20th Subtilty of Satan is, be, in his temp- tation, strikes at some grace more than o- thers ; as in temj)ting, he aims at some per- sons more than others, so he aims at some grace more than others ; and if he can pre- vail in this, he knows what an advantage it will be to him. If you ask, what grace is it that Satan in his temptations doth most strike at ? I answer, it is the grace of faith ; he lays the train of his temptation to blow up the fort of our faith. Fidei scutum per- cntil. WHiy did Christ pray more for Peter's faith, than any other grace? Luke xxii. 32. Because Christ saw that his faith was most in danger ; the devil was striking at this grace. Satan, in tempting Eve, did labour to weaken her faith, Gen. iii. 1., " Yea, hath God said. Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?" The devil would persuade her, that God bad not spoken truth ; and when he had once wrought her to distrust, then she took of the tree. 'Tis called scutum fidei, " the shield of faith," Eph. vi. 16. Sa- tan in tempting, strikes most at our shield, he assaults our faith. True faith, though it cannot be wholly lost, yet it may suffer a great eclipse; though the devil cannot by temptation take away the life of faith, yet he may the lively acting: he cannot ^ra^iam diruere but he may dehilitart.
Quest. Ihit trhy doth Satan in tempting chiefly set upon our faith.
Ans. 1 Kings xxii. 31., "Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king." So faith is as it were the king of the graces ; it is a royal princely grace, and puts forth the most majestic and noble acts, therefore Satan fights chiefly with this king- ly grace. I shall shew you the devil's po- licy in assaulting faith most.
\st, Because this is the grace doth Satan most mischief; it makes the most resistance agsiinst him, 1 Pet. v. 9,, " Whom resist, steadfast in the faith." No grace doth more bruise the serpent's head than faith. Faith is both a shield and a sword, defensive and offensive. (1.) It is a shield ; a shield guards the head, defends the vitals ; the shield of faith causeth that the fiery darts of tempta-
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tion do not pierce us through. (2.) Faith is a sword, it wounds the red dragon.
Quest. How comes faith to be so strong, that it can rei^ist Satan and put him to flight ? Ans. 1. Because faith brings the strength of Christ into the soul ; Samson's strength lay in his hair, ours lies in Christ. If a child be assaulted, it runs and calls to its father for lielp, so, when faith is assaulted, it runs and calls Christ, and in his strength overcomes. A. 2. Faith furnishes itself with store of promises ; the promises are faith's weapons to fight with. Now as David, by five stones in his sling, wounded Goliah, 1 Sam. xvii. 40., so faith puts the promises, as stones, into its sling, " I will never leave thee nor forsake thee," Heb. xiii. 5. He will not break the bruised reed, Mat. xii. 20. " He will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able," 1 Cor. x. 13. The Lord will shortly bruise Satan under your feet, Rom. xvi. 20. " None is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand," John x. 29. Here are five promises, like five stones, put in the sling of faith, and with these a believer wounds the red dragon. Now faith being such a grace, that doth so resist and wound Satan, he will watch his opportunity that he may batter our shield, though he cannot break it.
2dli/, Satan strikes most at our faith, and would weaken and destroy it, because faith hath a great influence upon all the other graces ; faith sets all the graces a-work. Like some rich clothier, that gives out a stock of wool to the poor and sets them all a-spinning, so faith gives out a stock to all the other graces, and sets them a-working. Faith sets love a-work, Gal. v. 6., " Faith which worketh by love." When once the soul believes God's love, this kindles love to God. The believing martvrs burned hotter in love than in fire. Faith sets re- pentance a-work. When the soul believes there is mercy to be had, and that this mer- cy is for him, this sets the eyes a-weeping. O saith the soul, that ever I should offend such a gracious God ! Repenting tears drop from the eye of faith, Mark ix. 23., " The father of the child cried out and said with tears, Lord, I believe." Faith sets his eyes abroach with tears ; therefore the devil hath most spite at faith, and by his temptations
broaching those doctrines pleasing.
would undermine it, because it is such an operative grace, it sets all the other graces on work. If the devil cannot destroy our faith, yet if he can disturb it, — if he can hinder and stop the actings of faith, — he knows all the other graces will be lame and inactive. If the spring in a watch be stop- ped, it will hinder the motion of the wheels : if faith be down, all the other graces are at a stand.
21s^ Subtilty of Satan in tempting, is, in