Scripture-Bullets

JM · #1 8th July 2011, 04:40 PM

Scripture-Bullets

One of the best purchases I’ve ever made was this book: “The Christian in Complete Armour.”

I pick away at it, a paragraph here and there and slowly, ever so slowly I’m working my way through. A few times a week I seek the words of this wise saint for instruction and will continue to do so.

I’ve been reading Gill’s “Practical Theology” during my lunch hours and it seems to wind in and out with my portions of Complete Armour, each man’s work complementing the other. Earlier in the week, before bed, I found the following:

Gurnall, “Now try whether your weapons be mighty or weak; what can you do or suffer more for God than an hypocrite that is clad in fleshly armour? I will tell you what the world saith, and if you be Christians, clear yourselves, and wipe off that dirt which they throw upon your glittering armour. They say, These professors indeed have God more in their talk than we; but when they come down into their shops, re[bless and do not curse]lations and worldly employment, then the best of them all is but like one of us. They can throw the tables of God’s commandments out of their hands as well as we; [can] come from a sermon, and be as covetous and gripping, as peevish and passionate, as the worst. They show as little love to Christ as others, when it is matter of cost, as to relieve a poor saint or maintain the gospel; you may get more from a stranger, an enemy, than from a professing brother. O Christians, either vindicate the name of Christ, whose ensign you seem to march after, or throw away your seeming armour, by which you have drawn the eyes of the world upon you. If you will not, Christ himself will cashier you, and that with shame enough ere long. Never call that the armour of God which defends thee not against the power of Satan.
Take, therefore, the several pieces of your armour and try them, as the soldier before he fights will set his helmet or head-piece as a mark, at which he lets fly a brace of bullets, and as he finds them so will wear them or leave them. But be sure thou shootest scripture-bullets. Thou boastest of a breastplate of righteousness. Ask thy soul, Didst thou ever in thy life perform a duty to please God, and not to accommodate thyself? Thou hast prayed often against thy sin, a great noise of the pieces have been heard coming from thee by others, as if there were some hot fight between thee and thy corruption, but canst thou indeed show one sin thou hast slain by all thy praying? Joseph was alive, though his coat was brought bloody to Jacob; and so may thy sin be, for all thy mortified look in duty, and outcry thou makest against them. If thou wouldst thus try every piece, thy credulous heart would not so easily be cheated with Satan’s false ware.”

Behe's Boy · #2 9th July 2011, 10:53 AM

"The Christian in Complete Armor" is one of my favorites as well. Probably in my top five favorite books of all time.