some of tins spiritual pride working in thee ? O ! if thou coyldst pray without wandering, walk without limping, believe without wavering, then thou couldst rejoice and walk cheerfully. It seems, soul, thou stayest to bring the ground of thy comfort with thee, and not to receive it pm-ely from Christ. O how much better were it if thou wouldst say with David, ' Though my house (my heart) be not so with God, yet he hath made with me a covenant ordered in all things and sure;' and this is all my desire, all my confidence : Christ I oppose to all my sins, Christ to all wants; he is my all in all, and all above all! Indeed, all those complaints of our wants and weaknesses, so far as they withdraw our hearts from relying cheerfully on Christ, they are but the language of pride hankering after the covenant of works. O it is hard to forget our mother- tongue, which is so natural to us ! labour therefore to be sensible of it, how grievous it is to the Spirit of Christ. What would a husband say, if his wife, instead of expressing her love to him, and delight in him, shoidd, day and night, do nothing but weep and cry to think of her former husband that is dead ? The law as a covenant, and Christ, are compared to two hubands, Rom. vii. 4 : 'Ye are become dead to the law by the body of Christ, that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead.' Now thy sorrow for the defect of thy own righteousness, when it hinders thy rejoicing in Christ, is but a whining after thy other husband : and this Christ cannot but take unkindly, that thou art not as well pleased to lie in the bosom of Christ, and have thy happiness from him, as with your old husband the law.
Secondly, A self-applauding pride, when the heart is secretly lift up, so as to promise itself acceptation at God's hands, for any duty or act of obedience it performs, and doth not, when most assisted, go out of his own actings, to lay the weight of his expectation entirely upon Christ ; every such glance of the soul's eye is adulterous, yea, idolatrous. If thy heart. Christian, at any time be secretly enticed, as Job saith of another kind of idolatry, or thy mouth doth kiss thy hand ; that is, doat so far on thy own duties or righteousness, as to give them this inward worship of thy confidence and trust ; this is a great iniquity indeed : for, in this thou deniest the God that is above, who hath determined thy faith to another objecL Thou comest to open heaven's gate with the old key, when God hath set on a new lock. Dost thou not acknow- ledge that thy first entrance into thy justified state was of pure mercy? Thou wast ' justified freely by his grace, through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ,' Rom. vii. 24. And whom art thou beholden to, now thou art recon- ciled, for thy further acceptance in every duty or holy action ? to thy duty, thy obedience, thyself, or Christ ? The same apostle will tell you, Rom. v. 2 : 'By whom we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand.' If Christ should not lead thee in, and all thou doest, thou art sure to find the door shut upon thee ; there is no more place for desert now thou art gracious, than when thou wast graceless, Rom. i. 17. ' The righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, for the just shall live by faith.' We are not only made alive by Christ, but we live by Christ : faith sucks in continual pardoning, assisting, comforting mercy from him, as the lungs suck in the air. Heaven's way is paved with grace and mercy to the end.
Use. Be exhorted, above all, to watch against this plea of Satan. Beware thou restest not in thy own righteousness: thou standest under a tottering wall; the very cracks thou seest in thy graces and duties, when best, bid thee stand off, except thou wouldst have them fall on thy head. The greatest step to heaven is out of our own doors, over our own threshold. It hath cost many a man his life, when his house was on fire, a covetousness to save some of the stuff, which venturing among the flames to preserve, they have perished themselves; more have lost their souls by thinking to carry some of their own stuff with them to heaven, such a good work or duty, which they, like lingering Lot, have been loath to leave in point of confidence, have themselves perished. O sirs, come out, come out; leave what is your own in the fire ; flee to Christ naked; he hath clothing for you better than your own. Flee poor to Christ, and he hath gold, not like thine, which will consume, and be found drossy in the fire ; but such as hath, in the fiery trial, passed in God's righteous judgment for pure and full weight. You cannot be found in two places at once ; choose whether you will be found in vour own righteousness or in Christ's. Those who have had
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