2dl]/. By woful entangling of the affections; which, when they are engaged, what influence they have in blinding the mind and darken- ing the understanding is known. If any know it not, let him but open his eyes in these days, and he will quickly learn it. By what ways and means it is that engaged affections will becloud the mind and darken it I shall not now declare; only, I say, give me a man engaged in hope, love, fear, in reference to any particulars wherein he ought not, and I shall quickly show you wherein he is darkened and blinded. This, then, you will fail in if you enter into tempta-
110 OF TEMPTATION.
tiou : — The present judgment you have of things will not be utterly altered, but darkened and rendered infirm to influence the will and master the affections. These, being set at liberty by temptation, will nin on in madness. Forthwith detestation of siu, abhorring of it, terrors of the Lord, sense of love, presence of Christ crucified, all de- part, and leave the heart a prey to its enemy.
3cUy, Temptation will give oil and fuel to our lusts, — incite, pro- voke, and make them tumultuate and rage beyond measure. Ten- dering a lust, a corruption, a suitable object, advantage, occasion, it heightens and exasperates it, makes it for a season wholly predomi- nant: so dealt it with carnal fear in Peter, ^vith pride in Hezekiah, with covetousness in Achan, with uncleanness in David, with world- liness in Demas, with ambition in Diotrephes. It will lay the reins on the neck of a lust, and put spurs to the sides of it, that it may rush forward like a horse into the battle. A man knows not the pride, fury, madness of a coiTuption, until it meet with a suitable temptation. And what now will a poor soul think to do? His mind is darkened, his affections entangled, his lusts inflamed and provoked, his relief is defeated ; and what will be the issue of such a condition ?
(3.) Consider that temptations are either piihlic or private; and let us a little view the eflicacy and power of them apart : —
[1.] There are public temptations; such as that mentioned, E,ev. iii. 10, that was to come upon the world, " to try them that dwell upon the earth;" or a combination of persecution and seduction for the trial of a careless generation of jarofessors. Now, concerning such a temptation, consider that, —
1st. It hath an efficacy in respect of God, Avho sends it to revenge the neglect and contempt of the gospel on the one hand, and treachery of false professors on the other. Hence it will certainly accomplish what it receives commission from him to do. When Satan offered his service to go forth and seduce Ahab that he might fall, God says to him, " Tiiou shalt persuade him, and prevail also : go forth, and do so," 1 Kings xxii. 22. He is permitted as to his v/ickedness, and commissionated as to the event and punishment in- tended. When the Christian world was to be given up to folly and false worship for their neglect of the truth, and their naked, barren, fruitless, Christ-dishonouring profession, it is said of the temptation that fell upon them, that " God sent them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie," 2 Thess. ii. 11. That that comes so from God, in ajudiciarij mangier, hath a power with it and shall jirevail. That selfish, sjoiritually-slothful, careless, and worldly frame of sj^irit, which in these days hath infected almost the body of professors, if it have a commission from God to kill hypocrites, to wound negligent saints, to break their bones, and make them scandalous, that they may be
PUBLIC TEMPTATIONS. Ill
ashamed, shall it not have a power and efficacy so to do? What work hath the spirit of error made amongst us! Is it not from hence, that as some men delighted not to retain God in their hearts, so he hath " given them up to a reprobate mind," Rom. i. 28. A man would think it strange, yea, it is matter of amazement, to see persons of a sober spirit, pretending to great things in the ways of God, overcome, captivated, ensnared, destroyed by weak means, sottish opinions, foolish imaginations, such as a man would think it impossible that they should ever lay hold on sensible or rational men, much less on professors of the gospel. But that which God will have to be strong, let us not think weak. No strength but the strength of God can stand in the way of the weakest things of the world that are commissionated from God for any end or purpose whatever.
^.dly. There is in such temptations the secret insinuation of ex~ amples in those that are accounted godly and are professors : Matt. xxiv. 12, " Because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold," etc. The abounding of iniquity in some will insensibly cast water on the zeal and love of others, that by little and little it shall wax cold. Some begin to grow negligent, careless, worldly, Avanton. They break the ice towards the pleasing of the flesh. At first others blame, judge them, perhaps reprove them. In a short space their love also waxes cold ; and the brunt being over, they also conform to them, and are cast into the same mould with them. " A little leaven leaven eth the whole lump." Paul repeats this saying twice, 1 Cor. v. 6, and Gal. v. 9. He would have us take notice of it ; and it is of the danger of the infection of the whole body, from the ill examples of some, whereof he speaks. We know how insen- sibly leaven proceedeth to give a savour to the whole ; so it is termed a " root of bitterness " that " springeth up and defileth many,'' Heb. xii. 15. If one little piece of leaven, if one bitter root, may en- danger the whole, how much more when there are many roots of that nature, and much leaven is scattered abroad ! It is easy following a multitude to do evil, and saying " A conspiracy" to them to whom the people say " A conspiracy." Would any one have thought it pos- sible that such and such professors, in our days, should have fallen into ways of self, of flesh, of the world ? to play at cards, dice, revel, dance? to neglect family, closet duties? to be proud, haughty, ambi- tious, worldly, covetous, oppressive? or that they should be turned away after foolish, vain, ridiculous opinions, deserting the gospel of Christ? In which two lies the great temptation that is come on us, the inhabitants of this world, to try us. But doth not every man see that this is come to pass? And may we not see how it is come to pass? Some loose, empty professors, who had never more than a