bringing fin to the thoughts, but to the act, for putting fome blot upon your walk and converfation? Does not fad experience fhew you, that it is hard to dance about the fire, and not be burnt; and that the temptation, which at a distance feemed fmall, upon a nearer approach you have found had more bands on your heart than you could have dreamed it would have had; and how impoffible it is many times to stop the current, to which through unwatchfulnefs you have given a vent? Does not fad experience witnefs, how the power and prevalency of corruption hath confumed the vitals of your fpiritual life, and tumbled you down headlong into confufion; efpecially when you have given confcience a wramp, by doing violence to light, in fiding with the enemies, and adventuring on the occafions of a temptation? When you have gone with Peter to the high-prieft's hall, without a warrant or a call, hath it not coft you dear, infomuch that you have found bold finning hath made faint believing, and turned all your comfort to the door, leaving nothing behind but bitterness and death? Do you not find your fins have a weakning, captivating, vexing and tormenting power? But many fad experiences of this fort, and thousands of them in their life-time, may even the Ifrael of God have, whereby they find, to their coft, the nations of corruptions are alive and powerful; as this gradual conqueft by little and little declares.

(2.) It shows alfo, that they have inany fweet experiences on the other hand of little fuccours and auxiliaries, fupplies from heaven, whereby the enemy is driven out and deftroyed from time to time, and this all the days of their life alio, till the warfare be accomplished at death. I am fpeaking of

these

these that have been brought to the field of battle, as I fhowed before; and how the Lord by little and little makes the nations of lufts fometimes to flee before them: But by how many littles in the believer's life-time this warfare is carried on, who can tell? And how many little recoveries, little revivings, little fupplies, little fupports, little ftrengthning meals, little fin-killing antidotes, little foulreftoring cordials; how many of these little fweet things, or fweet little things, the Lord their God allows them from time to time, that by little and little they may win the day, it is not poffible to tell, they are fo many. The poor fighting believer may get a thousand of them in a year, and ten thousands of them in his lifetime, and perhaps more than half a score of them at one communion, Sometimes he gets a little new discovery of the glorious captain, after he hath been long out of fight, and hiding himself: And a new fight of the glory of the Lord fills the Ifraelite's hearts with new life and courage, and hope of prevailing; for then he fees Chrift to be a full magazine of all military provifion, and an open magazine to give out armour for the war; and fo he becomes ftrong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Indeed, fo many little glances of the glory of Christ that the believer gets, fo many little victories does he get over the enemy. Again, fometimes he gets a little out-pouring of the fpirit of prayer, and of the fpirit of adoption, crying, Abba Father; O Father, may he fay, pity a poor child, harraffed with the devil, and captivated by the power of indwelling lufts and corruptions. O but this give the believer a little ease and relief, when he can get his heart poured Ff3

out

out into the bofom of his best and most glorious friend, complaining of the tyranny of the tempter, and the prevailing of the nations. Here is a little victory, when he gets a little grace to put the enemies of his foul into the hands of his captain, faying, Vengeance, Lord; vengeance be executed upon thefe enemies, that dishonour thy name, and difturb the peace of my foul. foul. Again, fometimes he gets a little discovery of the enemy's power and policy, and ftrongest holds; fo as, knowing the depths of Satan, and not being ignorant of his devices, the believer is thereby put in cafe to be upon his guard: And efpecially he is made to fee and obferve the old man of fin, that deadly cut-throat, that lies within his bofom; and while he is bemoaning himself with Ephraim, and crying out with Paul, O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from this body of death? The enemy is lofing ground. Again, fometimes he gets a little communication of life, after a deadnefs of fpirit that seized him; and a little recovery, after a fit of the falling-fickness and backfliding: And the new communication of life and health to the foul, makes him ftart up to his feet again, and pursue the enemy with more vigour and refolution than ever; like a man that grows ftronger after his fickness than he was before. Indeed that fpiritual fickness of the believer is not unto death, but unto the glory of God; which his being recovered from, makes him fight more couragiously, and watch more carefully against the enemy than ever he did. Again, fometimes he gets a little hold of a promise, such as that, I will fubdue thine iniquity; fin fhall not have dominion over thee; fear not, for I am with thee,

The

The God of peace fhall bruife Satan under your feet Shortly: And, having these promises, he is encouraged to the holy war, namely, to cleanfe himself from all filthiness of the flesh and of the spirit, &c. Why, the promise lays hold on his heart, and his heart lays hold on the promise, and therein he sees that the strength of Ifrael is engaged to carry him through the hoft of his enemies. And thus, every little hold of a promife by faith, is a little victory; there needs no more to give a chafe to the enemy, than a little upftirring of faith on a promifing God in Christ, and dependance on him under the conduct of his fpirit. Again, fometimes he gets a little grace to wait upon the Lord while, the promise is not yet accomplished, until he bring forth judgment unto victory; and the Lord is a God of judgment, bleffed are all they that wait for him; he that believes Shall not make hafte; knowing the race is not to the fwift, nor the battle to the frong: And hence the believer will find that his ftrength is to fit ftill, and quietly to wait for the falvation of the Lord. Again, fometimes he gets a little godly forrow, that works repentance unto life: Gofpel-repentance, iffuing from a fight of a crucified Christ, brings along with it a train of artillery for fubduing the enemy, 2 Cor. vii. 11. What carefulness does it work, fays. the apostle; yea, what clearing of ourselves; yea, what indignation; yea, what fear; yea, what vehement defire; yea, what zeal; yea, what revenge? When the heart is melting before the Lord in godly forrow, O what revenge is it meditating against the nations of lufts and corruptions! O how glad would the believer be then to wash his hands in the blood of all his spiritual enemies! For at the fame time Ff 4

he

it

he gets a little refentment of his own ingratitude, faying, O do I thus requite the Lord, O foolish and unwife? A little holy fhame and blufhing before the Lord, at the thoughts of his own brutishness, faying, behold, I am vile; and a little foul-debafement, cafting indignity upon himself, and giving glory to the Lord, faying, Truth, Lord, I am a dog, I am a beaft, I am a devil; but yet I come to thee, to caft out the devil, and get glory to thy name. Further, fometimes he gets a little intimation of peace and pardon, a little sprinkling of the blood of Chrift upon the confcience, to purge from dead works; and a little application of that blood by the hand of the fpirit, fhewing him that the blood of Chrift cleanfeth from all fin: And this bloody banner of the lamb, being displayed, makes the nations to flee before him; They overcome by the blood of the lamb. Sometimes they get a little ing of the heart, like Lydia, at the hearing of the word; infomuch that their hearts, that were dead within them like a stone, before they are aware take life and need fire, with a word of grace, a word of power; and the more the heart opens to let in the king of glory, the more is the enemy fhut out. Sometimes they get a little freedom and boldness at the throne of grace, when they come thither to obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. And when there they get a little ftrength to wreftle with the Lord for a bleffing, faying, Lord, 1 will not let thee go, till thou blefs me; they get even power with God himself, as it is faid of facob, Hof. xii. 4. He had power over the angel, and prevailed. And when a man is an overcomer in this fense, to have power with God; much more will he have power over the nations of enemies, Rev. ii, 26. To

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