This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. Searching, reading, printing, or downloading EEBO-TCP texts is reserved for the authorized users of these project partner institutions. Permission must be granted for subsequent distribution, in print or electronically, of this text, in whole or in part. Please contact project staff at eebotcp-info@umich.edu for further further information or permissions.
TO their being strong, and the Word of God abiding in them, this is added, that they have overcome the wicked one, viz. the Devil. That it is so, needs no proof, for St. John's saying so is witness enough, And we know that his witness is true, Joh. 21.24. That therefore which we have to do is, 1. To shew in what sense they have, And 2. how and how far they have overcome the wicked one.
To overcome is a word that is used in a Forensick and in a Military sense, as it refers to the Court and to the Camp, 'tis a Law term, and a term of War: in a legal or Court sense, 'tis to overcome by right and justification, to be cleared and justified as to any charge and indictment laid against them; to overcome in a Military sense, is to conquer by might, by dint of Sword; which in the School sense is to overcome by force of Argument. In the first sense to be cleared and justified is to overcome, as ap∣pears by comparing Psal. 51.4. with Rom. 3.4. in the Psalm 'tis that thou maist be justified and cleared, in the Romans 'tis that thou maist be justified and overcome: now in this sense not only the Young men, but all the Saints are conquerors and do over∣come, that is, there is no condemnation but justification to and for them, Rom. 8.1. with 33, 34,—38, 39. though they are con∣demned by men yet justified by God, as Christ was put to death in the flesh, but justified in and by the Spirit. Though the Devil, accuse yet Christ their Advocate pleads for and to their justification; and they are freed (in foro Dei) in Gods Court, which is a relieving Chancery against the cruel Sentences of Common Law; so that no∣thing separates them from the Love of God in Christ. To this sense speaks also the 1 Cor. 15.57. 1 Joh. 5.18.
But in the Military sense 'tis that we are most specially to understand the conquest and
overcoming spoken of these Young men in our Text; they have overcome by meer strength of the word and Faith, so that they not only overcome him as justified from his charge and indictment, but overcome his temptations by dint of Sword, i. e. by strength of Argument from the Word abiding in them. If the Devil plead sin and guilt, they plead Christ and his satisfaction; if the Devil witness against them that they are not, they produce the witness of the Spi∣rit that they are the Children of God, and so overcome him. So that the Young-man is a double conqueror, by right and might; by Word and Sword; at the Bar and in the Field; they overcome by strength of Faith or believing in Christ, or rather by the strength of Christ believed in. But then,
How and how far have they overcome? the Devil is not slain, he is in being still, and hath a power of tempting still; how then is it said, that they have overcome the wicked one? may not the Devil rally and recruit again? may he make no more on∣sets on the Young men? To this some make Answer thus, that the Praeter Tense is put for the Future, q.d. you shall as certainly overcome as if you had overcome: while the Word of God abideth in you, you shall never be overcome, and so do overcome, and may be said to have overcome. So the called of God are said to be saved because they shall be saved, 1 Cor. 1.18. with 2 Tim. 1.9. So Christ is said to have, yea saith
that he hath overcome the world, Joh. 16.33. when yet his conquest was not compleat till his Resurrection and Ascension, nor is fully and wholly so till all his enemies be made his Footstool. So he saith, Joh. 17.4. I have finished the work thou hast given me to do, when as yet he had not died, which com∣mand he was to obey, having received it from his Father, Joh. 10.18. Many other places are spoken at this rate to denote the certainty of what shall be; 'tis said to be done because it shall be done. So say they here, the Young men have overcome the wicked one, i. e. they are to fight, and though the dispute be so hot and fierce, as that to a stander by it may be doubtful, whether the Young men will overcome the Devil, or the Devil them, yet 'tis so sure that they shall overcome, that 'tis said they have overcome. But though this be often true and may be admitted as a truth here, yet I doubt not but there is a reality, and not only a figure in the speech, they have overcome: they are conquerors and have ob∣tained victory already.
I shall therefore shew how they may be said to have overcome the wicked one in the Scripture sense as to what is past, the incounters that have hitherto been between them. When the Devil is resisted he flees, and so is for the present conquered; as he fled from Christ and was conquered as so that battel, Jam. 4.7. 1 Pet. 5.9. He who attains to do that which he is exhorted to,
attains that for which he exhorted to it: so that being exhorted to resist the Devil that he may flee, they find that when he is resisted he doth flee, and so is conquered for that season. Beside, they stand and keep their ground, which is a further expression of victory, they not only withstand, but stand, Ephes. 6.11,—13. Ephes. 4.27. and that this resistance and standing is by Faith, be∣ing strong in Faith, is clear from 1 Pet. 5.9. Ephes. 6.16. and thus by resisting, standing firm and maintaining their ground, they have hitherto overcome the wicked one.
The summ of it amounts to this, q. d. I write to you Young men because ye are strong, and have overcome the wicked one, i. e. you have thus far, hitherto, to this day resisted and kept your ground and have not given place to the Devil, you have stood it out against all his wiles and subtleties, you have made him flee by the power of the Word of God which made you strong in Faith, the grace which is in Christ Jesus; and this your strength abides with you, as it did with Caleb, Josh. 14.11. So that if the Devil set on you any more, you know how to conquer by the same Word again. Go on thou mighty man in this thy might, for the Lord of Hosts is with thee, go on conquering and to conquer, go and prosper. Keep on your Armour, lay not aside your Sword nor your Shield, for perhaps the De∣vil will rally his scattered forces and fall on again. Or he is it may be preparing other
kind of temptations for you, viz. sufferings and death as he did for Christ; but you (as he) shall rise again and live for ever, and be where Satan hath had no place for some thousands of years, nor never shall any more, viz. in Heaven; and by not loving your lives to the death, you conquer the Devil again, as Christ also did, Rev. 12.11. Heb. 2.14, 15. And thus I have evinced that the Young men have overcome the wicked one and shall for ever. I now pass on to the other things which relate to this victo∣ry, and then shall the Young men triumph.