William Gurnall

Stand manfully… make good your ground against the enemy, by a valiant receiving of his charge and repelling his force… Satan in his temptations is stoutly to be resisted.
Stand firm with the belt of truth buckled around your waist…Some by truth mean truth of doctrine; others will have it truth of heart, sincerity… Both are required to make the belt complete… sincerity to propound a right end, and knowledge of the Word of truth to direct us in the right way to that end.
—-William Gurnall “Christian in Complete Armour”

The fourth piece in the Christian’s panoply… is the shield of faith. Justifying faith. A grace that makes  him the devils match… not a naked assent to the truths of the gospel [but] an act of the soul whereby it rests on Christ crucified for pardon and life, and that upon the warrant of [God's] promise.
Faith is… a shield intended for the defense of the whole body… Sometimes temptation is levelled at the head… against this truth and that, to make the Christian call them into question… blot out the Deity of Christ, with other mysterious truths of the Gospel… Now faith comes between the Christian and this arrow. It comes into the relief of the Christian’s weak understanding.
—William Gurnall “Christian in complete Armour.”

Eph. 6:14

This describes the Christian’s posture in his fight against Satan.  It is a military expression, a word of command that a captain would use to his soldier.  A coward does not stand, but Christ directs us to stand our ground to stoutly repel the enemy.  Uriah stood in the face of death.  He did not dispute with his General; obey he must, though he lost his life.  To resist some temptations may cost us dear.  The Roman captain said it was necessary to sail, not to live.  The soldier carries his prince’s honour with him into the field.  How unworthy it is to expose the name of God to reproach to avoid the little scorn, temporal loss, or trouble!  Truly, God is not careless with the blood of his servants, yet sometimes he tries their loyalty in hard service and sharp temptations, that he may from their faithfulness and holy stoutness in their suffering for him triumph over Satan.  God furnishes armour for us to stand.  Stand, and the day is ours; flee, and all is lost.  There is no armour for the back in God’s armoury.  Stand, and the bullets fall; flee, and they enter your heart.  He that stands believing, comes off with his life.  He that recoils and runs from his colours, God will have no pleasure in him.  There is comfort in striving against sin and Satan, though through blood.  Would you not rather die in the field for your Prince, than by the axe for cowardice or trechery?  Satan is a cowardly enemy.  He is discouraged when he finds the soul awake to oppose him.  He fears and trembles at your faith.  Pray for help against him, and vigorously reject the motions he makes, and he will run (James 4:7).  He cannot hurt us without our consent.  When we resist, his heart fails and he leaves.  If we only weakly resist, he continues his assault.  The only way to be rid of him is to shut the door upon him and deny all discourse with him.
William Gurnall, The Christian in Complete Armour, I:275-278

The Christian’s state in this life is one of combat… He needs his sword as much as his trowel.. The Christian is assailed on every side by his enemy. How can it be otherwise? When the seeds of war are laid deep in the natures of both, and can never be rooted up till the devil cease to be a devil, sin to be sin, and saint to be a saint?… Sin will lust against grace, and grace draw upon sin whenever they meet.>–William Gurnall “Christian in complete Armour”

The righteousness wrought by Christ in the believer… is a supernatural principle of a new life implanted in the heart of every child of God by the powerful operation of the Holy Spirit whereby they endeavour to approve themselves to God and man, in performing  what the word of God requires to be performed to both… Who but the Spirit of God can make a creature like God, by making him a partaker of the divine nature.
—William Gurnall “The Christian in Complete Armour.”

The Christian’s strength lies in the Lord, not in himself…He is the strength of all his saints in their war against sin and Satan. Does the Christian’s strength lie in God, not himself? This may forever keep the Christian humble…Walk humbly therefore before your God.
—William Gurnall

The sixth and last piece in the Christian’s panoply: the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God…By the edge of this, his enemies fall and all his great exploits are done …A it defends the soldier, so it offends his enemy. By it he kills and mortifies his lusts within, and this makes his victory complete.
—William Gurnall “The Christian in Complete Armour

Sincerity has a preserving strength to keep the soul from the defilements of sin. When temptation comes ….a false heart is put to the run, it cannot possibly stand …Sincerity keeps the soul from the power of temptation…On the contrary, hypocrisy weakens and unsettles the heart.
—William Gurnall “Christian in Complete Armour”

The Christian must be in complete armour, in regard to the several pieces and weapons that make up the whole armour of God. Indeed there is a concatenation of graces—they hang together like links in a chain, stones in an arch, members in the body…The Christian’s armour is made to be worn…till we have done our warfare and finished our course.
—William Gurnall, “Christian in Complete Armour.”

The sweet bait of religion has drawn many to nibble at it, who are offended with the hard service to which it calls. It requires another spirit than the world can give or receive to follow Christ fully…
Say not that you have royal blood running in your veins and are begotten of God, except you can prove your pedigree by this heroic-spirit, to dare to be holy in spite of men and devils.
How uncomely a sight it is to see a bold sinner and a fearful saint, one resolved to be wicked, and a Christian wavering in his holy course…Take heart therefore, you saints, and be strong; your cause is good…God has appointed his Son…the Captain of our salvation.
–William Gurnall “Christian in Complete Armour.”

Furnish yourselves with the armour of God, and join prayer to all these graces for your defence against your spiritual enemies …Prayer is a necessary duty to be performed by the Christian…in all his undertakings, enjoyments, and temptations.
—William Gurnall

Hope is a supernatural grace of God, whereby the believer, through Christ, expects and waits for all those good things of the promise, which at present he has not fully or partly received.
True hope is a jewel that none wears but Christ’s bride…Hope’s object is all that the promise holds forth..the hope of glory, the hope of eternal life, the hope of salvation…It brings the Christian and heaven together, as if he were there already.
–William Gurnall, “The Christian in Complete Armour.”

continue

To pray in faith is to ask of God, in the name of Christ, what he has promised, relying on his power and truth for performance… This reliance of the soul…fastens on God like the anchor’s double hook. It takes hold of the power of God…and the faithfulness of God to perform the promise.
–William Gurnall, “Christian in Complete Armour”

continue

All Christ’s soldiers should have on the breastplate of righteousness ..Scripture speaks of a… perfect, personal and perpetual obedience… Not the holiest saint that ever lived can stand righteous before the bar [of God's justice]…The second righteousness which the Scripture speaks of is an evangelical righteousness— a righteousness imputed or imparted. The imputed righteousness is that which is wrought by Christ for the believer; the imparted, that which is wrought by Christ in the believer [or] the righteousness of our justification [and] the righteousness of our sanctification.
—William Gurnall “The Christian in Complete Armour.”

continue

The gospel presents us with the articles of peace which God graciously offers to treat and conclude an inviolable peace upon, with rebellious man…The gospel is but God’s heart in print…
The guilty creature is surrounded on every side as with a deluge of wrath—no hope nor help to be heard of–till the gospel, like the dove, brings the olive branch of peace… The tide is turned, and that flood of wrath which was poured on man for his sin is now fallen into another channel, even upon Christ, who was “made a curse for us.” “Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” We are entirely beholden to the gospel for the discovery of this secret.
—William Gurnall, “The Christian in Complete Armour.”

continue

Why are righteousness and holiness compared to the breastplate?
The breastplate preserves the principal part of the body …where a shot or stab is more deadly than in other parts that are remote from the fountain of life…Thus righteousness and holiness preserve the principal part of a Christian…his soul and conscience.
The breastplate, by defending this principal part, emboldens the soldier and makes him fearless of danger …Righteousness by defending the conscience, fills the creature with courage in the face of death, whereas guilt—which is the nakedness of the soul—puts the stoutest sinner into a shaking fit of fear.
—William Gurnall “Christian in Complete Armour.”

continue

How this [conflict] should make the Christian long to be gone home, where there is none of this stir and scuffle …Every hour seems not a day, and every day a year, till death sounds your joyful retreat, and calls you off the field… to come to court, where not swords but palms are seen in the saint’s hands; not drums but harps; and ravishing music is heard of triumphant victors caroling the praises of God and the Lamb, through whom they have overcome yourselves with these things …There is a place of rest remaining for the people of God.
–William  Gurnall,

continue

Matthew 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

It was the speech of a holy man–after God had made this precious text the messenger to open his dungeon of spiritual distress, and bring him the the light of inward joy–that he had better be without meat, drink, light, air, earth, life and all, than without this one comfortable Scripture. ‘If one single promise’ as Gurnall sweetly remarks in giving this story– ‘like an ear of corn rubbed in the hand of faith, and applied by the spirit of Christ–can afford such a full satisfying meal of joy to the hunger-bitten, pining soul; oh, what a price can we set upon the whole field of Scripture, which stands so thick with promises every way as cordial as this!’ Gurnal on Eph vi. 17

I have covenanted with my Lord ,that he should not send me visions, or dreams, or even angels. I am content with this one gift of the Scriptures, which abundantly teaches and supplies all that is necessary both for this life and that which is to come.
The above quotations are cited by Charles Bridges in his exposition on Psalm 119. pp. 235
continue

Keep on the breastplate of righteousness. Exhibit the power of a holy and righteous life. First, in regard to God, whose great design is to have his people “a holy people.” Second, with reference to Satan, whose design is as much against the saints’ holiness as God is for it. Third, with respect to holiness itself, the incomparable excellency of which commands us to pursue it.
He who means to be a Christian indeed must endeavour to maintain the power of holiness and righteousness in his life and conversation… He is a holy righteous man that has a work of grace and holiness in his heart.
—William Gurnall, “The Christian in Complete Armour.”

continue

Heaven is not won with good words and a fair profession… The doing Christian is the man that shall stand, when the empty boasters of faith shall fall. The great talkers of religion are oft the least doers. His religion is in vain whose profession brings not letters testimonial of a holy life. Sacrifice without obedience is sacrilege.
–William Gurnall, “Christian in complete Armour”

continue

None will have such a sad parting from Christ, as those who went half–way with Him and then left Him.
—William Gurnall

continue

Sincerity has a preserving strength to keep the soul from the defilements of sin. When temptation comes …a false heart is put on the run, it cannot possibly stand… Sincerity keeps the soul from the power of temptation… On the Contrary, hypocrisy unsettles the heart.
–William Gurnall–Christian in Complete Armour

continue

The gospel presents us with the articles of peace which God graciously offers to treat and conclude an inviolable peace upon, rebellious man… The gospel is but God’s heart in print…
The guilty creature is surrounded on every side as with a deluge of wrath—no hope nor help to be heard of—till the gospel, like the dove, brings the olive branch of peace… The tide is turned, and that flood of wrath which was poured on man for his sin is now fallen into another channel, even upon Christ, who was “made a curse for us.” “Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” We are entirely beholden to the gospel for the discovery of this secret.
—William Gurnall, “Christian in complete Armour”

continue

God sets the devil to catch himself.
—William Gurnall

continue

Furnish yourselves with the armour of God, and join prayer to all these graces for your defense against your spiritual enemies…Prayer is a necessary duty to be performed by the Christian…in all his undertakings, enjoyments and temptations.
–William Gurnall

continue

The scripture…has a heart-searching power; whereby it ransacks and rifles the conscience of men. It exercises a power on the conscience to convince and terrify it. It has a power to comfort and raise a dejected spirit. It has the power of conversion which none but  God can effect.
–William Gurnall

continue

Never forget this: he that savoureth any one sin, though he forgoeth many, doth but as Benhadad–recover of one disease and die of another.
—Thomas Brooks
continue

Now Satan’s design against prayer are of three kinds. First, if he can, he will keep you from prayer. Second, he will strive to interrupt you in prayer. Third, if that plot fails, he will labour to hinder the success and return of your prayers.
—William Gurnall

continue

The Christian must stand fixed to his principles [showing] his holy constancy in the truth… This persevering is a hard word! This taking up the cross daily, this praying always, this watching night and day…waiting on God, and walking with God.
—William Gurnall

continue

Believers are married to the King of Heaven, and all that is in God is theirs. A philosopher comforted himself with this, that though he had no music or vine trees, yet he had the household gods with him. So we, though we have not the vine or fig tree, yet if God be ours and we are his, this creates joy in the most impoverished condition. And that which may raise the comfort of the godly higher, and cause a jubilation of spirit, is that  shortly God will  own his people before all the world, and say, “These are mine.” At present the elect are not known: ‘It doth not yet appear what we shall be’ (1 John 3:2). The saints are like kings in disguise; but how will their hearts leap for joy when God shall pronounce that word, “These are mine; the lot of free grace is fallen upon them; these shall lie forever in the bosom of my love!”
—Thomas Watson

continue