216 The fixth Sign PART III.. Sinfulnefs, by far, than when in the lively Exercife of Grace. But yet it is true, and demonftrable from the foremention'd Confidera tions, that the Children of God never have fo much of a fenfible and fpiritual Conviction of their Deformity ; and fo great and quick and abating a Senfe of their prefent Vilenefs and Odioufnefs, as when they are higheft in the Exercife of true and pure Grace ; and never are they fo much difpofed to let themfelves low among Chriftians as then. And thus he that is greaten in the Kingdom, or molt eminent in the Church of Chrift, is the fame that humbles himfelf, as the 'eat Infant among them ; agreeable to that greatSaying of Chrift, Meath. 18. q.. A trueSaint mayknow that he has Ionic trueGrace: And the more Grace there is, the more eafily is it known ; as was obferved and proved before. But yet it does not follow, that an eminent Saint is - eafily fenfible that he is an eminent Saint, when compared with o- thers.---I will not deny that it is poffible, that he that has much Grace, and is an eminent Saint, may know it. But he-won't be apt to know it : It won't be a Thing obvious to him : That he is better than others, and has higher Experiences and Attainments, is not a foremofiThought ; nor is itThat which,from Time toTime, readily offers it fell:, -It is a Thing that is not in his Way, but lies far out of Sight He mull take Pains to :convince himfelf of it There will be need of a great Command of Reafon, and a high De- gree of Stric1nefs. and Care in arguing, to convince himfelf. And if he be rationally convinced, by a very ftrid Confideration of his own Experiences, compared with the great Appearances of low De- grees of Grace in (ogle. other Saints, it will hardly, feem real to him, that he has more Grace than they : And he'll be apt to lofe the Conviction, that he has by Pains obtained : Nor will it feem at all natural to him to ad upon that Suppofition. And this may be laid down as an infallible Thing, That the Perton who is apt to think that he, as compared with others, is a very eminent Saint, much dinguijhed in chrifiian Experience, in whom this is a firfz= Thought, ,that rites of it [elf, anfl naturally offers it felf ; he is certainly mif/aken ; he is no emi- rent Saint ; but under the great Prevailings of a proud andPelf- righteous Spirit. And if this be habitual with the Man, and is ftatedly the prevailing Temper of his Mind, he is no Saint at all ; he has not the icaul Degree of any true chriftian Experience ; fo furely as the Word rfGod is true. And that Sort of Experiences that appears to be of that Tendency, ;rid is found from Time to Time to have that - Effect, to elevate the Subjet`t of them with a great Conceit of thofe Experiences, is certainly vain and delufive. Thole fuppofed Difcoveries that natu- rally blow up the Perfon with an Admiration of the Eminency of Difcoveries, and fill him with Conceit, that now he has feen, and knows
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