conceit, or gratify his own humour, imagination and fancy, prefer himself before his brethren, be boisterous, tempeftuous and troublesome in the place where he lives. For either this man, notwithftanding his profeffion, is not a chriftian; or else thefe perfons were mistaken that put these characters down in holy fcripture. No certainly, we are not to allow and esteem him a chriftian, that is haughty, arrogant and felf-conceited; for no principle in the world lays fuch ground of modesty and soberness of spirit and temper, as the chriftian religion doth. And nothing is more unnatural to the true fpirit of religion, than a proud and haughty mind; for this of all things is moft fcandalous to it. 'Tis eafter a great deal to bear the fcorn and contempt of the irreligious, than the infoleney, forwardnefs, and felf-conceitednefs of felf-flattering profeffors.

We may, and ought to prefer the modeft, gentle, calm fpirit, that we find in some still and quiet believers, before the arrogant, cenforious, self-aflumer; and have reason to believe, that there is more of God and of the chriftian profeffion in the modeft ftill, quiet fpirit, who makes no noise in the world, who are rather to God than to men; and that they are more noble-fpirited, and better chriftians than the other. I will give you a demonstration of this, because that temper I have been speaking againft, is that which brings a reproach upon chri ftianity. Profeffors of religion are thought to be troublesome to the world, and incendiaries; and where men are proud, arrogant, and selfish, and allow themselves in felf-will, they are fo indeed:

but

but these are not in the higheft form of chriftianity. For divine truth, fublime reason, and tried notions of things, are to be found as the comely ornament of an humble spirit, and in souls fubdued to God. These, and these only, have a right sense of things, and are capable rightly to estimate and judge. A generous notion will not lodge in a haughty, prefumptuous breaft: for these are not cool enough for wifdom to enter into their fouls; for wisdom is the fruit of deep search, and serious confideration; and he that knows moft, thinks he has moft ftill to learn. They are the empty veffels that make the greatest noise. We need no other discovery of conceitednefs than its own expreffion and behaviour; they are always talkative, cenforious, dictating, impofing, felf-admirers. But he that is fincere in religion, can search and discover them : just as one that is a master of his art or science, can detect a pretender, discover a bungler, and fhew his cheats: there is also a nauseousness and fulfomness in the converse with those that are conceited, and full of themselves; they being felf-flatterers, and great admirers of themselves, and highly in love with the fpurious iffue of their own brain; and tho' their notions are imaginary and fantastical, and truly ridiculous to any one that is of any discerning spirit, yet they are importune and troublesome: whereas he that speaks truth in the evidence of reafon, he commands every ear; for man's foul is a-kin to truth, and whatsoever truth doth appear, a man's foul doth greet it as its first and nearest acquaintance. But if it be the prefumption of a conceited VOL. I, brain,

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brain, it cannot be received; and therefore those perfons must be importune and troublesome to faften their notions upon unwilling receivers. Take it for granted, no wife man is fond of any notion, nor given up to any persuasion, so as not willingly to hear of any thing to the contrary. And really, it doth not become any of us to be fond of any notion that we have received, or to be under the pow er of any perfuafion, fo as not to be willing to fubmit it to examination, and to offer it to fevere and impartial fearch; for we are all finite and fallible, and we ought to think we are short and may be miftaken; and if I receive that for truth, which is not fo, I am deceived, and brought into a fool's paradife, and can lay no ftrefs upon it; or if I do, it will fail me. But all truth is connatural, and of fome use and advantage to the foul of man; but if it be a lie, and falfe, which I took for truth though may be faved by the fubftantial truths that otherwife I received; yet fo far forth as I am miftaken fo far forth fhall I be fruftrated, and never the better. Juft as in the cafe of which the apostle speaks, 1 Cor. iii. 12. They that build upon the foundation, wood, hay, stubble, &c. may be faved, because upon the foundation; but their works shall fuffer loss. But why should I not have my understanding be a receptacle for truth? Why should I have any thing that is false there, when I fhall never be the better for it? The moft I can expect is, that God will excufe me, because I am honeft-minded. But it becomes me, if I will do honour to God, and right to my own soul, impartially to examine whatsoever I receive as true in matters of , religion;

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religion; and to commit it to ferious and impartial judgment: And I leave it with you, That no wife man, nor truly good man is fond of any opinion, or addicts himself to any perfuafion, but hath this in the refolution of his mind, that if any opinion be made known to him to be a mistake, he will leave it; and this is inherent to all thofe that are of fober, modeft, meek, and gentle fpirits. But thofe that are haughty and arrogant think too fondly of themfelves, and believe that every body ought to receive their dictates from them: they are indeed too full of themselves, ever to be wife; they think they have attained, and fo are beyond the apoftle, who when he had profess'd his faith of the refurrecti on, faith, not that I have already attained, not that I am already perfect, not that I have already apprehended.

I know there is a great allowance to be given to men's fuppofitions that which a man hath long thought, and imagined, and hath been brought up in, and often put in his prayers, and often propofed to others; it is a hard matter for him to call this into queftion. But if we confider that we may be miftaken, being finite and fallible; it becomes us, at the leaft, to be enquirers after truth, and to have an ear open after information, and to be refolved to follow truth whenever it may appear. But on the other hand, there is no fuch troublesome converse in the world, as the company of one that bolfters himfelf up with the opinion of his religion; but indeed knows not himself. To conclude, the right believer, is most modeft and humble; less rigid, and cenforious; lefs captious and given to take exception

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exception; and fo his converfe and fociety is lefs

offenfive and burdenfome. So far is true religion from doing any harm, or making any disturbance in the common-wealth of mankind; for it is indeed the ornament of a meek and quiet fpirit, which in the hght of God is of great price. 1 Pet. iii. 4. And this for the application, where our apostle profefseth in a high degree his faith of the refurrection, and his refolution to fubdue and fubordinate all things thereunto; for he faith, If by any means I may attain the refurrection of the dead, there he doth immediately fubjoin the expreffions of his humility; the deepest fenfe he hath of his own fhortnefs and fallibility; Not as if I had already attained, or were already perfect not that I think I have already apprehended. How carefully doth he avoid all commendation of himfelf; how doth he decline pride and arrogancy, how far is he from felf-conceitednefs and proud reflection upon himself, from all haughtiness and self-affuming? Where is the most of God there is leaft of felf. This is the first. Where he doth profefs his faith, there he teftifies his humility. Now to the cafe itself, not that I have already attained, or that I am already perfect, or that I have apprehended. In the spiritual state there is more or lefsof ftrength, but not more or less of truth; for the truth of things confifts in an indivifible point; either a man hath true grace, or he hath no grace at all; either he hath real goodness, or no goodness at all; either truly in the ftate of grace or not at all in it; either he hath a true intention, or he doth not mean at all in religi

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