To the Prisoners
The sermon emphasizes the importance of being a prisoner of Christ, purchased with His blood, and being witnesses for the Lord, with the power of Christ giving us victory over darkness.
George Fox addresses those imprisoned for their faith, reminding them that they belong to the Lord Jesus Christ, who has purchased them with His blood. He emphasizes that even in physical bondage, their spirits are free and empowered by God, serving as witnesses against the darkness of the world. Fox encourages them to remain steadfast in their faith, highlighting the victory over evil through the power of God and the importance of adhering to His word. He warns against the false prophets and the deceptions of the devil, urging the faithful to focus on the truth and light that comes from God. Ultimately, he reassures them that their time is in the hands of the Father, and they are called to do His works.
Text
To The Prisoners (1657)
Friends, - Ye that are the prisoners of the the Lord Jesus Christ in outward bonds, who witness him by whom the world was made, who is the King of saints, and who are his, and come under his dominion and government, ye are not your own; but purchased with his blood, which washes and makes you clean, and justifies, whose bodies are his temple. Though he suffers you to be imprisoned, yet in his power your bodies are kept, and your spirits also; ye standing witnesses for your master, for your king, for your prophet, for your covenant of light, for your wisdom of God, (him by whom all things were made,) for the word and power, by which all things were made and upheld, against the powers of darkness, who are out of the light, out of the truth, who cannot bind, stop, nor limit the unlimited power, which is over it, and comprehends it. They who are born of the world, and in the power which upholds all things, over that, (and the power of the evil one,) have victory, and sing over the false prophet. For the devil was the deceiver, who abode not in the truth; and there is the false prophet, who speaks of his own, and not from the Lord; and there is the beast, that makes the war against the lamb and his saints , who witness the testimony of Jesus, and the word of God. Therefore mind the word of God, ye children of the light, who are in the light, that comes from the word; mind the word of the Lord, which is a hammer, and as a fire, and sharper than a two-edged sword. And ye who are the Lord's, are not your own; but they who are in their own time, see not the time which is in the Father's hand; their time is always,and they do their own works, and not the works of God, which the son of God did.
G.F.
Sermon Outline
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I
- The Prisoners of Christ
- Purchased with His Blood
- Witnesses for the Lord
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II
- The Power of Christ
- Unlimited and Unbound
- Victory over Darkness
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III
- The Word of God
- A Hammer and Fire
- A Two-Edged Sword
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IV
- The Children of Light
- In the Light of God
- Doing the Works of God
Key Quotes
“Ye are not your own; but purchased with his blood, which washes and makes you clean, and justifies, whose bodies are his temple.” — George Fox
“They who are born of the world, and in the power which upholds all things, over that, (and the power of the evil one,) have victory, and sing over the false prophet.” — George Fox
“Mind the word of God, ye children of the light, who are in the light, that comes from the word; mind the word of the Lord, which is a hammer, and as a fire, and sharper than a two-edged sword.” — George Fox
Application Points
- Recognize that you are not your own, but purchased with the blood of Christ.
- Be witnesses for the Lord, standing against the powers of darkness.
- Mind the word of God, which is a hammer, a fire, and a two-edged sword.