NARRATIVE OF THE EXTRAORDINARY WORK OF THE SPIRIT OF GOD, AT KILS Y T H, AND OTHER CONGREGATIONS IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD. With a Preface wherein there is an Address to the Brethren of the Affociate Prefbytery, anent their late Act for a public Faft. Written by JAMES ROBE, A. M. Minifter of the Gospel at Kilfyth. Numb. xxiii. 23. According to this time it shall be said of Jacob, and of Ifrael, What hath God wrought! Luke xvii. 1, 2. —It is impoffible but that offences will come: but wo unto him through whom they come. It were better for him that a milftone were hanged about his neck, and he caft into the fea, than that he should offend one of thefe little ones. GLASGOW: PRINTED BY DAVID NIVEN. THE PREFACE. IT is tranfporting and aftonishing, that after all the great and horrid provocations we have given the moft High in this church and land, by growing deism and infidelity, carnality and profanity, formality and hypocrify, our bitter envyings and unreafonable divifions; but most of all by a general reject ing of the bleffed Son of God by unbelief, and using gofpel ordinances contentedly without feeling the power of them, the Lord hath been fo far from utterly forfaking us, and making our country defolate by fome destroying judgment; that he is in wrath remembering mercy, and beginning manifeftly to revive his work, and help us in fuch a fituation, as was become hopeless and helpless by any human poffible means. There hath been a great and juft complaint amongst godly ministers and christians of the elder fort, who have feen better days, that for fome years past, there hath been a fenfible decay as to the life and power of godliness. Iniquity abounded and the love of many waxed cold. Our defection from the Lord, and backfliding increased faft to a dreadful apoftacy. While the government, worship and doctrine, established in this church were retained in profeffion; there hath been an univerfal corruption of life, reaching even unto the fons and daughters of God. Former ftrictness as to holiness, and tenderness of life was much relaxed among both minifters and people of the better fort: a formal round of profeffional duties was the religion of the profeffors, and in this they rested: as to the multitude they were visibly profane, and without any sense of religion at all. Things were become fo bad with us, that there were few, we the ministers of the word, could comfort as believers in Christ, and exhort to rejoice in hope of the glory of God, when we found them a dying. All this was obferved by fome, and looked upon as the cause of God's controverfy with us; and what, they feared, would provoke him to fend fome defolating judgment, to avenge the quarrel of his thus broken covenant: and in this view they gave warning as occafion offered. It is one of Satan's devices, to engage fome diftreffed fouls, to be deeply exercised about these things which either are not their fins, or among the leaft of them; that hereby he may divert them from minding their greatest fins, and these which are the cause of God's controverfy with them. Some zealous good men, both minifters and others fell unwarily into this fnare. They looked upon fome things of mismanagement in government and difcipline, which others were diffatisfied with as well as they, with fuch earnestness, that they cried out against them as the most crying fins, the cause of the Lord's controverfy with us, portending dreadful judgments, and what corrupted the church fo far, as nothing could fecure the falvation of her members, but coming out of her, and feparating from her. Hereby they were led to overlook what was our greatest evil, and the caufe of God's controverfy with us, namely the corruption of the lives of the members of this church, and that we had a name to live, while we were in a great measure dead, as to faith, love to God and one another, and other branches of holiness.: This unhappily filled the heads and mouths of the moft of profeffors to fuch a degree, as to mind and converse about nothing even upon the Lord's day; but ministers, church judicatories, and fome other difputable things, far from the vitals of religion. The state of their fouls was much forgotten, and they were either difaffected to their worthy ministers, and the Lord's ordinances difpenfed by them; or if they attended, they were diverted by these things from a concern about their regeneration, conversion, and amending their ways and doings, which were not good. Wherever our lamentable divifions prevailed, ferious religion declined to a shadow. All this while we had a dead and barren time. The work of converfion went but flowly and indifcernibly on. The influences of the Holy Spirit were restrained. The Lord's prefence was much withdrawn, and the power of his grace little exerted and put forth, fo that the gospel had but small fuccefs, either for bringing fouls to Jefus Chrift, or for quickning and refreshing real chriftians. Minifters and godly chriftians, who obferved these things with forrow, were filled with fears left the Lord had poured forth a spirit of deep fleep upon this generation, and given unto his fervants the commiffion he gave unto the evangelical prophet Isaiah, Isa. vi. 9, 10, 11, 12. And he faid, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but underftand not; and fee ye indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and fout their eyes: left they fee with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and underftand with their heart, and convert and be healed. Then faid I, Lord, how long? and he answered, Until the cities be wafted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly defolate, And the Lord have removed men far away, and there be a great forfaking in the midft of the land. Several minifters gave warning to their people, that they were afraid left these fpiritual judgments moft frequent in New Teftament |
