Of the high grace of the incarnation of Jesus Christ, and in what manner He also be born in us. Who will nothing but God is never without God. Invitation unto Bethlehem.

The Hundred-and-twenty-eighth Letter.

Of the high grace of the incarnation of Jesus Christ, and in what manner He also be born in us. Who will nothing but God is never without God. Invitation unto Bethlehem.

My dear brother!

As I would visit our brother N. in his weakness with a little letter; so must I at the same time greet you with heart and pen, and thank you heartily for the lately imparted news of the state of the fellow-called there.

The sweet God-child Jesus greet, bless and visit all of theirs and our hearts afresh, especially also in these days! when God will commend and infuse His wonderful, unfathomable, deep love of men in the incarnation and birth of Jesus Christ to our poor hearts afresh. Ah! that we all could see it as through a little chink, how the heart and love-will of the eternal, blessed God has moved itself for our sake, and has pressed into the humanity unto our restoration, and has borne forth, in order to communicate again to us the lost salvation and divine love-life through this canal and way; certainly! we would be astonished unto worship and answering love. The gate is now in the spirit so near, so open; God meets us now in the innermost with sheer goodwill, and drawing love-desire: He now looks upon us as friends, as kinsfolk in Christ. It lies only in the opening, at the receiving of this high grace; and that, even as He expects and desires us night and day, with goodwill and love-longing, we in turn only turn our inmost goodwill and love-longing in withdrawnness in unto Him, and let it be kept turned in: So it cannot fail, God and man will meet one another in the spirit, embrace, unite, and Christ also be born in us, for whose sake all is done. Ah yea! sweet little Jesus, who findest no room in the inn of fluttering, restless and vain men; make thee room in the poor stall of our hearts; rule freely-mightily in us! Let thy life be only our life, and let ours die with thee! Thy littleness, thy withdrawnness, thy stillness, thy innocence, thy dependence, and thy whole Jesus-mind become ours, and as naturally our own! O God-child, whom we worship, make us also children, Amen!

Now, I write too much with a sick head, when I would only greet. Three or four times I have had days when I thought nature must have sunk under the weakening and ailing of the brain. Mostly I yet go and stand, though I have also had to lie one day. O! how good is God! and how good is all that He does! We are only called and chosen, that we should be His worshippers, and worshippers of His ways and works. Children reason briefly: Yea, Father! for so is it well-pleasing before thee.

Upon that which you write of yourself, I say only: It is so good, dear brother, that you seek to be content with that which the Lord gives or does not give. Who will nothing but God is never without God, and never outside His leading. It is true, in respect of one part it is still very mixed: Now however it is enough, not particularly to inspect all that is foreign which goes on in the sensible or lower part, simply not to recognise it for one's own, and so to let it vanish again; so it yet brings benefit afterward: One learns to know oneself; the will is broken; the inner man is unnoticedly parted from the outer, and one becomes by degrees aware of a secret quieting and contentment, which imparts to the soul nourishment, strength and life; notwithstanding it is not always so perceptible as before.

Greet father and mother quite heartily from me, and I invite them, as a poor shepherd-boy, also along to Bethlehem: Come, let us go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us! I mean however the Bethlehem of a poor, lowly heart, which alone is capable of recognising and enjoying God's eternal love in the birth of Christ. I wish them both (with us) the promise made to old Simeon, that they die not sooner, until the dear father like Simeon, and the dear mother with Anna, have the happiness of having Jesus upon their arms, and in the heart. Amen!

Greet also all the remaining dear fellow-called quite heartily from me. Jesus-Immanuel bless them all out of His sanctuary, and infuse into all their hearts His divine love-life, that they all, with us, become right Christ-children, wherein God here and eternally have His good pleasure, Amen! I greet and kiss you, my brother, in the spirit of love. Jesus bless and fill you!

Mülheim, the 18th of December, 1749.

German

Der hundertundachtundzwanzigste Brief.

Von der hohen Gnade der Menschwerdung JEsu Christi, und auf was Weise Er auch in uns gebohren werde. Wer nichts will als GOtt, der ist nie ohne GOtt. Einladung gen Bethlehem.

Mein lieber Bruder!

Da ich unsern Br. N. in seiner Schwachheit mit einem Brieflein besuchen wollte; so muß dich zugleich mit Herz und Feder grüßen, und dir für die jüngst ertheilte Nachricht vom Zustand dasiger Mitberufenen herzlich danken.

— Opening lines of the original German. The complete transcription of all 605 letters appears in the forthcoming Encounter Press critical edition; Brief 1 is shown in full as a sample.

German text: public domain (1773–75 first edition / 1845 Gesammelte Schriften).