Required reading
A treatise on Satan's temptations by Richard Gilpin (Available from Amazon or free here) - Read Chapter 5 of Part 3.
My summary
This week Gilpin discusses Christ's fasting at his temptation: 'And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.' (Mat 4:2)
He gives the following doctrines:
(i) that when God leads forth his children to such services as shall unavoidably deprive them of the ordinary means of help or supply, there God is engaged to give extraordinary support and his people may expect it accordingly;
(ii) that Satan doth usually tempt in an invisible way and manner;
(iii) that Satan is sometime incessant in temptations and sets upon as with continued importunities;
(iv) that it is Satan's way to second outward distresses and afflictions with inward temptations.
What grabbed me
I liked this point about why God allows such temptations: 'These are also upon a special design on God's part, either to find us work and to keep us doing, or to prevent sin and miscarriage ; to keep down our pride, lest we should be ' exalted above measure,' [2 Cor. xii. 7 ;] to awaken us from slothfulness and security, lest we should 'settle upon our lees,' [Jer. xlviii. 11 ;] or to be an occasion of his grace, and an evidence of his power in our preservation, satisfying us and others, that in the greatest shocks of our spiritual battle his ' grace is sufficient for us,' [2 Cor. xii. 9.] Upon these, and such like designs as these, doth the most wise God permit it. '
Temptation can drive us to labour even more for the Lord.
Next week's reading
Read Chapter 6 and 7 of Part 3.
Now it's your turn
Please post your own notes and thoughts in the comments section below.
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