R. Weston, Printer, Crosby Row, Southwark.
PROOFS
OF THE
Godhead of the Holy Spirit.
ADDRESSED TO ALEXANDER.
Sir,
Since you have mounted the scorner’s chair, and set your tongue against the heavens, by denying the glorious doctrine of the Godhead, divinity, personality, and of course the offices and operations of God the eternal Spirit, I consider it my duty to address you. I once considered you sound in the faith—but alas, how have you fallen, and fallen for the mean the beggarly purpose of a morsel of bread, and your conscience knows it. I should not perhaps have troubled you with this letter, but you are so very busy in making converts to this your opinion—not contented with going to hell yourself, you are determined to drag others with you. I make no apology for this abrupt address, but assure you, that if you die in these awful sentiments of denying the Godhead, divinity and distinct personality of the Holy Spirit, your end will be awful indeed; to treat his sacred person with such awful contempt is shocking, and to teach others so to do adds to your crime.
That there is a Holy Spirit you pretend not to deny—but “What is it?” say you and your deluded followers; “O nothing but a mere breath, a point, a mere emanation, that’s all!” Pray Sir, where did you get this information from? not from the Bible that is plain; where then but from other fools like yourself, and now imposing these ridiculous notions upon your hearers as if you had been the original author of them; whereas, yourself can hardly tell what an emanation means. May the Lord restore you to truth, or open the eyes of your hearers to see your errors, and your base design in propagating them. But from the Scriptures of truth I am about to prove that the adorable Spirit is something more than a mere breath or an emanation; and that the ever-blessed Spirit is a person God blessed for evermore—and be it at your peril to contradict it. Deny it you may—reason about it you may—but overthrow it you never shall. Thousands of hearts, tongues and pens have been employed in this black work before you was born, who are gone to the judgment seat of God to answer for this crime; and without you relinquish your notions, without humbling grace, and the pardon of this sin, so will you.
To the law and testimony, without one word of reason from me, let the word speak, and we shall find something more than emanation.
The adorable Spirit is described as a person; and every one knows that a person is a living, thinking, intelligent being, endowed with will and understanding; and such is the Holy Spirit.
He communicates natural and spiritual life to mankind, he must therefore possess it himself.
He wills what he pleases, which would be ridiculous to suppose of an emanation.