CXLV expository sermons upon the whole 17th chapter of the Gospel according to St.…

Lastly, The grievousness of this sin doth appear in the immediate contrariety and opposition it hath to Christ and the Gospel of grace; There is no sin doth so formally and immediately reject Christ as a Mediator, as this selffulnesse and self-righteousness, as we may see by our Saviour and the Pharisees; That which kept them from Christ was their self-justification; They thought they had a Righteousness of their own which made our Saviour call them Blessed that did hunger and thirst after Righteousness, That were heavy laden and burdened; And indeed Reason will tell us that a false Righteousness set up against the true, is more dangerous then open and plain sins, and Christ must needs be more jealous of such a person; Seeing therefore that God requireth a Righteousness there must be a Righteousness procured, and this of Christs can only be satisfactory, it is an high sin to set up thy Absalom King instead of this David; Thou dost in effect say, All that Christ did it was needless, it was in vain, for thou hast a Righteousness of thy own works thou wilt trust to, and never think to wash thy self from this sin, because by thy words thou speakest the clean contrary: There is none that professeth Christ will grossly and palpably own his works for Justification, but there is an inward secret tickling of heart and confidence because of them, so that God only can charge this sin upon men, for he knoweth and trieth the hearts and reins of men: But thus you will say, If this Self-righteousness and trusting in what we do be in some sense worse then all the gross sins that are committed, how should we become convinced of it, and so forsake it? Oh that we could tell how to get this Ivy from cleaving thus to us, lest it consume all that is within us: Now the ready and only way for a man to be driven out of this self-righteousness is,

Lastly, The grievousnesse of this sinne doth appear in the immediate contrariety and opposition it hath to Christ and the Gospel of grace; There is no sinne doth so formally and immediatly reject Christ as a Mediatour, as this selffulnesse and self-righteousnesse, as we may see by our Saviour and the Pharisees; That which kept them from Christ was their self-justification; They thought they had a Righteousnesse of their own which made our Saviour call them Blessed that did hunger and thirst after Righteousnesse, That were heavy laden and burthened; And indeed Reason will tell us that a false Righteousnesse set up against the true, is more dangerous then open and plain sinnes, and Christ must needs be more jealous of such a person; Seeing therefore that God requireth a Righteousnesse there must be a Righteousnesse procured, and this of Christs can onely be satisfactory, it is an high sinne to set up thy Absalom King instead of this David; Thou dost in effect say, All that Christ did it was needlesse, it was in vain, for thou hast a Righteousnesse of thy own works thou wilt trust to, and never think to wash thy self from this sinne, because by thy words thou speakest the clean contrary: There is none that professeth Christ will grosly and palpably own his works for Justification, but there is an inward secret tickling of heart and confidence because of them, so that God onely can charge this sinne upon men, for he knoweth and trieth the hearts and reins of men: But thus you will say, If this Self-righteousnesse and trusting in what we doe be in some sence worse then all the grosse sinnes that are committed, how should we become convinced of it, and so forsake it? Oh that we could tell how to get this Ivy from cleaving thus to us, lest it consume all that is within us: Now the ready and onely way for a man to be driven out of this self-righteousnesse is,