FIRST WEEK OF LENT.
SUNDAY.
Christ your Captain.
" Deliver me from my enemies, O my God! and defend me from those who rise up against me." (Ps. lviii. 2.)
I. Consider the words of holy Job, " the life of man upon earth is a warfare." (Job vii. i.) We have continually to fight against three most stubborn enemies, which are ever plotting our destruction. These are the devil, the world, and the flesh. Christ, as we read in the gospel of this day, condescended to be tempted by the devil, in order to show us by His own example, as our leader and commander, how we ought to conquer him. Hence David cries out, " Blessed be the Lord my God, who teacheth my hands to fight, and my fingers to war." (Ps. cxliii. i.)
II. It is of infinite importance that we should not be overcome in this warfare, for we are fighting for eternity. Examine yourself most strictly, and discover in what points you are weak and defective, and on what occasions you are most frequently wounded. Rely on the defence and conduct of your captain, who is to visit your soul to-day and " gird you with strength unto battle" (Ps. xvii. 40); although "armies in camp stand together against you, your heart need not fear." (Ps. xxvi. 3.)
III. Soldiers are accustomed to take the military oath; so ought you to be sworn to your captain. This duty you have once performed in baptism by renouncing the devil and all his works and pomps. But how often have
