chap ).Se&.2o. Study the Gofpel. and the way of the Gofpel. Where !hall wefee an humble C~;il1 but in the Gofpcl ? Where fhml we fee the rich a?d free grace of God m Chrill:, but in the Gofpel? \Nhcre !hall we get faith in Chn,[, but m the preachmg of the Gofpel, and in the ftudying of the Gofpel? Surely th1s grace of Seif-denyal m jpmmtd things growes onely ili the garden of the Gofpel ; [ denx not but there 1S a common, fidd·Hulllility, or Self-dcnyal, as I may fo fpeak; fuch a Se!f-denytl I mean, as growes among the Heathen,and '\Jnong moral men l but betWIXt that and th1s we nl'ay obfcrve thefe differences. , 1 • Take a moral, civil mart, and though he may fceme to be humble"and ro deny himfelf yet he is proud of his humility. A Philofophcr coming into Plato's houfe .j and fec'ing it very neat, I trample upon Plato's pride, faid he.. JJm (faid Pl: to) not wtth– out ywr ownpride. Now a bel1cver doth not onely deny hanfelf, but he IS fcnfiblc of his own pride m that very thmg wherem he 1s humble. . . . . . 2 . Take a moral, civil man, and though he n'!ay feem to deny lumfelf, yet 11 IS but m this or that particular thing; but a Believer denyes hinfe!f tn every thing. I cu~mt a// Phi/. 3· a'. things but dung and droffe (fayes the Apoftle) for 'Jefus Clmff. . .. 3 . Take a mora:!, civil man, and though he may feem to d~n_y hwfe!f,yct 11 IS but the artifice of his reafon and refolution; tf 1goe on in fuch andjuch a wny (fayes hr) I am 11 ndone. Hence he dcnycs this pleafure, and that company. But now a Believer denyes hill{e~finfperiuu.t things by the beholding of Jcfus Chrifi. . . +· Take a moral, civil man, and though he may fecm to deny himfe!f, yet there is no myfieric in it; but there is ever a great my11:eric of grace in a Believersfelf-denyaJ. As thus, he ever cryes, What jhall I doe to befave.d? and yet he profelfeth that he doth not cxpe{t to be faved by hiJ doing, here's a n:yll:erie, Again , he counts himfelf /ejfe than the leaft ofall Gods mercw, and yet he thmks God hath done mor~r. for h1m than if he hld given him all the wo,rld; here's a my11:erie. Again,hc looks upon himfelf as the greaeejl jmner, and thinks of every one better than himfclf, and yet when he looks upon adrunkard, or a fwearer orthe like, he profelfcth that he would not chauge hi:. copdition with fuch a man for all the world; what a myftcric is this ! 1 5. Takea moral, civil man, and though he may fecm to deny hi,fe!f in temporal things, whi<hdevils themfclves may do, yet he cannot, as the Believer, deny himfelf irr fpiritual things. One makes mention ofa certam godly m'an that was fore ~emptcd by Satan in his time, the godly was much in duty, to whom Satan f::id, Why raksff rho" this pains? thou doftwatch, andfaft, and pray mtd abftaineft from thejinnes ofthe times; but 0 man; what doft thOII more than I do ? Art thou no drunk._ard, no ad~tlterer, fayes Satan? no more am I. Dojl tiJOit lVIItch, and faft, fayes Satan ( I never jleep, I never ate, nor drank_; what doft thou more than I ? lwill tell thee, faid the godly man, I pr~<y, I ferve the Lord, I walk_humbly, I deny my (elf; ."fay then, fayes Satan, thougoeft beyond me,for I am proJtd, and I exalt my fe!f, and thmforehereinth~lsgoeft beyond me. And thus we may difference betwixt true Self-denyal and.falfe. 6. Reft not on any thing below Jcfus Chri/1:. Neither grace, nor duties, nor holin~lfe are to .b~ trull:ed upon. We muft hold them fafl: in point of praCtice and obed1ence, but 11 1S our finne and danger to hold them fait in relyall.cc and confidence. I dcfire to be rightly underllood in this truth. Some, becaufe they need not to rely on duties, they let go their duties, they let prayer, and repentance, and forrow for finne go; they fay it is no matter for d~t!ies,they need not to tro11ble themfelves, Chrift hath done 1111. Th1s ~s to wrn th_e graceofGod tnto wamonneffe : We muftlet go both our graces and dul!cs mpomt ofJUfti~Catwn,but hold them we mufl: as 6ur livcs in the tenou rand converfation of our lives; Prayer, hearing, falling, repenting mu't not dye whilell we hve; do them we mull, but ~lory in them we muft not: we mufl: not reft in any thing whatfoevcr below Jefus Chnft. I fhallm11:ance in thefc particulars. I· We mull: not rcfl: upon our own preparations for dt<ties. It is a commendable thmg to J?repa~c our hearts ; we mull pray that we may pray ; we mufl: have fecret communwn With our God, before we come to fcck communion with him in a Sermon-– but we muft not rcft upon our own preparation when we have prepared; if we advanc~ that mt? the throne of Jcfus Chri£1:, and re£1: upon that when we fhould only re£1: upon h1m, 1t 1s the way to make all our preparations mifcarry. . 2 . We mufr npt re([ ~ponour enlargements in duties, It may be we have a fpring– tlde of affill:an:e comes m; a Minifter preaches with great prcfence of the Spirit of God, ~nd a Satnt prayes (as we find it) in the Holy G/Joif; (i.) he finc;ls the hoiy Spirit J•d, ~o. X Qt
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