truth and righteousnesse sound knowledge and sincere obedience together hic labor hoc opus est This is the maine matter this is a worke of moment and to the purpose hic murus ahaeneus esto Nil conscire sibi nullâ pallescere culpâ This is to make a brazen wall a strong towre of defence against the face of our enemies even to put on the brest-plate of righteousnesse as well as the girdle of truth to joyne science and conscience together With this S. Paul did support and beare himselfe out against the obloquie and troubles he endured in that he had lived in all good conscience before God and had his conversation in simplicity and godly sincerity 2. Cor. 1. 12. This made him as bold as a lion the brest-plate of righteousnesse the testimony of a good conscience With this let us also arme our selves joyne to the girdle of truth the brest-plate of righteousnesse knowledge and obedience science and a good conscience and then wee need not feare Qui vadit planè vadit sanè he that walketh uprightly walketh surely Prov. 10. 9. walke on then walke and march in this armour of truth and righteousnesse of science and a good conscience Moreover let me advise you to take the shooes of the preparation of the Gospell of peace along with you that is resolve throughly and firmely with your selves to believe and hold that God is now reconciled and at peace with you through the meanes of Christ according as he hath revealed and testified in his Gospell And withall for this peace with God made by Christ which you believe resolve further in way of thankfullnesse to love honour and obey him according to his word This resolution and preparation of mind to believe and confesse our peace and reconciliation with God through Christ And to honour and obey him for it these are the shooes here commended unto us With these king David did furnish himselfe according to that I have sworne and am stedfastly purposed to keepe thy righteous judgements And thus did S. Paul also arme himselfe when he said I am ready not to be bound only but also to dye at Hierusalem for the name of the Lord Iesus Act. 21. 13. Without this preparation and firme resolution of the heart to believe and obey the Gospell of peace we shall never be able to hold on in the race of Christianity and to passe through the many tribulations that we shall meet with for a wavering minded man is unstable in all his wayes and ready to be carried away with every wind of temptation and therefore let us ballance our hearts with preparation and put on a firme resolution to believe and obey the Gospell of peace But yet this is not all that we have to doe The speciall furniture and that which we are to take above all as being able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked is yet unmentioned and that is faith the shield of faith That we are to take above all so saith the Apostle above all take the shield of faith v. 16. That is after all your knowledge of the truth and your righteousnesse according to the knowne truth and your resolution to walke in this knowne true righteousnesse Yet rest not upon all this but when ye have done all deny your selves renounce all trust and confidence in your owne righteousnesse and lay hold on the righteousnesse of Christ by the hand of faith on the mercy of God in Christ for your salvation according as it is offered in the word and presented in the Sacraments This righteousnesse this mercy of God in Christ is that shield that can quench all the fiery darts of the wicked Indeed faith is here called the shield in the text but that is not because it is so in it selfe but because it takes hold of Christ and his righteousnesse which is the true shield indeed and puts it on and makes it ours So that though we can doe nothing of our selves in this Conflict yet through him and his righteousnesse wee are able to doe all things Philip. 4. 13. to quench all the fiery darts and fierce temptations of the wicked to overcome the world the flesh and the Devill 1. Ioh. 5. And therefore put on the shield of Christs righteousnesse by the hand of faith shroud your selves under this defence of the most high cleave to Gods promise of grace in Christ And because the promises of God in Christ which are the objects of our faith and the ground of our obedience are not alwayes presently performed unto the faithfull upon their request so that Sathan and his adherents take occasion thereby to assault their faith and to say where is now their God Psal 115. 2. Here againe we are to remember to furnish our selves with another peece of armour against this assault And namely with the helmet of salvation that is with the hope of salvation as the Apostle expounds it 1. Thes 5. 8. A sure and certaine hope of all promised good things which be yet for to come This hope and patient expectation of the performance of Gods promises is very needfull So saith the Apostle ye have need of patience that after ye have done the will of God ye may receive the promises Heb. 10. 36. And so let your patient mind be knowne unto all men as the Apostle adviseth hold fast the confidence of your hope firme unto the end for hope maketh not ashamed Rom. 5. 5. And in the meane space while we hope and expect the performance of Gods promises in the present preservation and finall salvation of his Church in particular of us the members thereof let us take to our selues the sword of the spirit which is the word of God acquainting our selues therewith that when the world the flesh or the Devill doe assault us with their temptations we may be able to answere to repell them as Christ did with a scriptum est a place of scripture and thereby cut off their temptations as with a sword The word of God is mighty and powerfull to that purpose being rightly applyed as we may see by the example of Christ in the fourth of Mat. yea sharper then any two edged sword as S. Paul saith Heb. 4. 12. Take it then put it on farre be it from us to disarme you of the scriptures to wring this speciall weapon out of your hands and so to turne you naked unto all Sathans temptations as the Romanish teachers deale with their people or insteed of the sharpe two edged sword of the spirit to put other weapons of the Divill 's forging into your hands to fight with us as the holy water Crosses Graines and dirty reliques c. as the same teachers deale with their people no no we teach you with S. Paul to take the sword of the spirit which is the word of God and to put it on not by spells and charmes as ignorant people use to doe but
take speciall notice of his chiefest enemies and bend himselfe most against them For though in battells they fight against the whole army yet specially against the head and Generall Thus the King of Siria being to fight with an army of the Israelites at Ramoth Gilead hee commanded his thirty and two captaines which had rule over his charets saying fight neither with small nor great but only with the King of Israel 1. Kings 22. 31. And thus must we in our spirituall warfare we must fight against the whole army of sinne but specially against the King and ruling sinne against chiefe leaders of sin those being taken the rest will never stand If Holofernes be slaine his souldiours will flye Iudith c. 15. 1. 12. If the sheapheard bee once strucke the sheep will soone be scattered Mat. 26. 31. Neither need we to goe farre to take a view of our chiefer enemies Here they are neare at hand personated and deciphered unto us in number three in quality most notorious The first that enters the list is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 flesh blood or blood and flesh as the originall runnes That is that corruption of nature which hath defiled both body and soule being spread and mixt with every part of both even as the light mingled with darknesse in the twy-light or dawning of the day This corruption and depravednesse of nature here called flesh blood is one of the chiefe enemies that we have to combate and wrestle with in this world Indeed the Apostle here doth prefixe a non to this saying 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is we wrestle not against flesh and blood But this non is not to be understood simply as not at all but not only as is said before our owne corrupt nature is one but not our only enemy It is one of our enemies so saith the Apostle the carnall mind is enmity against God Rom. 8. 7. it lusteth against the spirit Galat. 5. 17. it rebelleth against the law of the mind Rom. 7. 23. 24. Let a man but will that which is good and evill is present with him as the Apostle saith Rom. 7. 21. If a man have a mind to pray or to praise God to give or to forgive to doe or to suffer any thing according to Gods will the corrupt flesh is ready to contrary it and to say with the sluggard yet a little sleepe a little slumber a little folding of the hands to sleep or to say as Peter did to Christ speaking of his death this be farre from thee this shall not be unto thee Mat. 16. 22. A mans owne heart is as arch a traytor as any he shall meet withall and as dangerous and the more because he is not a forraine but an home-bred enemy fighting not as a tall souldiour but as a crafty traytor rebelling against the spirit like Dalilah in Sampsons bosome or Iudas in Christs company like the moth in the garment it is bred in us and dayly cherished by us and yet frets and destroyes us The heart is deceitfull above all things as the Prophet saith Ier. 17. 9. Yea more deceitfull then Sathan himselfe in some respect for our owne hearts can deceive us of themselves without Sathan but not Sathan without our hearts Nemo laeditur nisi à seipso is a true saying There is no mischiefe that we fall into but we ourselves are at least coadjutive causes and doe helpe to further the matter Indeed Sathan is as the father begetting but our corrupt heart is as the mother conceiving and bringing forth sinne Sathan the father of sin could doe nothing without this Mother The Devill cannot prevaile against us but by the helpe of our owne corruption he might strike fire long enough ere there would bee any burning did not we find him tinder Grande malum voluntas propira as Bernard saith Ser. 71. in Cant. a mans worst foes are they of his own houshold of his own bosome even his owne naughty heart and corrupt affections Every man is tempted by his owne concupiscence as the Apostle saith Iam. 1. 14. This carrieth the chiefest stroke in our sinnes The Devell hath astutiam suadendi a persuading slight but he hath not potentiam cogendi an inforcing might as S. August in Psal 91. He cannot make us sinne against our wills if hee plow not with our heifer he can get no advantage over us Behold then and consider who is your enemy it is not so much a forrain as a domestick foe a mans foes are they of his owne houshold the head-strong passions and the unruly affections of our owne corrupt hearts are the greatest enemies that wee are to wrestle with Wee wrestle against flesh and blood Now knowing this to bee so let us put this knowledge in practise knowledge without practise is nothing worth ignis fatuus it is like the blazing lampe of the foolish virgins that could not light them to the Bridegroomes chamber it will doe no good unlesse wee doe thereafter Let us doe then Which is thus First in regard that flesh and blood that is our corrupt nature is an enemy of ours hereby let us learne to take heed of our selves Ita cave tibi ut caveas teipsum is the counsell of the wise that is so take heed to thy selfe of other enemies as that thou take heed of thy selfe as an enemy A me me salve Domine was the prayer of S. Austine that is from mine owne selfe good Lord deliver me And so we had need to pray for our owne hearts though they would bee taken for our familiar friends yet they will deceive us if wee take not heed as they did the Gentiles Rom. 1. 21. Yea and though wee resist never so much yet these deceivers will stick close to us and follow us at all times in all places upon all occasions still ready furnished with deceit to beguile us And therefore let no man repose too much confidence in his owne heart He that trusteth in his owne heart is a foole saith Solomon Prov. 28. v. 26. Secondly hereby let us learne not to bee over-forward in consulting with flesh and blood when any thing is to be done Will a King counsell with a traytor whom he knowes to bee so This were to ruinate himselfe and his kingdome Will any man goe to such a Lawyer whose counsell hee knowes to be meere deceit and consenage That were to overthrow himselfe and his cause Now the flesh is a traytor and seekes thy destruction A deceiver that gives ill counsell as the young men to Rehoboam Consult not then with it in nothing follow the counsell of the flesh But as S. Paul when hee was to goe to Hierusalem to take upon him the calling of an Apostle did not consult with flesh and blood as himselfe saith Gal. 1. 16. So when any thing is to be done be not over-forward to consult with flesh and blood but with Gods spirit in Gods word for the
wisdome of the spirit is life and peace Rom. 8. 6. And so likewise when any matter of faith and religion is proposed and comes to be weighed and embraced Weigh it not in the ballance of humane reason but in the ballance of the sanctuary that is the word of God leane not too much to your owne understanding and judgement in these matters For what good judgement is to bee expected of one that is an enemy to goodnesse and such is the carnall mind an enemy yea enmity against God it is not subject to the will of God neither indeed can bee Rom. 8. 7. it perceiveth not the things of the spirit 1. Cor. 1. 14. Men that are dimme-sighted and cannot discerne without spectacles if they bee put to descry a thing a farre off the most of them would bee of diverse opinions of it And men enlightned and regenerated in this life doe but see in a glasse darkly But the naturall man seeth not neither can hee discerne at all the things of the spirit I say then with Solomon leane not to your owne understanding specially in matters of religion Bee not wise in your owne conceits least in seeking to bee wise ye become foolish as the Gentiles Rom. 1. 22. Fourthly because flesh blood is an adversary of ours boast not neither bragge of your owne good nature Is there any good in fighting against the spirit of God in hindring and striving to suppresse all good motions And this is all that the flesh doth This is the condition of our owne nature for if we believe confesse Christ no thanks to our good nature for flesh and blood hath not revealed this unto us as Christ told Peter Mat. 16. 17. If we haue any good in us we are not debtors to the flesh for it as S. Paul saith Rom. 8. 12. Let not any then glory of their owne good nature but hee that glorieth let him glory in the Lord from whom commeth every good and perfect gift Iam. 1. 17. Further because flesh blood is an enemy let no man bragge and prate too much of his gentry and parentage be it never so great For what doe we derive from our naturall parents bee they never so great and famous in their generations Nothing but flesh blood for that which is borne of the flesh is flesh Ioh. 3. 6. And the flesh without a regeneration is but a rebel Rom. 7. 23. say not then yee have Abraham to your father unlesse yee doe the works of Abraham boast not of great blood unlesse it be great and good corrupt flesh and blood such as every mans is by nature being conceived in sinne and brought forth in iniquity cannot inherit the kingdom of heaven neither doth corruption inherit incorruption 1. Cor. 15. 50. We must be borne againe having our old corruption done away and new grace restored before wee can see the kingdome of heaven Ioh. 3. 3. therefore gaudeant bene nati quando renati Let no man boast of his birth except it be his new birth for therein is the true nobility Againe in regard that flesh and blood is an enemy of ours hereby let us learne not to feed pamper our selves by too much eating and drinking or soft clothing but to beat down the body to keep it in subjection as the Apostle did plaine fare and course aray is good enough for an enemy Bread and water is sufficient if not too much for him now and then We mistake our selves too much when wee are so carefull for our bodies saying what shall wee eat and what shall wee drink and wherwith shall wee be clothed For in so doing we doe as the Israelites did with the Canaanites even nourish a snake in our own bosome We strengthen our enemy to cut our owne throates For our flesh is of slavish disposition If a slave be well used he will grow saucy and malepert hee that bringeth up his servant delicatly hee will bee as his sonne as Solomon saith Prov. 2. 21. Nay hee will overtop him as Ieroboam did Rehoboam This slave then the flesh must have a straight hand over it wee must keepe him short if wee deale wisely specially wee must make no provision for the flesh to fulfill the lust thereof that is the counsell of the Apostle Rom. 13. 14. Lastly because the flesh is an enemy that wee must wrestle with I beseech you with the Apostle to abstaine from fleshly lusts which fight against the soule 1. Pet. 2. 11. what those fleshly lusts are the Apostle sets downe Galat. 5. 19. saying the works of the flesh are these adultery fornicatiō c. But there are some fleshly lusts which fight against the soule in a speciall manner which I beseech you to abstaine from And namely these fury fornication drunkennesse gluttony avarice idlenesse pride fury fights against the soule like a mad Turke the furious mans execrable oaths are so many scabbs to the soule fornication like treacherous Ioab and false hearted Iudas doth kisse to kill drunkennes is the master-gunner that sets all on fire Gluttony will stand for a corporall Avarice will stand for a pioner Idlenes for a gentleman of company And pride must be the captaine All these are sore enemies to the soule most deadly enemies to bee carnally minded is death Rom. 8. 6. Let us then carefully looke to them and wrestle against them and endeavour to withstand them Doe this and shew your selves courageous indeed for Fortior est qui se quam qui fortissima vincit Moenia he that is slow to anger is better then the mighty he that ruleth his spirit then he that cōquereth a city Prov. 16. 32. Againe doe this and doe all other commandements even the hardest The heardest thing in the judgment of Caesar is seipsum vincere for a man to overcome himselfe so that Tunc omnia jura tenebis cum poteris Rex esse tui Finally doe this and ye are made made kings to God Revel vel 1. 6. kings of great rule Latius regnes avidum domando Spiritum quam si Libiam remotis Gadibus jungas uterque Poenus Serviet uni Of greater rule then if thou hadst the heathen to thine inheritance and the uttermost parts of the earth to thy possession But are these all the enemies that we have to wrestle with not so This is but our captaine with his company even the flesh with the unruly affections thereof There is another enemy which wee have to wrestle and to encounter with that is the world Mundus immūdus the uncleane unbelieving world with the temptations and allurements thereof For we wrestle not against flesh and blood only that is our owne flesh and blood But against flesh and blood that is other wicked men which are flesh and blood as we are The wicked world is another enemy that we and all other christians are to wrestle with Of this our Saviour speaketh saying the
into his hands and lead our selues into his temptations contrarie to our forme of prayer And now Beloued we haue no need to doe so we haue no reason at all to giue any oddes or advantage to Sathan in this combate by these or any other wayes for we are not so strong as that we may afford it But especially we may not presume to encounter with this adversarie naked or without our sword the sword of the spirit which is the word of God as the seduced Papists are put to by their most iniurious leaders No no the truth is let us looke to our selues as well as we can and arme our selues as strongly as we can and take all the advantage and helpes that may be had we shall have ennough to doe with these principalities and powers with the Rulers of the darknesse of this world with the spirituall wickednesses or wicked spirits those secret and invisible enemies Yea and more then wee can well acquit our selves of as of our selves for of our selves wee are not sufficient to thinke much lesse to doe it 2. Cor. 3. 5. so that we have no reason to give any advantage herein And beside the cause or matter of the Conflict between Sathan and us non de parvis quibusdam rebus is no small matter that we should be secure and carelesse Sed de rebus quae sunt in coelestibus hoc est pro regno coelorum adoptione nobis lucta saith Aretius upon the place But a matter of heaven and heavenly things a matter of a kingdome and our right and interest to it that is the thing in question the matter of the quarrell and combate betweene us And is not this a weighty matter that we should bestirre our selves about it Surely how light soever we make of it it is a matter of life and death It is such a matter that we must either kill or be killed For if we doe not crucify the flesh with the affections and lusts the flesh will bee our death for to bee carnally minded is death Rom. 8. 6. If the world be not crucified unto us and wee unto the world the world will be our ruine for the world shall bee damned 1. Cor. 11. 32. If we doe not dash Babilons children against the stones suppressing the first motions of sinne and temptations of Sathan they will be sure to dash us to death for the wages of sinne is death Rom. 6. 23. So then it concernes us neere to looke to it being a matter of so great consequence and importance a matter of life death the winning or loosing of our heauenly inheritance in high places And that in strife with so potent and politick enemies let us consider then and thinke of the matter that we haue in hand A high place in heauen is worth the striving for specially when it may be had for striving according to that the kingdome of heauen suffereth violence and the violent take it by force Mat. 12. 12. It is worth somewhat that Sathan doth so much strive and struggle to get from us A theife will not meddle with a poore begger that hath nothing to loose a pirat will not set upon emptie shippes a mighty enemy will not invade a kingdome or lay siege to a City with great violence to winne it where there is no great matter to be had and so surely it is not for nothing that Sathan with all his forces doth make such fierce and violent assaults upon the servants of God no Coelestia these high places or heauenly things for which he wrestles with us are great things and so let us with great care contend for them Yea and this let us doe without delay even this time for the time of the warfare wrestling with Sathan his forces is now euen this present time The Apostle here sets it downe so saying 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 we wrestle or there is a wrestling and as he sayes it so we find it indeed for as heretofore he that was borne after the flesh persecuted him that was borne after the spirit euen so it is now Now the world is full of such as scoffe at Isaac like Ismael of such as resist the holy Ghost as the stiffenecked Iewes of such as withstand Barnabas and Saul and seeke to turne the Deputie from the faith like Simon the Sorcerer of such as be accusers of the brethren like the Devill Revel 12. 10. of such as greatly withstand the word like Alexander the Copper-smith of such as warre with them that keepe the commandements of God and haue the testimony of Iesus Christ as the Dragon Revel 12. 17. Now the world is full of such warriers and wrestlers against the true worshippers of God yea and neuer more for now the Devill warres with great wrath because he knoweth he hath but a short time v. 12. And seeing it is so that there is such warring and wrestling of the enemies side against us at this time Let us of the other side be as ready and forward to warre and wrestle against them so that we may truly say nobis lucta we wrestle Yea and this let us resolue to doe not for a day or two but for as long as we liue for militia vita hominis super terram as Iob saith the whole life of a Christian is a continuall warfare here on earth Nunquam bella bonis nunquam issidia cessant Et quocum cert et mens bona semper habet Good men must not looke for peace upon earth Christ came not to send it Mat. 10. 34. The Dragon and his Angels will fight with the Michael and his Angells as long as the world lasts so that we must warre as long as we liue They will be sure to warre and wrestle with us either by inward or outward temptations by violent persecutions or fraudulent Heresies by sharpe tongues or sharpe swords or both and we had not need to lie still and to let them alone without any resistance surely no we haue cause to warre and wrestle with them as well as they with us and more too for if we fight the good fight and finish our course and keepe the faith we shall obtaine the crowne of righteousnesse but so shall not they Therefore let us resolue upon it and wrestle against flesh and blood against principalities and powers against Rulers of the darknesse of this world against spirituall wickednesses in high places against the Devill and all his forces of persecuting Tyrants of subtill hereticks of pestilent Antichrists of wicked worldlings and carnall Gospellers And this unto the end But here some will say how shall we that are weake and fraile be able to wrestle and encounter with so potent and politicke enemies with so many and malicious adversaries or if we doe presume to wrestle and fight with them how shall we prevaile against them The truth is we cannot prevaile against them by our owne strength