The works of the reverend and faithful servant of Jesus Christ M. Richard Greenham,…The workes of the reuerend and faithfull seruant af Iesus Christ M. Richard Greenham,…

For without the Spirit, the word is as the bright Sun to a blind man, who not for fault of a pure object, but for want of sense is not able to discern the clearest thing in the world: and therefore the Prophet David, Psal. 119 saith, Open mine eyes, O Lord, that I may see the wonders of thy law. True it is, the Sun is bright, but what is that to a blind man? True it is the word is glorious, but what is that to a man without the spirit of God? For so far we profit by the word, as we receive the power of it by the inward ministry of the Spirit; we must try the spirits by the word, and we shall then know that we have received the spirit of God, when he giveth us the pure understanding, the careful receiving, and zealous practising of the same. Carnal men and our late Anabaptists be but boasters of themselves, in terming themselves spiritual men: we are not taught so to brag of the Spirit, or any work thereof, but as it is warranted unto us by the written ⟨p. 224⟩word: we confess, that blind is our mind, and that we cannot profit by the word, but by God his spirit: we look not for the spirit in our fantasy, but for the spirit which worketh by the word; which spirit spake by Abraham, by the Patriarchs, by Moses, and the Prophets, by Paul and the Apostles, and by our Saviour Christ himself. Seeing the spirit of God is so high a thing, we are here to complain why we hunt after life, profit, and pleasure, and have so small care to obtain God his good spirit, which is so precious. It is a great fault to fancy so much the things of this world, and so little to esteem this.

For without the Spirit, the word is as the bright Sunne to a blind man, who not for fault of a pure obiect, but for want of sense is not able to discerne the cleerest thing in the world: and therfore the Prophet Dauid, Psal. 119 saith, Open mine eyes, O Lord, that I may see the wonders of thy law. True it is, the Sunne is bright, but what is that to a blinde man? True it is the word is glorious, but what is that to a man without the spirit of God? For so farre we profit by the word, as we receiue the power of it by the inward ministerie of the Spirit; we must trie the spirits by the word, and we shall then know that we haue receiued the spirit of God, when he giueth vs the pure vnderstanding, the carefull receiuing, and zealous practising of the same. Carnall men and our late Anabaptists be but boasters of themselues, in terming themselues spiritual men: we are not taught so to bragge of the Spirit, or any worke thereof, but as it is warranted vnto vs by the written