Christus in corde, or, The mystical union between Christ and believers considered in its…

Further, In answer to the Quaere, it is to be considered, that there is a double presence of God; one universal in all things, another special in the Saints; the first is in respect of his essence, which is immense and every where; the second is in respect of his operations, which are peculiarly here, and not there. Those special operations are not every where, where the essence is, for the there could be no special presence; but the essence is wherever those are, else the universal presence would fail. When Vorstius said, That God was in the Saints, per gratiosam praesentiam, by a gracious presence; Piscator notes, That there is another ⟨p. 184⟩there presence, namely a substantial one; Operatio Dei a substantiâ divelli non potest, the operation of God cannot be divided from his essence. When Crellius saith, that we live and move, not in the Divine substance, but in his virtue and efficacy; the Learned Maresius answers him, Inepta est oppositio inter virtutem & substantiam, illa hanc praesentem supponit, Deus nusquam operatur visi essentialiter praesens; It is a foolish thing to oppose the Virtue of God to his Substance; that supposeth this present; God no where operates unless he be essentially present: Thus he. To me it is plain, that wherever there is a work of God, there he is essentially present; for his Immensity hath no stint: we cannot say, it goes hither and no further. His Power, which reaches every work, is not distinct from his Essence, nor can no more reach beyond it, than a thing can exceed it self. These things may give some light to the point in hand; the Spirit is very God; his special presence is not every where, where his essential one is; but his essential presence is every where, where his special one is: his essential presence is that, without which there could be no special one at all; his special presence is that, in which the essential one appears in some excellent operation. When ⟨p. 185⟩the Spirit is communicated to Believers,¹ there is not merely an essential presence, but an essential presence, and a special operation waiting on it; such as He, who is every where, puts forth no where but in Believers; there is not a mere simple presence, but an actuous vigorous one, such as discovers it self in excellent supernatural operations; he is not here moving upon the waters to bring forth an outward sensible world;