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men and hypocrites, a multitude of them: whereas the godly are but a little flock, an handful, a remnant, a few. 2. They differ from each other in their judgment; particularly in their judgment about themselves. Wicked men and hypocrites are proud, and pure in their own eyes: whereas the godly are humble, and vile in their own eyes. 3. They differ from each other in their real qualities. The wicked and hypocritical generation are really vile and polluted, never washen from their filthiness: whereas the godly are purified in part, and cleanfed from their filthiness; at least, it is their exercife to get their defilement daily washed away with the blood of Christ.

It is remarkable, that as felf-abafement and purity go together; (for, they that are impure and vile in their own eyes, are a people washed from their filthiness :) so, on the other hand, felf-conceit and impurity go together; for, the generation that are pure in their own eyes, are not washed from their filthiness. The former look upon themselves as impure, and yet are pure; the latter judge themselves pure, but are impure.

The doctrinal part of the subject having been finished in the preceding discourse, it remains now that we make fome practical improvement of the point.

V. The fifth thing we propofed in the method, was the application of the doctrine; which we shall effay in feveral uses.

The firft ufe that we make fhall be of information. If it be fo, as has been affirmed, That felf-conceit is incident to a multitude of profeffors, then we may infer the following things.

1. Hence fee the degeneracy of our nature, by reafon of the fall. Alas! how corrupt is our nature now! The devil made our first parents fancy, that they should be as gods; and now he makes men dream that they are as gods for, this self-conceit is a deifying of ourselves. Self is the god that we adore naturally. Instead of lawful felf-love, unlawful felf-conceit takes place. There is a lawful felf-love injoined; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyfelf: where, you fee, it is our duty to love ourVOL. I. M m in felves;

felves; and then our neighbour as ourselves. And if the generation had a right and lawful love to themselves, either foul or body; they would not destroy their bodies by intemperance and infobriety, and ruin their fouls by wilful fin and impenitency: but, instead of lawful felflove, finful felf-love takes the throne. Self-conceit and felf-admiration, felf-will and felf-fatisfaction prevail.

2. See what is the great tendency of true gospel preaching; namely, to discover and diminish all felf-purity and felf-righteoufnefs, that Chrift alone may be exalted: yea, the defign of it is to level and dash down all that selfconceited purity, whereby people are pure in their own eyes, that it may advance gospel-purity, by which we may be pure in God's fight. Some make a vast noise about preaching up good works, and of their being friends to holinefs and the law; while yet the tendency of their doctrine may be only to make people pure and holy in their own eyes, and in the eyes of men: but that which a gospel minifter especially aims at, is, to get people pure in the fight of God. He cannot fatisfy himself merely in preaching up good works, and charity, piety, devotion, mercy, tenderness, honefty, civility, morality, c. which is very commendable, and would to God there were more of thefe; but he goes farther, and labours principally to get the foundation of true holiness laid in the heart, felf-purity mortified, the principles rectified, and Chrift formed in the heart: otherwife, they build without laying a foundation. It may be observed, with regret, that never were there lefs morality amongst perfons of all ranks, than fince fo many minifters laid afide evangelical preaching, and made the inculcating moral duties their principal theme. And And many who extol moral virtues, are themselves the most immoral perfons. The Pharifees fet up for great friends to the law, when Chrift appeared on the ftage; and they flouted at him, as if he had been an enemy to good works, when he was telling them that they were but hypocrites: Think they, faith he, that I am come to deftroy the law? Nay; Except your righteousness exceed the righteoufnefs of the Scribes and Pharifees, ye cannot enter into the kingdom of God. Why, they were pure in their

own

own eyes; they verily imagined they were friends to holinefs: yet they made clean but the outfide, and were not internally washed from their filthiness. The doctrine of the Pharifees was much about wafhings, and legal purifications: Yea, faith Chrift; but I tell you, you must be pure in heart, otherwise you cannot fee God. Why, fay the Pharifees, you must do good works, and bring forth good fruits: Yea, faith Chrift; but make the tree good, otherwise the fruit cannot be good. The principles must be changed, the nature renewed, and the foul implanted into Chrift; then, and not till then, can any do what is fpiritually good. Till there be both a spiri tual habit of grace, wrought by the efficacious power of the Spirit of God; and a fpiritual communication of heavenly influences, to excite that habit into exercise, there can be no pure act, no holy work acceptable to God: and whatever doctrine doth not aim at this, it comes fo far fhort of preffing holiness, that it may indeed make hypocrites; but can never direct people how to go one step beyond hypocrify and felf-conceit: for, without this radical change, a man may well be pure in his own eyes, and in the eyes of others; but is not pure in God's eyes, nor wafhen from his filthiness.

3. Hence fee the difference that there is between believers and hypocrites. The hypocrite doth the fame. action externally that the found believer doth; he may pray and praife, and read and hear, and what not. What doth the best believer that I do not? faith the hypocrite. What can they do but I will do? Yea, he may exceed the believer in the multitude of duties. But, behold! all the while he is a mass of impurity and pollution; and only pure in his own eyes. He may indeed affect holinefs, and feem to be one that is freed of felf-conceit; but yet felf is still his principle, and felf ftill his end. Whereas the true believer, as fuch, hath no self-conceit, but what is his burden; no felf-motive, but what is his grief; no felf-ends or aims, but what are his exercise either fooner or later. And, in a word, there is as great a difference between the most refined hypocrite, and the pooreft believer, as there is between a painted image, and a living man; yea, as there is be

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tween an angel of light, and a devil transforming himfelf thereunto.

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4. Hence fee ground to lament this common diftemper and epidemic plague of felf-conceit, that hath feized the generality of profeffors, whereby they are pure in their own eyes. There are few or none that we come to close converse with, but they would fain make us believe, that they are as clean and pure as can poffibly be. Say they, We are all finners; and who can fay otherwise but they have fin about them? But God be thanked, I am not guilty of fuch and such a grofs wickedness; you must not have fuch ill thoughts of me: I was never a liar, nor a cheat, or a murderer: I have always had < a liking to the best way; I have a good heart, and do good duties; and wherein I fail, I hope I will be better.' Alas! Sirs, profanity kills its thousands; but delufion kills its ten thousands: and this delufion kills its twenty thousands, while they fancy themselves to be right, and in a good condition, and yet are in the gall of bitterness and bond of iniquity.-What is the ban and difpofition of the generation? Even a fettled contentednefs in their finful state; a prefumptuous confidence that natural men have of their good condition. Every man is fo full of felf-love, that he is loth to pass a sentence against his own foul; loth to become a judge and felf-condemner, and fo an executioner of all his vain hope and falfe confidences, that he hath been building upon. If people were once come to fee their finful state, so as to cry out, Oh! I am unclean, unclean! and to fee their miferable ftate, fo as to cry out, Alas! I am undone, undone! there would be more hope in Ifrael concerning them but while they are content with their prefent condition, there is no hope of their feeking out for another.-Or, if any happen to see something of their finfulness and mifery; yet, how doth their self-conceit lead them inftantly to expect help and fupply from their own fufficiency: for this Arminianism is natural to us all. We hope, that either by our natural ability, common graces, or beautiful performances, we may help ourselves out of the horrible pit; not knowing that we have destroyed ourselves, and that in Chrift only doth our help lie: and therefore we

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will scramble for our comfort, and try the utmost of our strength, rather than be obliged to him to help us; and confequently when the body or confcience is brought to trouble, men are fo ready to refolve, and apt to promife and profess amendment, faying, O, I will be a renewed man; you will fee that I will take up myself, ⚫ and reform all that has been amifs.' But, behold! when their fear and horror is over, all comes to nothing: they either fall back into the fame, or greater abominations; or else waste away into a wearifome formality and hypocrify.

5. Hence we may fee matter of comfort to all whom the Lord hath humbled and feparated thus from a generation of felf-conceited finners, who are pure in their own eyes. It is ground of comfort, if the Lord has killed your pride, and made you vile in your own eyes: for, Thus faith the Lord, the high and lofty One, that inhabiteth eternity, whofe name is holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him alfo that is of a humble and contrite Spirit, to revive the Spirit of the humble, and to revive the Spirit of the contrite ones, Ifa. lvii. 15. Yea, To this man will I look, faith the Lord; even to him that is poor, and of a contrite fpirit, and trembleth at my word, chap. lxvi. 2. Hath the Lord brought you to the valley of humiliation? It is ground of comfort; because he has given this valley of Achor for a door of hope.

6. Hence we may fee matter of terror to those that are still filled with felf-conceit, and are pure in their own eyes; fo ftuffed with pride, and puffed up with the wind of felf-confidence, fuppofing themselves to be good, and honest, and upright, that the word of conviction makes no impreffion, but falls upon their hard hearts, as water upon a rock, that cannot enter, nor prevail, nor profit at all. May not this doctrine dash the hopes, and fink the hearts, of all haughty and hardhearted finners? If your hearts were never humbled, God never dwelt there: dwell you where you will, God doth not dwell with you; for, though he has refpect to the lowly, yet he knoweth the proud afar off; yea, refifts the proud. You may be pure in your own eyes, and draw the eyes of others after you; but God will not

come

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