Spirituall encrease: or, Conclusions for pacifying the perplexed conscience of the weake Christian

CON. 66.

Besides our corrupt na∣ture, the serpent laboureth continually to peruert the simplicity of faith, which is in Christ.

EXPLA.

I am iealous ouer you (saith the Apostle) with a godly iea∣lousie, for I haue prepared you to a husband, a pure virgin, vn∣to Christ; but I feare lest as the serpent beguiled Euah through his subtilty,* 1.1 so your mindes should bee corrupted from the simplicity which is in Christ. This simplicity of faith ta∣keth the naked promise of God, his bare word, and on that it resteth: which sim∣plicity the Diuell ceasseth not to ouerthrow, corrup∣ting the minde with many i∣maginations of repugnancy, & contrariety between the word of God and his promi∣ses therein, and those things

which sense or experience, or some other fore-cōceiued opinion and perswasion had imprinted. The word of pro∣mise vnto his people is, I will not leaue thee,* 1.2 nor forsake thee: vpon this the simpli∣city of faith resteth, and it is not afraid of famine. But marke how the subtilty of Satan doth corrupt the mindes of that rebellious generation, whose spirits were not faithfull vnto God: they beheld the desolate state of the desert in which they were, and by the wise∣dome of their sense conclu∣ded the wisedome of God to be but folly;* 1.3 Can God pre∣pare a table in the desert? A∣gaine, the word of the pro∣mise vnto Sarah, was, Thou

shalt beare a sonne: faith is simple, and doubted not of it; but Satan to corrupt this simplicity of faith, entised the minde of the woman with an argument drawne from common experience to the contrary, An olde woman, Sarah, will shee bee acquainted with forgotten passions of youth? So the word of the promise of God by Moses, and the Prophets, made the Sauiour of the world so apparent vn∣to Philip, that this simplicity could conceiue no other Messiah then Iesus of Naza∣reth, the Sonne of Ioseph: but to stay Nathaniel to come and see, and should also beleeue, and so be saued; the subtil∣ty of Satan casted a mist be∣fore his eyes, put in his head

against this the common conceiued opinion of all men against Nazareth, Is it possible that a good thing should come from thence?

Thus he bereaueth men for the time of all perceiuance of that which should releeue them, and be their comfort: yea, it taketh all remem∣brance from them, euen of things wherewith they are most familiarly acquainted The Israelites might know, that hee that led them tho∣row the Red Sea, was able to feede them in the wildernes. Sarah was not to learne, that with God all things were possi∣ble. Therefore diligently marke the conceit of repug∣nancy; beleeue not those things which are obiect to

the eies, but that which faith vpon promise of God doth looke for.

Notes

• * 1.1

  2 Cor. 11.
• * 1.2

  Hebr. 13.
• * 1.3

  Psalm. 78.