SERMON XIII.

Chrift tempted to Mistrust in God.

When Jefus had fafted forty Days, and forty
Nights, he was afterwards an hungred.
And when the Tempter came to him, he said,
If thou be the Son of GOD, command that
thefe Stones be made Bread.

But he answered, and faid, It is written,
Man fhall not live by Bread alone, but by
every Word that proceedeth out of the
Mouth of GOD.

W riff, afked the People, what it was

HEN Chrift, fpeaking of the Bap-S ER M.

which they went out into the Wilderness to fee,
Luke vii. 24-26. he plainly fupposed that
there was something very great and more than
ufual in John; or elfe they would not have
gone into the Wilderness on Purpose to fee
him. The Scene therefore in the Text (on
which I am at prefent engaged) being laid in
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the

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SER M. the Wilderness; we may raise our Expectati

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ons to see something remarkable, and well
worthy of our Attention; not a Reed only
fhaken with the Wind, nor a Man clothed in
Soft Raiment; but an immoveable Rock, a
Man clothed with Power and Strength; a
Prophet greater much than He, who was
much the greatest of any before him.
We
are here called to behold not Michael the
Arch-Angel contending with the Devil for
the Body of Mofes; but a Battle fought for our
Şakes and on our Behalf, the true Michael
contending again with the fame Arch-Fiend
for the Body of his Church, for Mofes, and all
Men, to fave their Bodies, and Souls both.
We are here to fee the Wisdom of the new
Serpent, (that Serpent by whom, being lifted
up, we are healed and live, Numb. xxi. 8, 9.)
matching the Craftiness and Subtlety of the
old one, Rev. xii.
Rev. xii. 9. lurking to bite and de-
ftroy in the Wilderness. We are to see the
Lion of the Tribe of Judah, Rev. v. 5. coping
with that fierce and roring Lion which walks
about feeking whom he may devour, 1 Pet. v.
8. In fhort we are to see the Saviour of Men,
the Son of GOD, conquering the Devil, the
Adverfary both of GOD and Man: A Com-
bat worthy the closest Obfervation through

all

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all the Particulars: Of which the Time, the SER M. Place, the Guide, and the Preparation have already been spoke to: The Engagement itfelf is what we are now to confider, where we are chiefly to obferve the Devil's Art and Stratagem in the Affault, and the Arms made Ufe of by Jefus to repel him. But as it was a furious Attack which our Saviour stood; as the Devil would have worked firft upon one Paffion and then another; and fo was forced to have Recourfe to different Arguments, or rather Fallacies, to apply; to give his Temptations a proper and due Confideration, it is necessary we should confider them distinctly. I shall therefore,

I. FIRST lay before you the Nature and Subtlety of the Devil's Temptation, with the Strength and Force of our Saviour's Reply.

II. SECONDLY, I fhall make a practical Obfervation or two upon the real Intent and Defign of the Temptation, and fo conclude.

I. FIRST, I shall lay before you the Nature and Subtlety of the Devil's Temptation, with the Strength and Force of our Saviour's Reply. And here I must begin with that Infirmity of Chrift, to which his Humanity (though

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SERM. (though united with his Divinity) made him
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foon as he had discovered it, laid hold of as
a proper Opportunity to begin his Affault.
For fo we read, that when Jefus had fafted
forty Days and forty Nights, he was afterwards
an hungred. And then the Tempter made his
Approach. The Devil's Eye was not off our
Bleffed Lord, during any of the Time of his
Sequeftration and Retirement. No: St. Mark
and St. Luke both affure us, that he was all
the forty Days tempted of the Devil, Mark
i. 13.
Luke iv. 2. But now, because he
fees him in one Part more open to his At-
tempts, he applies himself more closely, and
falls upon him there with his utmoft Violence
and Art.

In order to this, fince he finds him hungry, and perhaps faint and languishing for Want of some necessary Sustenance to fupport him; he first begins to allure him. with Food, which he might reasonably suppose was more defirable to him then, than Glory or Wealth. The Tempter therefore came to him and faid, If thou be the Son of GOD, command that thefe Stones be made Bread. Where by the Way it is worth our While to obferve the Kindness of the Devil's Offer. The hungry Jefus wants Bread, and

the

IfSER M.
ERM.

the indulgent Satan fhews him a Stone. a Son afk Bread of any of you that is a Father, will be give him a Stone? Luke xi. 11. The very Propofal, (if Chrift had not known him before) was enough to have difcovered whence he came. And yet the Temptation, confidering the present Circumstances of our Lord, and the Barrennefs of the Place, was well laid and artfully applied. It feems to be fetched from that miraculous Provifion, which GOD always had made for his former Servants, whenever any of them had been driven to the fame Distress; and consequently it appears to be urged with a Defign`to raise in Jefus a Diffidence and Diftruft of God's Care over him; to put him upon renouncing any further Dependance upon his Provifion; and to make Ufe of that Power which he had already received, to provide for himself., The Words of the Devil (if taken in this View) may be paraphrased thus: "Son of God, "if fo thou art; (and sure a Voice which "pronounced thee fo from Heaven may be

believed) what is it that induces thee in "this defolate Place, to abide fo patiently "in this Hunger and Distress, and to seem "as helplefs as if thou wert but meer Man? "Thou knoweft that here thou canst expect 68 na

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