A85783:296
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
A TREATISE Of the whole Armour Of God. › Introduction › Chapter 5 › Section 3
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.
Secondly, let it make thee more humble. If Satan can charge thee with so much in thy best duties, O what then can thy God ⟨p. 120⟩do! God suffers sometimes the infirmities of his people to be known by the wicked, (who are ready to check and frump them for them) for this end, to humble his people, how much more low should these accusations of Satan, which are in a great part too true, lay us before God?
Thirdly, observe the fallacy of Satan's argument, which discovered, will help thee to answer his cavil: the fallacy is double.
Thirdly, observe the fallacy of Satans argument, which discovered, will help thee to answer his cavil: the fallacy is double.
First, he will persuade thee that thy duty and thy self are hypocritical, proud, formal, &c, because something of these sins are to be found in thy duty: Now, Christian, learn to distinguish between pride in a duty, and a proud duty, hypocrisy in a person and an hypocrite, wine in a man and a man in wine. The best of Saints have the stirrings of such corruptions in them and in their services; these birds will light on an Abraham's sacrifice, but comfort thy self with this, that if thou findest a party within thy bosom pleading for God, and entering its protest against these, thou and thy services are Evangelically perfect. God beholds these as the weaknesses of thy sickly state here below, and pities thee, as thou wouldest do thy lame child; how odious is he to us that mocks one for natural defects, a blear eye, or a stammering tongue? such are these in thy new nature. Observable is that in Christs prayer against Satan,