Twenty sermons preached at Oxford before His Majesty, and elsewhere

Consider the particulars of it, he took on him the form of a servant; Was not this a great humiliation? That the second person in the Trinity should stoop so low as to take on him the nature of one, who is not worth the looking on? That he should take dust and ashes upon him. Psalm 113.5, 6. Gods greatness is thus expressed, Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwelleth on high, who humbleth himself to behold the things in heaven, and in the earth: What Humiliation is that? Compare these two humiliations together. It is an humiliation, to cast but his eye upon the Heavens, to look upon the most glorious of all his works, to look upon the Angels, but what is man that thou so regardest him? That thou shouldst not only look upon him, but take him up, and make him an inmate under thine own roof? This is a greater abasement, but here's a further degree, Christ during the time of his pilgrimage was content to deprive himself of his Glory, that he now enjoys. By reason of his Hypostatical Union with the God-head, he deserves all honour and glory, When he brought his first begotten into the world, he saith, And let all the Angels worship him. Heb. 1.6. Every knee bows to him that is thus highly exalted. We see Christ crowned with glory and honour, all Dominion and Power being made subject unto him, yet he for thirty three years and an half was content to be exiled from his Fathers court. ⟨p. 70⟩John. 17.5. Glorify thou me with the glory I had with thee before the world was; Which is expounded in the Proverbs, where the Wisdom of God was shown before the world was framed. Prov. 8.30. Then I was by him as one brought up with him, and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him; this was the work, before the foundation of the World, which God was doing, the Father was glorifying the Son, and the Son was glorifying the Father. The Father took infinite delight in the Son, and the Son took infinite delight in the Father, and the Holy Ghost in them both. To be deprived of such a sight, and such a glory as this, and for thy sake to be banished from that high Court; where not to enjoy that fullness of joy, was an emptying of himself: yet all this he did for thee.