66. When we find any grace wrought in us, we should have a holy esteem of ourselves, as when we are tempted to sin. What ! I that am an heir of heaven, a king, a conqueror, the son of God, a freeman, shall I stain myself? God hath put a crown upon my soul, and shall I cast my crown into the dirt ? No ; I will be more honourable. These are no proud thoughts, but befitting our estate.
67. Those that are besotted with the false lustre of the world, do want spiritual light. Christ himself, when he was here upon the earth, he lived a concealed life ; only at certain times some beams broke out. So let it comfort us that our glory is hid in Christ. Now it is clouded with the malice of wicked men, and with our own infirmities. But let us comfort ourselves with this, that we are glorious in the eyes of God and his angels.
68. As men after a fit of sickness grow much, so God's children grow, especially after their falls, sometimes in humility, sometimes in patience. As we may observe in plants and herbs, they grow at the root in winter, in the leaf in summer, and in the seed in autumn ; so Christians appear, sometimes humble, sometimes spiritual and joyful, and sometimes they grow in spiritual courage.
69. That which we drew from the ' first Adam' was the displeasing of God, but we draw from the * second Adam' the favour of God. From the ' first Adam' we drew corruption, from the ' second Adam' we drew* grace : from the ' first Adam' we drew misery and death, and all the miseries that follow death. We draw from the ' second Adam' life and happiness. What- soever we had from the ' first Adam' we have it repaid more abundantly in the second.
70. Grace makes us glorious, because it puts glory upon the soul. It
* Qu. ' draw ' ?— Ed.
192 DIVINE MEDITATIONS
carries the soul above all earthly things : it tramples the world nnder her feet : it prevails against corruptions, that foil ordinary men. A man is not more above beasts than a Christian that hath grace is above other men.
71. It is an evidence that we are gracious men, if we can look upon the lives of others that are better than we, and love and esteem them glorious. A man may see grace in others with a malignant eye ; for natural men are 80 vain-glorious, that when they see the lives of other men outshine theirs, instead of imitation they darken. What grace they will not imitate, they will defame. Therefore those that can see grace in others, and honour it in them, it is a sign they have grace themselves. Men can endure good in books, and to hear good of men that are dead, but they cannot endure good in the lives of others to be in their eyes, especially when they come to compare themselves with them. They love not to be out-shined.
72. As the sun goes its course, though we cannot see it go ; and as plants and herbs grow, though we cannot perceive them : even so it follows not, that a Christian grows not, because he cannot see himself grow. But if they decay in their first love, or in some other grace, it is that some other grace may grow and increase, as their humility, their broken-heart- edness. Sometimes they grow not in extension, that they may grow at the root. Upon a check, grace breaks out more ; as we say after a hard win- ter, usually there follows a glorious spring.
73. God's children never hate corruption more than when they have been overcome by corruption. The best men living have some corruptions, which they see not till they break out by temptations. Now when corrup- tions are made known to us, it stirs up our hatred, and hatred stirs up endeavour, and endeavour revenge ; so that God's children should not be discouraged for their falls.
74. When the truth of grace is wrought in a Christian, his desires go beyond his strength, and his prayers are answerable to his desires. Where- upon is it that young Christians oftentimes call their estate in question, because they cannot bring heaven upon earth, because they cannot be per- fect ; but God will have us depend upon him for increase of grace in a daily expectation.
75. Christ is our pattern, whom we must strive to imitate. It is neces- sai-y that our pattern should be exact, that so we might see our imperfec- tions, and be humbled for them, and live by faith in our sanctification.
76. Consider Christ upon the cross as a public person, that when he was crucified, and when he died, he died for my sins, and this knowledge of Christ will be a crucifying knowledge. This will stu- up my heart to use my corruptions, as my sins used Christ. As he hated my sin, so it will work the same disposition in me, to hate this body of death, and to use it as it used Christ, answerably. As we see this clearly, it will transform us.
77. With our contemplation let us join this kind of reasoning. God so hated pride, that he became humble to the death of the cross, to redeem me from it, and shall I be proud ? And when we are stirred up to revenge, consider that Christ prayed for his enemies. When we are tempted to dis- obedience, think God in my nature was obedient to the death, and shall I stand upon terms ? And when we grow hard-hearted, consider Christ became man, that he might shew bowels of his mercy. Let us reason thus when we are tempted to any sin, and it will be a means to transform us from our own cursed likeness into the likeness of Christ.