And now, friends, with the eternal power, and heavenly light of Christ, with it you have seen, and do see, and will see, that which Christ hath spoken, Matt. xiii. and Luke viii. which he taught to the great multitude in parables, when he sat in a ship [Mat 13:2f]; ‘Behold,’ saith Christ, ‘a sower went out to sow his seed, and as he sowed, some fell by the highway side, and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it: and some fell upon the rocks, or stony places, where they had not much earth, and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away. [Mat 13:3-6]’ So he that receiveth the seed into rocky and stony places, the same is he that receiveth the word with joy, yet hath he not root in himself, but endureth for awhile, or for awhile believeth, and in temptations falleth away [Luke 8:13]; for when tribulations or persecutions arise because of the word, by and by he is offended [Mat 13:21]; and upon too many such have we seen this parable fulfilled in times of persecutions, and tribulations, and sufferings; when the heat of persecution is up, they are scorched, and withered away, and so come to nothing. ‘And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprung up and choked it [Mat 13:7].’ ‘And they also that received seed among the thorns, are they that hear the word, and when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with the cares of this world, and deceitfulness of riches, and pleasures of this life, and become unfruitful, and bring no fruit to perfection [Mat 13:22 /Luke 8:14]. And this is seen to be the condition of too many. But the other ‘fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some thirty, some sixty, and some a hundred fold [Mat 13:8].’ So they that received the seed into the good ground, are they who (in an honest and good heart) have heard the word, and understand it, and keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience [Luke 8:15], some a hundred fold, some sixty, some thirty, as was said before. . . . <218> . . . . And therefore let all consider what ground you are, and what fruit you bring forth; and when ye hear the word of the kingdom, that ye understand it, which none can, without the light and spirit of Christ, (and walk in it,) but he that shall endure to the end in the light, in the grace, truth, and spirit, and in Christ, from whom you do receive these, shall be saved [Mat 24:13].
For the apostle saith, ‘The just man lives by faith [Rom 1:17].’ And this is not by any faith which men make, but by the faith which Christ Jesus is both the author and finisher of [Heb 12:1], in your hearts and consciences; and in this faith ye have access to God [Rom 5:2], and do please him [Heb 11:6]. But, ‘if any man draw back,’ (to wit, in not living by this faith,) doth not the Lord say, ‘My soul shall have no pleasure in him [Heb 10:38]?’ But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition, (that is a sad drawing back,) but of them that believe, to the saving of our souls.
G. F.
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George Fox (1624 - 1691)
Was an English Dissenter and a founder of the Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as the Quakers or Friends. This was a group the Lord started through the ministry of George Fox. God called him apart from all other forms of Christendom in his day because of the lack of Biblical obedience and holiness.The emphasis in George Fox's ministry was firstly prophetic. He called out the people of God to show them that they had the Holy Spirit of God and could be taught of Him and not to solely rely on the teachings of ecclesiastical leaders. Secondly, he spoke directly to many ministers in his day to show them they were hirelings and did not have a true shepherds heart for the people of God rather they were seeking after financial gain.
Founder of the Society of Friends (Quakers). George Fox was born in Drayton-in-the-Clay, Leicestershire, England, the son of Puritan parents. Little is known of his early life, apart from what he wrote in his journal: "In my very young years, I had a gravity and stayedness of mind and spirit not usual in young children. Insomuch that, when I saw old men behave lightly and wantonly toward each other, I had a dislike thereof raise in my heart, and I said within myself, `If ever I come to be a man, surely I shall not do so, nor be so wanton.'"
At the age of 19, he gained deep, personal assurance of his salvation and began to travel as an itinerant preacher, seeking a return to the simple practices of the New Testament. He abhorred technical theology, and preached a faith borne of experience, freshly fed and guided by the immediate presence of the Holy Spirit.
Fox was persecuted almost daily, yet his power of endurance was phenomenal. He was beaten with dogwhips, knocked down with fists and stones, brutally struck with pikestaves, hard beset by mobs, incarcerated eight times in the pestilential jails, prisons, castles and dungeons--yet he went straightforward with his mission as though he had discovered some fresh courage which made him impervious to man's inhumanity.
He undertook as far as possible to let the new life in Christ take its own free course of development in his ministry. He shunned rigid forms and static systems, and for that reason he refused to head a new sect or to start a new denomination, or to begin a new church. He would not build an organization of any kind. His followers at first called themselves "Children of the Light," and later adopted the name "The Society (or Fellowship) of Friends."
Fox preached and traveled for 40 years throughout England, Scotland, Holland, and America. His life demonstrated the truth of his famous saying, "One man raised by God's power to stand and live in the same spirit the apostle and prophets were in, can shake the country for ten miles around."