Gaining the victory

~ Thoughts from The Bruised Reed by Richard Sibbes
14. Means to Make Grace Victorious
15. Christ’s Public Triumph

“When judgment is fortified, evil finds no entrance.”

“Satan knows that nothing can prevail against Christ, or those that rely upon his power. Therefore his study is how to keep us in ourselves, and in the creature.”

When you’re facing battles and must choose sides, ask yourself:

• Does this help or hinder my main purpose?
• Does this make me more spiritual or less?
• Does this bring me nearer to God or further away from him?
• In the end, will this bring more peace or sorrow?
• Will this commend me more to God or less?

Keep your judgment clear. Let head and heart work together.

“…for what the heart likes best, the mind studies most. Those that can bring their hearts to delight in Christ know most of his ways.”

“…A fire in the heart overcomes all fires without.”

Let wisdom teach you where your weaknesses lie.

“Those who wish to hinder the generation of noisome creatures will hinder the conception first, by keeping male and female apart.”

Use every means to keep “fresh thoughts and affections stirred up and preserved.” Draw near to Christ (James 4:8); make wise use of the opportunities he gives you to do so. 

Exercise grace. “It is not sleepy habits, but grace in exercise, that preserves us.”

In all this, make your resolutions in Christ’s strength, not your own. For it is in the power of his might that you both fight and prevail (Ephesians 6:10).

“Dependent spirits are the wisest and the ablest. Nothing is stronger than humility, which goes out of itself, or weaker than pride, which rests on its own foundation. Frustra nititur qui non innititur (He strives in vain who is not dependent).”

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NEXT WEEK (FINAL CHAPTER):
16. Through Conflict to Victory 

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