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A letter written by James Naylor, to all the dearly beloved people of God, mercy and peace.
There is nothing dear and precious to me in this world, but Gods truth and his life of righteousness, for which I have forsaken all the world, and what ever was beloved and dear to me therein: I have hated it, and counted it an enemy, that I might obtain Christ the fountain and spring of that eternal life and truth, the bounty whereof I cannot express as I see and feel it: The loveliness thereof to my soul, hath so dearly united my Spirit to all that bear the image and life of it, that there can be no separation; but my life suffers thereby, and I can truly say, that there is no other thing whatsoever, that can unite me as one with any creature living but this image and life where I see it born up or breathing to life; but in whomsoever it be, without respect of persons, that I see the least appearance of this seed of life, I can, by that power of love the Father that begotten in me, lay down my life to serve for the seeds sake; and wherein I have come short of this formerly, {Page 41} and have respected the high more than stood only in this seed, I have been judged of the Lord and my evil thoughts therein comdemned; yea, and I do comdemn them before all the world, to be of that which favours itself, and not the things of Christ: and the lower God doth bring me, and the nearer to himself, the more doth this love and tenderness spring, and spread towards the poor simple dispised ones, who are poor in spirit, meek, lowly, suffering lambs, and with these I chuse to suffer and do suffer where-ever they are found; and I bear testimony against that spirit by which they suffer where-ever it is found, and this lies upon me from the Lord herein, and the Lord God of love give us all to see, that what-ever our gifts or powers be, yet if we have not the life and power of love, it avails not with God, though men may esteem us never so high; for only he that dwells in love knows God and lives in him, the rest know not what spirit they are of, and this I feelingly declare from that dear love of God, in me begotten, to all his people, whereby I am so far from taking delight in troubling the people of God, as that their growth in peace and truth, upon that foundation laid already, was never so much desired; and my love to them is daily encreased beyond that I can here express, yet the Lord knows it, and whence it is, whether it be received by men or no; yet the seed shall feel it in Gods time, to which it is, and in whose peace only I have peace and I hope in the power of that love, God will so strengthen me, that nothing of shame, loss, or reproach, shall ever be too hard to take up for the advancement thereof, as God shall shew and lead me therein, without whom I dare do nothing, lest I deny his work, or confound it with my own. And concerning you, the tender plants of my Father, who have suffered through me or with me in what the Lord hath done with me in this time of great tryals and temptations, the Almighty God of love, who hath numbred every sigh, and put every tear in his Bottle, reward it a thousand fold into your bosom, in the day of your need, when you shall come to be tryed and tempted; and in the mean time, fulfil your joy with his love you seek after the Lord knows it was never in my heart to cause you to mourn, whose suffering is my greatest sorrow that ever yet came upon me, for you are innocent herein, but the envious one hath taken his adventage, which the Lord will turn to his disadvantage and utter in many souls: and in this believing is all my rest, in my great trouble of heart concerning you or my self, and in patience I wait to see it, when the man of sin hath had his time to be revealed: for I have been destroyed e’re this, such hath been the violence of the enemy of my soul; but he hath numbred my hairs, and not left me in the fire or in the water; when none else was with me, thou art my comforter. O that I may never hide thy praise by covering my own sin or shame, God forbid.
By a way unexpected did the Lord open a way to declare these words, all other means of writing being taken from me: blessed be he on whom I wait further to see his will, that I may do or suffer it.
The Presence and Power of the Almighty comfort his people, whom I salute in bowels of love.
I beseech you (all that can) to receive it even as you would be received of the Lord, and for the rest, the Lord give me patience to suffer till the Lord make up the breach.
J.N
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