[2.] Secondly, It must be our care to be suspicious of the working of pride in us; and also by an industrious watchfulness to give a stop or check to thoughts of this nature when they arise.
[3.] Thirdly, The conquest of this cannot be expected without a serious and constant labour herein. A humble soul is compared by David to a weaned child, Ps. cxxxi. 2. But a child is not weaned easily. Wormwood must be laid on the breast, and time allowed, before the child will forget it. He only that is content to exercise a discipline upon himself, and by frequent practices to habituate himself to low and careful thoughts, is likely to overcome it.
Pride, we have seen, was Satan’s great engine to bring on presumption. The means by which he endeavoureth to beget pride, as was before noted, were,
[1.] First, The consideration of privileges, as being ‘the Son of God.’ For this expression, ‘If thou art the Son of God,’ is now urged in a sense different from that which it had in the first temptation. There he propounded it as unlikely that he should be the Son of God, and yet be under such a disregard of providence. In this sense it notably suited his design of drawing him to a distrust of God’s care, and consequently of his sonship. Here he is upon a contrary temptation, and therefore propounds this as a thing of which Christ was assured, and from that assurance he thus disputes: ‘Thou believest thou art the Son of God, and dost well depend on his care; therefore needest thou not to distrust thy preservation, if thou castest thyself down.’
[2.] Secondly, To help his confidence forward to the undertaking, he suggests what credit and honour it would be to him, in the sight of all the people, to be so miraculously kept from hurt. Hence note,
Obs. 11. That Satan doth usually kindle and nourish pride, by a perverse confidence of our privileges.
It is very hard for Christians to carry their assurance even: not but that grace in its proper working begets humility, and a watchful care against sin and folly; but such is our infirmity that we are easily drawn to be proud of our mercies, and to persuade ourselves that we may make bold with God because we are his children. Hence was that paradox of Mr Foxe, ‘That his sins did him most good, and his graces most hurt;’ he means, sins occasioned his humility, whereas his graces were apt, through his weakness, to make him proud. And to hide this pride from man, God is forced to keep them sometime from the sight of their assurance, or to discipline them by other temptations, as he did with Paul, lest they should be ‘exalted above measure.’
Note further, Obs. 12. That popular applause Satan finds, and useth accordingly, to be a great instigator to pride.
The great thing that moved the Pharisees in their often fastings and large charity, was that they might have praise of men, and therefore took they care to be seen of men.[426] The heathens noted this to be the great feeder of that humour which animated them, as a drum or trumpet animates soldiers to adventurous acts.[427] And some good men have found no small difficulty to carry steadily, when they have been hoisted up by the breath of men’s praise; which hath also occasioned those serious cautions against the danger of flattery and high commendations, ‘A flattering mouth worketh ruin,’ Prov. xxvi. 28.