Com. r, Of Humility andPride, (c. Chap.0: ì_ t the Kingdom, and living in his Palace, fell in a fhort time into two grievous fns, Adultery and Murder. Andtherefore St. Gregory faith, Perit mete quadacgsiritúrr Lib 8. Mora.. f non humilitate cuftodiatur, . all the goodnefs a man gets is loft again, if it benot kept with Humility. Andour Saviour Chrift well knowing this, after he had taught to pray for remitlion of fins, thenext petition headds is, not tobe led into tempra.. tion ; (hewing thereby, that in the greateft peace and fafety lies ìnoft danger: and therefore when our fins are forgiven, we muff be molt careful not to fall into fin again. Much more might havebeen faid concerning this vertue of Humility, but this may fuf ice to have been fpoken, becaufeof the affinity between rhefe two kinds of Humility, and the two kinds of fear formerly handled. And now we come to that which is forbidden, the négative part. AsHumility iscommanded, foPride the oppofite to it is forbidden. Pride and Humility are thus confidered ; let the offencebe what it will which a man commits, yet Humility overweigheth it, and obtain eth pardon for it. On theother fide; let a mando never many fo good works,and yet Pride wcigheth them down, and claoak- eth them, and maketh themall of no value. It is one and the chiefeft of the four impediments toGods fervice, three ofwhich are formerly fpoken of. a. Ignorance. z. Infidelity. 3. Security. 4. Pride. And this laft taketh deeper Root than all the other. It is the higheft Mountain that ftood in Chrift'sway, and except johnBabitfó 1'1'3. 5° take the pains to remove it, he can never come to us. This Viceby the Fathers is called, Morbua Satsnicus, the Devils difeafe, from its firft original, as Morbua Gallicies is fo called from the perfons from whom firft it fprang. It is highly defcended, and taketh hold of them that are highly born ; for it was Grit born in Heaven. Erofimilk altiPmo, I will be like the molt High. It was Lucifers vaunt, hewould have part of Gods Glory, and be above his degree Efa. x4.12.14. and that made him fall. The Devil hath knowledgeand fear, but wants Humility.: And Adam took this infeEtion front Satan, and we as hisHeirs. The Devil, as he faid of himfelf, Ero, I willbe ; fohe told Eve, Erina f:cut Dii, ye (hall be as Gads. Gen. 3.5; Ile wouldnot fuller them to be content with that honourable eftate, in which God had placed them, but perfwaded them ambitioufly to feek an higher. The Apoftles came joyful and proud in a bragging mannerto Ghent, and told him that the DevilsLuke ro, 17. were fubjed to them, they gavenot Glory toGod. But that whichChrift faid to themmay be an inftruEtion to us ; Rejoyce not thatthey are fubjeCa to you, &c. 20. For I faw Sathan falling fromHeaven like lightning, &c. Pride confrfteth etpecially in two things. Either t. a nobis, or a. pro nobis: to our felves, or for our felves, our ownGlory. Andboth thefeare comprehended in the fpeech of Nebuchadnezzar, Is not this great Babylon, which I have built Das 4.30: for the Houfe of sheKingdom, by the might of my Power, (therein the firft ) and for the Honour of my Majefty, ( there in the fecond.) If we aflame any thing either asour own aEt, or forour own Glory, that is Pride. Of which therearedi vers degrees. a. If we conceive that we have greater abilities than we have, (which com- monly is when we have none at all) as the Church of Laodicea, that Paid the was Rich, and had needof nothing, and knew not that the was wretched, miferable; blind, and naked. None are fo fubje(t to this as .rpc+ar, Novices,; that are greenacid never. 3;17, ¡hallow, and therefore apt tobe lifted up withPride,; and fall into the tonderrmatioti t Tfm; 3:6.. of the Devil. This is one degree. Of this St. Cbryfoffome faith, That it is no commendations for a Servant to behumble, but if a man either for place or parts have wherewithal tobe proud, andyet ishumble. thisdeferves commendations. a. The fecond degree is, when we eftem that little we havemore than iris worth, Ezekat, sa when we conceive we are better than indeed we are when(as theProphet fpeàksywe a Cor. to. r4. feat up great fums, and think-that we are full of Wifdom,, and perfe&t in Beauty. Stretching our;felves (as]the Apoftle) without nìeafure. This the Devil makes ufè of, and either (hews us our felves by a falfe light, or makes us look upon our felves through a Mift, whereby we feem greater than weare, making us drunk with felf- love, caufeth us to fegemina objella, &geminosfoies, every thing feemsdoubleto asp. as toa drunken man. ëZ ä 5. The
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