74- The Saints SpirituallJrength. 3 full in grace. (3) It brings the more cheerefulneffe into the heart, becaufe it brings Chrift and God thither , who is the God of all comfort and con- folation, as the. Apofile calls him there. For that mutt needs be the bell thing in the world to bee ftrong in the inward man; and the joyfulleft heart, that hath his inhabiting with God, and Chiifi. 4 (4)Becaufe it brings fufficiency and plentie of all good into the foule, and wee fay, that if a man hath a good outward eftate , he is like to hold out ifa famine fhould come; fo it is with a Chriftian if hee bee firong in the inward man , though a famine (hould come, hee is likely to hold out and keepe that which hee hash : but on the contrary, when a man is poore in the inward man , (as it is with a bo- dy that is weake) every thing that it hath is ready to be tákF.ç away. But as, a bowle that hath a byas, the - ftrength of the arme takes away the byas , fo ftrength in the Inward -man takes away the byas of fhame- and reproch ", which otherwife would draw ;us to ,defpaire, and makes us to goe on flout ly and o .beáre áfltiF Lions ftrongly ;. babes you know cannot beare that which a ftrong man can, . neither are they al ?le . to hold out in any thing as a Prong man is able. Therefore that you may hold out, labour to be ftrong in the Inward man , (5)Be- caufe it (lrengthens a man againft temptations, and 'therefore the Apoftle faith , Bee Jtedfa0 and mooveable_, . for it makes us to (land fart. in Chrift, fo that nothing .fhall breake as off from Chrifi; neither temptation, nor of lition , . nor reproch.' Con-
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