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the fame Hour that which he should fpeak to the 1724. People (that is, in a general Way) and if it is not given from above, I believe he or the ought to be filent; for they receive freely, if they do receive any 'Thing from Chrift, and so they ought freely to ad• minifter; and where little is given, little is required, all which is plain from Chrift's own Words in the New Teftament; and Chrift's Crofs is to be taken up by his Minifters in their Preaching, as well as in their Conversation.

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It is a Practice which the holy Scriptures have ⚫ not acquainted us with, that the Minifters of Chrift 'fhould take a Verfe, or a Line, out of the holy Scriptures, and write, or ftudy before-hand, a Dif course on it, and preach it, or rather read it, to the People. The holy Men of old (as we read both in the Old and New Teftament) spoke as they were ' moved by the holy Ghoft, and by it they were gifted for the convincing, converting, and reforming the World, and for comforting and edifying of the Saints, quite contrary to the latter Practice of modern-reading Divines, who difpute, write, and preach against the immediate and divine Revelation of the Spirit of Chrift, and therefore cannot be of his Minifters, but must be the Minifters of Antichrift, and Minifters of the Letter, and not of the Spirit of Chrift, or of his Gofpel. And where the Apoftle fays, When I was a Child, I fpake as a Child, I take him to point at the being brought forth newly into the Work of the Miniftry, as well as the Work of Converfion, and that he useth those • Expreffions by Way of Comparison, and therefore I compare it thus: A Child when it firft begins or • ventures to speak, he fpeaks but a few Words, and thofe ftammering fometimes, and its Judgment is weak, and must be put upon fpeaking by his Father over and over, if he be a backward Child, otherwife if he be forward, and fpeaks too much,

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1724.

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• he is curb'd by a wife Father: And thus, according to my Observation, it hath pleafed our heavenly Father to inftruct his Children in the Miniftry, and • as a Child in Christ, I would speak a little of my Experience unto the Child, or Children of God. • When I first felt a Neceffity on me to preach the • Gospel, I had but a few Sentences to deliver, in great Fear and Tenderness, with fome Trembling, • with which my Brethren were generally satisfied and edified; and after fome Time I felt a Concern to preach the Gospel in other Countries, and to other • Nations (than that in which I was born) which to me ⚫ was a very great Crofs; but feeling the Woe of the • Lord to follow me in not giving up to it, I in fome • Time took that Cross up, for Chrift's Sake and the

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Gofpel's: And in taking it up, I experienc'd the • Truth of the Apoftle's Doctrine, That the Gospel of • Chrift is the Power of God unto Salvation, to every • one that believeth, Rom. i. 16. Thus through a con⚫tinual Labour and fpiritual Travel, I witneffed a Growth in Experience, and an Enlargement in Expreffions and heavenly Doctrine; and my Heart was mightily enlarged to run the Ways of God's • Commandments, and divers were convinced, and fome, I hope, thoroughly converted, and many comforted, and God, thro' the Miniftry of his dear Son, glorified, who is thereof only worthy for ever.

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In all which I have nothing to boast of nor glory in, faving in the Crofs of Chrift; for what is Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, but Inftruments? (I would not be understood to compare with thofe Apostles, but to endeavour to follow them as they followed • Chrift.) Chrift is All in all: He is the great Teach⚫er of Teachers, and the highest Schoolmaster of all: • And he fays, He that will be my Difciple, must first deny bimfelf, and take up his Crofs, and follow me.

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We do not find any where in the New-Teftament, that Chrift's Minifters or Meffengers were only to

speak

speak or preach to one Meeting of People, or that 1724. they were called or hired by Men; for then it would • have been neceffary Man fhould pay them; but • Chrift fays, Freely you have received, freely give ; • and go forth, &c. Matth. xxviii. 19, 20.

And, my Friend, I find to this Day, that it is fafe for me when I am miniftring to the People; when the Spring of divine Life and Power, (from which ⚫ found Truths and edifying Matter springs and flows into the Heart or Understanding) abates or ftops, to stop with it, and fit down, and not to arise, or fpeak publickly to the People, without fome fpiritual Impulse or Moving, and Openings.

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I would have this taken no otherwise, but as one • Friend and Brother opening their States and Con<dition to another for Edification, and the ftrengthning each other in Chrift. And as I fear left I fhould exceed the Bounds of a Letter, therefore • fhall conclude thy real Friend in Jefus Chrift,

T. C.

The 25th of the Twelfth Month I was at the Burial of the Wife of Randal Spikeman. It being our Fifth-day-meeting, divers fober People were there not of our Perfuafion, and I was drawn forth to speak to the People of the Death of Chrift and his Merits, and to fhew them that there is no Merit in the Works of Man, as he is Man, or in a formal Righteousness or Holiness.

In our Yearly-meeting at Burlington it was agreed, that the Families of Friends fhould be vifited, and foon after our Monthly-meeting appointed me, with other Friends, to vifit the Families of Friends of our Meeting; in which Vifitation, many were comforted and edify'd, both Youth and Aged; and we could truld fay, that the Power and Grace of God, and the fweet Love of Chrift accompanied us from House to House,

Salem.

1725. Fashions, which, with Concern, I have obferv'd to pre vail too much among fome who make Profeffion with us. In this Second Month I went to the Yearly-meeting of Friends at Salem, and by the Way had two Meetings at Woodberry-Creek. At Salem we had a large Meeting, and our gracious Lord was with us, to the bowing many Hearts before him, and many Teftimonies were given of the Goodness, Love, Mercy, and Grace of God, and his dear Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. From Salem we travelled to Alloways-Creek and Cobanfy, and from thence to Elfingburgh, and ferried over the River Delaware, with our Horfes, to George'sCreek, and had Meetings at all thofe Places. At George's-Creek, one, not a Friend, came to me after Meeting, and faid, He thanked me for my Advice and Counsel; and feem'd heartily affected with the Doctrine George's of Chrift. From George's-Creeek we travelled to NotNotting. lingham, and had a large Meeting on a Firft-day,

Cobanfy,

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Creek.

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and another (very large) on the Second-day, where were many People of divers Perfuafions. The House could not contain us, fo that we met in an Orchard. A folid Meeting it was! wherein the mighty Power of the Creator was declar'd of, as alfo the Divinity of Christ, and his Manhood, and the People were exhorted to be careful of forming any perfonal Ideas of the Almighty; for the holy Scriptures do plainly manifeft, that God is a wonderful, infinite, eternal Spirit, and therefore is to be worshipped in Spirit and in Truth, and outward Reprefentations of the Lord Jehovah, borders too much on Idolatry. Pretty much was delivered on that Head; and I was told after Meeting, chat divers Papifts were there, tho' I knew nothing of Newcastle. it. From Nottingham I went to Newcastle, and had a Meeting there, and then vifited a fick Friend, with which he expreffed much Satisfaction; and then went Center. on to Center, Kennet, and Marlborough, and fo to the Monthly-meeting at New-Garden, where we had a large, open Meeting, wherein were fhewn, that

Kenner,

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those who meddled with our Difcipline, in the Will 1725: Nature, Spirit, and Wisdom of Man only, could do but little Service, and that our Difcipline, as alfo our Worship and Miniftry, ought to be performed in the Wisdom and Power of God, thro' the Grace and Spirit of Chrift.- From New-Garden we went to Birmingham, had a large Meeting, and I was much drawn forth to the Youth, of whom many were there. From Birmingham we went to the Quarterly-meeting for Difcipline and Worship at Concord, in Chester- Concord. County, which was larger than I had ever feen there before. In the Quarterly-meeting of Difcipline, Friends were exhorted to keep to the Crofs of Chrift, and to speak to Matters in the Fear of God, and to avoid and fhun as much as in them lay, Self-Will, Humour, Pride, and Paffion; fhewing that the rough, crooked, unhewn, unpolifh'd Nature of Man, could never work the Righteoufnefs of God, and is contrary to the meek, Self-denying Life of Jefus. John Salkeld, and Jacob Howell, then fignified that they were going to vifit Friends in Long-Iland and Rhode Island; the Sense of the Call, Labour, and Work of the Miniftry of the Gospel, and of the Love of Chrift (in the Freenefs of it) to Mankind, took fome good Hold on divers in that Meeting, and the great Name of God, and his dear Son, thro' the holy Spirit, was glorified.

From this Meeting I came Home (having been out on this Journey near three Weeks, at twenty Meetings, and travelled more than 200 Miles) and found my Wife and Children in Health, and we rejoiced to fee each other; but my Rejoicing was in Fear, even almoft to Trembling, left I fhould be too much lifted up when Things were agreeable to me.

After my Return Home I went to feveral neighbouring Meetings, and on a Fifth-day was at Philadelphia at the Marriage of Rihard Smith and Elizabeth Powell. The Meeting was large, and the Marriage

folemnly

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