6

St. Austin doth fitly express it, Cum hoc mundo velle exire extra hunc mundum, to desire to carry this world along with them, when they leave it.' And because it is absolutely impossible, that man should be in a happy state, while he is otherwise affected than God is; thence it is, that the infinite, sovereign, and perfect goodness requires our conformity to himself; and will have a participation of his holiness and image, the condition of attaining to a participation of his happiness; nor will dispense with "purity of heart," in order to the seeing of him for without this, without the agreeableness of our wills to the divine will, we shall be wholly unqualified and unmeet for God's kingdom; and incapable of the happiness thereof.

CHAP. X.

That self-will is the root of all sin and misery. SELF-WILL, or the not being resigned to the will of God, is, on the contrary, the root of all sin and misery.

(1.) It is the root of sin. Every lust and sin grows out of this root of uncurbed desire and selfwill; which is "a root of bitterness, 66 a root that beareth gall and wormwood."

It may be fit here again to observe; that in the large enumeration of those sins and evil dispositions which make times perilous, this is mentioned in the first place, "Men shall be lovers of their own

b Matt. v. 8.

Heb. xii. 15.
H

d Deut. xxix. 18.

selves." This is mentioned first, as being the root and ground of all the rest.

It was well observed by St. Austin, Civitas diaboli incipit ab amore sui, 'The devil's city is founded in self-love and self-pleasing.'

Where self-will is set up, there the soul is impetuously carried out to all iniquity with greediness; so far as it is judged safe, and that such or such a sin is not prejudicial to another more beloved sin, or to any worldly advantage or interest.

The soul wherein self-will is set up, saith with proud Pharaoh; "Who is the Lord, that I should obey him ?"

This is another "Abomination of desolation standing in the holy place;" erected in the soul, which should be holy to the Lord: self-will; it is an inward and mysterious antichrist, "opposing and exalting" itself "above God;" it" sits as God in" the heart, that inward "temple of God, showing" itself "that it is God." It is an antigod; and will be obeyed in all things: it sets its threshold by God's thresholds, and its post by God's posts.c

In the Scripture, self-will, or the pleasing of our own will, is frequently put in the general for all sin. Thus going on in sinful and wicked courses is expressed by "walking in the ways of thy heart, and in the sight of thine eyes ;" and men's wickedness is often styled "walking after the imagination of their own heart :" as doing of sinful actions is called " doing thine own ways," and " finding thine own pleasure ;" and sinning against God is

h

2 Tim. iii. 2. e Ezek. xliii. 8.

b Exod. v. 2.
f Eccles. xi. 9.

c Matt. xxiv. 15.
Jer. xxiii. 17.

d 2 Thess. ii. 4.

h Isa. lviii. 13.

(2.) And as self-will is the root of all sin; so is it likewise the root of misery, both here and hereafter. It being the root of the former, it must needs be so of the latter also; sin and misery being inseparable. And as the happiness of heaven doth consist mainly, as we have showed in the foregoing chapter, in being transformed into the divine image, or the having but one will with God; so, by consequence, the hellish state doth chiefly consist in a perfect contrariety to God, and the soul's opposition to the divine will.

Therefore is the devil a most miserable creature, because he is made up of self-will: because the will of God is most grievous to him, he sets himself against it; and he goes about the world, soliciting and endeavouring to draw others from complying with it: and those with whom he prevails, he, by so doing, makes as miserable as himself.

If there were no self-will, there would be no hell, according to that of St. Bernard; Cesset voluntas propria, et infernus non erit, let self-will cease, and there will be no hell.'

To suppose self-resignation in a damned and miserable soul, and self-will in a happy and glorified one, is to suppose the greatest contradictions and inconsistencies. There can be nothing of selfresignation in hell, and nothing of self-will in heaven.

In speaking to the fourth and fifth considerations, it hath been shown; that it is impossible that those souls should be miserable, which are sincerely and

i Numb, xv. 39.

entirely resigned to the will of God: and, on the contrary, that those souls which will contrary to him, cannot but be miserable. And therefore I shall proceed no further upon this argument.

CHAP. XI.

That the love of Christ, in dying for sinners, makes the duty of self-resignation most highly reasonable; and lays the greatest obligation upon us thereunto.

In the eleventh place; the love of Christ, in dying for us, is most powerful to oblige Christians to this great duty of self-resignation. Christ's giving himself a sacrifice and offering to God in a way of atonement and expiation, layeth the strongest engagement on Christians to offer up themselves as a sacrifice to him in a way of resignation and obedi

ence.

This improvement the apostle makes of this consideration, "The love of Christ constraineth us, because we thus judge; that if one died for all, then were all dead: and that he died for all, that they which live, should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them." What could be more express than this, that " they should not live unto themselves ;" not please themselves, gratify their own self-will and lusts; but please Christ, do his will, give him "the pre-eminence in all things :" that they should not "seek their own," but "the things which are Jesus

a

2 Cor. v. 14, 15.

b Col. i. 18.

Christ's;" not mind and pursue their own ease, profit, and honour, chiefly and above all; but live unto Christ, to his honour and glory, and prefer his interest before their own?

The like inference the same apostle makes, "Ye are bought with a price; (viz. with the precious blood of Christ,") therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." And what is the best way of glorifying God, hath been shown before in chap. 3.

The death of Christ is the great manifestation of his love. By the bitterness of his cup, by the depth of his sorrows and sufferings for us, we may make an estimate of the exceeding height of his dear affection. Behold and see, was there any sorrow like unto his sorrow? and therefore was there any love like unto his love? "Greater love hath no man than this," saith Christ himself, "that a man lay down his life for his friends." But he laid down his life for us, when enemies.

Out of love he left heaven, the bosom of his Father, and the glorious attendance of the angels; and humbled himself to a mean, low, and afflicted life upon earth. Such was "the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for our sakes he became poor, that we through his poverty might be rich."

Out of love he died: he who was "Lord of all,” "the Lord of glory," "the brightness of God's glory, and the express image of his k❝ humperson, bled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross; a death of the greatest

991

e 1 Cor. vi. 20.

h Acts x. 36. i 1 Cor. ii. 8. * Heb. i. S.

f John xv. 13.

1 Phil. ii. 8.