you should venture on fuch a fin, or not; for, though you fhould mufter up arguments, yet you may find the devil a better politician than you. But there are fome evils you cannot fly from; and therefore,

(2.) Fighting muft take place when you cannot get fled, the next beft is to ftand your ground; " Put on the whole armour of God, that you may ftand against the wiles of the devil," Eph. vi. 12. Stand faft in the faith, with an intire dependence upon Chrift for new recruits of grace and ftrength from him; for, "We are not fufficient of ourfelves; our fufficiency is of God:--I live, yet not I," fays the apoftle, "but Chrift liveth in me;" even fo, may a believer fay, I overcome, yet not I, but Chrift overcometh for me.

(3.) By watching: "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation." The work of a centinel is not to fight, but to watch the enemy's approach; and when he fees them, he tells the captain, and prays him to draw out his forces to oppofe them, and fo conquers : even fo, the Chriftian foldier may conquer by watching; and upon the approach of temptation, praying the Captain of falvation to come with help against the enemy. The conqueror is acquaint with the war by flying, fighting, and watching.

4. The conqueror is one that is acquaint with, and his conqueft imports acquaintance with, the power and policy of his fpiritual enemies, and with the means of the victory, and the way of ufing the fpiritual weapons. Such acquaintance hath he with the power and policy of the enemy, that he hath had the fad experience of many foils and falls in the battle; yea, the faints may lofe many battles, though they win the war at laft: the livelieft of the faints may have fome deadness; the holieft have fome fin; the moft humble have fome pride; the moft fpiritual and heavenly have fome earthlinefs and carnality; and the most denied have fome felf: hence they may be frequently overcome, and lofe their livelinefs, though not their life altogether. It is true, the doctrine of the foils and falls of believers may be dangerous to the fecure, and a rock of offence to them,. over which they may ftumble. Why, fay they, I

"am daily overcome by fin, and my heart dead like "a ftone in prayer; but my bleffing on the minifter, "that tells me, Believers may be just like me; and "fo I conclude myfelf to be among the number of be. "lievers, and hope to be faved, as well as the best."? O beware, man, left this kind of reafoning prove your fpot, to be none of the fpots of God's children; a faint may be foiled and fall, but he will not ly among the dirt, nor wallow in the puddle, like a fwine in the mire; but firuggles, like a fheep in the mire, and be restless till he get out.

The believer alfo is one that knows the way and means of the victory, viz. the fpiritual armour; and the way and manner of ufing thefe weapons, particularly thefe four:

(1.) The weapon of the blood of Chrift: They overcome by the blood of the Lamb, Rev. xii. 11. they know that this blood cleanfeth from all fin, and fo wafheth away the enemy as a flood: they make ufe of this blood, as fin-expiating, wrath-appeafing, promifefealing, and victory-purchafing blood.

(2.) The weapon of faith; 1 Pet. v. g. "Whom refift ftedfast in the faith." It is by this fhield of faith they quench the darts of Satan; yea, "This is the victory whereby they overcome the world, even their faith:" and by this they overcome the god of this world..

(3.) The next weapon is the word, which is the fword of the Spirit, Eph. vi. 17. By this, Chrift the Captain, defeateth the devil, faying, It is written ; it is written fo and fo. When people observe only what is faid by fuch and fuch a man, they are in danger to be tempted, and conquered by temptation; but when they refift temptation, by minding what is written in the word, they overcome.

(4.) The fourth weapon is prayer; Matth. xxvi. 41. "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation." This weapon Paul ufed when he befought the Lord thrice. The prayerlefs man, is the vanquished man: but as long as one can pray in faith, and pray in the Holy Ghoft, he is armed against the devil, the world, and

the flesh. The wrestler with God in prayer is the con

queror.

II. The fecond head of the method, was, To fhew in what refpects believers are more than conquerors. The word 'vrige is very emphatic, and fuch as we cannot easily reach in our language; it is as if we fhould fay, We over-over-come. Now, I fhall fhew in eight or ten refpects, how true believers may be faid to be more than conquerors. And,

1. They are more than conquerors, in fo far as their Captain, who fights for them, is more than man, more than a complete match for all his enemies, Chrift, the Captain of their falvation, is their almighty General : this is the ground of their conqueft; its thro' him that loved them, as we may fhew afterward Only here we may observe, that having him on their fide, it may well be faid, as in ver. 31. "If God be for us, who can be against us?" And as Elifha faid to his fervants, 2 Kings ii. 16. Fear not, for they that be with us, are more than they that be with them:" and when his eyes were opened at the prayer of Elifha, behold the mountain was full of hories, and chariots of fire round about Elifha.

"

2. They are more than conquerors, in fo far as they can glory in their cross; and not only bear it with patience, but triumph in it with pleafure, as the cross of Chrift; for a man to glory in his own crown is no great matter, but to glory in his crofs is more than a victory over it: thus did Paul, Gal. vi. 14. when he is oppofing himfelf to the falfe teachers of his time, who fought to glary in thefe as their converts, whom they could perfuade to be circumcifed, and to fubmit to the legal yokes they wreathed about their necks; but, fays Paul, “God forbid, that I fhould glory, fave in the cross of our Lord Jefus Chrift, by which the world is crucified to me, and to the world." Thus were the apofiles more than conquerors, when they could glory in tribulation, Rom. v. 3. and rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer fhame for Chrift's fake, Acts vi. 41.

VOL. VIII.

3. They are more than conquerors, in fo far as they conquer the greateft enemies in a little time; and with the least ado, or with little ftrength; and by very weak and feeble means. Amongst men it is ufual for that party that hath the greatest forces to carry the day: but take a view of grace when first cast into the foul, particularly faith, it is but like a grain of mustard feed: it is like nothing, were it not for the ftrength of Chrift that helps and makes it victorious. If a great army conquer a fmall handful, it is but a victory; but if a fmall handful conquer a great army, this is more than a victory as when that fmall grain of mustard-feed overtops, and overcomes the whole world; for, "This is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith." The children of God fometimes conquer with a little ftrength; and by very weak and feeble means: it is all one to God to conquer by many or few.

4. They are more than conquerors, in fo far as they can conquer without any lofs to themfelves, but rather gain. When one army defeats another, but with lofs of thousands, or of the greatest part of the army, it may be called a victory; but when the one roots the other, without any lofs, and with great gain, then it is more than a victory. What does the believer lofe, when he conquers the world and its lufts, when he conquers the devil and his confederates? Nay, he gains unfpeakably by the conqueft; for, he divides the fpoil: he reaps profit and advantage by his tribulations; for, "Tribulation worketh patience, and patience experience, and experience hope, and hope maketh not ashamed; becaufe the love of God is fhed abroad upon his heart, by the Holy Ghost." They conquer with the least loss, and yet the greatest advantage to themselves..

5. They are more than conquerors, in fo far as they conquer to the greateft lofs and difadvantage to the enemy. Their greatest enemies are at firft difabled, and at last destroyed. A man may conquer his enemy for the prefent: but he may recruit and recover again, and fall upon him with a fecond encounter, and be ftronger than ever he was before but a child of God, in conquering his enemies, not only foils them, but

difables them; for the heaviest ftroke the devil and his inftruments can give, brings in molt profit to them, and does molt difable the enemy; as the laft firoke the devil gave to our ever-glorious Head, did most of all difable the devil: for, when he bruifed the heel of Chrift's human nature to death, our Lord gave the ferpent's head a kick, as it were, and thereby brake his legal power; for," By death he deftroyed him that had the power of death, that is, the devil." Thus the most bloody ftroke the enemies give, tends most of all to difable and weaken their power;. while the believer renews his ftrength the more, and waxes valiant in fighting. Our Lord Jefus, the Captain, is alfo to fit at the Father's right-hand, till all his enemies be his foot-ftool; and therefore all the believers enemies fhall be at laft perfectly fubdued unto them, fin, and mifery, and tribulation, and ficknefs, and death itself, they fhall be all fwallowed up in victory, 1 Corinth. XV. 54.

6. They are more than conquerors, in regard they can be fure of the victory before the war be at an end. What affurance have they of this? Why,

(1.) Chrift their Head, hath overcome, and gained the prize already; and there cannot be a victorious head, and a conquered body: if the head be raised from the dead, the body fhall rife. Their final victory is as fure, as Chrift their Head is already victori

ous.

(2.) Their weapons are invincible; the fhield of faith, and the fword of the Spirit, cannot fail to be victori

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(3.) They are affured by the promife of God; for it is promifed, that the God of peace will bruise Satan under their feet.

(4) They are affured by the earneft of the full victory; the Spirit enabling them fometimes to mortify the deeds of the body and as this Spirit is the earnest of the inheritance, fo the earnest of the full and complete victory. "God is a rock, and his work is perfect:" he hath begun the good work, and will perfect it. If then he

that