149. It is good and comfortable to compare our condition with the con- dition of the men of the world; for howsoever they may excel in riches and learning, yet we have cause to bless God, as Christ saith in the 11th of St Matthew, ver. 25, 'I thank thee, 0 Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wii~e and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.' It is good in all outward discouragements, when things go not well with us, thus to reason with ourselves. Wilt thou change thy estate with the men of the world ? God hath advanced thee to a higher order. Let them have their greatness. Alas ! they are miser- able creatures, notwithstanding all that they do enjoy.
150. If we desire to have the Spirit, we must wait in doing good, as the apostles waited many days before the Comforter came. We must also empty our souls of self-love, and the love of the things of the world, and willingly entertain those crosses that bring our souls out of love with them. The children of Israel in the wilderness had no manna till they had spent their onions and garlic; so this world must be out of request with us before we can be spiritual. Let us therefore labour to see the excellency of spiritual things, and how cheap and poor all the glory of the world is to those. These things, thought and considered on, will make us more and more spiritual.
151. The Holy Ghost would not come till Christ, by his death, had reconciled his Father, and after that as an argument of full satisfaction had risen again, because the Holy Ghost is the best gift of God ; and whatsoever grace or comfort was received before was by virtue of this ; so that the sending of the Holy Ghost is the best fruit of God's reconciliation.
152. Let a particular judgment come upon any man, presently his con- science recalls back what sins have been committed by him ; so that this waking of conscience shews that we are sinful creatures.
153. Every man by nature, though the wisest, till he be in Christ, is a slave to the devil, who abuses his wits and parts, and makes him work out his own damnation. This is not the condition of a few fools ; but the greatest and wisest in the world. Satan leads them to honours and volup- tuousness, as a sheep is led by a green bough. He goes with the stream of man's nature, and so is never discerned.
154. As a man that is called before a judgment-seat, being guilty of many crimes, yet the judge offers him his book, as meaning to save him by that means ; but he cannot read. Now he is condemned, partly for his former faults, but especially because he cannot read, and cannot have the benefit of the law (b) ; so therefore a wicked man, not believing in Christ, because the remedy is prepared, and he takes no hold of it. In this sense, as some divines speak, no sin but infidelity condemns a man ; for if a man could believe and repent, no sin should be prejudicial to his salvation. We had need, therefore, to look to our faith, when want of belief seals a man up under sin. A man is imprisoned in his conscience until he come to Christ, and his conscience is his jailor. His conscience, enlightened by the law, tells him that he is guilty of such and such sins, and hereiapon keeps him to further judgment.
202 DIVINE MEDITATIONS
155. There is a miserable cosenage in sin. Naturally, men will deny sin, or else mince it, as Adam did, and as Saul, when Samuel came to con- vince him ; ' I have,' saith he, ' done the commandment of the Lord;' and when he w.is driven from that, then ' he did but spare them for sacrifice ;' but when nothing could satisfy, ' then, I pray thee, honour me before the people,' 1 Sam. xv. 80. Things that wo cannot justify, 5'et we will excuse them, unless God come by his Spirit. Wo are ready to shift them off. But when the Spirit comes, and takes away all these fig-leaves, then it convinces him of his miserable condition, not only in general, but the Spirit, working together with the word, brings him to confess, ' I am the man.'
15G. The afiections of grief and sorrow follow upon the discovery of sin by the ministry of the word. Where the judgment is convinced, the afiec- tions are stirred up with hatred against that sin ; and where this is not, there is no convincing. When a man cries for mercy as for life, this is an argument of sound condition. He that is truly convinced will be as glad of a pardon as a malefactor that stands at the bar condemned.
157. It is the policy of the devil to labour to make us slight the gracious work of conviction ; for he knows that whatsoever is built upon a false foundation will come to nothing, and therefore he rhakes us slight the work of self-examining and searching of ourselves. But slight this, and slight all ; for if thou beest slight in bearchiug and examining thyself, thou wilt also be slight in thy repentance and obedience.