i 1, iW 316 The Support of Good Men, Vó1. I, withal. But, in cafe God thail call you to extraordinary Sufferings, he is faith- ful that hath prom:yid, who will notfufer you to be tempted above that ye are able, but will with the temptation alfomake a way to efcape, that ye may be able to bear it ; that is, as he hath ordered and appointed fo great a'Temptation or Trial to befal you fo he will take care that it (hall have a happy Iffue, by enabling you tobear it by affording you Grace and Strength equal to the Violence and Power of the Temptation. For as he is Paid to fall intoTemptation, that is Conquered by it fo he is Paid to get out of it, or efcape it, who is enabled to bear it, and, in fo do- ing, gets the better of it. And for this we may rely upon the Faithfulnefs of God, whohath promifed that we (hall not be tried above our fírength ; either not above the ftrength which we have, or not above the ftrength which he will af- ford us in fuch a Cafe. And why then (hould we be daunted at the apprehenfion of any Suffering whatfoever, if we be fecured that our Comfort (hall be encreafed in proportion to our Trouble, and our Strength in proportion to the tharpnefs and weight of our Sufferings ? Or elfe, Thirdly, In cafe ofTemporary Falling, the Providence and Goodnefs of God will give them the Grace and Opportunity of recovering themfelves from their Fall by Repentance. For the Providence of God may fometimes, for wife Ends and Keafons, fee it fit to leave good Men to their own Frailty, and to faint and fall thamefully under Sufferings, fo as to renounce and deny the Truth ; 'force- times topunifh their vain Confidence in themfelves, as in the Cafe of Bet-,., who declared more Refolution, and bare it out with a greater Confidence than any of the Difciples, when he faid to our Saviour, tho' all Men forfaite thee, yetwillnotI; and yet after this he fell more thamefully than any of the refl., to as to deny his Matter with horrid Oaths and Imprecations, and this, tho' our Saviour had pray- ed particularly for him, that his Faith might not fail. From which Inftance we may learn, that God doth not engage himfelf abfolutely to fecure Good Men from falling, in cafe ofa great Temptation and Tryal but if they be fincere, he will not permit them to fall finally, though ht: may [offer them to mifcarry Brie- sou(ly for a time, to convince themof the vanity of their Confidence in them- fel ves and their own Strength. Sometimes Godmay fuffer GoodMen tofall, in order to their more glorious Recovery, and the greater Demonftration and Triumph of their Faith and Con- flancy afterwards ; which was the cafe of that happy Inftrument of our Refor- mation here in England, Arch-bifhop Cranmer, who after he had been fo great a Championof the Reformation, was fo overcome with Fear, upon the Apprehen- fion of his approaching Sufferings, as to fubfcribe thofe Errorsof the Churchof Rome, whichhe had fo ftoutly oppofed a great part ofhis Life: But he did not long continue in this State, but by theGrace of God, which had not forfaken him, was brought to Repentance ; and when he came to [offer, gave fuch a Te- flimony of ir, and ofhis Faith and Conflancy, as was more glorious, and more to the Confirmation of the Faith of others, than a fimple Martyrdom could have been, if he had not fallen ; for when he was brought to the Stake he put his right Hand (with which-he had figned his Recantation) into the Fire, and with an un- daunted Conftancy held it there, till it was quite burnt, for a Telimony of his true Repentancefor that foul Mifcarriage ; and when he haddone, gave the reft of hisBody to be burnt, which he endured with great 'Courage and Chearfulnefs to the laft. So that he made all the amends poflible for fo great aFault; and the Goodnefs of God, and the Power of his Grace was more glorified in his Re- pentance and Recovery, than if he had never fallen. But what ¡hall we fay, when notwithftanding thefe Promifes of extraordinary Comfort and Support, in cafe of extraordinary Sufferings, fo great Num- bers are Peen to faint in the day of Trial, and to fall off from their Stedfafnefs ? Of which there were many fad Ináagces, among the Primitive Chriftians, and have likewife been of late inour ownTimes, and inplaces nearer to us. This I confefs is a very melancholy Confideration, but yet I think is capable of a fuffi- cient Anfwer. And I,
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