A09950:1057
The Breastplate of Faith and Love
The breast-plate of faith and love. A treatise, wherein the ground and exercise of faith and love, as they are set upon Christ their object, and as they are expressed in good works, is explained. / Delivered in 18 sermons upon three several texts, by the late faithful and worthy minister of Jesus Christ, John Preston, Dr. in Divinity, chaplain in ordinary to his Majesty, Master of Emmanuel College in Cambridge, and sometimes preacher of Lincolns Inn.The breast-plate of faith and love. A treatise, wherein the ground and exercise of faith and love, as they are set upon Christ their object, and as they are expressed in good workes, is explained. / Delivered in 18 sermons upon three severall texts, by the late faithfull and worthy minister of Iesus Christ, Iohn Preston, Dr. in Divinity, chaplaine in ordinary to his Maiesty, Master of Emmanuel Colledge in Cambridge, and sometimes preacher of Lincolnes Inne.
London: printed by W. Jones for Nicolas Bourne, 1630London: printed by W. Iones for Nicolas Bourne, 1630
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
For first of all,1 if a mans heart be good, he hath the spirit of God dwelling there: now, saith the Apostle, 2 Tim▪ 1.6. The spirit is not a spirit of fear, or a spirit of weakness, a spirit that only ⟨p. 188⟩makes attempts, and is not able to bring things to pass; but it is a spirit of power, a spirit of a sound mind: That is, do not thou pretend thou meanest well and desirest well, and think it is sufficient, but stir up the gift that is in thee, set thy self on work, do the actions that belong to thee in thy place, and do not say I am not able to do it; for we have not received a spirit that is weak, but a spirit of power: the same I may say to every Christian, If ye be in Christ, ye have the spirit, which is a spirit of power. So you have it likewise, Gal. 5.25.2 If you live in the spirit, walk in the spirit: that is, if you have so much of the spirit as to make you living men, show it by walking in the spirit, by following the spirit, by doing that which the spirit guides you to; therefore it is impossible that a man should have a right mind, but that his works also will be good, because grace is strong: in 2 Tim. 2.1.3 And thou my son be strong in the grace received, &c. As if he should say, grace is a strong thing, it strengthens every man that hath received it; if thou profess thou hast received the grace of Christ to regenerate thee, to change thee, and to make thee a new creature, let that appear by showing thy self strong in thy actions, able and ready to do every thing that belongs to thee in thy place. Indeed flesh is weak, so much flesh, so much weakness, for that is weak and fading, and withering, and mutable; it is grass, and all the purposes of it and the desires of it are no better: but the spirit is strong, and grace is strong, quite contrary ⟨p. 189⟩to the flesh; as the Prophet speaks,