Part 1 › Chapter 4 › Part 5 › Signs of Pride in common converse., A Christian Directory by Richard Baxter (1673) | AskReformation

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§. 91. Direct. 10. Look upon the great imperfection of thy grace, and duties. Should that man be¹ proud that hath so little of the spirit and image of Jesus Christ? That believeth no more, and feareth God no more? And loveth him no more? And can no better trust in him, nor rest upon his word and love? Nor no more delight in him nor in his holy laws and service? One would think that the lamentable weakness of any one of all these graces, should take down pride and abase you in your own eyes? Is he a Christian that doth not even abhor himself, when he perceiveth how little he loveth his God, and how little all his meditations on the Love and blood of Christ, and of the infinite Goodness of God, and of the heavenly Glory, do kindle the fire, and warm his heart? Can we observe the darkness of our minds, and ignorance of God, and strangeness to the life to come, and the woeful weakness of our faith, and not be abased to a loathing of our selves? Can we choose but even abhor those hearts that can love a friend, and love the toys and vanities of this life, and yet can love their God no more? That take no more pleasure in his name, and praise, and word, and service, when they can find pleasure in the accommodations of their flesh? Can we choose but loath those hearts that are so averse to God, so loth to think of him, so loth to pray to him, so weary of prayer or holy meditation or any duty, and yet so forward to the business and recreations of the flesh? Can we feel how coldly and unbelievingly we pray, how ignorantly or carnally we discourse, how confusedly and vainly we think and how slothfully we work, and how unprofitably we live, and yet be proud, and not be covered with shame? O for a serious Christian to feel how little of God, of Christ, of Heaven is upon his heart, and how little appeareth in any eminent holiness and fruitfulness and heavenliness of life, is so humbling a consideration, that we have much ado to own our selves, and not lie down as utterly desolate: Should that soul admit a thought of pride, that hath so little Grace as to be uncertain whether he have any at all in sincerity or not? That cannot with assurance ⟨p. 249⟩call God Father, or plead his interest in Christ or in the promises? nor knoweth not if he dye this hour, whether he shall go to Heaven or Hell? Should he be proud that is no readier to dye? and no more assured of the pardon of sin?

§. 91. Direct. 10. Look up•n the great imperfection of thy grace, and duties. Should that man be¹ proud that hath so little of the spirit and image of Jesus Christ? That believeth no more, and feareth God no more? And loveth him no more? And can no better trust in him, nor rest upon his word and love? Nor no more delight in him nor in his holy laws and service? One would think that the lamentable weakness of any one of all these graces, should take down pride and abase you in your own eyes? Is he a Christian that doth not even abhor himself, when he perceiveth how little he loveth his God, and how little all his meditations on the Love and blood of Christ, and of the infinite Goodness of God, and of the heavenly Glory, do kendle the fire, and warm his heart? Can we observe the darkness of our minds, and ignorance of God, and strangness to the life to come, and the woful weakness of our faith, and not be abased to a loathing of our selves? Can we choose but even abhor those hearts that can love a friend, and love the toys and vanities of this life, and yet can love their God no more? That take no more pleasure in his name, and praise, and word, and service, when they can find pleasure in the accomodations of their flesh? Can we choose but loath those hearts that are so averse to God, so loth to think of him, so loth to pray to him, so weary of prayer or holy meditation or any duty, and yet so forward to the business and recreations of the flesh? Can we feel how coldly and unbelievingly we pray, how ignorantly or carnal•y we discourse, how confusedly and vainly we think and how slothfully we work, and how unprofitably we live, and yet be proud, and not be covered with shame? O for a serious Christian to feel how little of God, of Christ, of Heaven is upon his heart, and how little appeareth in any eminent holiness and fruitfullness and heavenliness of life, is so humbling a consideration, that we have much ado to own our selves, and not lie down as utterly desolate: Should that soul admit a thought of pride, that hath so little Grace as to be uncertain whether he have any at all in sincerity or not? That cannot with assurance ⟨p. 249⟩call God Father, or plead his interest in Christ or in the promises? nor knoweth not if he dye this hour, whether he shall go to Heaven or Hell? Should he be proud that is no readier to dye? and no more assured of the pardon of sin?

1Direct. 10.

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§. 92. Direct. 11. Look upon thy great and manifold sins, which dwell in thy heart, and have been ¹committed in thy life, and there thou wilt see cause for great humiliation. If thy body were full of Toads and Serpents, and thou couldst see or feel them crawling in thee, wouldst thou then be proud? Why so many sins are ten thousand fold worse, and should make thee far viler in thy own esteem. If thou were possessed with Devils, and knewest it, wouldst thou be proud? Why Devils possessing thy body are not so bad or hurtful to thee, as sin in thy soul. The sight of a sin should more take down thy pride, than the sight of a Devil. Should that man be proud that hath lived as thou hast lived, and sinned as thou hast sinned, from thy childhood until now? that hath lost so much time, and abused so much mercy, and neglected so much means, and omitted so many duties to God and man, and been guilty of so many sinful thoughts, and so many false or foolish words, and hath broken² all the Laws of God? Should not he be deeply humbled that hath yet so much ignorance, error, unbelief, hypocrisy, sensuality, worldliness, hard-heartedness, security, uncharitableness, lust, envy, malice, impatience and selfishness, as is in thee? Should not thy very Pride it self be matter of thy great humiliation, to think that so odious a sin should yet so much prevail? Look thus on thy leprous defiled soul, and turn thy very Pride against it self? Know thy self, and thou canst not be Proud.

§. 92. Direct. 11. Look upon thy great and manifold sins, which dwell in thy heart, and have been ¹committed in thy life, and there thou wilt see cause for great humiliation. If thy body were full of Toads and Serpents, and thou couldst see or feel them crawling in thee, wouldst thou then be proud? Why so many sins are ten thousand fold worse, and should make thee far viler in thy own esteem. If thou were possessed with Devils, and knewest it, wouldst thou be proud? Why Devils possessing thy body are not so bad or hurtful to thee, as sin in thy soul. The sight of a sin should more take down thy pride, than the sight of a Devil. Should that man be proud that hath lived as thou hast lived, and sinned as thou hast sinned, from thy childhood untill now? that hath lost so much time, and abused so much mercy, and neglected so much means, and omitted so many duties to God and man, and been guilty of so many sinful thoughts, and so many false or foolish words, and hath broken² all the Laws of God? Should not he be deeply humbled that hath yet so much ignorance, error, unbelief, hypocrisie, sensuality, worldliness, hard-heartedness, security, uncharitableness, lust, envy, malice, impatience and selfishness, as is in thee? Should not thy very Pride it self be matter of thy great humiliation, to think that so odious a sin should yet so much prevail? Look thus on thy leprous defiled soul, and turn thy very Pride against it self? Know thy self, and thou canst not be Proud.

1Direct. 11.
2See my Treatise of Selfignorance.

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§. 94. Direct. 13. Look to the day of Judgement, when all proud thoughts and looks shall be taken ¹down, and to the endless misery threatened to the proud. Think of that world in which your souls must ere long appear, before the Great and Holy God whose Presence will abase the proudest sinner. When the Tyrants and Gallants, and Wantons of the Earth, must with trembling and amazement give up their accounts to the most righteous Judge of all the world, then where are their lofty looks and language? Then where is their glory, and gallantry, and proud imperious domineering, and their scornful despising the humble lowly ones of Christ? Would you then think that this is the same man, that lately could scarce be seen or spoken with? that looked so big, and swaggered it out in wealth and honour? Is this he that could not endure a scorn, or to be slighted or undervalued, or plainly reproved? that must needs have the honour and precedency in wit, and greatness, and command? Is this the man that thought he was perfect and had no sin; or that his sins were so small, as not to need the humiliation, renovation and holy diligence of the Saints? Is this the woman that spent half the day in dressing up her self, and house, and furniture, for the view of others, and must needs be in the newest or the neatest fashion? that was wont to walk in an artificial pace, with a wandering eye, in a wanton garb, as if she were too good to tread on the earth? Oh then how the case will be altered with such as these? Can you believe and consider how you must be judged by God, and yet be Proud?

§. 94. Direct. 13. Look to the day of Iudgement, when all proud thoughts and looks shall be taken ¹down, and to the endless misery threatned to the proud. Think of that world in which your souls must ere long appear, before the Great and Holy God whose Presence will abase the proudest sinner. When the Tyrants and Gallants, and Wantons of the Earth, must with trembling and amazement give up their accounts to the most righteous Judge of all the world, then where are their lofty looks and language? Then where is their glory, and gallantry, and proud imperious domineering, and their scornful despising the humble lowly ones of Christ? Would you then think that this is the same man, that lately could scarce be seen or spoken with? that looked so big, and swaggered it out in wealth and honour? Is this he that could not endure a scorn, or to be slighted or undervalued, or plainly reproved? that must needs have the honour and precedency in wit, and greatness, and command? Is this the man that thought he was perfect and had no sin; or that his sins were so small, as not to need the humiliation, renovation and holy diligence of the Saints? Is this the woman that spent half the day in dressing up her self, and house, and furniture, for the view of others, and must needs be in the newest or the neatest fashion? that was wont to walk in an artificial pace, with a wandring eye, in a wanton garb, as if she were too good to tread on the earth? Oh then how the case will be altered with such as these? Can you believe and consider how you must be judged by God, and yet be Proud?

1Direct. 13.

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§. 96. Direct. 15. Look well upon thy self both body and soul, and think whether thou be a person ¹fit for Pride. God hath purposely clothed thine immortal soul, in the course attire of corruptible flesh, and placed it in so poor and ruinous a Cottage, that it might be kept from pride: yea, he made this frail and corruptible body, to be a constitutive part of our very persons, that in knowing it, we may know our selves. Some will have a dead mans skull stand by them, in their Studies or Chambers, as an Antidote against pride. But God hath fastened us yet closer to mortality: Death dwelleth² in our bowels. We are apt to marvel that so noble a soul should be lodged in so mean a body, ⟨image 154⟩made of the earth, to which it must return? A Stone is durable and clean; but my flesh is corruptible, and must turn to loathsome filth and rottenness: A Marble Pillar will stand firm and beautiful from age to age, but I must perish and consume in darkness. The Seats we sit upon, the Pillars we lean to, the Stones we tread upon, will be here, when we are turned to dust. The house that I build, may stand when I am rotten in the Grave: A Tree will live, when he that planted it is dead. Our bodies are of no better materials than the Brutes: Our substance is in a continual flux or waste, and loseth something every day, and if it were not repaired and patched up by daily air and nourishment, it would soon be spent, and our Oil consumed. If you were chained to a dead carcass, which you must still carry about with you, it were not a matter so fit to humble you, as to be united so nearly to so vile a body of your own. We carry a dunghill continually within us: Alas, how silly a piece is the greatest, the strongest and the comeliest of you all? What is that flesh which you so much pamper, but a skin full of corruption? a bag of filth, of flegm or choler or such like excrements? I• the curiousest Dames had but a sight of the flegm in their heads and bowels, the choler about their liver and galls, the worms or fil•h in other parts, they would go near to vomit at such a sight: The Swine or Beast hath as clean an inside: And what if this filth be covered with a whiter skin, or clearer colour than your neighbours have, is there any cause of pride in that? When sickness hath altered and consumed you, then where is that which you called beauty?

§. 96. Direct. 15. Look well upon thy self both body and soul, and think whether thou be a person ¹fit for Pride. God hath purposely clothed thine immortal soul, in the course attire of corruptible flesh, and placed it in so poor and ruinous a Cottage, that it might be kept from pride: yea, he made this frail and corruptible body, to be a constitutive part of our very persons, that in knowing it, we may know our selves. Some will have a dead mans skull stand by them, in their Studies or Chambers, as an Antidote against pride. But God hath fastned us yet closer to mortality: Death dwelleth² in our bowels. We are apt to marvel that so noble a soul should be lodged in so mean a body, ⟨image 154⟩made of the earth, to which it must return? A Stone is durable and clean; but my flesh is corruptible, and must turn to lothesome filth and rottenness: A Marble Pillar will stand firm and beautiful from age to age, but I must perish and consume in darkness. The Seats we sit upon, the Pillars we lean to, the Stones we tread upon, will be here, when we are turned to dust. The house that I build, may stand when I am rotten in the Grave: A Tree will live, when he that planted it is dead. Our bodies are of no better materials than the Brutes: Our substance is in a continual flux or waste, and loseth something every day, and if it were not repaired and patched up by daily air and nourishment, it would soon be spent, and our Oyle consumed. If you were chained to a dead carkass, which you must still carry about with you, it were not a matter so fit to humble you, as to be united so nearly to so vile a body of your own. We carry a dunghill continually within us: Alas, how silly a piece is the greatest, the strongest and the comeliest of you all? What is that flesh which you so much pamper, but a skin full of corruption? a bag of filth, of flegm or choller or such like excrements? I• the curiousest Dames had but a sight of the flegm in their heads and bowels, the choller about their liver and galls, the worms or fil•h in other parts, they would go near to vomit at such a sight: The Swine or Beast hath as clean an inside: And what if this filth be covered with a whiter skin, or clearer colour than your neighbours have, is there any cause of pride in that? When sickness hath altered and consumed you, then where is that which you called beauty?

1Direct. 15.
2Fama est fictilibus caenasse Agathoclea Regem. Atque abacum Samio saepe onerasse lu•o. Fercula gemmatis cum poker•t aurea vasis: Et misceret opes pauperiemque simul Quaerenti causam respondit; Rex ego qui sum Sicaniae, figulo sum g•nitore satus Fortunam reverenter habe, quicunque repente Dives ab exili progrediere loco. Auson. li. Epi. ram.

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And when thou art in sickness, thou wilt be burdensome to others: Its likely thou must have their helps, even to fe•d thee, to dress thee, to turn thee, and keep thee clean: And when all is done thou must dye, and be laid in darkness in a grave! There must thou lye rotting night and day, till thy flesh be turned into earth. The grass doth wither when it is cut down, but yet it is sweet: The Tree that is cut down, will rot in time; but not with such a loathsome stink as we: He that had seen what the late doleful Wars did often show us, when the fields were strewed with the carcasses of men, and when they lay by heaps among the rubbish of the Ditches of Towns and Castles that had been assaulted, would think such loathsome lumps of flesh, should never have been proud. When once death hath deprived thy body of its soul, thy best friends will quickly be weary of the remainder, and glad to rid thee out of sight and smell: Go to the Church-yard, and look on the dust and bones that are there cast up and scattered, and bethink thee whether those that must come to this, have reason to be proud? See whether there be any differing mark of honour upon the dust of the rich, or strong, or beautiful? and whether the bones there strive for principality and dominion? Therefore the desire of adorned Monuments upon mens Graves, is one of the most odious sorts of pride: when the neighbourhood of rottenness and dust doth shame it: As our serious Poet H•• bert saith,

And when thou art in sickness, thou wilt be burdensome to others: Its likely thou must have their helps, even to fe•d thee, to dress thee, to turn thee, and keep thee clean: And when all is done thou must dye, and be laid in darkness in a grave! There must thou lye rotting night and day, till thy flesh be turned into earth. The grass doth wither when it is cut down, but yet it is sweet: The Tree that is cut down, will rot in time; but not with such a lothesome stink as we: He that had seen what the late doleful Wars did often shew us, when the fields were strowed with the carkasses of men, and when they lay by heaps among the rubbish of the Ditches of Towns and Castles that had been assaulted, would think such lothesome lumps of flesh, should never have been proud. When once death hath deprived thy body of its soul, thy best friends will quickly be weary of the remainder, and glad to rid thee out of sight and smell: Go to the Church-yard, and look on the dust and bones that are there cast up and scattered, and bethink thee whether those that must come to this, have reason to be proud? See whether there be any differing mark of honour upon the dust of the rich, or strong, or beautiful? and whether the bones there strive for principality and dominion? Therefore the desire of adorned Monuments upon mens Graves, is one of the most odious sorts of pride: when the neighbourhood of rottenness and dust doth shame it: As our serious Poet H•• bert saith,