The saints dignity and duty· Together with the danger of ignorance and hardness. /…The saints dignitie and dutie· Together with the danger of ignorance and hardnesse. /…

Again thirdly, a third Property of Faith is that in the 1 Thes. 5.8. The breastplate of faith and love, faith is a Brest-plate, there is the third property of faith. What is the use of a breastplate? A breastplate it doth fence and secure the heart from all danger, from all stabs, from all injuries. Where there is faith, the soul is fenced as it were, with a breastplate, so that it is neither drawn away from Christ, nor wounded with the fiery darts of Satan, or temptations of sin. My brethren, I pray observe it, there is no faith, where the heart is not in some measure fenced from the wounds of sin, and from the ensnarements of the world: Faith is a breast-plate, there is the third.

Again thirdly, a third Propertie of Faith is that in the 1 Thes. 5.8. The breastplate of faith and love, faith is a Brest-plate, there is the third property of faith. What is the use of a brestplate? A brestplate it doth fence and secure the heart from all danger, from all stabbs, from all injuries. Where there is faith, the soul is fenced as it were, with a brestplate, so that it is neither drawn away from Christ, nor wounded with the fierie darts of Satan, or temptations of sin. My brethren, I pray observe it, there is no faith, where the heart is not in some measure fenced from the wounds of sin, and from the insnarements of the world: Faith is a brest-plate, there is the third.

Again, in the fourth and last place, the last property of faith that I will name, is that in the 1 John 5.4. Whosoever is born of God overcometh the world, and this is our victory, even our faith. Observe that place, where there is faith, there is a victory, and a victory over the world: where ever there is faith, there is an overcoming of the world? To overcome the world, it is not to be overcome of the world; it is to persist in setting our chiefest affection upon the Lord Jesus Christ, notwithstanding all the devises and attempts of the world, either by flattery or by frowns; either by favour, or by blows; this is to overcome the world. Now then where ever there is faith, there is a victory over the world: that soul which hath faith in it, it hath overcome the world, the care of the world was wont to overcome it, but now it overcometh the care of the world; it is not so careful for the world, as it is for Christ. The fears of the world were wont to overcome it, but now it hath overcome the fears of the world, it is not so afraid of all the worlds injuries and threats, as it is of Christs displeasure: The pleasures of the world were wont to overcome it, the world runneth after nothing so much as after worldly