A Treatise of Self Denial by Thomas Manton

Author:Thomas Manton
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Published: 2010-12-10T12:48:10+00:00

God the Highest Lord - Denying Self-will

I now come to speak to that branch of denying, self-will.

As God is the supreme lord and law-giver, so we are to deny our self-will. Now our submission to God is double, to his laws, and to his providence; we submit to his laws by holiness or obedience; we submit to his providence by patience.

First, We submit to his laws by obedience. Our will is to give place to the will of God: Col. 4.12, 'That you may be perfect and complete in all the will of God.' This was the prayer of Epaphras, and this should be the aim of every christian, to bring his will to a perfect conformity to the will of God.

1. I shall show the difficulty of this part of self-denial.

2. Give some motives to enforce it.

3. Give some rules, which may serve both for direction and trial.

First, For the difficulty of this part of self-denial; that will appear if we do but consider -

1. That man's will is the proudest enemy that Christ hath on this side hell, it resisteth Christ in all his offices. In his kingly office and reign: Luke 19.14, 'We will not have this man to reign over us.' God hath set up Christ as king, and the world votes it in the negative - ' We will not have this man.' The great contest between us and God is, whose will shall stand, God's or ours. The soul cannot endure to hear of another king and another sovereign, because it affects a supremacy, and it cannot endure that any should lord it over us: Ps. 12. 4, 'Our tongues are our own; who is lord over us?' Man would have the command of his own actions. A proud creature cannot endure to hear of fetters and restraints. The rebellion of the world against Christ was 'to cast away his bands and cords,' Ps. 2; so Jer.2.31, 'We are lords, we will not come at thee.' They would be absolute, and without God. This is so rooted in our nature that Satan, when he sets heretics at work, he puts them upon holding out this bait of worldly liberty and freedom from the reign and sovereignty of God: 2 Peter 2. 18, 'They promise liberty, but are themselves servants of corruption.' The great rage and tumult of the world is to break the bands and cords, and to loosen us from our obedience to God. The proud will of man cannot endure to hear of an higher lord; this hindereth his reign in the heart, and slighteth the offers of his grace: John 5.40, 'You will not come to me, that you might have life.' Christ comes with riches of grace, and desires entertainment, and we neglect him, and are taken with the basest creatures. If a king should come to a subject's house and desire entertainment, and he should neglect him, and talk with base fellows, this were a mighty affront put upon him.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.