Thirdl}^ I come now to speak of dependence upon our spiritual strength, and grace received : Gal. ii. 20, ' I live ; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me,' where there is an abnegation of all his own strength with respect to the spiritual life. The work of the inferior agent is denied, that the supreme may have all the glory : not I, but Jesus Christ.
1. I shall show you the consequence and weight of this part of self- denial.
2. How far forth our spiritual strength is to be denied.
3. What are the signs whereby dependence upon our own strength may be discovered and found out.
[1.] For the consequence and weight of this : I shall show you in
Book I] a treatise of self-denial. 225
several considerations, that certainly this is a necessary part of self- denial.
(1.) Because dependence maintains the commerce between God and man ; it is the ground of the creature's respect to God. A proud creature is loath to be beholden, to come out of itself, and to fetch all from another. We had rather keep the stock ourselves. When the prodigal had his portion in his own hands, away he goes from his father. We would be strangers to the throne of grace were it not that tliere •were a continual dependence upon God for the supply of grace. Those two great duties of prayer and praise are built upon dependence. So that in effect the whole spiritual life is but a profession of our depend- ence upon God.
1st. To instance in prayer. If we did not depend upon God for daily receiving, the Lord would seldom hear from us. Most of the prayers in the apostle's writings are for a supply of grace : 2 Thes. i. 11, ' Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you wortiiy of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of his good- ness, and the work of faith with power ; ' and Eph. iii. 14-17, ' I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, that he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with all might, by his "Spirit in the inner man,' &c. This was the reason, why Paul prayed for others, and why the saints pray for themselves, that they may have new strength from God in the inward man. So Heb. xiii. 20, ' Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight.' This is the great cause of Christ's intercession, to maintain the life which we have received. God would oblige us to continual visits and intercourse with himself by keeping grace in his own hands.
2d. For the duty of praise. Self loves to divide the glory with free grace ; and truly, if we be not sensible of our dependence upon God, we shall never think of setting the crown upon grace's head. The saints that are kept humble, are also kept thankful ; they see they can do nothing themselves, and therefore they come and give God the glory : Luke xix. 16, ' Thy pound ' saith the faithful servant, ' hath gained ten pounds ; ' as if he had said. It was not ray industry, but thy pound. This makes the children of God to come with ingenious acknowledgments — ' Not I,' said Paul, ' but Christ that liveth in me.' Alas ! I do little in the spiritual life, it is Christ that doth all._ I live, there is some concurrence ; but mine is nothing to what Christ doth. So 1 Cor. XV. 10, ' I laboured more than they all ; yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.' They take off the crown from the head of self, and lay it at the feet of Clirist. As Joab sent for David when he had conquered Kabbah, to take the honour of the victory ; so when they have done anything through grace, they send for God to take the honour. They know wheace their supplies come, and that makes them thankful.
(2.) It is a very great sin to rest in ourselves; it crosseth the very end of the covenant, and robs Christ of his free grace. ^ In all God's dispensations to the creature, his aim is to magnify his own grace ; and the great end of our being christians is to be to the ' praise of his
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glorious grace,' Eph. i. 12. When we come to heaven, it is a great question which we shall most admire, grace or glory. Certainly when our affections are wrought up to the pitch of the glorified estate, we shall value glory for grace's sake ; for this is God's great end, that grace may have the glory. Therefore it is a necessary part of a christian's work, to keep his heart still sensible of his dependence upon grace ; therefore self-sufficiency after grace received is a great sin. The more we rest in self, the more we rob grace. Carnal men, they are hardly sensible of foul and gross sins ; but a christian is sensible of spiritual evils, and of these chiefly. When we humble ourselves for want of life and quickening, there may be something of hypocrisy in that ; because quickening serves the pride of parts, and we would all discover gifts with applause. Now it is a sign of grace to be humbled for depending upon our own strength and endeavours, because we would not rob Christ of his chiefest honour and glory.