11. He is very desirous of making the ambassadors of Christ his prisoners, and to hire them to speak against their Master's cause: that in Christ's name they may deceive the silly flock, "speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them," Acts xx. 30. Sometimes by pretence of his authority and commission; making poor people believe, that not to hear them, and obey them in their errors, is to be disobedient rejecters of Christ: (and thus the Romish party carry it.) Sometimes by their parts and plausible, persuasive speeches: and sometimes by their fervency, frightening people into error. And by these two ways most heretics prevail. None so successfully serveth Satan, as a false or bribed minister of Christ. 12. He is exceeding desirous to make parents themselves his instruments for their children's sin and ruin; and, alas, how commonly doth he succeed! He knoweth that parents have them under their hands in the most ductile, malleable age; and that they have a concurrence of almost all advantages: they have the purse and portion of their children in their power; they have the interest of love, and reverence, and estimation; they are still with them, and can be often in their solicitings; they have the rod, and can compel them. Many thousands are in hell, through the means of their own parents: such cruel monsters will they be to the souls of any others, that are first so to their own. If the devil can get the parents to be cursers, swearers, gamesters, drunkards, worldlings, proud, deriders or railers at a holy life, what a snare is here for the poor children! V. In the method of Satan, the next thing is to show you how he labours to keep off all the forces of Christ, which should resist him and destroy his work, and to frustrate their endeavours, and fortify himself. And among many others, these means are notable: 1. He would do what he can to weaken even natural reason, that men may be blockish and incapable of good. And it is lamentable to observe how hard it is to make some people either understand or regard. And a beastly kind of education doth much to this: and so doth custom in sensual courses; even turn men into brutes. 2. He doth what he can to hinder parents and masters from doing their part, in the instructing and admonishing of children and servants, and dealing wisely and zealously with them for their salvation: either he will keep parents and masters ignorant and unable, or he will make them wicked and unwilling, and perhaps engage them to oppose their children in all that is good; or he will make them like Eli, remiss and negligent, indifferent, formal, cold, and dull; and so keep them from saving their children's or servants' souls.