than he was before in his ecstasy. Ah, tempted souls ! you say you are naught, very naught, but had it not been for the school of tempta- tion, you might have been stark naught before this time. You say you are sick, you are even sick to death. Why, your sickness had before this time killed you, had not temptations been physical1 to you. You are bad under temptations ; but doubtless you would have been much worse had not God made temptation a diet-drink to you.2
[3.] Thirdly, Temptation shall much promote the exercise of grace. As the spring in the watch sets all the wheels agoing, and as Solomon's virtuous woman set all her maidens to work, so temptation sets faith on work, and love on work, and repentance on work, and hope on work, and holy fear on work, and godly sorrow on work,3 Prov. xxx. 10-33 ; 1 Peter i. 6. As the windsets the mill atwork,so the wind of temptations sets the graces of the saints agoing. Now faith runs to Christ, now it hugs a promise, now it pleads the blood of Christ, now it looks to the recompence of reward, now it takes the sword of the Spirit, &c. ; now love cleaves to Christ, now love hangs upon Christ, now love will fight it out to the death for Christ ; now hope flies to the horns of the sanctuary, now hope puts on her helmet, now hope casts her anchor upon that within the veil,4 &c. Grace is never more acted than when a Christian is most tempted. Satan made a bow of Job's wife ; of his rib, as Chrysostom speaks, and shot a temptation by her at Job, thinking to have shot him to the heart: ' Curse God, and die ;' but the activity of Job's graces was a breastplate that made him temptation-proof. The devil, tempting Bonaventure, told him he was a reprobate, and therefore persuaded him to drink in the present pleasures of this life ; for, said he, thou art excluded from the future joys with God in heaven. Bonaventure's graces being active, he answered, No ; not so, Satan : if I must not enjoy God after this life, let me enjoy him as much as I can in this life.
[4.] Fourthly, By temptations the Lord will make you the mors serviceable and useful to others? None so fit and able to relieve tempted souls, to sympathise with tempted souls, to succour tempted souls, to counsel tempted souls, to pity tempted souls, to support tempted souls, to bear with tempted souls, and to comfort tempted souls, as those who have been in the school of temptations : 2 Cor. i. 3, 4, ' Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort ; who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God/ By temptations God trains up his servants, and. fits and capacitates them to succour and shelter their fellow-brethren. One tempted Christian, saith Luther, is more profitable and useful to other Christians than a hundred, I may add, than a thousand, that have not known the depths of Satan, that have not been in the school of temptation.6 He that is master of arts in the school of temptation hath learned an art to comfort, to succour, and gently to handle tempted and distressed souls, infinitely beyond what all human arts can reach unto.
1 = as 'physic,' medicine. — G.
2 Those soldiers that are most in fighting, are least in sinning, and most free from diseases. 3 Tapers burn clearest in the dark. * Cant, ill - 6, 7 ; Heb. vi. 19.
5 The skilfullest commanders and leaders are of the greatest service and use to the soldiers. 6 Luther in Gen. xxvii. ; Rev. ii. 24.
0 THE MUTE CHRISTIAN [P.S. XXXIX. ft
No iloctor to him that hath been a doctor in the school of temptation ; all other doctors arc but illiterate dunces to him.