else He commands from us, I shall shew you more particularly what it is in yourselves that you are to deny.

1. You must deny your own reasons in matters of Divine revelation, so as to use them no further than only to search into the grounds and motives that we have to believe them to be revealed by God. For this being either proved or supposed, we are not to suffer our reasons to be too curious in searching into them, but believe them upon the word and testimony of God Himself, Who is the supreme truth, or verity itself.

For we, who by all our art and cunning cannot understand the reasons of the most common and obvious things in nature, must not think to comprehend the great mysteries of the Gospel, which, though they be not contrary to our 1 Cor. 2. 14. reasons, are infinitely above them: For the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." So that to the understanding of the things of the Spirit, or which the Spirit of God hath revealed to us, there is a great deal more required than what we have by nature, even the supernatural assistance of the ch. 3. 18. Spirit Himself that revealed them. And, therefore, " if any man" amongst us "seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise," that is, he that would be wise unto salvation, must look upon himself as a fool, as one incapable by nature of understanding the things that belong unto his everlasting peace, without both the revelation and assistance of God Himself; and therefore must not rely upon his own judgment, but only upon God's testimony in what he doth believe, not believing what his reason, but what God's Word tells him; looking upon it as reason enough why he should believe it because God hath said it.

I know this is a hard doctrine to flesh and blood. For,

Job 11.12. as Job tells us, "vain man would be wise, though man be born like a wild ass's colt." Though by nature we be never so foolish, vain, and ignorant, understanding the great mysteries of the Gospel no more than a "wild ass's colt" doth a mathematical demonstration, yet howsoever we would fain be thought very wise men: yea, so wise as to be able to

comprehend matters of the highest, yea, of an infinite nature, within the narrow compass of our finite and shallow capacities. But this is that which we must deny ourselves in, if we desire to be Christ's disciples, so as to acquiesce in His Word, and believe what He asserts, only because He asserts it, without suffering our reason to interpose, but looking upon His Word as more than all the reasons and arguments in the world besides.

2. You must deny your own wills. Our wills, it is true, at first were made upright and perfect, every way correspondent to the will of God Himself, so as to will what He wills, that is, what is really good; and to nill what He nills, that is, what is really evil. But being now perverted, and corrupted with sin, our wills are naturally inclined to the evil which they should be averse from, and averse from the good which they should be inclined to. So that, instead of choosing the good and refusing the evil, we are generally apt to choose the evil and refuse the good: yet for all that our wills are thus crooked and perverse, we cannot endure to have them crossed or thwarted in any thing, but would needs have our own wills in every thing, so as neither to do any thing ourselves, nor yet have any thing done to us, but just as ourselves will, who will usually just contrary to what we should. But now they that would be Christ's disciples must not be thus self-willed, but deny themselves the fulfilling of their own wills, when it doth not consist with the will of God to have them fulfilled. This our Lord and Master hath taught us by His example as well as precept, saying," Father, if Thou be willing, remove this cup from Me; Luke 22.42. nevertheless, not My will but Thine be done." Where we may observe that our blessed Saviour, as man, could not but have a natural averseness from death, as all men by nature have, and that without sin. Yet though Christ's will, as man, was never so pure and perfect, yet He wholly submits it to the will of God. He manifested, indeed, that it was the will of that nature which He had assumed, not to suffer death, saying, "If it be possible, let this cup pass from Me;" but He shews withal, that the will of man must still be subject to the will of God; and that man, even as man, must deny his own will, whensoever it runneth not exactly paral

C C

lel with God's, saying," Nevertheless, not My will but Thine be done."

And if Christ Himself denied His Own most pure and perfect will, that His Father's might be accomplished, how much more cause have we to deny our wills, which, by nature, are always contrary to His will, yea, and to our own good too, preferring generally that which is evil and destructive to us, before that which is truly good and advantageous for us! And verily a great part of true Christianity consisteth in thus resigning our wills to God's, not minding so much which way our own inclinations bend, as what His pleasure and command is. A notable instance whereof we have in old Eli, who questionless could not but be very willing that the iniquity of his sons might be forgiven, and his family prosper in the world: yet, howsoever, when God had manifested His pleasure to him that his house should be destroyed, 1 Sam.3.18. he submitted his own will wholly unto God's, saying, “It is the Lord, let Him do what seemeth Him good." And whosoever of us would be Christ's disciple indeed, must be sure thus to deny and renounce his own will, whensoever it appears to be contrary unto God's, so as even to will, that not his own will but God's be fulfilled, as our Lord and Master Himself hath taught us each day to pray, "Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven." And whosoever hath learned this art of making his own will bow and stoop to God's, hath made a very good progress in the Christian religion, especially in that part of it which requires us to deny ourselves.

3. And seeing we must deny our wills, we must needs deny our affections too, which are indeed nothing else but the several motions of the will towards good and evil; but usually they are so disorderly and irregular, as to place themselves upon objects directly opposite to what they were designed for; for that we ordinarily love what we ought to hate, and hate what we ought to love; desire what we ought to abhor, and abhor what we ought to desire; rejoice in those things which we ought to grieve for, and are grieved at such things as we ought to rejoice in: so that if we suffer our affections to move according to their natural tendency and corrupt inclinations, we shall be so far from

going after Christ, that we shall continually be running from Him. And therefore it must be our great care and study to bridle our affections, deny them their unlawful, and fix them upon their proper objects; yea, and to deny ourselves, too, the lawful use of such things as our affections are apt to be unlawfully placed upon. As for example, it is lawful, yea, our duty to love our relations; but, if our love to them becomes exorbitant, so as to love them more than God, our love to them must be turned into hatred in comparison of our love to Him. And whatsoever lawful thing it is that we Luke 14.26. take pleasure in, if once we find that our pleasure in that extinguisheth, or but damps that pleasure which we used, or ought to have in God, we are to deny ourselves such pleasures as these are, and rather despise ourselves than God.

4. Yea, we must deny ourselves moreover the use and enjoyment of our estates and earthly possessions, whensoever they come into competition with His glory: so that if it comes to that point, that we must either leave our estates to enjoy Christ, or leave Christ to enjoy our estates; we must be willing and ready, without any more ado, to abandon and renounce whatsoever else we have rather than our interest in Christ. For indeed he is not worthy to be Christ's disciple that doth not prefer Him before all things else; neither he that loves the world at all in comparison of Christ: "For if any man love the world, the love of the 1 John 2.15. Father is not in him." And therefore he that would be Christ's disciple indeed, must fix his heart so fast on Christ, that it hang loose and indifferent as to all things here below, being no more proud of them, no more delighted in them, no more concerned about them, than as if he had them not. So that though he have all things besides Christ, he must have nothing but Him, or at least in comparison of Him; yea, be ready to part with all, that he may gain Christ. And though many of us may think this a hard saying, we may assure ourselves it is no more than what we must do, if we desire to be Christ's disciples.

5. Furthermore, we must deny ourselves those sins especially, and lusts which we have or do still indulge ourselves in; for thus the Gospel teacheth you in a particular manner

Luke 14.33.

Tit. 2. 12.

to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts." And therefore we in vain pretend to be true Christians, so long as we live in any one known sin with any love unto it, or delight in it. I suppose none of my readers guilty of all sins, and I fear there are few but live in some. No man but may be naturally averse from some sins, but it is very rare to find one that is inclined to none; for ordinarily every man hath his darling, his beloved sin, his own sin, as David himself once Ps. 18. 23. had, though he afterwards kept himself from it. So I fear none of my readers but have some sin, which he may in a peculiar manner call his own, as being that which his thoughts run most upon, and his desires are carried most unto, which he labours most after, and takes most pleasure in, which he is most loath to be reproved for, and most easily overcome by. Now this, and whatsoever other sins any of us are addicted to, we must wholly leave and utterly renounce, if ever we desire to be Christ's disciples. And therefore, so long as any of us live in any known sin, as in pride or prodigality, in oppression or covetousness, in malice or uncleanness, in drunkenness, uncharitableness, or any other sin whatsoever, we must not think ourselves to be Christians indeed, Christ will never own us for His disciples, for so long as we live in any known sin, it is that sin, not Christ, that is our master; and therefore, if we would list ourselves into His service, we must be sure to deny ourselves whatsoever we know to be offensive to Him.

6. There is still another thing behind wherein we must deny ourselves, if we desire to go after Christ; and that is, we must deny and renounce all our self-righteousness, and all hopes and confidences from ourselves, and from what we have done, which I look upon as a very great piece of selfdenial; for naturally we are all prone to sacrifice to our own nets, to burn incense to our own drags, to boast of our own good works, and to pride ourselves with the conceit of our own righteousness. Though we be never so sinful, we would not be thought to be so, but would very fain be accounted righteous, not only by men, but by God Himself, for something or other which ourselves do; though, when all comes to all, we know not what that should be; but howsoever, the pride of our hearts is such, that we are loath