| OCR Text |
Show ~3f !668. ~ Chlp. XI. John 1.29. NoCROSS, NoCZ{OWN. Vor.. I. has brought from Heaven, to all the True Dijtiples _of it~ who ,are indeed the Followers of God's Lamb,_ that tak!s nwny rbe Suu of the _nor/d. He· ceive with Meeknefs HU Grat:tous Word mto your fleans, that fubdues the World's Lutts, and leads in the Holy \¥ay to Bleffcdnefs .. Here are Charms C 1 Eye batb Jeen nor Ear bt ttrd, nor Hcnrt pertetvtd, but they are R.~v:;l~d to fuch Humble Converts by His Spirit. Remember you are but Creawres, and th:tt you muft dye, and. after~~~ be Judged. . ~ §. lX. But Perfonnl Pride end's not HJ ]{ohdny of Blood; It lead_s rol~s to a Fond Value PJ their Per{ons, be they Noble ?I Ign~ble_ ; efpe~tally tf the h:Jve any Prcrence to Shape or Bcau~y. It JS adm1rab~e to l~e, hoW mu~h it is poffible for fome to be take~ _wah themfelves, as 1f no~hmg el(e1 deferved their Regard, or t~e Go~d Opmzon of otben. I~ w6uld a oat~ the1 Foil if they could find Jn thetr Hearts t? fpare but Half r.he T1me to thin~' of G 0 D, and their Latter En~, whtch. t~ey ~oft P"rodJgally fpend in Wajbi11g, Perfuming, Painting, Patchz!:~·- .Attmng and Drtj}ing. Itr~~fe Things they are Precife, and very J!.rtifo~al; _and for_ Coft_ they fpaf nor. But th:lt which aggravates tht Evilts, Tbe Pnde of On.~, ".'tght.l ComforJablj fu 1 rbe Need nj Ten. <il101~ ]mpfetp !bat tH~. fD•• a Jl'lB•fOll'~ \9!1De tl)g~tO nOt te fpsteO to II jflatfon'~ \900t I But what is thiS for at bl\! Onl to be Admired, to have Reverence, draw_Love, an~ ;:ot?mand the :Eyel and AffeEHons ofBeho_lde~s. And fo Ftz~tajltcll. ar~ _they 1n tt, as hard~ ly to be pleated too. Nothmg ts Good,! or F1ne, or Falb1onable ~ndugh for {hem : Tbe Sun it felf, the Blejjing OJ Heaven, and C:'mfort. of the Eart~, mufl not jhine upon them left ir Ttm them ; nor the Wmd Blow, for Fear zt Jbould diforderrhem. o'Impious Nicety! Yet while t~ey value !hemielves above all elfe, they make ~hemfelves the J!"tifftdr of tbetr o~~ Pnd~ : Wor~ fuipping their Shape Feature, or Clmzplexzon, whtch foever 15 thetr F,xcel~ lency. The End ol all rvhich, is but to_o often t? excite ¥nla~fut _Love, which I Clll Lufl, and dra~ one _a~other 1_nto as Mifer~bl~ m Ev_d CJ~cum~ ]lances. In Single Perfons It is oftll.Confeque~ce; for tft_t does ~ot awaken Unchafl Dejires, it 1ays no Foundauon for Sohd a_nd La~tng_ Un~on : Want of which, helps to mak~ f~ many unhappy Matrdges tn the Worl~: But in Married People the Sm ts agg_r:1vated; for they have none of RtBht to pleafe, but one an~the; ;_and to ·affeit the Gaiety and V.miry_ vf J011th, is an ill Sign of loving and hvmg well at Home : It looks rather like f?rej}ing for tf. Market. It has fad Effefis in Families; Difcontentt, P(1rtingr, Duels, Poifonings, and other inf~morn Murde;s. ~o ~ge can better tell us tht:: fad Effetls of this S~nt of Pnde, than thts we ~1ve m? as, how exceffive Want": on fo how Fatal it has been to -the Sobrury, Vzrtue, Peace ahd Hea/Jb of Fa'milies ;n this Kingdom. . t · §. X. But I mult needs fay, that of all reaturee, this Sort ofPnde dod leaft become the Old and Homely, if I may call the 111-fovoured nnd Deformed fo . for tl:je Old are proud only .of what they had, Wh1ch lbews to th4ttr Rea pr~ach their Pride hm out·liv•d their Beauty, and, when tbej JboUid be. J Repenr'ing, they are mal\ing Work for Repentance. But the Hcmely are yetworfe. they are proud ot what· th~y never had, nor ever c~~ h~Ve. Nay, their Perfons feem as if they were gtvcn for a Perpetual1fu,mfltanon to their Minds; and to be proud of them, is /ov't!rg fride fo~ Pride's Sdkt, ~lld to be proud without a Temptati~n to b~ proud. And yet m my ~hole Ltfe I have obferv'd nothing more Dotrng on tt felf: A ihange Infatoatton and lnchantment of Pride! What ! Not to fee right wirh. their Eyes, becaufe of the Partiality of their Miods? This Self-Love U Blind indtcd. But to add Ex· pence to the Vanity, and to be Cojlly upon That which can't be mended, one: would think they fhould be down-right Mad; efpecially if they confu!cr that rhey look the Homelier for the Things that are thought Handfom, and do but thereby draw their Deformity more into Notice, by that Which doel fo little become them. . But in fuch Perfons Follies we have a Specimen of JUan; what a Creature Mat. t~. "• he is1n his Lapfe frCJm t!U Primitive lm11ge. All this (as Jefus fJid of Sin ·of li, 19' 20• ?ld) comeJ (rqmw;tbin ~ th:u is, the Dif.reg:trd that Man -and Wornan ha~~ YoL. I· No CROSS, N; CROWN. 33~ ' to rlu: Word of their Crt at or in 'their HeartJ, which fhews Pride and teaches J668 Humility, and Sel~·abafement, an.d directs the Mind to the T;11e Obje{f of ~ lfono11r tmd Worflup; and that wuh an Awe and Reverence fuitable to His Chap XJ Soveraignty and Majefiy, Poor Mortals ! But Living Dirt; made: of what l>eut. 3o. 14.: they rread on ; who, wich all their Pride, cannot fecurc themfelves from Rom. 10. 11. the Spoil of Sicknefs, much lefs from the Stroke of Death. 0! Did People confider the Inconjlonq of all Vifible Things, the Croj1 and Jidve~Je Occur- ;~nces of Man's Life, the Ctrtain_ty of hi_s Departure, and_Eterna_l Judgment, us to be hoped, they would bnng thetr Deeds to Chrift,s Lzghr in their Hear/J, and they would fee if they were wro11ght i11 God or no, as the Be-loved Difciple tells us from His Deat Mafter's Mouth. Art thou Shapely, Joh11, 2o..,, Comely, Beauttful, the exaa Draught of an Humane Creature ? Admire that Power that 11Ulde rbu fo. Live an Harmonious Life to the Curious Make and Frame of thy Creation ; and let the Beauty of thy Body teach rhee to BetJutifo thy Mind with Holinefs, the Ornament of the Bel~vcd of God. Art thou Homely or Deformed? Magnific that Goodnefs which did. not make thee a Beajl, and with the Grate thar is given unto thee, (for it bas appeared un~o JlU) learn to Adorn tby Soul with Enduring Beauty. Re-member, 17Je Kmg of Heaven's Daughter, the Church, (of which True Chrifli- •nlllre Member1) is a!J Glorious •ithin : And if thy Soul excel, thy Bodl will only fet off the Lul\re of thy Mind. Nothing is Homely in Gods Sight but Si"; and that Man and Woman, Th111 Commune with their own Jlearts, and Sin not ~ who in the Light of Holy J E S US, watch over the Movings and Inclinations of their own Souls, and that fupprefs evory Evil in it's Conception, they love the Yoke and Crofs of CHRIST, :1n~ are Daily by it Crucified to the WorJJ, but Live ro G 0 D in that Life w'hicb. out·lives the Fading Satisfaflions of it. cHAP xrr. §. z1. The Cboroaer of n Proud Man : A Glritton upon bimfeif. 1, proMd _h;, Predigree. §. 2. Ht U i•fok•t ai. Jl.!!unlfo•, ht rowvd{!,Jtt Cruel. §' 1· An ill u~1dM~'ft~~':/;!e~=~. \. 47.~Y1J•;::~· 1 ~ri~~ 1:11 ~:it:i!i~. S§. 68. f:':£i: :Prerot.-ive 4Hvt orhm. §. 9• And t4lJ thtm[efvts tbe Oergy : "lklr )ArdUnt[14nd A:vire. §. 10. DtAtb[J»4Uo-,.s dl. §. u. Tit W.g JO tft'le tlkfe Mwib. §. I.TO Conclude this Gre3t Head of flttllt, let· us brieRy fee upon the whole Matter, what is tile Charaaer of a ProMd .Man in himfelf, and in divers Relations ::~nd Capacities. A Proud Man then is a Aind of Glutton upon himfel[;for he is never fatisfied with Loving ::~ndadmi• ring Himfelf; whilft nothing eUe, with him, is worthy either of Love or Care : If good enough to be the Servant of his WiD, 'tis as much as he can find in his Heart to allow: As if he had been only made for himfelf, or ra .. · thet that he had made himfolf. For as he defpifes Man beC3ufe he can· not abide an Equal, fo he does not love God, becaufe h~ would not have a Superior : He: cannot bear to owe his Being to another, lett he fbould thereby acknowledge One above himfelf. He is one that is mighty big wi~h the Honour of his .Anceflon, but not of the Virtue that brought rhern to It; much lefs · will he trouble himfelf to imitate them. He can tell you of his Pedigree, his Antiquity, what Eft au, what Mtucbes; bur for .. gets that they are gone, and that he muft dye too. §. II. But how troubleforn a Companion is Proud Man! E\rer J>9:lkive and Conrrouling; and if you yeild not, lnfolent and Quarrelfom: Yc:t at theUpChot of the Matter, Cowardly: But if fi:rongeft, Cr11el. He has no Bowels of Adverjity, as ifit were below him to be fenfible: He feels no tnore of othet Men's Mifer\es, than if he was no-t a Man, or it was a Sin to 'be fe~fibl~. For not feeling himfdf interefted, he looks no furrber: He will not J,fmntt hi$ Thoughts with ocher Men's lnfclicitlu·: It fhall contc:n1 hi~ chap. xn: ~ |
