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God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son, from me."

I behold Job.

Satan answered the Lord and said: "Doth Job fear God for nought, put forth thine hand and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face." And he did So. The Sabeans slew his oxen, the fire fell upon his sheep, his sheep, the Chaldeans fell upon his camels, the house fell upon his young men ; yet what did Job? Satan stood by, and whispered in his ear: "Curse the Lord, yea even curse the Lord who has sent thee this misery;" but patient Job despised the tempter, he fell down, and worshipped, saying: "naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither. The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord." And even this was not all, Satan said unto the Lord: "Put forth thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face." So Satan went forth from the presence of the Lord, and smote Job with sore boils, and he took him a potsherd to scrape himself withal, and he sat down among the ashes. And his wife said unto him, dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God and die."

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O let me dwell upon the severity of this temptation, his substance gone, his oxen, his sheep, his children, and now a sore disease, and last of all his wife, yea even the wife of his bosom, even she becomes a vehicle of Satan's power;-even she, the wife of his bosom ; -and she counsels him to curse God. But patient Job triumphs, he holdeth fast his integrity, Satan is repelled; crest fallen and vanquished he finds that there is a power to withstand him. And Job said: "What! shall we receive good at the hand of God, and not receive evil?"a

But above all, I behold my great Redeemer. "Jesus was led up of the Spirit to be tempted of the devil." Thrice the tempter assailed him, but thrice was he beaten back. First, the temptation of the senses: "Command that these stones be made bread." Again, the temptation of vain glory: "If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down." Again the temptation of worldly power: "All this will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me." But it moved not the holy Jesus. He was tempted like as we are; he had like passions, like feelings; here were allurements to him, which presented all the aspect of present delight. But he failed not. O dwell upon that wonderful scene, dwell upon

a Job. ii. 10.

b Matt. iv. 1.

the Lord in this example which he furnishes to thee, even thee, in the daily solicitations which Satan urges, so skilfully, so fatallyand remember, O my soul, that it was the word of God that saved him: "It is written," "it is written," "it is written."a And in this he swerved not, in this he beat thee down, in this he saw through thy devices, O thou enemy of souls.

But some did not prove victorious, some did fail in the hour of trial, even as I have done. Well, but there was a way of restoration. They were not finally destroyed.

David failed: But God sent the prophet Nathan to him. He was asleep and blind in his sin until the prophet spake; but when once awakened, once seeing the light again. He said unto Nathan: "I have sinned against. the Lord," and then,-O gracious mercy, so prompt, so ready for sinful man! Nathan said unto David: "The Lord also hath put away thy sin, thou shalt not die."

Peter failed: He was bound of Satan: "The Lord said, Simon, Simon, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat; but I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail not, and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren." It was foreseen that he should fail, but the Lord was

Matt. iv. 4, 7, 10.

b 2 Sam. xii. 13.

Luke xxii. 31.

praying for him.

Satan was sifting him as wheat, but the Lord was asking for his restoration at that very moment. And his faith, though it failed, did not fail entirely ; and no sooner, in the infatuation of that singular denial, thrice repeated in the face of warning, in the very presence of the Lord, no sooner was it done, than the mist which clouded his vision dispersed, and "He wept bitterly."

So let me weep bitterly, so let the Lord pray also for me, intercede also for me, when Satan sifts me as wheat. O shall I not have comfort in this; "shall I say when I am tempted, I am tempted of God." Nay, but when I know the mercy, the love, and the power of God, I shall feel sure that "no temptation can take me, but such as is common to man, and that God is faithful, and will not suffer me to be tempted above that I am able, but will with the temptation also make a way to escape that I may be able to bear it."

Then gird thyself and " fight the good fight of faith:"a "Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men."e "Come out from among them, and be ye separate saith the Lord, and touch not the

unclean thing."

Matt. xxvi. 75.

Lord, and

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d 1 Tim. vi. 12

e

Prov. iv. 14.

12 Cor. vi. 17.

am utterly powerless, if I succeed, it is "not I but the grace of God that is with me." I dare not so much as lift up my eyes to the allurements of my enemy; but the Spirit is ever ready to them that ask, and I will ask. It is "Faith that is the victory which shall overcome the world," and therefore I will go to Jesus Christ my Saviour; and when I go to him, he tells me "watch and pray, lest ye enter into temptation." I will therefore "watch and pray.

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For the past, though many are my falls, yet now "I weep bitterly."

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For the future, though I know that "I wrestle not against flesh and blood, but blood, against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places;" yet I will " put on the whole armour of God, that I may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

And I will stand, having my loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness.

And my feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.

Above all, I will take the

wherewith I shall be able to fiery darts of the wicked.

shield of faith

quench all the

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