stupendous whole, 66 now is made manifest" to be "CHRIST IN you the hope of glory: whom we preach." The distinction which is to be observed, I. Pennington appears to allude to when he says: "We cannot call the veil Christ. In applying the term Christ to "GOD manifest in the flesh," we necessarily include the veil as being that preparation for the Godhead in which "all His fulness dwelled bodily." We may also apply the term "Christ" to the Godhead independently of "the veil"; as the apostle does in stating that "all our Fathers" "drank of that Spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ;" for certainly there was no manifestation of " the veil," or "prepared body," to Israel in the wilderness. But though in applying the term Christ to "God manifest in the flesh" we embrace the WHOLE Christ; as relates both to "the fulness of the Godhead" and "to the man Christ Jesus," yet we cannot so embrace the whole Christ in applying this term to the veil independently of the Godhead which dwelled therein; and I trust it has been shown that such a distinction must sometimes be observed, or it must follow that the Godhead died |