The rule of faith, or, An exposition of the Apostles Creed so handled as…

Now the things that he suffered in this part of his life were these:

Now the things that hee suffered in this part of his life were these:

1. Temptation: As soon as he was baptised, and had solemnly undertaken in public the Redemption of the Church, the Devil set upon him with divers hellish and furious assaults, as you may read, Matth. 4. And unto this conflict doth our Saviour voluntarily offer himself, being led to the combat by the Spirit, and begins to wrestle with the Prince of all adversary power, enduring with great patience, and resisting and vanquishing with great skill his fiery and blasphemous Darts. And in the Desert by single combat, as in an open field, before God and Angels was this battle fought. And in the Desert doth our Saviour suffer this conflict with the Devil for divers reasons. First, that he might redeem us, that with our first Parents did wander up and down in the vast desert of this world, being banished from Paradise, and might by subduing the Devil, the Lion of the wilderness, the god of this world, leave us a secure habitation all the days of our pilgrimage, and purchase our return to a better Paradise, Secondly, He was tempted of the Devil, that he might feel what we suffered when we are tempted, and might be able to succour them that are tempted, Hebr. 2. 17, 18. and 4. 15. Thirdly, That he might show us a ⟨p. 321⟩way how to resist the Devil, and to wrestle with Principalities and Powers, that we may overcome them. For hence we may learn many things: for first here we may know our Adversary, and what Enemy we shall have, if we give our names to Christ, and bind ourselves by the Sacraments to enter into a course of holy obedience to God. The Devil •s well as the world will oppose us. Secondly, we may gather from hence that no true Christian may promise himself freedom to be spared from this war, nor ought to desire to be discharged from this Trial, seeing the Son of God was not free from it. Thirdly, we should hence learn, that a godly Christian, who is Gods Champion, is not brought to the combat of temptations at the mere lust, or when the Devil out of his malice will, but he is solemnly led to the fight by Gods Spirit, who will stand by him, and give issue, and make a way to escape the danger: they shall have no more laid upon them than they are able to bear. Fourthly, from the practise of our great Commander, we see with what weapons we must resist: