A vindication of truth,: as held forth in a book, entituled, Love to the lost, from the lies, slanders and deceits of T. Higgenson, in a book, called, A testimony to thc [sic] true Iesus. But he is discovered to hold forth another Iesus then what the Scriptures hold forth, or the saints witness. / I.N.

Concerning good works.

ANd here thou charges me falsly also, As that I should hold out the creature obedience unto the light, which reproves of sin, and is bringing forth the fruits of it for good works, and for redemption: which is utterly false, for my account is that all should wait in the light of Christ, and abide in it until the living word they come to hear and receive in their hearts, whereby the dead comes to be raised to life, which was dead in trespasses and sins, and that spi∣ritual man being quickened, the power of the Spirit brings forth in him the work of Gods righteousness, which was from everla∣sting; and this is another thing, than the Creature working, onely from that light that reproves sin; so that my words doth exhort such to stand still till they see the salvation of God, and the word of his power revealed therein, by which he must be created or wrought into the good work, that he may walk there∣in.

Another thing thou sayes, that I say, the obedience or righteous∣ness in Christ for justification and good works in us are one thing: I say, That the works of God and righteousness in Christ are one thing from the beginning of the world, in Christ, in whom ever he is, according to its several measure and ends, but if thou in∣tend Creature works (though the most refined that ever was) I utterly deny them, and thy accusation, as false like the rest, and

so having cleared the truth from thy slanders, and set it where it was, I shall come to thy doctrine.

And thou speaks of the everlasting onely righteousness upon all that beleive, and that it is as a spiritual heaven, large enough to take in and cover the second creation: I say, that is true; But what is that to thee, that art in the first creation? It doth not cover thee, thy wickedness is seen, thy lies are laying open, thy nakedness appears, and thy folly to all men: Onely thou sayest, thou reckonest thy self to be so, though it be not so felt: I say, I know it, there were ever a generation that justified themselves, but were not just before God, and thine will be found no other, who reckons thy self justified by that which thou hast neither seen, felt nor handled.

And thou sayes, Thou thinks it necessary to give warning, that all approaches unto, or converses with the Majesty and glory of God, by any redemption or operation, of whatsoever spirit or light within, where the redemption in the person of Christ is excluded. To which I say, Thou shews thy dark busie mind, and what thou knows of approaches to God, or converses with his majesty and glory who imagines that that can be, where the redemption of Christ is excluded.

Thou sayes, But if any ask, how thou art redeemed while sin is in thee? thou sayest, the Father he laid your sins upon Christ to take them away, and the Spirit bears witness that all things are finished: I say, that is true where repentance and faith is, where by the creature denies himself and comes to Christ, there Christ takes the sins away: But thy sins are there yet, and thou a servant thereof, and the Spirit bears witness in the conscience against thee for it, and the best way thou hast to peace, is to stifle the witness of the Spirit in thy conscience, and exhort others not to heed it.

Thou sayes, Through faith thou receives Christ into thy self, and thou art received into him, and through this oneness art made righte∣ousness, life and light: But how oft hast thou denied this, or any thing within to be looked unto? Art thou now become righ∣teousness, life and light thy self, and was condemning it, as great error in me, in thy last to witness good works in Christ? Art thou become righteousness thy self, light and life, and wilt thou

not allow another to testifie the works of Christ in him? Thy charity is either selfish, or thou knows not what thou sayes, and ere thou go out of that page, thou contradicts it thy self again, denies redemption by the operation of that Spirit that is within us, so that which makes thee righteousness, life and light, by thy doctrine cannot work redemption; and thus thou tottereth to and fro, having undertaken a business, and would seem to say something, and so being out of the light makes up a heap of confusion.

And as thou begins with a lie, so thou ends, saying, That I say, that all the works and measures performed by the Creature, in obedi∣ence to the light within, do but all compleat the one work of the Crea∣ture redemption: And when thou hast told this falshood, thou sets down a story of Luther, wherein he divides Abraham and his righteousness as far a sunder as between heaven and earth: So to answer thee and thy story, I shall produce one plain Scripture from James 2. from the 14. to the end of the Chapter. Was not thou even now telling of being made righteousness into thy self? and now brings a story to divide Abrahams righteousness as far from him as heaven from earth, and much such staggering thou makest, but the end of all is to keep righteousness out of the door, that thy master may have liberty within.