2to The Spiritual-aflings ofPaith 4. In the fourth place, for your incouragement know this : That the more and greater difficulties your duties oryourgra- ces are recovered out ofthe handof , the more comfortable they will be toyou. CI pray mark it ) I fay, duty, or grace, reco- vered out ofthe hand ofdifficulty, is the moil;: comfortable. Youknow how it was with David at Ziklag: the enemy had come upon him, taken away his wife , and all his comforts ; a fentence of death was upon all his comforts : David , he followes after, overtakes theenemy, recovershis wife, and all his comforts , and there he had the greateft fpoile of all fpoiles ; he fent unto anis friends of his fpoile , he never had a greater fpoile. So I fay, does difficulty, or difcourage- ment break in upon your duty ? Morning duty ? Evening duty ? Or any grace ? Follow after it : if thou ftrikeft this difficulty in the hinder part, and recovered thy duty, or thy grace out of the hand of the difficulty , thy duty and thygrace will be more comfortable then ever it was. 5. And then in theFift place,Study7eftu Chrifi more,and labour for acleare,&a diflina knowledge ofieftuChrift.FaithinScrip- ture phrafe , it is called knowledge, the knowledge ofChrift Ira 53 I i. By his knowledge heIhallinfillYmany : toknow, and beleeve, they are put together; the moreyou know, the more cleere and diftinaknowledgeyou have ofChrift, the stronger your faith:the lee knowledgeyouhave of Chrift,the weaker your faith; a weak faith is apt to be blown down withevery wind: Abraham being not weake , he considerednot his own body, fohe staggered not. Theweake fire,. it may be.put out with fuel] , calling of much wood upon it ; the ftrong fire, it in creafes ,, and growes , even by throwing onofwater that is, contrary ; a weak faith is borne down instantly.. Art thou therefore weak, and haft newly begun to look towardsJefus. Chrift ? Oh, labour to get stronger faith ; and that you fhall do,by growing in the knowledge ofIefus Chrift.StudyChrift more; his life more; his death more; his fulneffemore; the merciful difpofiton ofIefusChriftmore:Thus fhal you be able to grow ftrong,andfhal work through all difficulties,and dif- co gragements unto the Lord Chrift. Yet
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=