Four godly and fruitful sermons two preached at Drayton in Oxford-shire, at a fast,…Foure godlie and fruitful sermons two preached at Draiton in Oxford-shire, at a fast,…

Are you so?¹ you may easily be deceived; and the better conceit you have of your self, the worse you are likely to be: but grant for the time that you excel others in some things, do not they go before you in some other? you have a better government of your tongue than many of your neighbours; but are you not more grossly tainted with covetousness than they are? You have a better gift of chastity than another, but doeth not he less offend in violent distempered passions than you do? and the like might be said in other particulars. If you consider your own goodness and others badness, you may easily grow to think better of your self than of others: but if you would withal set before your eyes their goodness and your own badness, it would happily make you to have a better opinion of them than of your self, and cause you to conclude that (all things considered) their graces are more excellent than yours. But let that be yielded, that you are indeed beyond many others in piety and godliness, ⟨p. 28⟩do you not yet come far short of that which the law requireth? & for those gifts that you have, whence proceeded they? are they not bestowed upon you out of the Lords mere bounty? and if you have received them, why are you puffed up as if you had not received them? If you did aright consider that you are no more worthy of the least blessing of God than the vilest creature in the world, and that not your goodness, but Gods goodness is the cause that you excel others, there would be no place left for over-weening conceits of your self, but you would conclude (as the truth is) that the better you are gifted,² the more you are indebted, and the more talents you have, the more thanks you owe unto God,³ and the more service unto his people. And thus much for the first remedy against pride, which is, to try our selves and our actions by the true touchstone of Gods word.

Are you so?¹ you may easily be deceiued; and the better conceit you haue of your selfe, the worse you are likely to be: but grant for the time that you excell others in some things, doe not they goe before you in some other? you haue a better gouernement of your tongue than many of your neighbours; but are you not more grosly tainted with couetousnes than they are? You haue a better gift of chastitie than another, but doeth not he lesse offend in violent distempered passions than you doe? and the like might be said in other particulars. If you consider your owne goodnes and others badnes, you may easily growe to thinke better of your selfe than of others: but if you would withall set before your eyes their goodnes and your owne badnes, it would happily make you to haue a better opinion of them than of your selfe, and cause you to conclude that (all things considered) their graces are more excellent than yours. But let that be yeelded, that you are indeed beyond many others in pietie and godlines,