But to strengthen your Reafon, you fay that this appears to be ceafed, by the practise thereof at this day: for though so many perfons have hands laid upon them to this end; yet thofe Extraordinary gifts have never followed to any one of them; but both they and the administrators are, and remain as other men Afw. First, minde your abfurdity the power is not ceased, God is the fame. 2. Whereas you fay, we practise it to this end; I answer, That here again you are mistaken, though in your last Chapter you are pleased to say, that fome of us do fo; which is that I never yet heard to be the Judgment of any in this practife, and therefore I fuppofe you wrong us. 3. But you fay, For all this pra&tife, we remain as other men. I anfwer, It It is very true: but we may cafily fee your fore, which I wish the Lord may heal among you, and that is this; if you could fee a fign or a wonder, you would believe: Bur take heed you may not be as unworthy of it, as the generation unto whom Chrift fpake, Mat. 12.38,39. 1 & 16, 1, 2, 3. and 4. For my felf, it was my Judgment and practise in this way of God, that I ought to be obedient, not for what I fhould receive, but because the Lord Jefus taught and left fuch a way for believers to wait upon him in. Yet I would have you know, I did never yeeld obedience unto Christ in any of his wayes, but I did indeavour to exercife faith upon, him therein, and that for his prefence and bleffing with me in them: and this I must tell you, that it is a rotten-principle, and that which God will never approve of, for any one to yeild obedience to him, K 2 meerly meerly because they fhall receive fuch or fuch a gift from him. And I with this may not be an evil of many Profeffours in this our day; not only those, who have been in our practise, but in yours also; who have upon fuch grounds fubmitted, propounding fuch or fuch benefits to themselves: then miffing of their ends, they have been offended, and fo have rejected the Word of the Lord, and the good wayes of God. Alas, we may fay, when we have done all, we are unprofitable Servants, and having done the whole will of God, we have need of patience. We do confefs we are weak, and poffible may come under that reproof the Apostle gives the Hebrew Church, (who were under this principle of Chrifts Doctrine, as well as we,) that for the time we might have been Teachers; yet we have need any need to be taught again: but this is our Comfort, that God doth in measure accept of us; and though we have but a little ftrength, yet it's our duty to hold faft the Word of the Lord; and in fo doing, we are confident he will approve of us, Rev. 3.8, 9, 10. But this we know, that the people of God, though never so much indued with his wifdome, were still fools in the wife Worlds account, as poffible we may be in your eyes: and though we are so accounted by you, yet learn to know, that God makes use of foolish instruments. And therefore farther to this, I may fay, that what God bestows upon us in this, or any of his wayes, It is our duty to be thankful to him for: and if we can learn this leffon, to make a right use of what we have received, we may be confident of receiving more from God. Likewife to call this a principle, K.3. to (to wit, laying on of hands upon believers Baptized, as fuch) is not to grant, as you fay, that one of the foundation-ftones is now loft; but is indeed again restored, and that to it's right ufe, which hath been for a long feafon in a wrong manner applyed, and now by you wholly rejected. Your fecond Reason is, that this laying on of hands cannot be the principle, because this laying on of hands is there called a Doctrine; but that laying on of hands to give the Holy Spirit, was never once taught in all the New Testament, no not by them that practifed it. I anfwer, firft, taking notice that the oppofers of this truth of Chrift agree not; for Mr Harrison in his Touch-ftone, as he calls it, of this truth affirms the laying on of hands, in Heb. 6. 2. to be meant upon perfons for healing, which is the laying on of hands spoken of and pro |