glorycloud's Diaryland Diary ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- the Spirit stirs up in the soul a spirit of prayer It is 9:46 AM Thursday morning in the death flow. I am down in the lower level messing with one of my lap top computers. I have been thinking of going back to bed this morning. I did pick up my wife this morning when she got out of work. My wife is upstairs looking through the morning newspapers eating cheese and crackers. I thought for fun I would quote more of Richard Sibbes (1577-1635) on the sealing work of the Holy Spirit. I have been quoting from Richard Sibbes exposition of Second Corinthians chapter 1 in Volume 3 of THE WORKS OF RICHARD SIBBES published by the Banner of Truth Trust 1981. I have been reading the works of Richard Sibbes going on 30 years. I have been a Christ lover for 44 years. I started reading the writings of the 17th century English Puritans back in 1975 Richmond California. These days I do not read the Puritans all the time as once did in the past. I now read all over the map. But once in awhile I get out one of the old English Puritans and read their writings like Sibbes work, "Exposition on Second Corinthians Chapter 1" Volume 3. If you have been reading my blog for awhile you know Richard Sibbes is one of my favorite 17th century English Puritan divines. "I answer, the Spirit in this sealing works these four things: By these four ways we may know the sealing of the Spirit after we believe, and that our faith is a sound belief, and that we are in the state of grace indeed. 1. First, I say, the Spirit speaks to us by a secret kind of whispering and intimation, that the soul feels better than I can express. 'Be of good comfort, thy sins are forgiven thee,' saith he to the soul, Matt. ix. 2, 'I am thy salvation,' Ps. xxxv. 3. There is, I say, a sweet joining, a sweet kiss given to the soul. 'I am thine, and thou art mine,' Cant. vi.3. God by his Spirit speaks so much. There is a voice of God's Spirit speaking peace to his people upon their believing. 2. And then, Secondly, the Spirit of adoption stirs up the speech of the soul to God, that as he says to the soul, Because thou believest, now thou art honoured to be my child; so the Spirit stirs up in the soul a spirit of prayer to cry, 'Abba Father.' It can go boldly to God as to a Father; for that 'Abba, Father,' it is a bold and familiar speech. There are two things in a prayer of a Christian that are incompatible to any carnal man: there is an inward kind of familiar boldness in the soul, to his father. A child considers not his own worthiness or meanness, but goeth to his father familiarly and boldly: so, I say, when the Spirit of God speaks to us from God, and tells the soul, 'I am thine,' 'I am thy salvation,' 'thy sins are forgiven thee, be of good comfort:' and when the soul again speaks to God, when it can pour forth itself with a kind of familiar boldness and earnestness, especially in extremity, and in time of trouble, and can wait in prayer, and depend upon God,-this spiritual speech of God to the soul, and of the soul to God, it is a seal of the Spirit that indeed we are true believers, because we can do that that none can do but Christians. God speaks to our souls, he raiseth our souls, and by his Spirit he puts a spirit of supplication into us, and helps our infirmities; for we know not what to ask, but he helps our weakness, and enables us to lay out the wants of our souls to God. These are evidences of the presence and of the seal of the Spirit." pg. 456,457 Richard Sibbes "Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee" 2 Corinthians 1:21,22 10:38 a.m. - 2014-11-27 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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