'he might fift you as wheat, but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not.For I am perfuaded, that nei'ther death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor 'powers, nor things prefent, nor things to come, nor height, 'nor depth, nor any other creature, fhall be able to se'parate us from the love of God which is in Chrift Jefus our Lord.Having spoiled principalities and powers, ⚫he made a fhew of them only, triumphing over them upon the cross and fo through death hath deftroyed him that had the power of death, that is the devil, that he 'might deliver all them which through fear of death, were 'all their life fubject to bondage.And the God of peace fhall bruife Satan under your feet flhortly.The devil is 'come down unto you, having great wrath because he 'knoweth that he hath buta thort time,' Luke xxii.31.Rom. viii. 36. Heb. ii. 14. Rom. xvi. 20. Rev. xii. 12. His rage is greateft, when his time is fhorteft, even as darkness is greatest a little before day, but this is a fign that a calm is at hand; the devil's grand temptations, are meffengers of his retiring, as when the ftrength of an enemy is wafted, he will make one or two furious affaults against the caftle, and then he raifeth the fiege and is not this the voice of Chrift, Come unto me all ye that labour, and are heavy laden, and I will give you reft,' Mat. xì. 28. Sooner muft God deny himself, or difrobe himfelf of the brightest beam of his glory, and of the fairest flower in his garland of majefty, which is his mercy, before he deny pardon of fin to the truly penitent. Thou fayeft thy fins are as black as hell, as red as blood, as foul as Sodom, yet faith Chrift, Come and welcome. But above all others, methinks there is one promife which above all o thers is able to put life and freth vigour in the most defpairing foul: Let the wicked forfake his ways, and the 'unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him, and to 'our God, for he will abundantly pardon; for my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, faith the Lord: for as the heavens are higher than the earth, fo are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts,' Ifa. Iv. 7, 8, 9. Thus N 3 the the Lord draws his people to the fountains of grace, and drives them from defpair, by a confideration of his tranfcendent and unlimited mercies: it feems they had rea foned thus, we have been fo wretched and rebellious, that there is no returning unto him, there is no hope of pardon: what, faith God, will you measure my mercy by your mercy? Why, there is as great odds between my ways and your ways, and my thoughts and your thoughts, i. e Between my mercy and your conceits of my mercy, as there is distance between heaven and earth. O golden promises! 5. Pray earnestly, that now the Lord may break in and help us by the power of his might. This was the way of the faints of old. The holy fifter of Bafil, and Melania, whom Jerome magnifies for their fanctity, befought God with great fervency, that thofe envious fpirits might not hinder them in their last paffage. And devout Bernard to the fame purpose, when he drew near his end, he fued to his friend for his earnest prayers, that the heel of his life might be kept fafe from the ferpent, fo as he might not find where to fix his fting: arm me for my last brunt, prayed divine Hall, O my God, ftand by me in my last combat, make me faithful to the death, that thou mayest give me a crown of life. Why thus let us pray in cafe of defpair; remember me, O God, according to the mul titude of thy tender compaffions, and blot out my iniquities out of thy remembrance for thy name's fake, impute not unto me those hellish thoughts fuggefted by Satan, which through thy grace I deteft unfeignedly, under which I defire to be humbled, and from which I beg to be deliver. ed! Return O Lord, caufe the light of thy countenance to fhine upon me, refrefh my parched foul with the fenfe of thy mercy, difpel the mifts of this black temptation, rebuke Satan, and restrain his malice. Thou art the God of peace, tread Satan I befeech thee, under my feet fhortly, that with a quiet and chearful fpirit I may finish my courfe. O plead my caufe against the enemy of my foul, and of thy glory! Lord, how long wilt thou look on? refcue my foul from thefe fiery affaults of the wicked one; I am fore troubled, I am bowed down greatly, I walk in heaviness * heavinels all the day long, my heart panteth, my foul is exceedingly difquieted with temptations, this thou haff feen, O Lord, keep not filence; O be not far off from me, ftir up thyfelf and awake to my judgment, curb and chain up Satan, that he may moleft no longer, and frengthen thy poor fervant, that through thy might I may conquer and triumph over him: and my foul thall rejoice in the Lord, it shall rejoice in his falvation; all my bones fhall fay, Lord, who is like unto thee, who delivereft the poor from him that is too ftrong for him, yea, the 'poor and needy from him that fpoileth him,' Pfal. v, 9, 10. 6. Above all, take the fhield of faith in Jefus Chrift, wherewith we fhall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked, Eph. iv. 16. Our faith will do wonders, if thereby we take Chrift Jefus, and fet him against the tempter, we are not fo weak in the hands of Satan, as Satan is in the hands of Jefus Chrift; turn him then over to Jefus Chrift, and let Chrift alone with him: thus did the aforefaid Mrs. Brettergh, after a great conflict with Satan; Satan, faid fhe, reafon not with me, I am but a weak woman, if thou haft any thing to fay, fay it to my Chrift, he is my advocate, my ftrength, and my Redeemer, and he fhall plead for me. It was the fpeech of Tulerus, one that Luther prized above all, though faid he, the mariners make ufe of their oars in the time of calm, yet when a ftorm comes down, the mariners leave all, and fly to their anchor: fo though at other times we may make use of refolutions, vows, &c. yet when the ftorm of temptation comes down, nothing then fo good as to fly to the anchor of faith, or to caft the anchor of faith into the vail; then Chrift, and none but Chrift; Lord, though thou flayeft me, yet will I truft in thee: and Satan, though thou flayeft me, yet will I keep to Jefus Chrift. I remember a ftory of one Chriftopher Hafs, a fenator of Halens, in Suevia, who lying on his deathbed, and one like a fcribe, or fcrivener, appeared to him, who bringing paper, pen and ink, fat down at the table, and in this manner fpake to the fick man, O Chriftopher, number all thy fins in their order, which ever thou commited t N 4 mitedft, for I am fent of God that I may write them down, and carry them to the tribunal, where thou must shortly give an account.' At thefe words, the dying man lifting himself up in his bed as well as he could, knowing that now he had to deal with Satan, he answered boldly, 'If * I must number my fins, firft then write over them the title, and let this be it, the feed of the woman shall bruise the serpent's head; and to this title, faid he, do thou under write all my fins.' The devil in his feigned habit, no fooner heard this answer, but prefently he vanished. What, is Satan busy to work our fouls into defpair? let us then ftir up ourselves to believe, and roll our fouls upon Jefus Chrift for life and falvation, and Satan will avoid. 7 Mind the witnefs of the Spirit, either in former times, or at this time. Sometimes when Satan is most bufy, the Lord fteps in with his own teftimony, and ftops the lion's mouth, that he can fay no more: Surely this fhould be minded. And this minds me of thofe horrid temptations which my dear and reverend brother, Mr. Edward Gre, had on his death's bed. At that time of his laft fickness I went to vifit him, and I found him as full of spiritual ravishings and heavenly joys, as I thought, his heart could hold, he expreffed them fo largely in a continued fpeech for a long time, that I could do nothing all the while but admire, and give God the glory. But about two hours after I had left him, and was gone, Satan began his affaults of diffidence and defpair, thrice he affaulted him, and nothing was feen or heard by the witneffes waiting on, but at the first time Mr. Gee faid, Away with thee, away with thee, thou accufer of the brethren, God confound thee. And when Satan affaulted him a fecond time, he faid, Who is he that condemns? It is God that juftifies: And I know that God will tread Satan under my feet; he that is in me, is ftronger than he that is a gainst me. And when Satan affaulted him the third time, he faid, Now have we beaten him, I am nothing; but what I am, I am by the grace of God. Whether at this time, or at another, was a very remarkable temptation, I fall declare it (as it is given to me) in Mr. Gee's own words; words: A minifter and fome others being with him, he told them thus: I was praying, faid he, to God my merciful Father in Chrift Jefus for the main thing viz. that he would ftrengthen, and perfect, and give me life everlafting. To which purpose I ufed that fcripture in Pfalm CXxxviii. 8. The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me, thy mercy, O Lord endureth for ever, forfake not the works of thine own hands, and then (faid he) the devil came to me, and fuggefted this, it's true, thou prayest, and useft fcripture as an argument in prayer, and thou fayeft, thou believeft, but God will give mercy only to them that are true believers. And now what proof or evidence cant thou give me that thou art a true believer? Upon this, faid Mr. Gee, I was in a moft woful condition, and it was far worfe with my foul than any pangs of death; I was full of horror and terror, fo that I was ready to tum. ble off my bed into the grave; yea into the pit of hell, and I was ready to cry out, Oh damned wretch that I am! and I was the more full of horror, because I had faid fo much of my affurance and joy to them that were about me before: But this temptation lafted but a while; for, 1. God my most merciful Father in Chrift Jefus, came into my foul with his teftimony. And, 2. Chrift my most bleffed Redeemer came into my foul with his teftimony. And. 3. The Spirit, my fanctifier, came into my foul with his teftimony, and they write their teftimony in my heart, as if I should writ upon paper with a pen and ink, and God my merciful Father enabled me to fay to Satan, Thou implacable and irreconcilable enemy of my foul, a way with thee, away with thee, it's true what thou fayeft, that none but true believers can receive any comfort and ftrength from God; but fee thou here, I have a threefold teftimony that I am a true believer; God my most merciful and heavenly Father, Chrift my moft bleffed and dear Saviour, and the holy Spirit. I have thefe three witneffes, and therefore away with thee. And now, faid he, the devil's mouth was ftopped, and my foul triumphed: So that I had a fuller teftimony of the Spirit after this con. flict, and more joy than ever I had in all my life before, as I remember; nay, I had more joy than I can conceive, or an |