The Christian in Complete Armour

First, he labours to puzzle him with nice and scrupulous questions, (on purpose to retard the work, and clog him in his motion) that meeting with such intricacies in his Christian course, which he cannot easily resolve, thereby he may be made, either to give over, or go on heavily: therefore we have particular charge not to trouble the weak heads of young Converts with doubtful disputations. ¹Sometimes Satan will be asking the soul, how it knows its election: and where he finds one not so ⟨p. 131⟩fully resolved, as to dare to own the same, he frames his Argument against such a ones closing with Christ and the promise; as if it were presumption to assume that, (which is the only portion of the Elect) before we know our selves of that number. Now, Christian, keep the Plains and thou art safe. 'Tis plain; we are not to make Election a ground for our faith, but our faith and calling a medium or argument to prove our Election. Election indeed is first in order of divine acting. God chooseth before we believe; yet faith is first in our acting. We must believe before we can know we are elected, yea, by believing we know it. The Husbandman knows 'tis Spring by the sprouting of the grass, though he hath no Astrology to know the Position of the Heavens; thou mayest know thou art Elect, as surely by a work of grace in thee, as if thou hadst stood by Gods elbow when he writ thy name in the book of life. It had been presumption for David to have thought he should have been King, till Samuel anointed him, but then none at all; when thou believest first, and closest with Christ, then is the Spirit of God sent to anoint thee to the Kingdom of Heaven: this is that holy oil which is poured upon none but heirs of glory; and 'tis no presumption to read what Gods gracious purpose was towards thee of old, when he prints those his thoughts, and makes them legible in thy effectual calling; here thou doest not go up to heaven, and pry into Gods secrets, but heaven comes down to thee, and reveals them. Again, he will ask the Christian what was the time of his Conversion; Art thou a Christian (will he say) and dost thou not know when thou commencedst? now keep the Plains, & content thy self with this, that thou seest the streams of grace, though the time of thy Conversion be like the head of Nylus, not to be found.

First, he labours to puzzle him with nice and scrupulous questions, (on purpose to retard the work, and clog him in his motion) that meeting with such intricacies in his Christian course, which he cannot easily resolve, thereby he may be made, either to give over, or go on heavily: therefore we have particular charge not to trouble the weak heads of young Converts with doubtful disputations.