selves; and that the scope of it is to cry down self, and set up God in Jesus Christ. It is the very drift and meaning of it from end to end to take down self, and abase men in their own eyes, and bring them home to God from whom they are revolted.

Reason 6. No man can be a Christian or be saved without saving grace.' But no man without self-denial hath saving grace. For it is the nature of every grace to carry man from himself to God by Christ. It is the work of godly sorrow to humble proud man, and break the heart of carnal self. It is the work of faith, for a self-denying soul to pass out for hope and life to Christ. It is the work of love to carry us quite above ourselves to that Infinite goodness which we love. It is the nature of holy fear to confess our guilt and insufficiency, and to suspect ourselves, and dread the fruit of our own ways. Confidence doth bottom us upon God, and hope itself doth imply a despairing in ourselves. Thankfulness doth pay the homage to him that hath saved us from ourselves. And every grace hath self-denial as half its very life and soul. And therefore it is certain that no man hath any more grace than he hath self-denial.

Reason 7. 'They that reject the ministry and the fruit of all the ordinances of God, are not true Christians, and cannot be saved.' But so do all among us that have not selfdenial. For the use of the ministry is to call home sinners from themselves to God. The use of every ordinance of God, is to get or keep down carnal self, and exalt the Lord. Confession is nothing but self-abasing: and he must confess, that will have the faithful and just God to forgive him; for "he that covereth his sin shall not prosper;" 1 Johni. 9. Prov. xxviii. 13. Prayer is a confession of our own empti. ness, insufficiency and unworthiness, and a flying from ourselves for help unto another. In baptism we come as condemned prisoners for a pardon, as it were with ropes about our necks, and strip ourselves of the rags of our filthiness, that by the blood of the Lamb we may be washed from our blood, and our sins may be buried as in the depth of the sea. In the Lord's supper we renew the same covenant, and receive the same renewed pardon; and still fly from ourselves to Christ for life; and renounce our carnal selves by solemn covenant, as a people coming home to God. So that never was any ordinance of God, effectual and saving on

the soul of any, further than it brought them to self-denial, or preserved, exercised or manifested it.

Reason 8. He that can do no work sincerely, nor go one step in the way of life, is no true Christian, nor in a state of life.' But this is the case of all that have not self-denial. For self is their principle, rule and end: and he that hath either a false principle, rule or end, cannot be sincere in any of the means; much less when he is out in all of these. A selfish man is seeking himself in his very religion and is serving himself when he seemeth to be serving God. And indeed he doth not any service sincerely unto God, because he makes not God his end; and therefore cannot be accepted.

Reason 9. No man is a true Christian, or can be saved, that sticks in the depth of his natural misery, in his lapsed state.' But so do all men that have not self-denial; for it is self that they are fallen to, and must be saved from.

Reason 10. No man can be a true Christian and be saved, that is not a member of the holy catholic church, and the communion of saints.' But so are none but the self-denying; for every true member of the church hath a public spirit, preferring the church's interest to his own, and suffering with fellow-members in their suffering, and having a care of one another; 1 Cor. xii. 25, 26. But the self-seeking unsanctified person is a stranger to this disposition.

Reason 11. He that is led by the greatest enemy of God and his own soul, is not a true Christian, nor in a state of life.' But so is every man that hath not learned to deny himself. For self is the greatest enemy of God and us. Escape but your own hands and you are out of danger. All the devils in hell cannot destroy you, if you would not be your own destroyers.

Reason 12. Lastly, 'It is a plain contradiction to be saved without self-denial.' For as it is self that we must be saved from both as our end and means and greatest enemy, so to stick in self is still to be lost and miserable, and therefore not to be saved. So that the case is as plain as a case can be, that no man can be a true Christian or disciple of Christ without self-denial; and consequently none without it can be saved. I have been the briefer upon the arguments, because the matter of some of them may come to be more fully opened anon in the application.

CHAPTER III.

Use 1. A general Complaint of the Prevalency of Selfishness.

IV. AND now we have seen from the words of Christ the absolute necessity of self-denial, and that there is no true Christianity nor salvation without it, let us next take a view of ourselves and of the world, and judge of our condition by this certain rule.

Look well into yourselves, and into the world, and tell me whether you find not cause to lament, 1. That true Christianity is so rare a thing, even among the professors of Christianity, seeing self-denial is so rare. 2. That grace is so weak and small in the most of the regenerate, seeing selfdenial is so little and imperfect.

O! if the name of Christians would prove us Christians, and the magnificent titles we give to Christ would prove that we are his true disciples; if reading, and hearing, and outward duties, and a cheap religiousness would serve turn, we have then great store of Christians among us! If Christ would have left out this one point of self-denial from his laws and conditions of salvation, what abundance of disciples would he have had in the world! and how many millions might have come to heaven, that now must be shut out! It is this point that hindereth all sorts of heathens and infidels from being Christians. The Jews will believe in no Christ but one that will restore their temple and outward glory, and make them great, and rulers of the world; and therefore they will not be the servants of that Christ that calleth them to the contempt of all these things, and of life itself, for the hopes of an invisible kingdom. The Mahometans had rather believe in Mahomet that giveth them leave to please their lust, than in Christ that calleth them to mortification and self-denial, and tells them of nothing but suffering and patience, duty and diligence, till they come into another world: the idolatrous heathens abhor Christianity, when they hear how much they must do and suffer, and all for a reward in the life to come. It is an informing instance that Pet. Maffæus gives us in his Indian History of the first king of Congo that was baptized: he quickly received the articles of faith, and the form of worship, and the outside

and cheaper part of religion; and so did many of his nobles and followers; but when he was called to confession, and understood that he must leave his gluttony, and drunkenness, and whoredom, and oppression, and inordinate pleasures, he would be a Christian no more; his nobles persuading him that the forsaking of all his mirth, and pleasure, and delights of the flesh, and taking up so strict a life, was too dear a price to pay for the hopes of a life to come; and it was better keep the pleasure they had, and put another life to the venture: and thus Christianity had been quickly banished that kingdom again, if it had not taken deeper rooting in his son and heir Alphonsus, and made him venture his crown and life for the sake of Christ. And thus is it at the heart with the most, even of baptized persons, and those that take themselves to be Christians: because it is the religion of the country, and they are taught that there is no salvation without it, they will be baptized and be called Christians, and say their prayers, and come to church, and say they believe in God the Father, Son and Holy Ghost, and they will go as far with you in religion as they can without denying themselves; but for the rest, which is the life and truth of Christianity, they will not understand it, or believe that it is of such necessity: God forbid,' say they, 'that none should be Christians and be saved, but those that thus deny themselves, and take up their cross and forsake all they have, and accept not life itself from Christ.' They say they believe in Christ, and yet they say, ' God forbid his word should be true;' or, God forbid we should believe Christ that hath spoken this in the Gospel!" See what kind of Christians multitudes are! Every man and woman on earth that take themselves for true Christians, and yet do not deny themselves, even life and all for the sake of Christ and the hope of everlasting glory, are mere self-deceivers, and no true Christians at all. "He that will save his life," saith Christ," shall lose it;" that is, he that in his coming to Christ, and covenanting with him, will put in an exception for the saving of his life, and will forsake all for Christ if he be put to it, except life itself, this man is no true disciple of Christ, and shall be so far from saving his life, that he shall lose both heaven, and life, and all; and the justice of God shall take from him that life which he durst not resign to the will of mercy; and he shall lose that

for nothing, which he would not lose for Christ and heaven. It is impossible for that man to be Christ's disciple, that loveth his life better than Christ and the hopes of the life everlasting; Matt. x. 37, 38. Luke xiv. 26, 27.33. Some self-denial there may be in the unsanctified: many of them would leave a little pleasure or profit rather than be damned; and many had rather suffer a little, than venture upon eternal sufferings. But I beseech you remember that this is the lowest degree of self-denial that is saving, to set more by Christ and the hopes of glory, than by all this world and life itself; and to be habitually resolved to forsake life and all, rather than to forsake him. No less than this is proper self-denial, or will prove you Christians and in a state of life. This was the trial that Christ put one to, that had thought to have been his disciple; "Yet lackest thou one thing; sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven, and come, follow me ;" Luke xviii. 22. Not that every man must actually sell all, but every man must set more by heaven than all, and therefore part with all when Christ would have him; and he that is not thus resolved, let him go never so far in all other things, doth yet lack "one thing," and such a "one thing" as he shall never be saved without. For the meaning of the text is, that Christ would try by this command, whether he set more by any thing than him, and whether he set more by heaven or earth; and so would have us all to judge of ourselves by the same evidence within, though he put not all on the same way of discovering it. Many a man can deny self the superfluities of pleasure, and as this rich man did, can avoid enormous crimes, and say of whoredom, and theft, and drunkenness, and oppression, and gross deceit, "All these have I avoided from my youth." Education may moderate some selfish desires, and natural temper may further that moderation; and custom, and good company, and holy precepts may yet do more; and wit may teach men to do or suffer somewhat rather than to run on the wrath of God; and therefore many thousands may deny self the pleasure of some inordinate lust, or of some recreation, or excess in meat or drink, and yet be far from denying life and all, and so from the true self-denial of a Christian: nay, a man may deny self for self in many particulars, and so may please self more than he denieth it. Many a civil ingenuous gen