A85783:252
The Christian in Complete Armour
The Christian in complete armour. Or, A treatise of the saints war against the Devil, wherein a discovery is made of that grand enemy of God and his people, in his policies, power, seat of his empire, wickedness, and chief design he hath against the saints. A magazine opened: from whence the Christian is furnished with spiritual arms for the battle, helped on with his armour, and taught the use of his weapon, together with the happy issue of the whole war. The first part. / By William Gurnall, Minister of the Gospel in Lavenham. Imprimatur, Edmund Calamy.The Christian in compleat armour. Or, A treatise of the saints war against the Devil, wherein a discovery is made of that grand enemy of God and his people, in his policies, power, seat of his empire, wickednesse, and chiefe designe he hath against the saints. A magazin open'd: from whence the Christian is furnished with spiritual armes for the battel, help't on with his armour, and taught the use of his weapon, together with the happy issue of the whole warre. The first part. / By William Gurnall, Minister of the Gospel in Lavenham. Imprimatur, Edmund Calamy.
London: printed for Ralph Smith, 1655
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.
First, he hangs out false colours, and comes up to the Christian in the disguise of a friend, so that the gates are opened to him, and his motions received with applause, before either be discovered; therefore he is said to transform himself into an Angel of light, 2 Cor. 11.14. Of all plots 'tis most dangerous when he appears in Samuel's mantle, and silvers his foul tongue with fair language. Thus in point of error, he corrupts some in their judgements, by commending his notions for precious Gospel-truths, and like a cunning Chapman puts off his old ware, (errors I mean that have lain long upon his hand) only turkening them a little after the mode of the times, and they go for new light, under the skirt of Christian liberty; he conveys in Libertinism, by crying up the Spirit; he decries and vilifies the Scripture by magnifying faith: he labours to undermine repentance, and blow up good works; by bewailing the corruption of the Church in its administrations, he draws unstable souls from it, and amuseth them, till at last they fall into a vertigo, and can see no Church at all in being. And he prevails no less on the hearts and lives of men by this wile, then on their judgements. Under the notion of zeal, he kindles sometimes a dangerous flame of passion and wrath in the heart, which like a rash fire makes the Christians spirit boil over into unchristian desires of, and prayers ⟨p. 99⟩for revenge where he should forgive; of which we have an instance in the disciples, Luke 9.55. where two holy men are desiring that fire may come down from heaven. Little did they think from whence they had their coal, that did so heat them, till Christ told them, Ye know not what Spirit you are of. Sometimes he pretends pity and natural affection, which in some cases may be good counsel, and all the while he desires to promote cowardice and sinful self-love; whereby the Christian may be brought to fly from his colours, shrink from the truth, or decline some necessary duty of his calling; this his wile Christ soon spied, when he got Peter to be his spokesman, saying, Master, pity thy self: who stopped his mouth with that sharp rebuke, Get thee behind me, Satan. O what need have we to study the Scriptures, our hearts and Satan's wiles, that we may not bid this enemy welcome, and all the while think it's Christ that is our guest.