.1111111111.110.1.111.4 28o Satanspower toTempt; and Chrift's love to, An w. 2,. come upon you, anfwer thus : Satan, here thou bring& the fuffering before me,and caufeft that to come before me; but thoudoeft not tell me of the ftrength I fhall have, and of the confolation I Thal receive ; Satan, I fhall not have the ftrength I havenow, nor the confolation I have now, but I fhall havemore firength then, when the fuffering comes, and I fhall have more confolation, when as the affliEtion, comes than I had before. Keep thefe together, don't look only upon theone fideof your fuffering, and witnefs-bea- ring ; but look upon both fides together, and thus you fhall be able to ftand, and ride out the ftorm of this temp- tation. But you will fay, We have heard of the feveral blowes that Satan gives unto our faith : unto the faith of Reliance, unto the faith ofAtli-trance, and unto the faithofAcknow- ledgment; how he laboursto weaken all thefe our faiths, and howwe fhould bear offal thefe blows : But there may be yet fame temptation (pogibly) that does notfall within the compaf; of theft temptations : theft dire iions are pointed againfi theft par- ticular temptations but Ihave other temptations that don't fig within the compafiof thefe, whereby Satan labours to weaken my faith, and to makke my faith to fail : What general Rules andDireElionsmay be given, by which a man fhould fo walk, as that Satan may not mal?,e,his faith to fail in the time ofhis temp- tation ? Firft : Before your temptationcomes, while you are up- on even ground ; Study, and look much into the Scrip- ture, and into everycorner, and nook thereof, (as I may fo fpeak) laying,and treafuringup Promifes, and Words fu- table to every condition. Let the Word of the Lorddwell in you richly ; that fo when a temptation comes, ye may have a word finable at hand, and this will help ye to bear off the ftrengthof the temptation when it comes. Secondly. Either a particular Word andPromife does come untoye,or it does not,in the time ofyour temptation. Hit do come unto ye, Take heed that ye don't meafure your felves, or your condition, by thewarmth,and life, and inlargment of your
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