CHAPTER XLV. Strength and Valour to be Denied. 5. ANOTHER piece of vainglory to be denied, is in the reputation of strength and valour. The witless part of men, especially in their procacious humours, do use to be carried away with this, as witless women with the former. Hence commonly are their matches of running and wrestling, and many exercises of activity and strength; yea, and hence commonly are their duels and murders. It seems such a dishonourable thing to them to be thought a coward, or unable to defend themselves, and to be crowed over by their enemy, that they will venture body and soul upon it rather than they will put up such indignities, or lie under the dishonour of being cowards. Yea, and (would one think it) some Jesuits are such carnal doctors, that they teach men that if they be challenged, and their honour do lie upon it, they may meet the challenger there in a defensive posture, and fight with him to defend their honour: yea, and in many other cases, they may kill another for their honour, seeing their honour is more to them than their lives. O, miserable teachers, and miserable souls that do obey them! Christ hath taught you another lesson, even " to despise the shame,” Heb. xii. 2, 3, and to humble yourselves, and intimateth that such cannot be believers which "receive honour of one another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only;" John v. 44. It is more honour to obey God in suffering, than to be so valiant as to murder another The day is near, when he will appear the honourable man that was most like to Jesus Christ, that when he reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not, but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously;" 1 Pet. ii. 23. Blind sinners! do you think it more honourable to do hurt than to suffer hurt? Yea, to be like the devil, who is a murderer, than to Christ, that was a sufferer, and came not to destroy men's lives, but to save them and lay down his own. Can any thing be more honourable than to be the children of the heavenly Father? And if you be such, you must "love your enemies, bless them that man. was curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them that despitefully use you and persecute you;" Matt. v. 44. What a case are those men's understandings in, that think it their honour to revenge themselves when God hath so forbidden it? Rom. xii. 19. CHAPTER XLVI. Wisdom and Learning to be Denied. 6. ANOTHER piece of vainglory to be denied, is in the reputation of wisdom and learning. The things themselves are very excellent, and to be desired and much sought after, but not for our own honour, but the service and honour of the Lord; and the greater is the worth of the thing, the greater is the temptation to vainglory in them that have it, and the harder it is to deny themselves herein. This part of self-denial consisteth not in a contempt of learning or wisdom, nor a neglect of it, for this were a sin; but in a neglect of self, that would make an advantage of it for its own carnal exaltation, and in a contempt of the honour and vainglory which may redound by it to ourselves, further than such honour is serviceable to God. O how sinful and miserable a life do abundance of learned men live in the world! Their whole life is but one continued vice, and that a sin of a most heinous nature, even the exercise of pride and self-seeking, when yet they take themselves for saints, because they are not such as are accounted scandalous sinners in the world. They sacrifice their precious time and studies to their pride and fancies, and not to God. Too many hours and years are spent to gain the reputation of being learned men; too many disputations are managed; yea (odious sacrilege), too many sermons are preached, and too many learned books are written, to gain the reputation of being learned men. Ah, miserable, low, unworthy studies! Profane sermons! Ungodly labours, and poor reward! O, how it nettleth some proud spirits, if they hear that they are taken to be no scholars; and how many take their University degrees to be merely the wings of this part of their vainglory. Learning and degrees, and the reputation of it, are all good, if they be valued and used but for God but they are so much the worse when they are sacri : ficed to self, and made the food and fuel of pride. Learn, therefore, this part of self-denial. CHAPTER XLVII. Reputation of Gifts and Spiritual Abilities, &c. 7. ANOTHER piece of vainglory to be denied, is the reputation of our gifts and spiritual abilities: I mean such as praying, and preaching, and disputing, and good conference, to have readiness for words, and liveliness of expression, and exactness of method: to be esteemed in all these a very able man by others, is a high part of self-interest to be denied. The duties themselves must be denied by none, for they are the service of God, commanded us by his word; but it is the honour that self presumeth to hunt after in these holy things. And it is a double sin here to seek ourselves, when we are specially commanded to seek God, and where the work is instituted for that end; and when we pretend to seek God and to deny ourselves. The greater are our abilities to do God service, the more resolutely and thankfully we should improve them in his service; but we must remember, that they are given us to save others by our improvement, and not to destroy ourselves by our pride. Get as great abilities as you can, and when you have them, thank God for them, and use them for him to the uttermost of your power; but take heed lest pride should sacrifice them to yourselves, and pervert them from your master's service. The persons that have most need of this advice are especially these following: 1. Young, inexperienced professors, that are but lately turned to a profession of a godly life; that have so much illumination as sheweth them much that before they knew not, and raiseth them above the vulbut yet hath made them but smatterers and gar measure, half-knowing men. These are they that the apostle requireth should not be made bishops or pastors of the church, because of their proneness to this very sin that now we are speaking of," not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride, he fall into the condemnation of the devil," (1 Tim. iii. 6.): the Spirit of God here intimateth to us, that novices are the most likely to be lifted up with pride, and that this pride is the way to the condemnation of the devil. 2. And men of great abilities, natural or acquired, that have withal unsanctified hearts, are ordinarily transported with this odious vice. A strong wit and a voluble tongue, and learning to furnish it with matter, are notable servants to pride of heart, where that spiritual illumination and holiness is wanting, that should abase the proud, and turn men's parts a better way. To all that are apt to be tainted with this odious vice, I would recommend these following considerations: 1. Consider what a dangerous sign it is of a graceless, hypocritical heart, where pride of gifts doth much prevail. It is as inseparable from a child of God to be humble and little in his own esteem, as for a new-born child to be really lesser than men at age. No more sincerity than humility in any. 2. Consider what cause of deep humiliation you carry about you in every duty! Besides all the wants and loathsome corruptions of your souls, which follow you wherever you go, the very sins of your duties, one would think, should humble you. O, to have such low conceptions, such dull apprehensions, such heartless, unreverent, poor expressions of such a God, such a Christ, such a glory, and such holy truth, should make us ashamed to open our lips before the Lord, and wonder that he doth not tread us into hell, instead of regarding us or our services, and that fire doth not come forth from his jealousy and consume us! It should make us so far from glorying in our performances, that it should drive us to Christ in every duty, to take him with us to shelter us from the flames of holy jealousy, so that we should not dare to go any further than he goes before us, and stands between us and the wrath of God, nor to speak a word but in his name, nor to expect any welcome but on his account. Shall a wretch be proud of that performance whose failings deserve everlasting torments? Must you be beholden to Christ to save you from the hell that the sins of your performances deserve, and yet dare you be proud of them? Let a Papist run that desperate path, that rails at us for saying that our best duties are mixed with sin, and that this sin deserves the wrath of God; let them refuse a physician that think not themselves sick; and let them tell Christ they will not be beholden to him for a pardon for the sins of their prayers and other duties; but for shame let not us be guilty of this, who profess to be better acquainted with our infirmities. 3. Consider also that you have to do with so holy and glorious a God, that to be proud before him, and that in and of our very service of him, is a sin whose greatness surpasseth our apprehensions. Had you to do with a man like yourselves, you might better lift up yourselves against him. There is nothing comparatively in the presence of the greatest prince, to humble and abase you; but to be proud before the God of heaven, and that in and of our lamentably weak addresses to him; O, what a horridly impious, unreasonable thing is this! O man! if thy eyes were opened to see a little, a very little of the glory of that blessed God thou speakest to, how flat wouldst thou fall down! How wouldst thou fear and tremble! and cry out as the prophet, "Woe is me, for I am undone, because I am a man of unclean lips, and dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts;" Isaiah vi. 5. Or, "Behold I am vile, what shall I answer thee? I will lay my hand upon my mouth;" Job xl. 4. And "I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear; but now mine eye seeth thee: wherefore I abhor myself and repent in dust and ashes;" Job xlii. 5, 6. One glimpse of God's majesty would take down thy self-exalting thoughts, and humble thee with a witness. 4. Consider the examples of the holiest of God's servants. The example of Job and Isaiah I have now mentioned. Moses himself did think himself unmeet to speak in God's message, "He said unto the Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken to thy servant: but I am of a slow speech and of a slow tongue;" Exod. iv. 10. And" He said, O, my Lord, send I pray thee by the hand of him whom thou wilt send;" ver. 13. When God sent Jeremiah he said, " Ah, Lord God, behold I cannot speak; for I am a child;" Jer. i. 6. And Paul cries out," Who is sufficient for these things!" 2 Cor. ii. 16. So that it hath been the course of the most seraphical prophets, and holy apostles to have low thoughts of their own abilities for duty; and yet have you enough to be proud of? |