other sins Jerom Luther Magdeburgensis and othâ—rs relate a Story of a certain Martyr That when the Enemies could not threaten him out of his Religion they sent a very handsom fair and beautiful Woman to entice him to folly and he finding himself to be moved and his lust begin to work did bite off his Tongue and spit it in her face thinking that the pain thereof would keep him from that fleshly lust Difficilius est pugnare cum libidine quam cum cruce counting it more ease to combat with pain than with lust as Austin speaks and hereby he was preserved I do not speak of this fact to commend it but only to show that God doth somtimes keep his Children from lust by pain Now in these blasphemous suggestions you find a great deal of pain and if you were not in these pains you would be lusting after other evils God seeth what filthy vile lusting hearts you have and therfore suffers these pains for to come upon you and so you are kept from lust Did you never know a man kept from lust by these Temptations yea did you never know a man converted to God by occasion of these Temptations I have and I think many many poor souls that have lived in an ignorant Condition a long time then it pleased God to suffer Satan to throw in these Temptations these horrid Temptations whereby they were so amazed startled that thereupon they looking into their own condition were converted unto Jesus Christ The more delights complacencies a man takes in sin the more sinful is the sin the more a mans flesh trembleth his soul is burdened under Temptation the less sinful Now cannot you say in truth Lord though these be my greatest burdens yet they are my least delights Yes Well then be of good Comfort the Lord doth but hereby keep you from other sins and therefore why should you be discouraged whatever these Temptations be As for the sin against the Holy Ghost He never sins against the Holy Ghost that fears he hath sinned against the Holy Ghost Object 4 But these are not my Temptations I praise God I am free from such but I have other great and strong Temptations and have no strength to resist them I am a poor weak person a weak yong man or a weak yong woman and I fear I shall yield unto my Temptations and therefore I am thus discouraged have I not just cause and reason now Answ No For out of weakness we are made strong and when we are weak then are we strong in the Lord saith the Apostle Paul Possibly a man may be weak in regard of years and yet may be strong in regard of Grace and overcome his Temptations In 1 John 2.12 13 14. I write unto you little Children saith the Apostle John Children he doth call them all for he was their Father in Christ and at verse 13. I write unto you Fathers saith he because ye have known him that is from the Beginning I write unto you yong Men because you have overcome the wicked One I write unto you little Children saith he because you have known the Father which because it is matter of conceâ—nment he repeats again at verse 14. I have written unto you Fathers because ye have known him that is from the Beginning I have written unto you yong Men because you are strong and you have overcome the wicked One. There are three sorts of Peo-in the world some that are old and aged some that are Children some that are middle aged and are called yong Men or yong Women The Aged think that they have no need to learn they know as much as the Minister can tell them therefore saith the Apostle here I write unto you Fathers Children think that they are not yet to learn and they have time enough before them therefore saith he I write unto you Children Yong persons think they should mind their Business Trades and Callings therefore saith he I write unto you yong Men and I pray mark what he speaks words sutable to all these conditions Old men love Antiquities and therefore saith he I write unto you Fathers because you have known him that is from the Beginning Children love to have the Fathers and Mothers Name in their Mouth and therefore saith he I write unto you Children because ye have Known the Father Yong men are strong and are fit for fighting and therefore saith he I write unto you Yong Men because you have Overcome the Evil One What evil one is that but Satan the Tempter and of all others yong Men are here said to overcome the evil One of all Men and Women yong Persons do overcome This time of yong Men is the overcoming time And I pray tell me was David an old Man when he overcame Goliah Nay not thirty yeers old Was Joseph an old Man when he refused and overcame the Temptation of his Mistriss Was Shadrach Meshach and Abednego old persons when they resisted and overcame the Temptation of the King chusing rather to go into the fiery Furnace than to yield Nay but they are called the three Children and hath not God said The yong Child shall play upon the hole of the Asp What is the hole of the Asp if Temptation be not And if you consider that Story of the Israelites Victory which God gave them against the Amalekites ye shall find that they never had a more glorious Victory so great that they set up an Altar and called the name of it Jehovah Nissi The Lord my Shield Yet if you look into Deut. you wil find that the Amalekites fell upon them when they were weak and weary at Rephidim and in this weak and weary time they had this glorious Victory What therefore though you be weak and weary and now are in the Valley of Rephidim yet thou mayest overcome and have so glorious a Victory that thou shalt set up an Altar and call the name of it Jehovah Nissi The Lord my Shield Object 5 O but I have yielded and been overcome already in my Temptation Answ Well But know you not that it is one thing to be overcome in Praelio in the Skirmish and another thing to be overcome in Bello in the Battel those that are overcome in the Skirmish may overcome in the Battel and let me tell you this That you are never quite overcome so long as you keep your weapon in you hand when a man lieth down before his Enemy and gives up his weapon then he is overcome indeed and when you lie down and are discouraged and give all up saying I will pray no more and hear no more and read no more all is to no purpose then are you overcome but til that be though you be overcome in the Skirmish you may overcome in the main Battel will you then lie down and be discouraged or is there any reason why a Godly man should be discouraged No. Surely if this be true That
of Glory Such is the Comfort of al those that are weak in Grace and therefore why should they be discouraged in regard of their weakness Object O! but I am not discouraged at my weakness in regard of the uncomfortableness of it but in regard of the unserviceableness of it for if I were strong in Grace I should be able to do more Service for God then I should be able to resist my Temptations and to overcome the evil One for the Apostle John saith I write to you yong men because ye are strong and have overcome the evil One But I have great Temptations and but smal strength to resist them I have a great deal of work to do for God and have no strength to do it with therefore I am thus discouraged have I not cause and reason now Answ 1 No For the Spiritual Battel is not alwaies to the strong our Victory lies not in our selves and our own habitual strength but in Christs fresh assistance How often have the strong fallen and the weak stood We read of that yong King Edward the Sixth That when the Emperor sent to him desiring that his Sister Mary afterwards Queen of England might have liberty for the Mass in her House this yong Prince did stand out against that Temptation when all his Counsel was for it yea when that good man Bishop Cranmer and that other holy man Bishop Ridley did yield thereunto and pressed the King to it insomuch as the King did break forth into tears desiring them to be contented whereupon the Arch-Bishop Cranmer took his School-master Mr. Cheek by the hand and said Ah! Mr. Cheek you have such a Scholler that hath more Divinity in his little finger than all we have in our whol Bodies Here the weak stood and the strong did fall the weak did resist Temptation when the strong did yield for our strength lies in Christ without us not in our selves within us And if ye look into the 2. and 3. Chapters of the Revâ—lations ye shall find That whereas all the Churches are charged with some sin or other only the Church of Philadelphia is charged with no sin at all but commended for keeping the word of Christs Patience and yet this Church and no other is said to have a little strength 2 Cor. 12.9.10 And ye know what Paul saith When I am weak then am I strong most gladly therefore will I rejoyce in mine infirmities that the power of Christ may rest on me Answ 2 Though your Grace be weak yet you may do much for God in your day The Tongue saies James is a little Member and boasteth great things behold how great a matter a little fire kindleth Chap. 3.5 Behold also the Ships saith he verse 4. which though they be so great yet are they turned about with a very smal helm quod autem tam minuta et infirma animalia in rupibus domicilia sibi exculpeut confirmare nos debet ut non dubitemus etiam infirmi et imbellos quae difficilia sunt aggredi dummodo officii ratio id postulet Cartw. in Pro. 30. in vers 14. quatuor parva sunt in Terra And shall not a little Grace do as much as a little Tongue or as a little fire or as a little Helm Surely though Grace be little yet it may be an Helm unto all your life a Rudder unto all your Practices Ye see how fruitful weak things are in Nature the strongest persons have not alwaies most children but the weaker The Herring is a weak Fish in comparison of the Whale and what abundance are there The Dove is a feeble Bird in regard of the Eagle and yet how fruitful is it The Vine is a weak Tree in regard of the Oak and yet it is more fruitful So in Grace you may be weak in Grace yet you may be very fruitful The Jaylor was but weak in Grace as soon as he was converted nor Zacheus nor the Thief on the Cross yet what Clusters of Divine Grapes did presently grow upon these Branches And if you may be very fruitful in good though weak why should you be discouraged in regard of your weakness Object O! but I am not discouraged at my Weakness in regard of my unserviceableness or unfruitfulness only but in regard of my own guiltiness for I have made my self weak in Grace by mine own sins I have fallen into sin and so have weakened my self and Grace my Grace is not only weak but it is weakened and weakened by sin therefore I am thus discouraged have I not cause and reason now Answ 1 No For possibly you may be mistaken Some do abate in their Natural Parts and they think they decay in their Graces as some grow in Parts and Gifts and they think they grow in their Graces But if you have not fallen into any great and gross sin then no such Spiritual Disease or Feaver hath seized on you whereby your Grace should be weakened Answ 2 But suppose the thing be true which you do object That you have sinned and by your own sin your Grace is now weakened then have you cause indeed to be much humbled before the Lord yet not to be discouraged For If nothing have befallen you but what may possibly befal a true Beleever then you have no reason to be cast down as without hope Now ye know how it was with Sampson he was strong and of great strength inward and outward yet his strength was taken away and he became as one of us How so why he had laid his head in Dalilah's Lap and so he lost his strength and was weakened by it but it cost him dear both his Eyes and his Life too And if you have so laid your head in Dalilah's Lap that your strength is abated it may and it is likely it will cost you dear yet this case is no other than what may befal one recorded for a true Beleever And though your strength be abated and your Grace weakened through your own sin yet being true saving Grace it shall never be annihilated for it is the new Creation and nothing created by God can be annihilated by us Man is created by God he may be killed by man but he cannot be annihilated and brought to nothing The Tree and Wood may be burnt to Ashes but it cannot be annjhilated and brought to nothing for it is part of the Creation Now your Grace was created by God also if true though smal and therefore though it may be weakened by your sin yet it cannot be annihilated and brought to nothing And if yet the Promise do belong to you and to your Condition then you have no reason to be discouraged or cast down in respect of this .. Now if ye look into Revel 3. ye shall find That as there are many Promises made to the several Churches so there are Promises also made to the Church of Sardis yet this Church had fallen and weakened her self for saies Christ
to her Verse 13. Strengthen the things that remain and are ready to die I have not found thy Works perfect So that though your Grace be weakened and that by your own sin insomuch as all seems to be ready to die yet there is a Promise belonging to such a condition and therefore no just cause or reason for Discouragement though much cause of Humiliation Object But I am not discouraged at the weakness of my Grace because of mine own guiltiness only but because of its likeness and similitude unto common Grace I know that it is a contradiction to say That a little Grace is no Grace at all but my little is so little that I even fear that it is none in truth If the piece of Coyn that I have be little yet if it be Gold it is well but if it be little and a Counter too then what am I the better Now so it is that I fear my little is but a Counter and not true Grace indeed therefore I am thus discouraged have I not cause and reason now Answ No For though your Grace be never so smal yet if it be good Coyn and not a Counter then you have no reason to be discouraged in this regard Now to satisfie you in this scruple I 'le tell you what smal weak little Grace will do and not do in opposition to common Grace It will not oppose much Grace the least Spark of fire will not oppose the flame or resist the flame Water will because Fire and Water are contrary and so false Grace will oppose the highest degree of Grace saying What need you be so strict and precise You may go to Heaven with less ado but the least degree of true Grace wil not oppose the highest It loves Examination it loves to examine and to be examined for it is sincere and sincerity is much in examination it is called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for it holds up all its actions to the Sun and light it doth love the work of examination false counterfeit common Grace doth not so It is very inquisitive after the waies of God and after further Truths As the man that climbs up into the Tree first gets hold on the lower Boughs then on the higher and so winds himself into the body of the Tree till he comes to the top So doth a Christian do he begins with the lower then unto higher and so to higher discoveries at the first therefore he is most inquisitive What shall I do to be saved saies he and again Lord what wilt thou have me to do False and common Grace is not so It is much in the work of Humiliation it grows in a waterish place Now suppose that two Herbs be much alike the one soveraign and the other naught and it be told you that the soveraign good Herb grows in a waterish place and the other on a Rock will you not easily discern those by the places where they grow Thus it is here the weak Grace of the Saints grows in a waterish place it is much in Humiliation but the common false Grace of Hypocrites grows on a Rock As a weak Christian is very apt to rest upon his own doings so he is much in doing and in the work of Humiliation most It works according to the proportion of its own weakness it staggers at the Promise yet it goes to the Promise it doubts of Christs Love yet it doth run to Christ it stumbles yet it doth keep its way it is ignorant of Christ and not so forward in the knowledg of Christ as it should be yet it is laying of the foundation Heb. 6.1 It is the fault of a weak Christian that he is alwaies laying the foundation yet he is laying of the foundation though it works weakly yet it works according to the proportion of its weakness but the common false Grace doth not so It is willing to learn of others For saies a weak Christian I am but a Babe in Christ and therefore why should not I be willing to be carried in others Arms The less I can do the more I will receive as the strong Christian is much in doing so must I be much in receiving It is not thus with that false and common counterfeit Grace But as the Naturalists do report and write of the Lyon That he wil not eat of any Prey but what he hath hunted down himself other Beasts will Aelian de Animal they wil prey upon what is killed by others but the Lyon King of the Beasts is so proud that he wil not eat of that which is killed by another So men that are strong in Parts and Gifts and have no Grace withal will not eat of that which they do not hunt down themselves if they hunt it down then they wil close therewith else not A strong-graced Christian will and a weak-faithed Christian will but he that hath Parts and Gifts alone cannot rellish that so well which is brought to hand by another .. It is very sensible of it's own weakness A weak Christian is weak and he doth feel his weakness and is very sensible of it not a man in all the world Deo placet fides infirma modo nobis non placet fidei infirmitas Austin saith he that is more weak than I. Now ye know that if a Lady or Queen come to an House she hath a great Train attending upon her and though ye see her not yet if you see her Train you say she is there still Such a great Queen is Grace though a man have never so little of it yet it brings a great Train with it and though you see it not yet if you see the Train will ye not say surely the Grace of God is here Thus now it is with you that are weak in Grace these Seven things and a far greater Train than these you may see in your lives and therefore certainly you have no just cause and reason for your Discouragements in this respect Object O! but yet this is not the thing that doth pinch with me I hope through mercy the Root of the matter is in my soul that this great Queen of Grace hath taken up her lodging in my heart but yet I am exceeding weak in Grace and very feeble still some are weak in Grace because they are but new Plants new Converts lately brought home to Christ and are yet Babes in Christ and so they have excuse for their weakness but I profess that I have been converted a great while yet I am weak I am an old man or woman yet I am weak in Grace I am an old Professor and yet am weak in Grace therefore I am thus disquieted have I not just cause and reason now Answ No For though it is a shame for an old man to go in Coats or to be carried in the Arms like a Babe as every weak Christian is and though Christ will upbraid men of their slowness and dulness that have long