Take heed of pride. God himself emptied himself, and wilt thou be full of pride ? He became of ' no reputation,' Philip, ii. 7, and wilt thou stand upon terms of credit? He 'took upon him the form of a servant,' and wilt thou be altogether a lord and king in thy afi'ections, and not serve thy brethren ? Did Christ do this that thou shouldst be a proud person ? He came to expiate thy pride. Away with thy proud conceits ! If thou be too proud to follow and imitate humble men, jei think not thyself too good to imitate an humble God. There is no spirit more opposite to the spirit of a Christian than a spirit swelling and lift up, that thinks itself too good to be abased in the service of others, that carries itself loftily. A proud spirit is most opposite to the spirit of God, that became man to expiate this pride of ours, and to work out salvation in this flesh of ours. Of all sins let us take heed of this diabolical satanical sin ; let us be abased for Christ that was abased for us ; and as he left his heaven — to do us good he left heaven itself — so let us. If we have a conceited heaven and happi- ness in ourselves, leave it, and become base and low, to do any good we can. Shall he stoop and bend to us from heaven to earth, and conceal his
480 THE FOUNTAIN OPENED.
majestj', not to be kuowu to bo as ho was ; and shall not wo stoop one to anothor to do good, and como down from our concoitod excollcncy ?
Use 4, Hero wo have a good ground likewise uot to eiicij the blessed antjels their yieatness ; nay, here wo have that wherein wc are above the angels themselves ; for ' he took not upon him the nature of angels,' Hob. ii. IG, but ho was ' God manifest in our Ilesh.' Christ married our nature to himself out of his love, that he might marry us to himself by his Spirit ; und now, by our union with Christ, we bo nearer him than the very angels are. The angels are not the spouse of Christ, but now, by reason of his taking our nature, we are kin to Christ : ' He is bone of our bone, and llcsh of our Hesh,' Eph. v. 30, and we are ' bono of his bone, and flesh of his flesh.' We are the body, Christ is the head. We are nearer to Christ than the very angels. No wonder, then, if those blessed spirits daity pry into this great mysterj^ 1 Peter i. 12.
5. Lastly, Let us labour that Christ may be manifested in our ]mrticular flesh, in our jjersons. As he was God manifest in the flesh in regard of that blessed mass he took upon him, so we would every one labour to have God ' manifest in our flesh.'
Quest. How is that ?
Ans. We must have Christ as it were born in us, ' formed in us,' as the apostle speaks, Col. i. 27. Certainly the same Spirit that sanctified Christ doth sanctify every member of Christ; and Christ is in some sort begotten, and conceived, and ' manifested ' in every one that is a Christian. We must labour that Christ may be ' manifest ' in our understandings, in our aifections, that he may be manifest to us, and conceived, as it were, in us ; as St Paul's phrase is, ' That the life of Christ may be made manifest in our mortal flesh,' 2 Cor. iv. 11. The life and spirit of Christ must be ' manifest ' in every true Christian, and their ' flesh ' must be sanctified by the same Spirit that Christ's flesh was sanctified withal. As Christ's flesh was first sanctified, and then abased, and then glorious, so the flesh of every Christian must be content to be abased, as the flesh of Christ was, to serve Christ, to be conformable to Christ in our abased flesh. And let us not make too much of this flesh of ours, that shall turn to rottenness ere long. It must be gracious sanctified flesh, as Christ's was, and then glorious flesh. Christ must be manifest in our flesh, as he was in his own, that when a man sees a Christian, he may see Christ manifest in him.
Obj. But how shall I come to have Christ manifest in my flesh ? My heart is not fit to conceive Christ in. There is nothing in it but deadness, and darkness, and dulness, and rebellion ?
Ans. Even as the virgin Mary, she conceived Christ when she yielded her assent. When the angel spake to her, what saith she presently '? ' Be it as thou hast said,' Luke i. 38 ; let it even be so. She yielded her assent to the promise, that she should conceive a son. So when the pro- mises are uttered to us of the forgiveness of sins, of salvation by Christ, as soon as ever we have a spirit of faith to yield our assent, let it be so, Lord, as thou hast promised ; thou hast promised forgiveness of sins : let it be so ; thou hast promised favour in Christ : let it be so. As soon as the heart is brought to yield to the gracious promise, then Christ is con- ceived in the heart. Even as Christ was conceived in the womb of the virgin when she yielded her assent to believe the promise, so Christ is in every man's heart, to sanctify it, to rule it, to comfort it, as soon as this consent is wrought. We should labour, therefore, to bring our hearts to this. So much for this. Because it is of great consequence, and the lead-