Epistle 288

Dear friends, to whom is my love in the blessed seed, which bruiseth the head of the serpent [Gen 3:15], and is over all, and changeth not, which is the first and last [Rev 1:11], in whom you have life and peace with the God of peace. So you few that are that ways, keep your meetings and meet together in the name of Jesus [Mat 18:20], whose name is above every name [Phil 2:9], and gathering is above every gathering; and there is no salvation in any other name, but by the name of Jesus [Acts 4:12]; and you gathering in his name, where salvation is, he is your prophet [Acts 3:22], your shepherd, your bishop [1 Pet 2:25], your priest, in the midst of you, to open to you, and to sanctify you, and to feed you with life, and to quicken you with life; wait in his power and light, that ye may be children of the light, by believing in the light [John 12:36], which is the life in Christ; that you may be grafted into him, the true root [Rom 11:17], and built upon him, the true foundation [1 Cor 3:11], who was the foundation of the holy prophets and apostles, and of all the holy martyrs, and is the foundation of all his holy people now; and is the rock of ages [Isa 26:4 KJV margin], yea, of the ages of the prophets, and of the ages of his apostles, and of the ages of his people now, and martyrs, who kept them above the raging of the seas, and doth now; which rock the wise men build upon [Mat 7:24f], the rock that stands against all the storms and tempestuous weather.

And therefore be valiant for God's truth upon the earth [Jer 9:3], and his good spirit [Neh 9:20]; and live in it, by which you may profit in the things of God, through which ye may answer the witness of God [1 Jn 5:9] in all, and the spirit which they grieve and quench, which they are erred from, through which he may be served, and his truth spread abroad. So every one in your measures of the spirit of God and Christ, be faithful, that in it you may increase, and answer the Lord in a good life and conversation, for all his mercies.

And as every one hath received the Lord Jesus Christ, so walk in him [Col 2:6], that you may serve the Lord in a new life, and worship <38> him in the spirit and truth, which the devil is out of; and by this truth you may be made free [John 8:32], by which ye may be espoused and married to Christ Jesus, for the marriage of the Lamb is come [Rev 9:7] and coming. And therefore, if you want wisdom, keep in the truth, that you may go to the treasure of life and of salvation, that you may be heirs of the same [Heb 1:14], and of life, and possessors of it.

Yea, I say, heirs of life, and inherit that, and that will be more to you, than if all the world was your portion; and the riches you lay up there [Mat 6:20], will stand by, and be with you when time is gone, and shall be no more. For the truth is the truth, and changeth not, in which live, and it will be your peace and joy everlasting. And in the seed, Christ Jesus, (who bruises the serpent's head, who was before the devil was, glorified with the Father before the world began [John 17:5]; and was from everlasting to everlasting, the first and last, the top and corner-stone [Eph 2:20],) in him live, that you may inherit life everlasting; and dwell in the love of God in Christ Jesus, that will edify and build one another up; and therein walk in all holiness of life and conversation, for that becomes God's house [Psa 93:5]; and dwell, and live, and walk in the peaceable truth, that keeps you in peace, and in the holy fellowship of the spirit, the bond of peace [Eph 4:3]; by which spirit you may be led into all truth [John 16:13], up to God and Christ, from him who is out of the truth. Amen saith my soul.

G. F.