Hath Satan any more friendly aim and intention towards thee, who is a sharer in every temptation? To beguile thee as a serpent' to devour thee as a lion, is the friendship that he owes thee. I shall only add, that the sin he tempts thee to against the law, it is not the thing he aims at; his design hes against thy interest in the gos- pel. He v/ould make sin but a bridge to get over to a better ground, to assault thee as to thy interest in Christ. He who perhaps will say to-day, " Thou mayst venture on sin, because thou hast an mterest in Christ," will to-mon-ow tell thee to the purpose that thou hast none, because thou hast done so.
[3.] Meet thy temptation in its entrance with thoughts of faith concerning Christ on the Cross; this will make it sink l3efore thee. Entertain no parley, no dispute with it, if thou wouldst not enter mto it. Say, " ' It is Christ that died,'— that died for such sins as these." This is called " taking the shield of faith to quench the fieiy
186 OF TEMPTATION.
darts of Satan," Eph. vi. 16. Faith doth it by laying hold on Christ crucified, his love therein, and what from thence he suffered for sin. Let thy temptation be what it will, — be it unto sin, to fear or doubt- ing for sin, or about thy state and condition, — it is not able to stand before faith lifting up the standard of the cross. We know what means the Papists, who have lost the power of faith, use to keei^ up the form. They will sign themselves with the sign, ot the cross, or make aerial crosses; and by virtue of that work done, think to scare away the devil. To act faith on Christ crucified is really to sign ourselves with the sign of the cross, and thereby shall we overcome that wicked one, 1 Pet. v. 9.
[4.] Suppose the soul hath been surprised by temptation, and entangled at unawares, so that now it is too late to resist the first en- trances of it, what shall such a soul do that it be not plunged into it, and carried away with the power thereof?
\st. Do as Paul did: beseech God again and again that it may " depart from thee," 2 Cor. xii. 8. And if thou abidest therein, thou shalt certainly either be speedily delivered out of it, or receive a sufficiency of grace not to be foiled utterly by it. Only, as I said in part before, do not so much employ thy thoughts about the things whereuuto thou art tempted, which oftentimes raiseth farther en- tanglements, but set thyself against the teinptation itself Pray against the temptation that it may depart; and when that is taken away, the things themselves may be more calmly considered.
2rf/v/. Fly to Christ, in a peculiar manner, as he Avas tempted, and beg of him to give thee succour in this " needful time of trouble." Heb. iv. 1 6, the apostle instructs us herein : " In that he hath been tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted." This is the meaning of it: " When you are tempted and are ready to faint, when you want succour, — you must have it or you die, — act faith peculiarly on Christ as he was tempted; that is, consider that he was tempted himself, — that he suffered thereby, — that he conquered all tempta- tions, and that not merely on his own account, seeing for our sakes he submitted to be tempted, but for us," (he conquered in and by himself, but for us.) And draw, yea, expect succour from him, Heb. iv. 15, 16. Lie down at his feet, make thy complaint known to him, beg his assistance, and it Avill not be in vain.
SfZ/y. Look to Him who hath 'promised deliverance. Consider that he is faithful, and will not suffer thee to be tempted above what thou art al>le. Consider that he hath promised a comfortable issue of these trials and temptations. Call all the promises to mind of as- sistance and deliverance that he hath made; ponder them in thy heart. And rest upon it, that God hath innumerable ways that thou knowest not of to give thee in deliverance; as, —
WATCHING AGAINST TEMPTATION, 187
(1st.) He can send an affliction that shall mortify thy heart unto the matter of the temptation, whatever it be, that that Avhich was before a sweet morsel under the tongue shall neither have taste or relish in it unto thee, — thy desire to it shall be killed; as was the case with David: or,
{2dly.) He can, by some providence, alter that whole state of things from whence thy temptation doth arise, so taking fuel from the fire, causing it to go out of itself; as it was with the same David in the day of battle : or,
(SfZZy.) He can t7'ead doiun Satan under thy feet, that he shall not dare to suggest any thing any more to thy disadvantage (the God of peace shall do it), that thou shalt hear of him no more: or,
(ithlT/.) He can give thee such supidy of grace as that thou mayst be freed, though not from the temptation itself, yet from the ten- dency and danger of it; as was the case with Paul: or,