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EVANGELICAL 
 
 PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE: 
 
 BEING 
 FOURTEEN 
 
 S E R M O N S, 
 
 PREACHED IN THE PaRISH-ChURCH OF 
 
 St. MARY MAGDALEN in OXFORD. 
 
 TO WHICH IS ADDED, 
 THE 
 
 COMMU N ICANT' s 
 
 SPIRITUAL COMPANION. 
 
 Q-R, AN 
 
 EVANGELICAL PREPARATION 
 
 FOR TKE 
 
 L O R D's SUPPER. 
 
 I. The Nature of the Ordinance is shewn. 
 11. The Dispositions requisite for a profitable Participation tlaereof. 
 
 ^lEDITATIONS and HELPS for PRAYER> 
 
 SUITABLE TO THE SUBJECr. 
 
 By the Reverend THOMAS HAWEIS, 
 
 Late of St. Mary Magdalen-Hall, Oxford ; and Chaplain to the Right Hoa. 
 the Earl of Petcrborocc. 
 
 NEWBtJllY^ORT: 
 
 PRINTED BY ED.MUND M. BLUNT, NO, 8^ 6TATE-STKEE' 
 
 1803. 
 
PREFACE, 
 
 THE follorcing Discourses' arc sait hito the 
 zvorld, to obviate the manifold vmcona'l) 
 tio?is and misrepresentations zvhick the author ql 
 them has lain under. As they contain all the 
 grand points qfchristianitj/, and are a faith] ul 
 "epitome ^of all the author s preaching, thei/ will 
 best serve to declare ivhat those doctrines are, 
 XV Inch, as a minister of the gospel, he has thought 
 it his dutij to inculcate. Being thankful that he^ 
 xcas educated in the communion of the church of 
 England, he is much more so, that in the same 
 he hath been called to the honour of ministei-ing^ 
 in holy things. Her only authentic standard of 
 doctrine, exhibited in her articles and homilies, 
 ivhich he was required solemnly to subscribe, he 
 professes himself to be conscientiously attached 
 to, from a real persuasion that they contain the 
 solid truths of God's ivord. Hozi) carefully he 
 hath followed that form of sound words, a com- 
 parison of the ensuing discourses with tliose ar- 
 ticles and homilies icill best determine. 
 
 As by the Royal declaration prefived to the ar- 
 ticles he is forbidden, so he presujnes not to take 
 them in anij sense but that zvhick a literal and 
 grammatical construction qf them imports ; and 
 he knocvs no authority by which any 'minister of 
 the cliurch of En o land l-an indulge himself in^ a^ 
 greater latitude of interpretation: 
 
 As the author cannot but regard siihscriptions 
 as bringing the soul under the deepest obliga- 
 tions to sincerity before the great Searcher oP 
 hearts, ?iv//arequireth truth iii'the inward parts, 
 he cannot think qf those xvho in anij degree allow 
 themselves to trifle or prevaricate therewith, btit 
 
3V PREFACE. 
 
 as of men devoid of conscience toxvards God, and 
 of honesty toxvards man. 
 
 That the reader may have some general notion 
 beforehand ofxvhat he is to expect, the folloxcing 
 abstract of the ensuing discourses is laid before 
 him. 
 
 The Divinity of the Son and Spirit, co-eternal 
 and co-equal xvith the Father, not the idol-mon- 
 ster of inferior divinity, is here rnaintained, in 
 full opposition to the Arian and Semi-Arian ; 
 xvhose blasphemy, though more specious^ is not 
 less real than the more avoxved and ope7i .blas- 
 phemy of the Socinian, •^- 
 
 The maintainers of the doctrine of the recti- 
 titde of human nature, and the freedom of mans 
 choice to good as to evil, zvill find these proud 
 imaginations attacked, he hopes laid loxv to the 
 ground, even in the dust, by the sword "of the 
 Spirit, which is the word of God. The sti^ong 
 evidences of a fallen and cormipted nature, xvith 
 its dire effects, are produced and confirmed ; and 
 the inability of man in his fallen state to any 
 thing but evil, clearly, he trusts, made manifest. 
 
 The extent, purity, and spirituality of God^s 
 laxv are laid open, that the conscience may dis- 
 cover and feel its transgressions against it. TJie 
 eternal obligation of this laxv is shexvn ; its aw- 
 Jul sanctions declared ; the impossibility of obey - 
 ing it as a covenant of life evinced ; and conse- 
 quently the conviction of our state, as a state of 
 helpless guilt, evidenced. 
 
 The one great, glorious arid all- sufficient obla- 
 tion of the Son of God for the sins of thexvorld, 
 as a true and real sacrifice, atonement and pro- 
 pitiation, is pleaded for ; its necessity and injlu- 
 ence proved ; and the various blessings obtained 
 for sinners thereby, set fort h.^ 
 
 Faith, as the only means of justification and 
 
PREFACE. ^ 
 
 acceptance rcith God, is pleaded for, from con- 
 side rations demonstrating the impossibilitij of 
 righteousness before God any other xvaij. And 
 as Tiorks of any sort are not admitted as the con- 
 dition of our pardon and acceptance zvith God, 
 the position that ice are justiikd by. faith Qnly, 
 is maintained and vindicated. 
 
 The icorks of piety and virtue which become 
 n^eu professing godliness, are at large opened, 
 and the necessity of tUem enforced, from the on- 
 ly true principle 0/ faith which worketh by lot'e. 
 TJte Aniinomian blasphemy is rebuked and cen-- 
 sured. 
 
 Finally, The means of grace are strongly ur- 
 ged, and the diligent us-e of- them shezvn to be the 
 only method of obtaining advancement in the di- 
 vine rfe. 
 
 The blessedness of the religion of Jesus con- 
 cludes the. zvhole, as the natural result of the 
 principles and practice above recomjnended. 
 
 These are the grand outlines of the following 
 Sermons ;. and as they are the most essential mat- 
 ters which relate to salvation, they deserve a se- 
 rious and attentive per:u:<uL 
 
 The gospel of Christ atone is the power of God' 
 unto salvation ; and though vumy among our- 
 selves have arisen speaking perverse things, as 
 if avian, zchatever xcere his opinions, provided he 
 was sincere in them and walked conscientiously 
 according to them, was iit a state oj safety ; yet 
 the rvord of God seems to speak differently, that 
 there is salvatioii .in no name but that of Jesus. 
 And our lie formers xvere 7wi: afraid of tlte cen- 
 sure of uncharitableness, xchen they denounced a: 
 curse upon the main tainers of so latitudinarLatu 
 an. opinion. 
 
 \ ^• 
 
 X. 4. L -J-. 
 
vi PREFACE. 
 
 It IS earnestly to he xvished, that exery man 
 Zi'liO is called a lover of truth may read without 
 ■prejudice, and judge zvith candor. As the great 
 Searcher of hearts knoxvs the design of these xvrit- 
 ings, they are by earnest prayer commended to 
 his blessing ; a?id should they prove themeaiis of 
 bringing but one soul to the knozvledge of Jesus^ 
 and obedience to the truths this labour of love 
 zvill be aniply repaid. 
 
 Remember f Reader^ that axiful day xvhich is 
 7iear, even at the door, zvhen thou must answer 
 for having seeti, and I for having written these 
 Discourses : Happy zvill it be, if we may then 
 together give in our account zvith joy ajid 7iot 
 *with sorrow. 
 
 October 20, 1752^ 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 cERMON I. Of Man's State of Innocence. Gen. 1.26. i<nd God Page 
 " said, Let us make man in our oim image, after our Likenesi, 
 SERMON II. Of the Corruption of human Nature. Rora. v. 18. Bij 
 
 the offence of one, judgment eame uj>on all men to condemnation, .3 
 
 SFRMONS III IV. V. The Dcceitfulness and Corruption of the Heart. 
 JeS 9 T;;Aeart is deceitful above allthings,and desperately wM,^ ^^ 
 uilw can know it ? 
 SERMON VI. The Spirituality of God's Law. Gal. iii. 10. Cursed is 
 7:^yLtLt contiZeth not in all things v>hich are written vc the b.ok ^^ 
 of the law to do them, 
 SERMON VII. The Penalty of Disobedience. Gal. iii. 10. Closed is 
 ™ i«e\Lt continueth not in all things which are written ^Hthe booh ^^ 
 of the law to do them, 
 SRRMON VIII. Redemption by Jesns Christ. Gal. iii. 13. Christ hath 
 
 redeemed vsfrom the curse of the Law, being mad^ a curse for us. lU 
 
 SERMON IX. Salvation by Grace; Eph. ii. &. Far bygrjceare ye saved, 
 
 throucrh faith, and that not of yourselves ; it is the gijt of God, 128 
 
 SERMON X. On the Nature of true Holiness. Eph. ii. 10, For we are 
 tuwofhnanshiy, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, ^htch God 
 hath before ordained that we should tvalk m thevi, a"*-^ 
 
 SERMON XI. The FruKs of the Spirit. Eph. v. 9. For the fruit of the 
 
 Spirit is in all goodness, and righteousness, 1J»^ 
 
 SERMON XII. The Necessity of personal Holiness. Heb. xii. 14. ^^^^ 
 ; holiness no man shall see the Lord, 
 
 out 
 
 SERMON XIII. The Means of Holiness. 2 Pet. i. 10. Give diligence to 
 make your calling and election sure, ^^ 
 
 SFRI^ION XIV. The Blessedness of the Righteous. Prov. xii. 28. In 
 the way of righteousness is life, and in the path-way thereof there ts no^^^ 
 death, 
 
 The COMMUNICANT'S SPIRITUAL COMPANION. 
 
 INTROBUCTION, f^^ 
 
 CJHAP. I. Of the nature qf a Sacrament, 'v 
 
 GHAP. II. An Jnvitationko the Communion, .if^ 
 
 CHAP. III. SelfrExamination a necessary Duty before x.e come to the^^^^ 
 
 262 
 
 m^^Av.^Znsideration^ proper at the time of the celebration of the 
 
 €HrP.'\^.X;ctio,zs./.r theCommuniCixnrs daily walk with God after ^^^^ 
 receiving the Lord's Supper, g^^ 
 
 CHAP. VI. Dirccti'r.isfor Frayer, 
 
Mil 
 
 CO\T£NTS, 
 
 A Prayer, 
 
 Against Pride, 
 Ai?ainst Lust, 
 
 1. Under a sense of guUt 
 
 I' S'' f" '''''^'"^' of corruption,- 
 
 TT ^ & ^'''"^'''' 'I^^-^*^". 
 yfr ^^^'^^^■"^O'- file Love of God, 
 II L Prayer for the Fear of God, 
 iV. A Prayer for Charity, 
 
 V L Prayer for Zeal, " 
 Inierccs.ions general and partidalar, 
 rn uri-h'*^'*^ tlie Lords Supper, 
 
 II. 
 
 ■ m. 
 
 ■ IV. 
 
 ■ \\ 
 
 VL 
 VIL 
 VIIL 
 IX. 
 
 X. 
 
 XL 
 
 • XIL 
 
 • XlfK 
 
 xi\-. 
 
 ; xy. 
 
 Subjects for -Meditation, 
 ••lie Conclusion^ 
 
 Pao;e 
 2V6 
 SV9 
 300 
 ib. 
 
 302 
 
 ib. 
 
 ib. 
 
 503 
 
 vib 
 
 304 
 ib. 
 
 ib. 
 
 306 
 
 ib. 
 
 307 
 
 309 
 
 212 
 
 StS 
 
 314 
 
 3L'5 
 
 3i6 
 
 317 
 
 318 
 
 3t9 
 
 3i0 
 
 522 
 
 323 
 
 324> 
 
 3'2ri 
 
 326 
 
 31'8 
 
 329 
 
 330 • 
 
 33£ 
 
SERMON I. 
 
 OF xAIAX'S STATE OF INNOCENCE. 
 
 Genesis I. 26. 
 
 AND GOD SAID, LET US MAKE MAN IN OUR IMAGE, 
 AFTER OUR LIKENESS. 
 
 That man once enjoyed a state of greater 
 moral rectitude than he doth at present, was an 
 opinion universally received in the heathen world. 
 Their poets describe this happy state as favoured 
 with the visits of their gods, as distinguished 
 with the highest simplicity of manners, as blessed 
 with the spontaneous productions of the earth, 
 and ahounding with universal peace and joy ; 
 from which concurring circumstances of fehcity 
 they have given it the title of "The golden age." 
 Corrupted as their relations are, they plainly in- 
 dicate the source from whence originally they 
 arose; and amidst all the dark shades of igno- 
 rance and error some bright strokes of tradition- 
 ary truth remain. For that man came not from 
 the hand of his Creator the deformed and wretch- 
 ed creature he now appears, is certain : and we 
 are no longer left to vague traditions and uncer- 
 tain conjectures about it, hut enjoy from the 
 mouth of him, whose hand fashioned and formed 
 us, the account of his own workmanship. 
 
 The creation of the heavens and the earth, 
 with all their hosts, by the Almighty Jiat, is in 
 the preceding verses with the most sublime sim- 
 plicity and brevity declared to US ; wbeii; to grace 
 
1 Of Man's State of Innocei^ce. 
 
 their new creation, and as the last stroke of in- 
 iinite Misdoni, power and love, consultation i. 
 Held between the divine persons, {CUn \ oq ) 
 and man IS the result of it: Man, to be "created 
 m the image of God, as his representative and 
 vicegerent here below, and as the head of the 
 ^vhole family on earth, by whom tiiey should 
 render unto their great Creator due homage and 
 adoration. ^ 
 
 • 'i ^}? spake and it wasdone r for will and deed 
 witli God continually coexist. Beliold then the 
 i^ian ! created after the image of God :" adorn- 
 €d with every perfection of mind and body the- 
 naturehe possessed was capable of; and receiv- 
 ing the divme approbation, pronouncing him 
 
 y^ry good.'' (Gen. h 31J 
 ^ This happy state of man, though but of short 
 duration, well deserves our consideration. Wheth^ 
 er to affect our hearts in the view of what we 
 are, compared with what we were designed to 
 be, or to endear to us the Redeemer, tiic se- 
 cond man from heaven, ordained to be the re- 
 pan-er ot the breach the fall hath made ; or 
 iinally to make us long after the restoration of 
 this original righteousness in part below, and to 
 Avait in hope for the fulness of it above ; when 
 our Redemption obtained for us and begun on 
 earth shall be completed in heaven. 
 
 I shall endeavour therefore, agreeable to the 
 words chosen. To set before you some views of 
 man such as he was originally created : Shew 
 you the blessing and felic'ity he enjoyed : Indi- 
 cate the cause of his departure froni it ; and how 
 we arc affected thereby. 
 
 " God made man upright," (Eccles. vii. oq ) 
 his own image M'as stamped upon him, as far as 
 his nature could be he was a faithful mirror, re-, 
 ilecting- the wisdom, righteousness, and holinc^ 
 
Of Man's State of Innocence. 1 1 
 
 of his Creator. Cod's great design in all his 
 works is the manifestation of his own glory. 
 Cod's glory is then manifested when the thing 
 formed answers exactly the end for which lie 
 created it. All the creatures in their place and 
 state, from the highest archangel to the lowest 
 of rational heings, are therein, by the law of 
 their nature as dependents, called upon to fash- 
 ion themselves after the rule prescribed by their 
 great Original. They are then perfect in their 
 generation when they do so, and God is glorifi- 
 ed in them. Man in innocence was thus " per- 
 fect and entire, lacking nothing :*' his heart 
 had written upon it the approbation of God's 
 will, and possessed a disposition to obey in 
 whatever particulars itmight be revealed to him ; 
 so that in general the whole frame of his nature 
 exactly coincided with the rule of his duty. 
 
 But to take a more minute survey of his situa- 
 tion. 
 
 I. Of his intellectual powers. God in creat- 
 ing the iirst man after his own image, " created 
 him in knowledge." {Coloss. iii. 10.) 
 
 His natural knowledge of the world in which 
 he was placed, and all the things and creatures 
 around him, was no doubt most exact and com- 
 prehensive. A specimen of which we have im- 
 mediately after his creation, when '' God brought 
 unto Adam every beast of the field, and every 
 fowl of the air, to see what he would call tlicm ; 
 and whatsoever Adam called Q\<i\Y living crea- 
 ture, that was the name thereof." {Gen. ii. I9.) 
 But this was the least considerable part of his 
 knowleda'e. 
 
 . He had the clearest knowledge of God liim- 
 ?.€i^, as the author of his being, '' in whom he 
 lived and moved ;" of the brig-ht perfections of 
 the Jehovah, who had made'all things around 
 
12 Of Man's State of Innocence. 
 
 him to cry aloud, and proclaim his wisdom, 
 grace and power, and of the peculiar obligations 
 lying upon him, not only as a dependent subject, 
 but as a favoured child ; in whom therefore the 
 constraints of love united with the bonds of du- 
 
 He had the most perfect views of the rule of 
 his obedience. Knowledge must precede obedi- 
 ence. Where no law is, there is neither trans- 
 gression nor obedience. Where no knowledge 
 is, the law cannot bind. And perfection of obe- 
 dience can only follow from perfect views of 
 the rule prescribed and conviction of the obli- 
 gation to obey. But this the first man had, and 
 he knew also that the laws he was under were 
 not merely arbitrary commands, but in them- 
 selves most holy, just and good, fit for God to 
 enjoin, and meet for him to obey, resulting 
 from the very relation they bore to each other ; 
 and withal that to submit to these laws was per- 
 fect freedom, his own happiness arising from the 
 exactness of his conformity to them. 
 
 2. Of his moral powers. These corresponded 
 with the intellectual. Whatever his understand- 
 ing proposed as fit, his will readily consented 
 to. God had written his law, not as afterwards 
 on tables of stone, but deeper on the fleshly ta- 
 bles of his heart. In this disposition to righte- 
 ousness and true hoHness did his likeness to God 
 especially consist. 
 
 The excellence and perfection of obedience 
 depends on the full and free choice and approba- 
 tion of the will. Hence after the first sin man's 
 unrighteousness appears, and consists most in 
 the alienation of his will from God. This in 
 its original was as exact a copy of God's will, as 
 the impression on the wax is of the correspond- 
 ing seal ; and it followed invariably, as the 
 
Of Mans State of Innocence, 1 3 
 
 needle cloth the pole, the manifestation of duty 
 which God revealed. His will was not formed 
 and set merely in a state of equal freedom to 
 choose the good and refuse the evil ; nor rested 
 in an iudifierence to either ; (for this would 
 have heen in itself faulty, as God's service to a 
 will rightly constituted can never appear a mat- 
 ter of indifference and indetermination ;) but it 
 was habitually inclined to good, and averse to 
 evil : so that whilst yet the power of falling re- 
 mained, its natural bent was fixed intensely in 
 obedience to the divine commands. No neces- 
 sity indeed impelled it. For what glory could 
 have arisen to God from service constrained and 
 -necessary ? Or what obedience, properly so call- 
 ed, could man have shewn, if fate, not choice, 
 had determined his conduct ? The freedom of 
 his service was that wherein he was to answer 
 the end of his creation. Hence arose the mu- 
 tability of his state ; though free to stand, yet 
 free to fall. Yet not so free to fall as stand ; 
 M^hilst all things within and without him 
 conspired to engage his heart to God, and 
 to fix unwavering his choice on that which was 
 ordained his duty, 
 
 3. His affections, passions, and all the inferior 
 faculties of the soul, were framed in due sub- 
 serviency to the great design, as so many ready 
 servants to execute what reason dictated, and 
 the will approved. 
 
 Thus the entire soul of man was then the 
 habitation of the Deity. He daily beheld, what 
 he required, the universal servfce paid him. 
 These passions, now become so turbulent and un- 
 ruly, each ministred in humble subjection before 
 the Lord. Love stood before the altar, and pour- 
 ing on the sacred incense, kept up the hallow- 
 B 
 
1 4 Of Man's State of Innocence. 
 
 ed flame. Hatred of sin (for yet no other 
 ground of hatred was known) hatred of sin 
 guarded every avenue of the temple, and kept 
 the gates that nothing might enter which de- 
 fileth or maketh unelean. Hope hfted up her 
 hands and eyes to heaven, and shewed, by the 
 intenseness of her countenance, where her anchor 
 iixed. Fear, with reverential awe, bowed down 
 before the sanctuary, where yet no veil had hid 
 the presence of the Deity. Joy told its raptures 
 inhosannas of neverceasing praise ; and sought 
 on earth to join those songs which beings of 
 superior excellence poured forth before the throne 
 «')f God. Whilst memory unfolded the volume 
 of divine mercies, and stood in pleasing contem- 
 plation revolving the past transactions. And 
 conscience, yet unsullied, beheld, as God's 
 vicegerent, the hallowed service, and gave its 
 approbation, as the voice of God. 
 
 Thus was his soul beautiful in holiness, and 
 his body, where yet unbridled appetite and law- 
 less lust had found no place, yielded every mem- 
 ber an instrument ofrighteousness unto holiness. 
 Such was man. *' God beheld and blessed them, 
 and bid them multiply and replenish the earth." 
 (Gen. i. 28.) that there might be a generation to 
 serve him, sharing in all their parents' excellence. 
 God could not but be pleased with the work of 
 his hands ; and, as the present mark of his regard 
 crowned him with glory, honour, bliss and im- 
 mortality. 
 
 I. Man enjoyed a state of great glory. It is 
 the conjecture of an ingenious author, that man 
 in innocence was clothed with a visible glory : 
 such as we still image to ourselves, whenever we 
 form an idea of an angelic vision ; or according 
 to that representation of the Psalmist, that when 
 God appears, lie clothes himself " with light as 
 
Of Man's State of Innocence. 15 
 
 Ml til a garment." It must be owned, that there 
 is more than one text of scripture that seems to 
 alhule to this. And tlie transaction on the 
 mount, when the *' body of Jesus was transfigur- 
 ed, and became white and ghttering-," (i^/r//^. 
 xvii. 2.) compared with the promise, of*' being 
 made like unto his glorious body at the resur- 
 rection day," {Phil. iii. 21.) seems to make it not 
 improbable, that such external irradiation might 
 be the attendant on man's innocence until sin 
 had uncovered his nakedness. Besides, if Moses 
 by once beholding, not the face of God, but his 
 back parts only, brought down from that vision 
 *' a glory on his countenance, which the chil- 
 dren of Israel could not look upon," {E.vod. 
 xxxiv. 30, 33.) why might not the frequent, and 
 as it seems familiar intercourse, which man iu 
 paradise had with the blessed God, leave deeper 
 impressions of glory behind it ? But however 
 this may be, we are sure his body became the di- 
 vine Architect. The last and most excellent of 
 all his works below. And if, corrupted as it is 
 now become, we cannot without some admira- 
 tion regard it, '' so fearfully and wonderfully is 
 it made," {Psal. cxxxix. 14.) what may we not 
 conceive of its paradisaical glory } His soul, the 
 foregoing description intimates to have been 
 surpassing excellent : and united, such a body 
 and such a soul could not but form a creature, 
 that, as the sun in the firmament, shone forth 
 the chief of all the works of God. 
 
 Q. Honour was heaped on him wdth a liberal 
 hand. By nature, '' but little lower than the 
 angels." (^6-^/. viii. 5.) By grant, endowed with 
 a dominion coextensive with the regions he was 
 placed in. The universal monarch of this lower 
 world, and all things in it. " God put all things 
 under his feet, all sheep and oxen, the beast of 
 
l6 Of Man's State of Innocence. 
 
 the field, and the fowls of the air, and whatso- 
 ever passeth through the paths of the sea." {Psal. 
 viii. 6, 7, 8.) The majesty of man impressed an 
 awe upon the whole creation ; their Maker's 
 visible representative on earth. 
 
 3. Blessings surrounded him on every side. 
 Within every thing was peaceful and serene. 
 His soul, like the smooth surface of the sea, un- 
 ruffled by the least blast of air, had yet felt no 
 tumult of contending corruption ; but satisfied 
 in itself, and conscious of its innocence, was re- 
 plenished with consolations as from '' a well of 
 water springing up into everlasting hfe :" {John 
 iv. 14.) whilst above all, the presence and favour 
 of God, the most intimate and endeared com-^ 
 munion with him, and the constant notices of 
 his love, could not but minister the most ravish- 
 ing delight. And without, all nature was form- 
 ed to minister not only to his wants, but inno- 
 cently to gratify his senses. ** Whatever was 
 pleasant to the sight, or good for food," {Ge7i, 
 ii. 9.) arose in Eden's happy grourid ; theAl- 
 jnightv husbandman had planted it." {John 
 XV. l.^Gen. ii. 8.) purely to bless his favourite 
 roan : and what could be wanting, where God 
 vouchsafed to prepare for him a residence of 
 
 bliss ? 
 
 4. Immortality crowned the \vhole. What he 
 was, he would for ever have been : or if any change 
 mcceeded, it would have been a change from 
 glory to i^'lory. When translated to a higher 
 place of btiss, his obedience, however undeserv- 
 inp- the reward, should be still more abundantly 
 repaid. *' The tree of life," (fieyiM9-) sacramen- 
 tally sealed the continuance of his bliss, whilst 
 he persisted in obedience. And the declaratioa 
 concerning ^' the tree of knowledge" {Gen.u. 17.) 
 implied farther in it a promise, that his lite 
 
Of Man's State of Innocence, 1 7 
 
 shonlcl be eternal if he did not eat of the for- 
 bidden fruit. In its constitution, the natural 
 ]x)dy either had not the seeds of dissolution, or 
 some ix)werful quality implanted in the tree of 
 life might prevent it, or from God the fountain 
 of life his body might immediately be fed with 
 living streams. Certain it is, that death and all 
 its hateful evils, disease, decay and pain were un- 
 known, until sin broke down the wall, and in- 
 troduced the monster pregnant with woe. 
 
 For such high favours, to be continued to his 
 posterity, God * might justly have demanded 
 from him whatever marks of allegiance and fidel- 
 ity he chose to impose : but herein how won- 
 drous was the divine goodness ! he would not 
 debar hiin the least satisfaction he enjoyed ; 
 but chose only one single tree to be the test of 
 bis obedience,. *' forbidding him to eat of it on 
 penalty of death." {Gen. \i, 170 The thing was 
 in itself indifferent ; the command of God en- 
 joined it ; it was the most easy to be compUed 
 with ; and simply required acquiescence in 
 the divine will. Who would not have been con- 
 tent to rest tlie issue of his life and death on 
 such a test, especially in the hands of One sa 
 high Unfurnished with every good and perfect gift?- 
 
 Yet here, asto-nishing to tell ! the scripture in- 
 forms us that man, through the suggestions of 
 the devil, was seduced. His heart, led first by 
 reasoning ta entertain unliallowed desires after 
 knovrledge ; then looking until lust kindled, he 
 is at last tempted to '' pluck and eat :" {Gen. 
 i-ii. 6.) and as the fatal consequence,, to forfeit 
 all his bliss, bring down the wrath denounced^ 
 and render himself obnoxious to death spiritual, 
 temporal and eternak Sliort is the dire descrip- 
 tion : yet long and dreadfully felt the issue. 
 
18 Of Man's State of Innocefice. 
 
 A thousand questions which follow from the 
 pride which now possesses us, of why and how 
 this was permitted, the holy Ghost hath been 
 pleased not to resolve. He relates the simple 
 fact, commands implicit faith. To reason here is 
 to disbelieve ; that so it was, is enough for us to 
 know. 
 
 How deeply we are affected by the first man*s 
 
 disobedience, what we feel may tell us. • 
 
 Adam, our father and representative, in whom 
 the whole nature of man then subsisted, tainted 
 his blood by this atrocious act of treason. An act 
 of the most complicated baseness and unpro- 
 voked rebellion. We were in his loins. '* la 
 Adam all died. (1 Cor, xv. 22.) By one maa 
 sin entered into the world, and death by sin ; and 
 so death passed upon all, forasmuch as all have 
 sinned." (Rom, v. 12.) Man's nature is wholly 
 fallen under the curse. And as our articles de- 
 clare '* every child of Adam born into the world, 
 ^oth for this deserve God's wrath and damna- 
 tion." (Article IX.) I shall rest here for the 
 present, purposing to consider more distinctly 
 the consequences of the fall in some ensuing dis-^ 
 courses : concluding the present with the fol- 
 lowing observations. 
 
 1. What an alteration hath passed on the na- 
 ture of man ? " How is the gold become dim ? 
 How is the most fine gold changed ?" (La77u 
 iv. 1.) Who can reflect on the lirst beauteous 
 image, and withhold a tear of sorrow ? "' How 
 art thou faFlen, son of the morning ?" 
 
 When Judah's sons, escaped from the house 
 X)f their prison, returned to Sion to build again 
 the temple of the Lord, the new foundation 
 could be laid only by removing the splen- 
 did ruins of the desolated sanctuary ; thea- 
 came the remembrauce of its former glories 
 
Of Mans State of Innocence^ W 
 
 fresh into their mmd, and " they wept aloud." 
 {Ezra in. 12.) And have not we greater cause 
 of sorrow, when we review the spiritual temple 
 of the most High laid desolate, and '' swept 
 with the besom of destruction ?" Yea, when we 
 feel our own concern in it, and find by nature in 
 our hearts so doleful a contrast to that original 
 excellence, when man was '' polished after the 
 simihtude of a palace." {Psal. cxliv. 12.) Now 
 alas ! desolation sits on the threshold, and with- 
 in darkness and ruin are spread abroad. The 
 glory is departed from us ; God hath forsaken 
 us. Guilt spreads its gloomy horrors over the 
 soul ; fear trembles at the consciousness of cer- 
 tain judgment ; the voice of joy is fled, and sor- 
 row utters her remediless cries. The fiends of 
 darkness shed their baleful influence around, and 
 Satan, now become the sovereign lord, opens 
 wide the gate, to welcome in every unclean and 
 hurtful beast. Pride, malice, rancour, revenge, 
 unbridled appetite, and inordinate concupiscence,, 
 with all their train, take up their abode in what 
 was once God's temple : and death, dreadful 
 monster ! death before unknown 1 stalks with 
 his iron mace along the ruined fabric, continu- 
 ing to beat it wholly down, and lay it low even 
 in the dust. " O \ who shall restore our desola- 
 tions, and build up again these waste places of 
 many generations I" {IsaAxuA.) 
 
 2. The pride of man refusing to submit to the 
 declarations of God, hath been one chief cause 
 of the continuance of this his miserable estate. 
 The account which God hath given, men will not 
 believe ; puffed up by their fleshly mind, and vain 
 in their own imaginations, they have presumed 
 to reason against the divine truth instead of sub- 
 mitting to it ; and will not allow any such ef- 
 fects to have flowed from oae man's disobedience; 
 
20 O/' Ma7i's State of Innocence, 
 
 as those above described : much less that God '5 
 wrath and damnation justly lies against the mil- 
 lions of our nature yet unborn. "^(^r/ic/e IX.) 
 lor as all the subsequent proceedings of God in the 
 redem.ption of man, are so intimately connected 
 with this first view ; where this is misunderstood 
 or perverted, there the need of the Son of God, 
 the necessity of an atonement, the want of a- 
 nother representative, and all the procedures of 
 divine grace, must be mistaken or denied. From 
 hence have sprung the heresies of Pe/^o7'«^, ^r/e/^,, 
 d'ocinus, and the Deists. Man's fall, as it is re- 
 corded in scripture, they will not receive, and,, 
 unacquainted with the depth of our misery, see 
 not the necessity of the greatness of our remedy. 
 3. We cannot but admire the wonderous grace 
 of God, that had compassion upon miserable 
 man, and would not execute upon him the death 
 lie had deserved; but with the declaration of his- 
 high displeasure opens to him yet a door of hope 
 in the promise of '' the seed of the woman who 
 should bruise the serpent's head." {Gen. iii. 15.) 
 God hath not left us, as he left the angels that 
 sinned to their place of tormeat ; but hath raised 
 up a new salvation for us ; hath appointed .:s 
 another and safer Covenant-Head, the second 
 yldafu, by whom we may escape from the dread- 
 ful ruins of the transgression under the first cov- 
 enant. This seed sjiall break our bonds from ofi^ 
 our neck : he shall deliver us from the power of 
 Satan : he shall '' raise up our ruined tabernacle 
 Mhicli is fallen, and close up the breaches there- 
 of ; he shall raise up its ruins, and build it as ia 
 the days of old." {J?nQs ix, 11.) The manner 
 hov/ he shall effect this,, by his inca.rnation, 
 death, intercession, and final redemption of us,, 
 shall hereafter be more fully opened. Yet here 
 it becomes ug to trace God's love in the first 
 
Of Man's State of Innocence. 2 1 
 
 beam of Gospel-grace, {Gen, iii. 15.) that dart- 
 ed forth upon fallen Adam's soul, and inspired 
 him (for nothing else could have done it) with 
 sentiments of repentance towards a pardoning 
 God May we see in this first promise the rich 
 crraceofour Jehovah, and feel a deep sense of 
 the divine compassions and mercies ; and as we 
 trace the growing discoveries of these towarcU 
 man more fully manifested, may they have an m- 
 creasing and more effectual influence on all our 
 hearts, and engage us to return to Him, from 
 whom we have so greatly departed. 
 
SERMON 11. 
 
 OP THE CORRUPTION OF HUMAN NATURE. 
 
 Romans V. 18. 
 
 BY THE OFFENCE OF ONE, JUDG.^IENT CAME UPON ILT ^rPM 
 TO CONDEMNATION. ^ * 
 
 npiIE Apostle in these words affirms the uni- 
 -L versahty of that guilt under which the 
 Avhole human race lieth at present. He had in 
 the beginning of the Epistle proved by scripture 
 and experience, that " Jews and Gentiles were 
 all concluded under sin;" (^Gal. iii. 22.) and con- 
 sequently exposed to suffer the penalty annexed 
 to every transgression of disobedience. In this 
 and the foregoing verses he traces up sin to its 
 origin, and shews by what means it entered into 
 the v/orld, and maintains its dominion ; namely, 
 by the first man's fail, and the corruption of na- 
 ture which thence ensued : which points he la- 
 bours to fix upon their hearts, both as a ground 
 of deep and abiding humiliation, in the view of 
 their deplorable situation by nature and as con- 
 taining the strongest motive to embrace and 
 highly esteem that Gospel of the revelation of 
 the grace of God, wherein ''life and immortality 
 were again brought to light ;" (2 Tim. i. 10.) 
 and a rehef provided adequate to the necessitv 
 of fallen sinful man. 
 
 The knowledge of this our fallen state from 
 scripture, and a clear conviction of its truth from 
 experience, are still the chief means the Holy 
 Ghost uses to bring men into the dust of abase- 
 
Of the Corruption of human Nature. 23 
 
 ment, to plead for the mercy held forth in Christ 
 Jesus. *' He convinceth us of sin, then of right- 
 eousness." (John^vi. 8. J Our disease must he 
 felt before our remedy can be sought. *^ Jesus 
 came to seek and save only that which was lost. 
 (Luke xix. \0.) They that are wholeneed not 
 a physician, but they that are sick." (Matt. ix. 
 12.J 
 
 Yet here the many stumble. Through un- 
 acquaintedness with the truth of their real estate, 
 they " think more highly of themselves than 
 they ought to think ;" ( Royn. xii. 3.) either con • 
 ceiting that man is still by nature as upright as 
 ever, or at least that such pov/ers and abilities 
 remain with him, that he is of himself capable 
 of pleasing God by the right exercise of his own 
 reason and exertion of his sincere endeavours : 
 or, as some imagine, that though of himself he is 
 insufficient, yet the holy Spirit helping his in- 
 fumities, he hath still some moral powers remain- 
 ing, which if he will exert shall eftectually pro- 
 cure his acceptance with God. All which high 
 imaginations, whilst entertained, cannot butpuif 
 up tlie vanity of man, naturally proud, and lead 
 him to depend either more or less on himself, in- 
 stead of submitting in helpless selfdespair to him, 
 *' who is mighty to save ;" whose oftice it is " to 
 justify the ungodly," and with deliverance from 
 the punishment, to save his people from the 
 power of their sins." 
 
 For the undeceiving of such as these ; for the 
 information of such as desire to know the truth ; 
 for the confirmation of the faith of the sincere, 
 and for the greater humiliation of all, I shall en- 
 deavour at this time to prove it a fact, 
 
 That man is fallen, wholly fallen from God. 
 
 ]May the Spirit of God assist me with clear- 
 ness of argument, and send conviction of the 
 
24 Of the Corruption of hmnan Nature, 
 
 truth to every man's conscience, giving you ''an 
 understanding to know the Scriptures" and your- 
 selves. 
 
 I am to prove to you that man is a fallen 
 creature ; yea, wholly departed from God. And 
 here I shall make use of two chief arguments, 
 namely, the testimony of the scriptures and uni- 
 versal experience ; each of which, I trust, will 
 convince those who reverence the authority of 
 God, and coolly examine the evidence, that our 
 state is truly deplorable and corrupted. O ! that 
 it may lead every soul of us to him, " who alone 
 is able to save to the uttermost, all who come un- 
 to God by him." {Heb. vii. £5.) 
 
 1st, The testimony of the scriptures. And in 
 a point of such Mcight and importance, you may 
 be sure to meet with the strongest assertions of 
 it. I will select a few of the principal, as they 
 lie their order, and open their contents that we 
 may feel their force. 
 
 That God made man after his own image you 
 have heard ; an image to have been perpetuated 
 to his posterity, had he continued in obedience. 
 He fell : God's image was effaced. The curse 
 hath succeeded. When Adam therefore begat a 
 son, the holy Ghost peculiarly notes, that it was 
 *' in his own likeness," {Gen. v. 3.) not the 
 likeness of God, in which originally he gloried, 
 but of his fallen nature : a pregnant evidence of 
 which presently ensued, when brother imbrued 
 his hands in brother's blood, soon after, if not 
 in the very act of sacrificing, the appointed means 
 of acknowledging their guilt, and the season 
 when they were peculiarly called upon to be 
 humbled tor and repent of it. 
 
 From such an early specimen of man's nature, 
 we may the less wonder at the following relation. 
 Whea '* God saw the earth filled with violence, 
 
Of the Corruption of human Nature, 25 
 
 and that the wickedness of man was great in the 
 earth, for every imagination of the thoughts of 
 his heart was only evil continually." {Gen. 
 vi. 5, l\.) Such is his de^scription, *' who knew 
 what was in man. " The heart of man^vas then e vH ; 
 yea every thought of it ; yea every imagination, 
 hefore the thought is framed or desire perfected : 
 it was evil and only evil, not the least mixture 
 of spiritual goodness remaining ; nor was any 
 moment excepted, evil continually flowed, as the 
 stream from the fountain. 
 
 But it may be objected, the evil mentioned here 
 was not natural but acquired ; that men were 
 not born wicked, but made themselves so. This 
 point then let the next declaration of God de- 
 termine. Does he not say to Noah after the 
 flood, in the view of generations yet unborn, 
 , that he '' will not again curse the ground for 
 man's sake," though the same provocation would 
 again and must for ever exist, " because the 
 imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth ? " 
 {Ge)L viii. 21.) Here it is evident that evil is 
 charged upon the heart of man as its genuine 
 produce. No reference is there in these words 
 to the persons then in being, or the influence of 
 their or any future examples or instructions ; 
 but it is mentioned as arising simply from the 
 corruption of nature. 
 
 ^ In consequence of this the rising generation, 
 influenced by the same cause as their forefathers! 
 tui-ned every man quickly to their ways ; so that 
 in the days of Abraham idolatry reigned univer- 
 sally. 
 
 ^^ Well then may we join holy Job in asking, 
 ''Who can bring a clean thing out of an un- 
 clean ? not one :" (Job xiv. A.) and subscribe 
 th<i Psalmist's confession, '' Behold, I Avas shap- 
 C ^ 
 
^6 Of the Corruption of hum (ui Nature. 
 
 en in Avickedness, and in sin did my motlier con- 
 ceive me." (Psal. li. 5.) The nature is in fault : 
 the fountain is marred at its head, and the streams 
 must flow poUuted. 
 
 As we advance we have increasing proofs of 
 the universality of this corruption. The ho- 
 ly Ghost by the mouth of David assures us, that 
 "vvhen '* the Lord looked down from heaven up- 
 on the children of men, to see if there were any 
 that would understand, and seek after God ; Lo ! 
 they were all gone out of the way, they were alto- 
 gether become abominable, there was none that did 
 good, no not one." (Psal. xiv. 2. J And what 
 was revealed to the father, was by the same Spir- 
 it manifested to the son ; for this, among the 
 first evils under the sun, the Preacher found, and 
 indeed the origin of all the rest : '^ That the heart 
 of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in 
 their heart while they live, and after that they 
 go to the dead." (Eccles. ix. 3 J The heart is 
 a fountain full of evil ; and all the time men live 
 upon the earth, this hereditary madness shews it- 
 self, till death closes the scene, and becomes at 
 once its cure and its punishment. 
 
 Such apprehensions the holy Prophets had al- 
 so of the state and temper of men : '^ The heart 
 is deceitful above all things, and desperately 
 •wicked ; who can know it r" (Jcr. xvii. 9.) 
 It is a great deep of corruption : when we have 
 fathomed it with the longest line of observation, 
 and found it to be indeed desperately wicked, 
 still '' the half is not told us." Who can know 
 the fulness of evil, which dwells in an apostate 
 nature ? 
 
 Our blessed Lord therefore, when himself up- ' 
 on earth, among other divine lessons he pointed 
 out what peculiarly defdeth the man, declares it, 
 arises from his heait : " Out of the heart pro- 
 
Of the Corruption of human Nature, 9.7 
 
 ceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, thefts, 
 false-witness, blasphemies ; these come from Avith- 
 in." (Matt, xv. \9-) There is the seat of sin 
 v/herc Satan dwelleth : there the conceptions of 
 of it are formed, and thence they flow, as from 
 the subterraneous lire proceed the earthquake, 
 the sulphurous exhalation, and the burning lava. 
 
 And this is the necessary effect of being born 
 into'tlie world. For '' Mhatever is born of the 
 flesh, is flesh." (Jokn'm. 6.) The nature is call- 
 ed wholly flesh, because it is wholly void of ths 
 Spirit, and become enslaved to fleshly lusts and ap- 
 petites, k hath by its fall sunk almost into the beast. 
 
 Our nature thus declared to be evil, we must 
 expect to hear it condemned ; and so it is writ- 
 ten, " by nature children of wrath :" (Epkes. 
 ii. S.) wrath follows sin as closely as the shadow 
 does the body : where sin is, there wrath will be; 
 and where wrath is, there we may be always as* 
 sured sin hath been. 
 
 From all these, and many the like testimonies 
 which might be adduced, and indeed from the 
 entire system of divine revelation, where this is 
 implied throughout all the transactions and meth- 
 ods taken for our recovery, I presume it will in- 
 contestably appear, that man is at present a fallen, 
 corrupted creature, wholly defiled in his nature, 
 and in consequence become loathsome and hate- 
 ful in the eyes of divine purity. Such was the 
 conclusion our pious Reformers drew from these 
 views of scripture in the JXth Article, *' Original 
 sin standeth not (as the Pelagians do vainly talk) 
 in the following of Adam, but is the fault and 
 corruption of the nature of every man that nat- 
 urally is engendered of the offspring of Adam, 
 wdiereby man is very far* gone from original 
 
 * The original; Guam loiigimme, is much stronger tiiau ©iir traftslatioa^ 
 ""I' far. 
 
28 Of the Corruption of human Nature. 
 
 righteousness, and is of his own nature inclined 
 to evil, so that the flesh always lusteth contrary 
 to the spirit ; and therefore in every person born 
 into this world it deserveth God's wrath and 
 damnation.'* 
 
 2dly, That the fact is really so, experience 
 abundantly confirms. The truth is certain, thougli 
 it be denied ; but it is immediately confessed, 
 "when the heart begins to be really enlightened 
 to know itself. The ignorance of the blind, or 
 their disputing against the light, prevents not 
 the shining of the sun, nor can persuade us that 
 at mid- day there is darkness. 
 
 ]. The experience of all ages to the present 
 attests the corruption which God's word reveals. 
 It was not only in the first ages of the world, 
 that *^ the wickedness of man was great in the 
 earth ;" the complaints of every succeeding age 
 shew the same causeoperating uniformly through- 
 out. Consult the Heathens ; they observed it, 
 confessed it, lamented it, in theory at least, and 
 talked of precepts, though impotent to restrain 
 the power of corruption. Consult the scriptures ; 
 they describe all the nations, and even the cho- 
 sen people of God *'as a seed of evil-doers;'* 
 ( Isai, i. 4. J and their Prophets rising up con- 
 tinually reproached them for their ungodliness. 
 The account St. Paul {Rom. i. and ii. chapters^ 
 gives of the Jews and Gentiles, learned and un- 
 learned alike, shews the deplorable and universal 
 deluge of sin. And what succeeding times have 
 mended the account ? Surely not our own. Cast 
 your eyes round, and read man's present apost- 
 asy, written as with a sun-beam : see how iniquity 
 lifts up its hydra-head and hisses on every side. 
 " By swearing, and lying, and killing, and steal- 
 ing, and committing adultery," says the prophet, 
 ** they break out, and blood toucheth blood.'* 
 
Of the Corruption of human Nature. 29 
 
 (Hosea iv. 2. J What a scene of blackness and 
 guilt appears to the observant eye ? The lying 
 Prophets indeed " see visions of peace ;" boast of 
 man's moral rectitude ; palliate the flagrant evils 
 they cannot deny ; and seek to hide themselves 
 ancl, others from the light, speaking peace^ peace^ 
 when it is so evident, as Jehu said, '' What peace, 
 when our iniquities and our whoredoms are so 
 many?" ('iKings, \y..^2.) 
 
 A¥here can you look, without beholding the 
 broken tables of the covenant trod under foot ? 
 AWiilst one part of mankind are plunged in the 
 grosser crimes of perjury, drunkenness, all man- 
 ner of lev/dness, sabbath-breaking, profaneness 
 and disobedience ; the other more decently cor- 
 rupt themselves and forget God ; in Mammon s 
 idol service ; in Honour's empty pageantry ; in 
 Pleasure's thoughtless throng. The world, the 
 li'orld is the universal cry, where envy, malice, 
 disappointment, covetousness, ambition, success- 
 ively torment the fortunate and the unsuccessful. 
 The learned and the unlearned, the high and low„ 
 the rich and poor, have their separate walk, con- 
 currii)g all in this, '' to worship and serve the 
 crcc^ire more than the Creator." (Rom. i. 9.5.) 
 But 'the.se things men hate to see or hear of, 
 though truths so flagrant ; and, fixed on their 
 ow n deceivings, will neither attend to their dan- 
 ger, nor be restrained. Hence so ineflectual have 
 been all the means which God or man hath used. 
 Doth God raise up servants to remonstrate against 
 iniquity ? They hate and persecute them. " Like 
 their fathers that "killed the Prophets, and ston- 
 ed them which were sent unto them." (Matt. 
 xxiii. 37.) They smite them '' with the words 
 of the tongue," and would with tbe edge of the 
 <swoid, "; Ail the day long thereforc'havc we 
 
so Of the Corruption of human Nature. 
 
 stretched forth our hands to a disobedient and 
 gainsaying people. (Rom. x. 21 J They hate 
 to be reformed, and cast God's word behind their 
 back.*' (Psal. 1. 17j Nor do they regard men 
 much mere than God. In general how ineifec- 
 tiial are all the restraints of human laws ? How 
 evaded or broken through ? What would men say, 
 if only the laws against sabbath-breaking, drunk- 
 enness and lewdness, were actually put in execu- 
 tion ? But if these things are so, a sad demon- 
 stration arises of man's deep corruption. Facts 
 like these prove that his neck is an iron sinew, 
 that he determines to go on in the frowardness 
 of his heart, ''an evil heart of unbelief, depart- 
 ing from the living God." (Heb. iii. 12. J 
 
 2. Another confirmation of this truth may be 
 drawn from observation on the tempers of chil- 
 dren, even before they have reached any years 
 of retlection> It will be found universally true, 
 that " folly (that is sin) is bound up in the heart 
 of a child." (Prov. xxii. \5.) And those wha 
 -iv'ould be convinced of the corruption of our na- 
 ture, need only observe the babe in the nurse's 
 arms. Those perverse passions which afterwards, 
 in life break forth and fill our houses with vi- 
 olence, appear then inembrio. What anger may 
 you remark in their little breasts a\ hen crossed 
 or contradicted? What self-will and obstinacy do- 
 they shew under correction ? W1iat envy at fa- 
 vours done tQ. others ? And scarce have they be- 
 gun to speak, but they begin to lie, and disin- 
 genuously and artfully, like Adam, seek to con- 
 ceal their transgressions. So true it is, that 
 •* ungodly man is fro ward, even from his mother's 
 womb ; as soon as he is born he goes astray, and 
 speaks lies." (FsaL Win. 3.) Nor can this be 
 ascribed to the influence of education, or laid to 
 the fault of bad examples before them, It is the 
 
Of the Corruption of human Nature. 31 
 
 case with those Avho are the most carefully edu- 
 cated ; and the most pious parent with grief be- 
 holds the seeds of corruption springing up con- 
 tinually in this their native soil, notwithstand- 
 ing his pains by the rod of correction and by 
 HIS true t ion to root them up. 
 
 And though some shew stronger dispositions 
 to sin than others, and a milder constitution ap- 
 pears from the cradle in a few ; yet none are ex- 
 cepted from the above symptoms of corruption, 
 though, like different animals of the same savage 
 species, some exceed others in ferocity. Nor 
 can this be accounted for on any other princi- 
 ples than those the scriptures open to us : For 
 what could be more impious, nay blasphemous, 
 than to suppose that we came such out of our 
 Maker's hands as we now evidently are ? 
 
 3. I add, as a corroborative proof to the fore- 
 going remarks, the miseries which appear in the 
 world. That '' man is now born to sorrow and 
 trouble, as the sparks fly upward," (Job v. 7-) 
 cannot be denied. We hear on every side the 
 complainings of the afflicted, the murmurings of 
 the discontented, the repinings of the poor, the 
 vexations of the disappointed, the cries of th<> 
 sick,, and the groans of the dying. What is the 
 world but a Bochim, a place of weeping ? Whilst 
 sorrow cometh upon sorrow faater then Job's, 
 messengers of evil. And who are exempted from 
 the general lot ? Doth not every living soul feel 
 within the forebodings of approaching dissolu- 
 tion, the decays of age, the wastes of time, and 
 know that he is, even in the midst of life, hasterr- 
 ing' to the dust, to the grave, the herrtage of th-e 
 sinner ? Now can it be thought, that the God 
 *' whose mercy is over all his works, (PsaL 
 cxlv. 9.) who never willingly afflicts the children 
 of aien," {Lam^ iii, 3:}.) can it be imagiaed th^t 
 
32 Of the Corruption of human Nature, 
 
 the God " \\^hose name and nature is love, "(l^/^^'w 
 iv. 8.) would thus unprovoked lift up the 
 scourge, and with scorpions chastise us ? That 
 be far from him : '' He is righteous in all his 
 ways, andjustinallhisjudgments." (Psal^c^Xy, 
 170 He giveth us less, but nevermore thau 
 our iniquities deserve. Ifitbesaid, true; but 
 -sve have actually sinned, and are plagued for our 
 own offences. I sa}^, that will not account for 
 the scene we have been describing ; for wt see 
 all the like evils, and death the greatest of them, 
 '^ pass upon those who have not sinned after the 
 similitrade of Adam's trangression." (Rom. v. 
 14. J Stand by the cradle, and see that child of 
 man scarce started from the womb ; hear its dole- 
 ful moans, see it convulsed and agonizing with 
 pain ; covered with loathsome ulcers, and pinino-, 
 laid in its coffni; what can this mean P Is there 
 no preceding cause, no meritorious ground for 
 this heavy chastisement ? To suppose it, would 
 be making the most High, like the idol Moloch, 
 pleased with dying infants' cries. But here the 
 inystery is solved : that babe, scarce a span long, 
 is a corrupted creature : it hath a nature which 
 is enmity against God : it possesseth every a- 
 bomination, not indeed in their maturity, but 
 M Inch have already taken root *' to bring forth 
 fruit unto death." And thus we shall no longer 
 question God's righteousness in punishing, death 
 being universally^" the wages of sin." (Rom. vi. 
 
 4. The acknowledgments of the best of men 
 have borne a strong testimony to this great truth, 
 that man is a corrupted creature. Whoever reads 
 the scripture with an attentive eye, Avill neces- 
 sarily observe the ancient worthies full of their 
 confessions of guilt and corruption. David, Job^ 
 St.PauI^ high as their advancements were, 
 
Of the Corruptmi of human Nature. ^^ 
 
 cd under this evil, being burdenfed. A body of 
 death" hungabout them ; a nature departed from 
 God, and ready continually to hurry them down 
 its stream into the dead sea of perdition. It was 
 only by wrestling, striving, labouring, and by 
 the grace of God beating down this body of sin, 
 that they M'ere enabled to stand : so true it is that 
 '*the righteous scarcely are saved f arising from 
 the difficulty of subduing this strong bent of our 
 fallen nature. And the experience of God's ser- 
 vants hath and doth continue to confirm it. For 
 who of them doth not feel '' a law in his mem • 
 bers M^arring against the law of his mind?" (Rom. 
 vii. 23.) Who is not often forced to say, ''when 
 I would do good, evil is present with me ?'* 
 {Rom. vii. 21.) Yea, do they not all go mourn- 
 ing to their graves under this burden, and long 
 especially to "be absent from the body," that 
 they may be delivered wholly from the bondage 
 of corruption which now pressethdown the soul ? 
 From Avhat hath been said, who can any longer 
 doubt of the universal corruption of our nature ? 
 Who will have the hardiness to say, "I have made 
 my heart clean, I am pure from my sin?" (Prov. 
 
 XX. 9 J 
 
 It remains therefore only to improve what hath 
 
 been spoken. 
 
 First, For our deeper humiliation before God* 
 Though we are never so deeply convinced of this 
 or that sin, if we see the fact only, the impression 
 of guilt will be but partial, and though terrify- 
 ing, not truly humbling and emptying us of our 
 self-sufficiency. If we would see sin in its true 
 malignity, we must ascend from the act to the 
 temper ; from the temper to the nature. And 
 what can so entirely confound our pride as this 
 vi€w we have taken of ourselves ? Not rnerely 
 corrupt in practice but in principle ; not sinnejs 
 
34 Of the Corruption of human Nature. 
 
 by habit only; but sinners in nature. Here sin 
 appears exceeding sinful; {Rom.xii. \3.) con- 
 founds us in the dust, silences every plea, and 
 brings the soul before the throne of grace, with 
 the true sensibility implied in that penitent con- 
 fession, which God himself hath put into our 
 mouth, Unclean, unclean, {Levit, xiii. 45.) A 
 person thus convinced, knows himself to be one 
 mass of corruption ; that lie never was possessed 
 ot' one good temper, nor performed or could 
 perform a single act pleasing to God. For what 
 but uncleanness can proceed from the unclean ? 
 And hence he is entirely cut olf from help and 
 i)ope in himselt; and led simply and fully to make 
 use of that help which the gospel sets before him 
 in Jesus, who ''came to deliver us from the bon- 
 dage of corruption," by the efficacy of his blood, 
 and the power of his Spirit. The reason why so 
 many who are awakened in a measure to a sense 
 of sin continue still in bondage, and fruitlessly 
 are labouring to mend themselves, is this, that 
 they are not truly humbled : they are not ac- 
 quainted with the depth and universality of the 
 corruption which the fall hath brought upon 
 them ; nor consequently with the absolute im- 
 possibility of doing any thing pleasing to God, 
 till he himself justifies their persons as ungodly, 
 and sanctifies their nature as unholy. 
 ^ Secondly. What a dreadful thing is sin ! one 
 sin hath introduced all this misery into the world ; 
 and yet we are daily trifling with it as a little 
 thing. Instead of regarding it as the evil and 
 bitter thing it is, with M'hat unconcern do we 
 pass it by in ourselves and others? And here again 
 have we not a strong additional proof of the real- 
 ity of our fall, in this deep insensibility to it, 
 whilst v/e behold its consequences so tremendous- 
 ly fatal r O did we but consider how God hates 
 
Of the Corntption of human Nature, 35 
 
 sin ; did we but attend to the present marks of 
 the divine displeasure against it; or could we be 
 persuaded really to believe " the wrath to come 1" 
 surely there is not one of us, but from the bottom 
 of his heart must tremble. As the ''earthquake 
 which shook the prison," {Jets xvi. ^6.) and 
 brought the trembling Jailor on his knees, this 
 view of sin's dreadful evil, and the consciousness 
 how deeply we lie under it, would shake the in- 
 most powers of the soul, and lay us low before 
 the footstool of mercy, '' if yet the iniquity of 
 our hearts might be forgiven us." ^ In how dan- 
 gerous a situation then and drawing on fast to 
 eternal ruin must that soul be, Avho hath never 
 yet groaned under the burden of sin, nor felt the 
 least of its evil and bitterness, nor cried to him 
 who " hath appeared to take away sin by the sa- 
 crifice of himself ?" (Heb. ix. 26.) 
 
 2'hirdly, What a welcome message doth the 
 gospel bring to those who are truly sensible of 
 their fallen state. We cannot in such case hear 
 with cold unconcern, that " the Lamb of God 
 taketh away the sin of the world;" {John i. S^.) 
 we shall not pass by, and look upon his sorrows 
 unmoved, when *' the Lord laid upon him the in- 
 iquities of us all" {Isai. liii. 6.) We .shall no 
 longer dispute against the dispensations of God, 
 nor'^proudly ask, "How can these things be?" 
 but, humbly bowing before the gracious throne, 
 shall believe, admire and adore. We shall then 
 see th^t there is elsewhere neither help nor hope; 
 here all help, all hope revealed to us. We all 
 misery, God all mercy ; we all corruption, Christ 
 all perfection ; we all guilt, he all pardon ; we 
 all weakness, he all power ; we wholly lost in sin, 
 he ''able to save to the uttermost;" in virtue of 
 the sufferings of his human nature, and the dig- 
 nity of the divine. O that each soul of us really 
 
36 Of the Cojn^iiption of human Nature, 
 
 felt our disease ! How ready then should we be 
 to submit to the divine Physician, and lay our 
 sinful corrupted souls at his feet ? Happy the 
 man that thus comes to him in all his native 
 wretchedness, he never sent one such *^ poor sin- 
 ner empty away. He healeth all our infirmities, 
 and delivereth the souls appointed unto death/' 
 {Psal. ciii. 3.— cii. 20.) 
 
SERMON III. 
 
 THE DECEITFUL^'ESS AND CORRUPTION OF THE HEART. 
 
 Jeremiah XVIL 9. 
 
 THE HEART IS DECEITFUL ABOVE ALL THINGS, AND DESPE« 
 RATELY WICKED, WHO CAN KNOW IT. 
 
 TO know ourselves, the Philosophers reckon- 
 ed the pinnacle of wisdom : and however 
 mistaken in the means proposed for that end, 
 they were right in the assertion ; no knowledge 
 being more necessary for us than this, nor any 
 perhaps so difficult to be attained. None more 
 necessary, because thereon stands, in the chris- 
 tian plan, all that superstructure of newness of 
 life, the foundation of which is laid in deep hu- 
 mihty, arising from the real knowledge of our- 
 selves as fallen creatures. None so difficult to 
 be obtained, because the subject of this know- 
 ledge is so extensive, and self-love and self-deceit 
 so misrepresent the facts, that, as by tlie art of a 
 cunning painter, the real deformity of the figure 
 is concealed, and we admire the false and flatter- 
 ing portrait as if it was the true. 
 
 It shall be my endeavour therefore to open to 
 you the truth of our state, and lead you into the 
 discovery of your own hearts. But herein I must 
 beg you will not be offended to see yourselves in 
 a faithful mirror, the word of God ; nor start 
 back from the sight of our natural deformity, 
 stripped of that mask which usually conceals the 
 monster. I cannot flatter ; God forbids it. lli^ 
 D 
 
58 The Deceitfulness and Corruption 
 
 word declares, ''the heart is deceitftd above all 
 things, and desperately wicked, who can kno^7 
 it?" ^ . 
 
 There are indeed, who pretend to give a more 
 favourable view of things ; who talk of the dig- 
 nity of man's nature, its noble faculties, its self- 
 taught perceptions of universal right and wrong ; 
 and if not bearing the first strong out-lines of 
 virtue from the w^omb, at least represent it as a 
 fair sheet, prepared of itself to receive the genu- 
 ine impressions of whatever is fit, and wise, and 
 good. I have already said enough to confute 
 this infidel representation ; but trust, in the pro- 
 gress of this discourse, more clearly to reveal the 
 truth as it is to every man's heart, who will ob- 
 serve ^vhat passes within him : when it will be 
 found, • that the only dignity we can boast of is 
 our unhumbled pride ; our native v»'isdom, the 
 opovfl^a ceL^%o<i whlch is ^' cumity against God;" and 
 our fair traces of virtue, the strong lines of a 
 spirit which is " earthly, sensual, devilish," 
 ( James ni. 15. J 
 
 l\'e are now entering an unbounded field : for 
 '* who can understand his errors ?" (PsaL xix. 
 12. J or who knoweth the deep things of a man, 
 save He only, *' before whom all things are na- 
 ked and open ?" Let it not be thought, there- 
 fore, that the following is a full or exact repre- 
 sentation of man's heart. It must be always said 
 here, as the queen of Sheba said to Solomon, 
 *'The half is not told us :" (\ Kings, x. 7.) 
 yet, so far as it goes, it will, I trust, be found 
 faithful ; and be at least a clue for those who 
 desire to see themselves, to lead them into the 
 dark labyrinth within ; and they may lengthen 
 it as they advance, by closer and more intimate 
 observations on themselves and mankind. 
 
 I. The radical evil seems to be unbelief, from 
 
Of the Heart S9 
 
 whose fruitful stock the other corrupt tempers 
 spring. *' Ye shall not surely die," (Gen. iii. 4.^ 
 found admission into the lirst man's heart, in op- 
 position to the divine denunciation, and embold- 
 ened him to eat. This spirit of infideHty is nat- 
 urally rooted in the mind of every child of Adam, 
 scarcely to be eradicated by the clearest evidence 
 of scripture truths ; such '' fools and slow of 
 heart are v.e to believe, what the scriptures have 
 spoken 1" (Lzike xxiw ^5.) The name infidel 
 hath been in the christian vvorld stamped with 
 infamy ; therefore the profession of inlidelity is 
 made by fev/, yet the fact is universal. And the 
 truth of it a few observations will confirm : in- 
 timating, by the v»'ay, that the first work of the 
 spirit of God upon the heart of man is this very 
 thing, *' conviction of unbelief," and therefore 
 where no such conviction has been made, such a 
 soul continues as yet dead in a state of nature 
 and sin. 
 
 That in the heathen world the hopes of impu- 
 nity, or disbelief of punishment, were at the bot- 
 tom of all men's transgressions, is a truth which, 
 I presume, will be readily admitted. 
 
 How else, in opposition to so many natural fore- 
 bodings and traditionary notices, that *' they who 
 do such things are worthy of death," could they 
 make themselves so easy under, and talk so gaily 
 of their vices, as their histories and other writ- 
 ings evidently shew they did. Now they could 
 be supposed to act thus only on this principle^ 
 that these notices and forebodings had no real 
 foundation, or that somehow or other there was 
 a reserve of mercy : either that the gods took no 
 notice of human actions at all (which was theaffirm- 
 atioa of many, and the hope of more) or that they 
 would overlook the little escapes of human frailty. 
 '-—Thus their unbelief operated. But 1 rathbr 
 
40 The 'Deceit fulness and Corruption 
 
 epeak of ourselves, who profess to believe the re- 
 vealed truths of the scriptures. 
 
 Who of us really and heartily submits to the 
 divine declarations ? We admit them in words, 
 in works we deny them. You hear God's deter- 
 minations to punish sin with death eternal, {Rom, 
 VI, 23.) yea every sin: (Gal. iii. 10.) Yet who 
 believes them ? did we really assent to and duly 
 revere God's word, how would every sin aifect us ? 
 But now what is the universal hope and language ? 
 *' I shall have peace, though I walk in the imag- 
 inations of my heart." {Dent. xxix. I9.) Toes- 
 tablish this persuasion we too, as the heathens did, 
 give way to fallacious reasonings ; either my trans- 
 gressions are venial, and they will be overlooked ; 
 at least, they will not deserve so heavy a scourge 
 as " the worm which dieth not, and the fire which 
 is not quenched." {Mark ix. 44.) But \vhat is 
 this fire which is not quenched ? It cannot be 
 actual burning ; for how can one lie in everlast- 
 ing burnings unconsumed ? And how know I, 
 but the whole may be a delusion ; and that ^^man 
 dieth as the beast, and is no more." Yea some- 
 times it advanceth farther, *' The fool hath 
 said in his heart, there is no God." {PsaL 
 xiv. 1.) As it is our interest as sinners that there 
 should be none ; many doubts about it are in 
 more hearts than mention them. Such are some 
 of the workings of unbelief ; a' man must be a 
 great stranger to himself that hath not found their 
 influence. 
 
 Ao-ain, wdth reo'ard to the other revealed truths 
 of God's word, how deep-rooted are our objections 
 to them ? Nicodemus was not singular, when to 
 our blessed Lord's declarations he answ^ered, *'how 
 can these things be ?" {John. iii. 9- ) Some, and 
 the many indeed, shew so little regard to the 
 word of God, that they cannot be so well said to 
 
tfthc Heart. 41 
 
 ^oubt the contents as not to understand tliem ; 
 and are rather ignorant of the truths than unbe- 
 lieving. But no sooner does any man begin to 
 examine, than he will find tliis " root of bitterness 
 springing up in his heart." 
 
 The revelation of God, as subsisting in unity of 
 essence and trinity of persons ; the divinity, per- 
 son and chaiTicter of the Redeemer ; his under- 
 takings and the issue of them ; the necessity and: 
 nature of the new birth unto righteousness ; and 
 the whole work of God's Spirit on the heart : 
 these and the like truths, as related in the scrip- 
 t ures will often be objected to. *"' The natural man 
 receiveth not the things that be of the spirit of 
 God ; for they are foolishness to him : neither can 
 he know^ them, because they are spiritually dis- 
 cerned." {\Cor. ii. 14.) Hence all the heresies, 
 and schisms which have divided the church of 
 God : henceall the doubts and distresses that have 
 disturbed the hearts of the sincere ; as well as 
 the fixed rejection of the gospel, which possesses 
 the mind of the avowed infideL Our nature is 
 in fault. 
 
 And, by the way, this shews the folly of that 
 method of me tap h}'' sic al disquisition, withAvhich 
 tlie celebrated '' disputersof this world" have led 
 the crusade, and joined, in embattled squadrons 
 against the infidels.. When after all tl>e boasted 
 triumphs of reason, we see infidelity maintain its 
 ground as firm as ever : though the outworks 
 feeem to have been carried, the body of the place 
 remains unhurt; thither they have retired, and 
 are still as far from a surrender as ever. It is 
 the heart not the head only which must be 
 attacked. Infidelity is too much our nature 
 to fall before tiie untempered sword of falleii 
 man's reason, it can only be subdued by ^* the 
 
42 The Deceitfulness and Corruption 
 
 sword of the spirit, which is the word of God.'^ 
 {Ephes. vi. 17.) 
 
 II. Pride hath set up its throne in man's na- 
 ture. *' Ye shall be as gods," {Gen. m. 5.) Avas 
 one grand bait the devil proposed to man. And 
 since that day this unhalloAved temper is rooted 
 deep in the heart. Its actings are various, ac- 
 cording to the object on which it fixes, or by 
 •whi^h it is excited. Let us take a cursory \itw 
 of some few instances of it. 
 
 (1.) Pride shews itself on our wisdom; for 
 " vain man would be wise :" {Job xi. 12.) an 
 insatiable thirst after knowledge is the effect of 
 connecting with such attainments ideas of su- 
 perior excellence. Hence emulation and the 
 pride of surpassing others, is the sinful motive 
 usually urged upon the students of science to 
 excite industry ; that, like coursers strain- 
 ing for the goal, they may each carry off 
 from their competitors the envied prize. An 
 extensive knowledge can be the lot of few, be- 
 cause leisure or abilities are wanting i but the 
 affectation of appearing wise, at least wiser then 
 •we are, is general. Who in conversation, what- 
 ever be the subject, is not desirous of appearing 
 knowing ,' whether it be divinity, politics, sci- 
 ence, or any other profession ? How readily, 
 and even unasked, do we say what we know up- 
 on it, drop hints of deeper views of the subject 
 than we discover ; and where ignorant, artfully 
 seek that our ignorance may be concealed ? Wliy 
 do you expect a deference ta your judgment } 
 Why so loth to appear mistaken in a proposition 
 or opinion you have advanced ? Why so little 
 deference to the opinion of others, wiser, older, 
 and more godly men ? Why " so swift to speak, 
 so slow to hear?" {James'i. 19.) Why pleased to 
 have your parts admired, or your genius com- 
 
of the Heart. 43 
 
 pllmented ? Why hurt when contemned as a 
 person of mean understanding, especially in 
 your profession ; or an author of no learning ? 
 Come not these from pride of heart ? 
 
 (2.) Pride on natural, is as cdhimon as on 
 mental endowments. Did you ever see a beauty 
 witli out vanity ? And where line features are want- 
 ing, the elegance of form supplies the fuel ? Are 
 not these the envy of one sex and the idol of 
 the other ? Hence the secret pleasure of being 
 taken notice of, and the deep chagrin of being 
 neglected ,* the arts practised to attract the one, 
 and avoid the other ; the easiness of credit giv- 
 en to flattery, and the affectation even to grey 
 hairs of appearing young, genteel or handsome. 
 
 Nor is this temper less obvious amongst men ; 
 though womanish beauty would be counted ao 
 effeminacy, yet to be manly agreeable, genteel in 
 person, strong in body, and of a fine address, is 
 just as much caveted after by one sex, as beauty 
 is by the other ; is the ground of the same prids 
 when possessed or commended for it, and of the 
 same discontent if unpossessed or unnoticed. 
 
 Dress comes in, in both sexes, as aa auxiliary 
 to nature and to pride. The Fashion is consult- 
 ed : be it expensive or indecent or dangerous^ 
 pride must be gratified, though at the loss of 
 health and modesty. And what a pleasure to be 
 Avell dressed ? What a satisfaction when we first 
 appear in any thing new and in taste? What a 
 jealousy of a finer dressed figure than our own ; 
 and what an ambition to excel ? Hence not on- 
 ly the contention among eq^uals, but the confu- 
 sion of ranks and station : and the difficulty 
 sometimes to distinguish the Master from his 
 servant, or the chambermaid from her Mistress. 
 (3.) The gifts of Providence, however ad- 
 yeatitious; afford also aa abundant occasion for 
 
44 The Deceit fulness and Corruption 
 
 pride. Honour is the food of ambition. We 
 all aspire to be something great, and every step 
 of advancement fills us v/itha secret delight and 
 higher apprehension of our own importance. 
 Whoever wiH reflect on his heart, when he first 
 set out in life, will remember those castles, which 
 frequent disappointment may have now perhaps 
 begun to convince him had their basis only in 
 airy pride. 
 
 Yet these do not entirely undeceive us. Though 
 our hopes are more confined, they still soar : and 
 secret discontent with wliat we are, urges us to 
 pursue ^rhat m'C would be. We regard whatever 
 is bestowed on us as less than we deserve ; and 
 Avhilst we look forward with greater eagerness 
 from every summit gained, y(t look back with 
 conscious satisfaction on those whom we have 
 left behind. Whoever makes observation on the 
 world, will see this verified in every profession ; 
 for ambition is not confined to dignity. Tiie 
 meanest officer in a corporation is alfected in the 
 same way as the minister next the throne ; and 
 lie must be a great stranger to himself who hath 
 not felt the glow which recent honour brings. 
 
 Riches also give the like gratification, as af-^ 
 fording us an opportunity of distinction. And 
 the shovv of affluence is often maele, even where 
 Avant at home must support the finery abroad : 
 For to be thought indigent is extremely morti- 
 fying. The gilt equipage, the laced livery, and 
 the multitude of useless attendants, make a figure 
 in the world. The elegant villa calls forth the 
 same spirit from the heart wdiich Nebuchadnez- 
 zar felt when he said, "This is great Babylon^ 
 that I have built for the house of my kingdom,'' 
 (Dan. iv. 30. J And when we are affecting ta 
 overlook these things, w^e do it that they may be 
 admired, aud are secretly delighted with the com* 
 
of the Heart. 4ir 
 
 mendation of them. The shew of vanity appears 
 also alike in every inferior station, all vie with 
 their neighbours, and pique themselves on their ' 
 little distinctions. The lady that rides not in 
 her chariot, is proud to be followed by her foot- 
 man. And the satisfaction the lower people take 
 in going on a party of pleasure on a Sunday, and 
 spending so much money at a wake, indulges the 
 same temper as the wealthier do by keeping so 
 many country-houses. 
 
 Money also itself ministers to pride, and so 
 adds a new gratification to covetousness. Is there 
 pride in tliat man yonder, whose ligure is so very 
 mean, and dress so sordid, complaining of the 
 hardness of the times and the scarcity of money ? 
 Could you know the pleasure that man feels when 
 he hears it whispered, " He is a wealthy man ; 
 no man commands so much cash ;" you will be 
 »o longer at a loss to determine. His pride is 
 as much flattered by that, as the other man who 
 rides by in gold and grandeur is by his shew, 
 supported, it may be, by mortgage-money out 
 of this rich miser's purse. 
 
 Family also is another fund of vanity, the fool- 
 ishest of all pride, yet how general ? Those of 
 high birth look down on their inferiors as a dif- 
 ferent race of beings. As you descend the dis- 
 tinction is still observed, and connexions and 
 relations, however distant, give them an air of 
 quality above their equals in station. The gen- 
 tleman regards the vulgar with a disdainful con- 
 tempt, as sprung from the dust. And even in 
 the parish workhouse the contest for family will 
 be maintained by the decayed tradesman's or- 
 phans, against the children of those of baser ori- 
 ginal. 
 
 Our worldly character also in its various ref- 
 erences continually leads us to seek *' the praise 
 
46 The Deceitfulness and Corruption 
 
 of men morcthanof God."(/(>/z;/. xii. 43.) Prid^ 
 would be notable ; and what will it not do to 
 maintain, increase, or recover any measure of es- 
 teem ? What a vexation and uneasiness do we 
 iind at the loss of this idol ; and how unwilling are 
 we- to believe those declarations of God, " that the 
 friendship of the world is enmity with God ; and 
 that if any man Avill be the friend of the world, 
 he must be the enemy of God." (James iv. 4.) 
 Hence all that dislike to the cross, and the con- 
 stant labour of reconciling the inconsistent ser- 
 vices of God and Mammon. Hence that inor- 
 dinate desire to please men : Hence, especially, 
 the cowardice of ministers, and the compliances 
 of many w^iththe corrupt taste of the times, who 
 secretly condemn the things they in practice al- 
 low. Reputation is at stake, and conscience 
 must conform a little. 
 
 Thus pride operates. 
 
 I have reserved, 
 
 IV. Its most formidable appearance as the last ; 
 and that is, its insinuations where religion is 
 concerned. Spiritual pride appears in a high 
 conceit of our own excellence above other men ; 
 a desire of appearing more holy than we are, an 
 exterior appearance of devotion, and scrupulous 
 attendance on the ordinances of w^orship, with- 
 out humility and the love of God in the heart. 
 
 In the duties of devotion, either in or after 
 the exercise, this will appear. Have you never 
 found your heart, wdien you have been at what 
 you call your prayers, pleased with yourself, as 
 having performed some work meritorious ? Are 
 you not led to compare yourself with others, who 
 do not frequent the church so often, and say, 
 *' Stand by thyself; lam holier than thou?" 
 You pray and communicate, and give alms, and 
 mind your duty ? Are you never '' thanking God 
 
of the Heart, 47 
 
 Tou are not as other men ?" {Luke xviii. 11.) 
 These are the s-ymptoms of pharisaic pride. 
 Where this is discovered and disclaimed, a more 
 refined self exaltation appears in the pleasure ^re 
 take in a lively frame of mind, when after the 
 exercise of prayer or preaching or exhortation, 
 we here that whisper, ** Well done," within us ; 
 or when we have been engaged in these exer- 
 cises, especially before others, and fancy we have 
 not acquitted ourselves with that propriety, ful- 
 ness and excellence we proposed to ourselves, we 
 grow uneasy and dissatisfied. Pride working 
 just as strongly in our dissatisfaction as in our 
 self-applause. 
 
 But pride on duties is still increased by pride on 
 our graces. The very fruits of God's spirit cor- 
 ruption would pervert : ourtneekness under pro- 
 vocation affords a handle for self-approbation. 
 Our zeal for God is made subservient to our 
 own glory. Yea our very humility shall some- 
 times cater for our pride, our abasements shall 
 exalt us, our confessions of unworthiness make 
 us think highly of ourselves, and our very con- 
 descensions be the footstool on which vanity 
 would raise itself. Well n:iay we say of our heart, 
 *' Who can know it ?" 
 
 As the effect of the above, hypocrisy creep* 
 Tn. '* Deceitful above all things is the heart." 
 Deceitful respecting others : willing they should 
 ** think more highly of you than they ought to 
 think," Hence that desire of appearing an ex- 
 perimental christian ; seeming to know and feel 
 more than you have known or felt. The secret 
 satisfaction of having it whispered "What a 
 gracious soul ? How deeply acquainted with the 
 truth ?" especially if you are young ; and there- 
 fore it should be esteemed more uncommon. This 
 is spiritual hypocrisy. And you may deceive 
 
48 The T)ectitf Illness and Corruption 
 
 yourself as well as others. If you have learned 
 to talk, you may conceit you have possession of 
 the thing, and that your prayers are as real as 
 your expressions are ready : easily persuading 
 yourself, that the opinion others have of you 
 hath foundation, and that you are indeed what 
 they think you to be. Hence the delusions that 
 too many fall into, '' vainly puffed up, and ta- 
 ken in the snare of the devil." 
 
 I must rest here for this time, to conclude with 
 a few observations. 
 
 1. How deplorable is their ignorance who 
 boast of the goodness of their hearts, and fancy 
 themselves free from all the workings of pride ! 
 Can there be a stronger evidence, that '* the god 
 of this world hath blinded their eyes ?" f2 Cor, 
 iv. 4. J Yet how many put in pretensions- co such 
 goodness of heart, and live and die in the vanity 
 of their fallen mind ; unacquainted with their 
 real state ; unperceived the bondsmen of corrup- 
 tion, and blindly led to ruin, whilst they promise 
 themselves the surest place in the kingdom of 
 heaven. 
 
 2. If God hath made any discovery to us of 
 tlicse things, it should stir us up to a more dili- 
 gent search and inquiry into ourselves : " Wc 
 know nothing yet as we ought to know." (\Cor. 
 viii, 2. J The deepest read in self-knowledge 
 have much of their hearts unseen : as Ezekiel, 
 the farther he went *'into the chawbers of im- 
 agery," (Ezck. viii. 12, 15.j the more he saw 
 of abominations : I may venture to say the same 
 of our fallen nature, the more we know of it, the 
 more evil we shall know of it ; and th^ less Ave 
 shall like it. A thousand perversenesscs are still 
 overlooked ; many deceptions undiscovered ; and 
 hidden principles of pride will be found lurking, 
 \ihcrc wc least of all suspected them. It should 
 
of the Heart, 49 
 
 teach us therefore to examine ourselves narrow- 
 ly, and pray earnestly to him who alone can 
 ^'oj)en our hearts," and make us *^ understand our 
 errors." We shall have need to take up the 
 Psalmist's cry, *' Search me, O Lord, and 'see 
 the ground of my heart ; try me, and examine 
 my ways ; and look Avell if there be any way of 
 wickedness in me, and legd me in the Avay ever- 
 lasting." {Fsal. cxxxix. 23.) 
 
 3. The discovery of their deep corruption 
 should not discourage those who feel the bur- 
 den of it. It is our highest interest to know 
 the truth of our state, and the more explicit 
 our views the better. The cure is partly wrought 
 when the disease is thoroughly known, rar 
 from being cast down with these views, it is out- 
 comfort that the most sensibly convinced of 
 their sin, are the most welcome to Christ. They 
 will see '' grace abound, who have felt sin a- 
 bound." {Rom. v. 20.) In Christ there is relief. 
 The most unbelieving the proudest nature, '^ the 
 fountain opened in his heart for sin for un- 
 cleanness," {Zcch. xiii. 1.) can make whole, 
 O that we may all flee thither, and seek '^ that 
 balm which is inGilead, and the physician there '" 
 {Jar, viii. 22.) 
 
 E 
 
SERMON IV. 
 
 rfE DECEITPULNBSS AND CORRUPTION OF THE HEART. 
 
 Jeremiah XVII. 9. 
 
 TIIE HEART IS DECEITFUL ABOVE ALL THTXGS, AND DESPE- 
 RATELY WICKED, ^YIIO CAN KNOW IT. 
 
 I HAVE been endeavouring to enter into the 
 heart, '* that root of bitterness^' which is in 
 our nature ; and to discover to you the grand 
 sources from whence the overflowings of ungod- 
 liness arise : distinct and clear discoveries of 
 which have the most direct tendency to bring us 
 low into the dust of humihation, and to lead us 
 to him '•'' who taketh away the sin of the world." 
 (JoJui i. 29 J 
 
 That '' God is of purer eyes than to behold 
 iniquity," (Hab. i. 13 J and that " no evil can 
 dwell with him," (Psal. v. 4. J is evident frofh 
 }ns nature, and the discoveries he hath made of 
 his adorable perfections in his word. He cannot 
 but require of his creatures to be like himself, 
 possessed of '' truth in the inward parts." It is 
 his property ^* to try the hearts and reins. (Jc7\ 
 xvii.lOj the pure in heart." (Matt.x. 8.) on- 
 ly can enjoy his approbation ; but '' our inward 
 parts are very wickedness." (Psal v. 9-) We 
 are become the very reverse of his nature : the 
 Avhole man is corrupt before him ; root and branch 
 he is polluted. A\'e are tliercfore enemies in our 
 mind : for the carnal mind is enmity against 
 God." (Rom. viii. 7 J He searcbcth our 
 hearts, and sees the wiclvcdness of our inward 
 
TJie Deceitfulness, c^t. 5\ 
 
 parts : and what can so provoke his displeasure, 
 as the perfect views of the entire apostasy of our 
 nature from him ? Our transgressions may he 
 many, and our hackslidings increased ;" hut 
 what are all compared with the natural deep- 
 rooted aversion of our hearts to him ? A child, 
 though at ^times disohedieut, through the pre- 
 valence of temptation may he home with, where 
 dutifulness is still the hahit ; hut do we gee that 
 lie is determinately and constantly hent on dis- 
 obedience ? that his whole heart is contriving 
 how to grieve and provoke us^, what human pa- 
 tience would not be wearied, and expulsion from 
 the family ensue ? God hath indeed tempered 
 judgment with mercy, and in the tlepth of his 
 v/isdom and the riches of his grace, whilst he 
 hath shewn his fearful indignation againiit the 
 sinful nature, in his own son made iti the like- 
 ness of sinful flesh ;" (Rom. viii. 3.) hath found 
 out a way to spare the sinful persons. But neith- 
 er the rich mercy nor the righteous judgment 
 can be seen before the real disco very of our state 
 appears : till then Ave can neither revere the ho- 
 ly, nor love the pardoning God. 
 
 Let us therefore continue the inquiry into 
 ourselves, and see what branches spring from 
 this corrupted tree, where unbehef is at the root 
 and pride the body ; and it may be said of 
 them, '' Their name is Legion, for they '* are 
 many." (Mark v. 9.) The most remarkable I 
 shall endeavour to point out to you under the 
 heads of self-will, disobedience, impatience, 
 wrath, envy, hatred, malice and revenge ; the 
 grand characteristics of a fallen spirit. 
 
 1st, Self-v/ill is the first branch of pride. We 
 ^' would be as Gods." Our will is our law. Sic 
 
 xoio^ sicjubco'^' ; is the language of fallen na^ 
 "••*»•'•'•* ' ...-,...,.,,..,* 
 
 *■ -'So I WILL. SO I QGUUk^Ji." 
 
52 The Deceltfulness and Corruption 
 
 ture. Hence it is a very just observation, ^'Ev- 
 ery man liath a pope in his own breast." You 
 see this in every station oflife : How imperious 
 arc we ? How peremptory our commands ? How 
 determined to be obeyed, right or wrong, when 
 we have fixed our resolution ? How obstinate iu 
 our errors ? How deaf to advice ? *' I will have it 
 so,'' is thought reason sufficient. But, Lords as 
 we are, we dwell among others hkc ourselves : 
 our wills interfere ; and amidst this contrariety of 
 desires what but confusion can ensue ? Hence, 
 whilst each will have his own way, the world is 
 in a continual tempest ; the winds contend, the 
 waters foam, and disputes and animosities and 
 every evil work disturb the peace of families, of 
 cities and of kingdoms. 
 
 Closely connected with this is, 
 
 2dly, The spirit of disobedience. We cannot 
 brook restraint from God or man. The yoke of 
 God's commands is irksome to us, and our sub- 
 jection to man constrained. We aspire after in- 
 dependence. This is the darling wish of our 
 souls. Hence it is not only the general thought 
 of our heart, that God is a hard master, and his 
 commandments grievous, so that when we obey 
 or are restrained by them, it is merely through 
 fear ; but also, dreadful as the sanctions are, we 
 dare to break the sacred bonds, and '' cast away 
 the cords from us." And this disobedient spirit 
 particularly manifests itself in our rebellious dis- 
 positions towards those whom God hath put in 
 authority over us. From our infancy with what 
 difficulty are our stubborn hearts bowed to sub- 
 mission ? What propensity for doing what we at^ 
 forbid ? Restraint only whets, as it were, the ap- 
 petite of concupiscence. As we grow up, dis- 
 obedience grows with us ; and in our various sta- 
 t^ioss shews itself. In the state every little poll- 
 
of th-e Heart, 53 
 
 ticiaii would be a prime minister, and murmui^ 
 that he should be subject to those who, he con- 
 ceits, are so unfit to govern. He assumes the 
 light therefore to censure their measures, to evade 
 as much as he dares their injunctions ; nor counts 
 it any sin to '* withhold custom from those, to 
 whom custom is due.'* 
 
 In the social connections of life this. spirit still 
 more appears. Th^ forward youth thinks it hard 
 to have a father contradicting and restraining him. 
 He would be glad to be left to himself and his 
 own managen-kent ; and hates the needful correc* 
 tion or reproof. And whoever have brought up 
 children can witness with aching hearts with 
 what diliiculty they bent their stubborn necks, 
 ftnd how often they have proved rebellious and 
 obstinate against them, '' Disobedience to pau* 
 cuts," (Rom. i. 30.) is the cliaracter of our un- 
 godly nature. God hath constituted the husband 
 to be tiie ^' head of thewife ;" and hath pronounced 
 as his will, '* that her desire shall be to her hus- 
 ])and, and he shall rule over her :" (Gen. iii. 16.) 
 yet what woman is there in a thousand that doth 
 not wish the word obey out of the matrimonial 
 i^ervice ? And whilst the m.any, from the time 
 they have vowed, make it their labour to invert 
 that order God hath estabhshed, are not the best 
 M-anting in that '^ornament of a meek and quiet 
 spirit, which is in God's sight of so grea4: price r" 
 The school-boy and apprentice regard usually their 
 itate as that of hard servitude ; and though their 
 neck be brought under the yoke, their heart 
 sighs for liberty. The rod can hardly restrain 
 them from taking it before the time ; whilst at 
 certain seasons the spirit of disobedience is too 
 strong to be witlilreld by fear, andsubjects^thens. 
 ta deserved correction. "The servant^ discout^j^it-^ 
 
64 The Deceitfulness and CorrupCwn 
 
 ed at his station, thinks it unreasonable always ' 
 to submit to a man like himself : he will not be 
 found fault with ; buthis heart, if not his tongue, 
 answers again : on his ovv^n head he will often 
 act without orders, & sometimes contrary to them. 
 He kindles at rebuke, and will not bear expos- 
 tulation. Instead of " being subject with feay 
 and trembling, not only to the good and gentle, 
 but also to the fro ward ;" (iPe^.ii. 18.) it is Avith 
 difficulty that the most gentle masters or mis- 
 tresses are borne with ; whilst the common and 
 the just complaint is, the sauciness and perverse- 
 iiess of servants, and the general wush that they 
 could live without them. 
 
 Sdly, Impatience is among the despeirate 
 "Nvickednesses of the heart : it is that rising of 
 heart wc feel against God or man, as our wiil is- 
 crossed by them, or our expectations disappointed. 
 
 (1.) Against God : this tern per frequently ap« 
 pears under his corrections and afflictions. It 
 vas not without deep knowledge of the human 
 nature, that Satau said to God concerning Job, 
 *' put ibrtli thy hand now and touch all that he 
 hath,andhe willcurse thee to thy face." (Jo/^ i. 1 1.) 
 For such usually are the effects produced by his. 
 chastisements. 
 
 I. Under poverty this impatience is seen, es- 
 pecially when we are reducecl to it from preced- 
 ing affluence. When Agur prayed against pov- 
 erty, he gives this reason for it, " lest I take the 
 iiame of my God in vain :" {Prov, xxx. 9.) he 
 knew how apt tlie heart was in such a state to 
 nmrmur. And wlio is there thus needy, that hath 
 not experienced the risiugs of discontent, and 
 secret repinings of heart ? Have you been 
 brought low ? Doth the world frown upon 
 you } Are you reduced to be obliged to others? 
 How di9s;itisficd are you with tliis your situation ? 
 
of the HeaiH. ^SS 
 
 How many hard thoughts of God rise up in your 
 mind ? Whoever hath heen conversant among 
 the indigent, must have been often a witness of 
 this complainingdiscontented spirit. Everyman 
 thinks God partial in thedistribution of hi^ gifts, 
 and dares find fault with him merely because lie 
 *' does what he will with his own/' (Matt, xx, 
 11, 15J 
 
 2. The same spirit is seen under bodily afilic- 
 tions. " Doth God lay his hand heavy upon 
 you ? Is your flesh drietl up as a potsherd, and 
 your moisture as the drought in summer? (PsaL 
 xxxii. 4-0 Doth he cut you off with pining sick- 
 ness, and from day even to night make an end 
 of you?" (^/y<^. xxxviii. 12.^ How restless arc 
 you under his hand ? How fretful your temper ? 
 your body is not more uneasy. You may not 
 seem in your own eyes to be angry with God, 
 but be assured that this is at th-e bottom ; and 
 you give your anger vent on those about you. 
 Nothing is done to your mmd. You are scarce- 
 ly touched, even by the friendly hand that mean.^ 
 to assist you, but you complain. The least de- 
 lay or mistake makes you impatient ; and trouble- 
 some as by your sickness you unavoidably are to 
 all around, vou make yourself still infinitely more 
 so by your discontent, with them ; and whoever 
 comes near you must hear all your com}>laints^^ 
 aggravated, repeatoci, as though there was '' no 
 sorrow like your own ;" and what is this but that 
 spirit which "fretteth against the Lord ?" (Frot\ 
 xix. 3.) Whoever hath attended sickbeds, needs 
 no evidence of this truth. 
 
 3. Impatience, rages when God takes away 
 some darling our heart was fixed upon. God in 
 his wise providence afflicts us for our good ; and 
 when ke sees hi& gifts abused or made a snare to 
 lis, he kindly resumes them, Thea what a ur- 
 
66 The DeceUfubicss and Corruption 
 
 nient \% in his soul ? and often violent '' as a bear 
 robbed of her whelps," our repinings testify our 
 displeasure against God. Who hath not heard 
 the cries of impatient anguish ? Who hatli not 
 seen tlie determined obstinacy of inconsolable 
 grief? Their idols, like Micah's, are snatched 
 away : their life was bound up in the husband, 
 the wife, the child, the friend, or some dear ob- 
 ject of their affections, and they are dead, irre- 
 coverably lost to them : and now, like Rachel,. 
 ^' the}^ refuse to be comforted." (Jer. xxxi. \5.) 
 Then what reflections arise in the mind against 
 God, as though cruelty, not kindness, injustice,, 
 not mercy, directed the blow ? With what deter- 
 minedness, whilst tliey caw, do they hold it fast,, 
 as though they would not let it go ? And if it be 
 violently plucked from their arms, how fretful is 
 the language of their hearts, '' It is better for nle* 
 to die than to live." (Jonah iv. 3. J Hence ia 
 some the most fatal effects follow ; by impious- 
 violence on themselves they seek to fly from 
 God ; or in tliei^ sullen §orrows pine away : and 
 where matters go not to this excess, still, who 
 doth resign to God his gifts as he ought, with- 
 out once impeaching his kindness, or murmuring, 
 at his dispensations ? 
 
 Many otlier piT)vidential disappointments might 
 be brought to evidence tlie same thiug. But 
 from what hath been already said, whoever 
 observes his heart wiM find sufficient proofs of 
 this spirit within him. 
 
 ('1.) Impatience discovers itself also with re- 
 spect to ourselves^. AVe cannot bear our burdens, 
 with content : our weakness, infirmities, the dis- 
 coveries of our corruptions, all operate this way,. 
 When we do not answer the opinion we have con- 
 ceived of ourselves, when what we have beea, 
 engaged in does »ot satisfy oui expectations^ 
 
of the Heart. 57 
 
 >dien wc cannot please ouiselves-In any matter 
 ve liave in liand, wlicn by our imprudence or 
 mistakes we ha\'e run ourselves into trouble, 
 how uneasy have we made ourselves; turned self- 
 tormentors, and added not only sorrow to sor- 
 row, but sin to sin ? This will be particularly ob- 
 served by those who have some knowledge of 
 their own hearts in their spiritual concerns. If 
 you have fallen into temptation, and been laid 
 lower in your own eyes by your misbehaviour ; 
 if after many struggles you hnd still the risings 
 of old corruptions ; if you enjoy not the peace 
 which others do ; if you have not made that ad- 
 vancement in the divine life you proposed to 
 yourself; in these and the like instances, instead 
 of quietly lying down in the dust of self-abase- 
 ment, impatience will be ready to increase the 
 evil, by fretting at being found so bad. This 
 deserves to be much remarked, because I fear 
 sometimes we are apt to indulge complaints about 
 our corruptions, and mistake them as tokens of 
 humility, when they savour more of the spirit wc 
 have been describing. 
 
 (3.) This evil temper is shewn also towards 
 others. We can as little beay disappointment or 
 correction from the world, as afflictions from 
 God ; and hence a continual ground of uneasi- 
 ness. We have naturally no compassion for the 
 faults or infirmities of others, andyet require the 
 greatest indulgence to our own. Hence not on- 
 ly in the weightier matters of the world, but on 
 tbe most inconsiderable trifles (and here oftenest 
 it may be observed, because these oftener occur) 
 this spirit works. You have something to be 
 done, and the person, through ignorance or mis- 
 take, either cannot or does not please you ; such 
 an one acts foolishly in his business, or impru- 
 dently in his Christian course ; you cannot af- 
 
58 The Deceitfulness and Corruption 
 
 ter all your pains prevail on this person to fol- 
 low your advice or take your instructions ; up- 
 on such occasions what is your temper ? You are 
 heated, hasty, impatient with them ; and your 
 spirit sharpens your remonstrance. Thus you 
 exasperate, when you should either overlook 
 or correct with mildness. On the other hand> 
 when you yourself offend, how little can you 
 bear reproof? though sweetened with love, how 
 hardly is it palatable, and how intolerably offVn- 
 *ive if accompanied with harshness or aggrava- 
 tions ? 
 
 Atldij, Anger is another temper of the fallen 
 «pirit. ^^It is the resentment shewn to injuries 
 or provocations, whether real or imaginary." Our 
 pride is generally at the bottom ; that is hurt : 
 then our bosom rises, our countenance changes* 
 our voice is quickened, our words are bitter : and 
 this frequently is the case on the most insignifi- 
 cant occasions. We cannot bear contradiction : 
 though being in the midst of many like ourselves, 
 we must meet with it : we have set a value upon 
 ourselves which others do not seem to take no- 
 tice of; we are ill-used by those from whom we 
 least expected it; we are imposed upon by those 
 we trusted ; we hear in company something dis- 
 respectful said of us, or it is reported to us by 
 otlicrs ; our person is insulted, our character de- 
 famed, or our friend injured: then the heart boils,- 
 <ind passion struggles for vent : sometimes cir- 
 cumstances restrain it, sometimes it rages and is 
 violent, " returning evil for evil, and raihng for 
 railing." And this temper especially breaks out 
 at home, where, on how trivial a matter are our 
 houses filled with disputes, and noise, and clam- 
 our, and every evil work ? 
 
 5thly^ Envy also is Avhat the fallen spirit lust- 
 4^th unto. '* it is the repining the heart feels at 
 
ef the Heart Sg 
 
 another's superior excellence or prosperity. *' Be- 
 cause his father loved Joseph, his brethren hated 
 liini ; they regarded with an evil eye the coat of 
 many colours, and it had nearly cost him his life. 
 We cannot bear that another should be more es- 
 teemed, more successful or richer than ourselves ; 
 especially if he was once our equal ; particularly 
 if he be of the same profession, or competitor 
 with us for any distinction. Hence, since "ma- 
 ny run in the race, and one only receiveth the 
 prize," the effect of disappointed pride appears 
 in all men ; for all have some things wherein they 
 fail; though in others they may be the objects 
 of envy. This is the source from wdiich most 
 part of the conversation in company arises : each 
 hath his complaints ; accuses the partiality of the 
 world ; w^ants to hear something depreciating of 
 the envied rival ; is ready to derogate from his 
 worth ; and pleased if any step be taken to lessen 
 his excellence or remove him out of the way. 
 Hence slander, scandal, backbiting, lies, are in- 
 ^ented, reported, propagated : and in general, it 
 becomes a difficult matter among such misrepre- 
 sentations to know a man's real character. 
 
 And, whilst vice univ^ersally tlius prevails ia 
 tlie world, those who are separated from the 
 world will find tlie remainders of the same cor- 
 rupt temper. If you see a brother, whose graces 
 are more eminent, and whose advancement in the 
 divine life surpasses your own ; especially if there- 
 by he is highly esteemed by those, whose favour 
 you value ; above all, if his superior piety eclip- 
 ses and makes you less taken notice of ; you must 
 be very deeply humbled indeed, if envious jea- 
 lousy against such an one does not iind a place 
 in your heart. 
 
 Gt/i/i/, Hatred: **' This is the settled dislike of 
 thuis by whom we have been injured, or whose 
 
f>0 The Dcccitful/icss and Corrupthn 
 
 conduct ill any manner reproaches us." Thus 
 *' Esau hated Jacob" for depriving him of his 
 blessing, *'and in liis heart said, The days of 
 mourning for my father are at hand, then Mill I 
 -slay my brother Jacob." (Ge?i. xxvii. 41.) And 
 our hatred betrays itself on the appearance of the 
 person disliked, especially if it be unexpected. 
 ^Vhcn *'his brethren beheld Joseph afar off, they 
 wd, Behold, this dreamer cometh," (Ge/^.xxxvii. 
 18, ]£).) and took counsel to slay him. You hear 
 jt often said, ''1 forgive, but I cannot forget." 
 Here the root remains. Though an apparent re- 
 conciliation seems for a time to heal the wound, 
 it continues to fester within. This is the case 
 in a thousand particulars which might be in- 
 ■stanccd, but it appears no where more frequently 
 than where religion is concerned. There is an 
 eternal '' enmity put between the seed of the ser- 
 pent and theseedof thewwaian;" (Gen. in. 15.) 
 and those who are of the latter must be hated of 
 the former. As their light " reproves abidingly 
 the works of darkness, and testifies of the world 
 that its deeds are evil," (Ep/i. v, 11, 13.) it can- 
 not Ixit produce hatred, Since the day that Caik 
 hated Abel, " because his works were righteous," 
 so it is still. ^' He that is born after the flesh, 
 persecutes and hates him that is born after the 
 spirit." (Gal. iv. 29.) And no marvel : *' He 
 that was a murderer from the beginning," could 
 not but stamp this strong maik of his image up- 
 on the fallen heart. 
 
 7thly, Malice : this is envy and hatred united 
 and heightened. It ispeculiarly the spirit of the 
 devil. '^ It is the delight men feel in the wick- 
 edness or misfortunes of others, particularly of 
 their enemies." This temper shews itseU* abun- 
 dantly in the world. There is indeed a conspi- 
 racy againstGod: not content to serve tbedcviia 
 
of the Heart. 6 1 
 
 little, we seem ambitious to serve liim much ; as 
 though it was our veriest happiness. To engage, 
 a number to join in the same '* excess of riot ;'' 
 to see the drunkenness or quarrels of others ; to 
 tcize and exasperate those whom you know to be 
 fretful ; especially to prevail on some, who made 
 profession of religion, to betray it; what satisfac- 
 tion does it give to the heart ? And how ready 
 are you to glory over them, and, devil-like, turn 
 aceuser, and report, and reproach them for 
 the very sins you tempted them to commit ? 
 You hear something evil of your enemy, and how 
 happy are you to run open-mouthed into the 
 world and spread it, heightened by your relation ? 
 One differs from you in his religious sentiments, 
 and liappens to give a handle for offence. How 
 confidently you attribute it to the corruptness 
 of his principles, and reproach the whole body 
 for the faults of an individual ? If any mis- 
 ery or calamity hath befallen the object of your 
 hatred, doth not your heart feel a secret glow ? 
 Docs your rival in trade fail, what a satisfaction ? 
 Is he that troubled you called off by death ? The 
 tolling-bell is xnusic in your ears. Is your ad- 
 versary fallen ? immediately your cry is, ''there, 
 there, so would we have it." (Psal. xxxv. 25,) 
 These are the indications of the malicious spirit. 
 8////y, Revenge brings up the rear ; the last, 
 but not the least of our spiritual wickednesses. 
 *' It Is the desire or actual infliction of some pun- 
 ishment, according to the dictates of malice, on 
 those who have offended us." "" Vengeance is 
 mine, I will repay, saith the Lord." (Rom. xii. 
 \9') But man, the arrogaat assumer of God's 
 prerogatives, would be saying, nay, *' Vengeance 
 is mine, I will repay." Hence the contrivances 
 how to return the injuries we hav& suffered ; the 
 F 
 
€^ The Deceitfuhiess and Corruption 
 
 ■watching the best time and opportunity for it ; 
 tlie restlessness till that time comes ; the eager- 
 ness to seize the moment ; the violence if your 
 adv€rsary falls into your power ; and the pleasure 
 you take in tormenting when occasion offers.— 
 It is a common saying, '' Revenge is sweet ;" and 
 it is a true one : yet what a dreadful mark of a 
 diabolical spirit, and an especial proof of the doc- 
 trine advanced in the text, *' tliat the heart is 
 above all things desperately wicked ?" 
 
 If the hints above given have the blessed ef- 
 fects of leading us more experimentally into the 
 Jvnowledge of ourselves, then shall not our labour 
 have been bestowed in vain.^ For the following 
 effects will be produced by it : 
 
 1. In proportion as we discover the vileness ot 
 our nature, >ve shall have admiring apprehensions 
 of the riches of God's grace, who thought upon 
 us in this low, this deplorably wretched and wick- 
 ed estate. That when we were the enemies ot 
 God and his law, and no one trace of any thing 
 pleasing remained, but '' evil, and that continu- 
 ally " was found in us ; that when we were be- 
 rome abominable, yea altog-cthcr abominable ; 
 that when by nature we were iLS apostate from 
 God as the devils themselves; that then God 
 should liave compassion on us : that then he 
 *^ should think towards us thoughts of peace, and 
 not of evil ;" that then he should plan out acov* 
 cnant of redemption ; that then he should give 
 his own Son; that then ''the brightness ot the 
 Father's glory" should be incarnate ; that then I 
 he should *' lay on him the sins of the whole 
 wwld;" that then ^^in his own body on the tree 
 he should take away sin by the sacrifice of him- 
 self • "that then he should bleed and groan and fr 
 die in torment, in ignominy, in -dereliction, for 
 US miserable sinners; for us, ungodly ; tor us, 
 
of the Heart. 6'3 
 
 his enemies ; for us, that were fallen into the 
 belly of hell ; that he might redeem, justify, 
 sanetify, glorify us. *'This in deed is love ! ( 1 John 
 iv. 10.) Lov^e, *' the height and length and breadth 
 & depth of which surpasseth knowledge." {Eph. . 
 iii. 18, 16*. )• Did we know more of ourselves we 
 sliould know more of God's love to us ; and be- 
 cause " much hath been forgiveu us," be led to 
 *^ love him much." {Luke vii. 47.) What a mo- 
 tive is this to search into the depth of corrup- 
 tion, that we may feel ourselves more constrain- 
 edly the debt of gratitude ! 
 
 13. If such is our nature as hath been describ- 
 ed, how absolutely necessary does is appear, and 
 how little need we marvel at what Christ said, 
 ** except a man be borii again, he cannot sec 
 the kingdom of God ;" (John \\\.) These can- 
 iiot be the tempers which make us ^^meet for an 
 inheritance among the saints in light" Whilst 
 they are undiscovered and unsubdued, *' w^hat 
 communion ean there be between righteousness 
 and unrighteousness, Christ and Belial ?" The 
 necessity of the new-birth, of a real participation 
 of a divine nature, of a change, not of names or 
 opinions or outsides, but of heart, is indeed at 
 present strangely unknown or derided ; whilst 
 one part think their nature good enough, and 
 regeneration no better than mystic Enthusiasm ; 
 and the other, that if we have been baptized ia 
 the church, hav^e partaken of her ordinances, led 
 a decent life, and shewn a zeal for the external 5 
 of religion, that then we have all the regenera- 
 tion which the scripture exhorts us to look for. 
 But alas ! the superficial religion of the latter h 
 as far from real conversion of heart, as the 
 blindness or infidelity of the former. We must 
 be born again ; we must experimentally know a 
 transition '' from death unto life, {Jahn v. £4,) 
 
G4 Tht Deceit fulness, t^r. 
 
 and from the power of Satan unto God/* 
 (Acts xxvi. 18 J Me must be ** renewed in th-e 
 spirit of our minds ; (Epli. iv. 2$.J we muat 
 put off the old man, {Eph. iv. 22.) and put on 
 the Lord Jesus Christ ; (Rom. xiii. 14. J we must 
 be transfonncd into his image and hkeness,'* (2 
 Cej\ iii. 18.) before we can ever hope to ^' sec 
 him face to face." And how earnestly Avill they 
 seek it, who feel how deeply they need \t*; and 
 know that except the holy Ghost work this ef- 
 fectual change in us, '' that which is born of the 
 flesh is and mwst be for ever flesh ?" {John 
 iii. 6.) Happy is the man who, taught in any 
 measure to know himself, flies to the throne of 
 l^race, and, according to his necessities, pleads 
 with importunity for an abundant supply of the 
 spirit of Christ to hghten his darkness, help his 
 i^'cakness, discover the deceitfulness, change 
 the corruption of his nature, and to *' make him 
 a new heart, and create a right spirit within 
 him." Such a one shall be rescued from his na- 
 tive misery, and ** grow up into him, who is the 
 head, even Christ," till in heaven *' he comes to 
 the measure of the stature of his fulness,," and 
 everlasting victory over a desperately wicked 
 heart shall croNvn his happy labour. 
 
SERMON V. 
 
 THE DECEITFULNESS AND CORRUPTION OF THE HEART, 
 
 m e <9<^'&^^^<9<9 s s r. ■ 
 
 Jeremiah XVII. 9- 
 
 THE HEART IS DECEITFUL ABOVE ALL THINGS, AND DESPE-^ 
 RATELY WICKED, WHO CAiN KNOW IT. 
 
 WHY is dust and ashes proud ? Who can 
 solve the question, or shew satisfactorily 
 wherein wq can justly glory ? Surely the more 
 we examine, the more we shall he convinced, 
 that •' Pride was never made for man :" for man, 
 a creature so fallen ; so polluted in his nature ; 
 so desperately wicked in heart ; so corrupt in all 
 his vrays. Yet dust and ashes, sinful dust and 
 aslies, v/ill be proud notwithstanding ; and vaunc 
 itself " as though it were some great thing ;" 
 will^ tell of its dignity ; glory in its rectitude; 
 admire its own excellencies ; extol its goodness; 
 and boast almost its divinity, '' as God knowing 
 guo(l and evil ;'' as self-taught to decide on evc"- 
 ry instance of right and wrong; and naturally 
 cliarmed with Virtue's beauty, disposed Avitli 
 fciitJvFiuness to embrace it. Strange ignoraiice ! 
 Infatuation lamentable I and claiming mucli 
 more justly our pity, then the poor lunatic that 
 struts a King in his iron-fenced cell, with his 
 crown of straw^ and tattered robes of fancied 
 inajesty. '' Know thyself," vain man \ thou 
 mass of corruption ; thou polluted both in flesh 
 and spirit; thou abomination of the most Holy ; 
 know thyself and be coafouuded. ^* The crowa 
 
f 6 The Deceilfulness and Corruption 
 
 is fallen from thy head ; thy glory is departed 
 from thee ;" thy all is lost : arise then, and take 
 to thee thy proper garments ; clothe thyself in 
 sackcloth, confess '' thou art vile, abhor thy- 
 self in dust andashes." {Job xl. 4 — xlii. 6'.) 
 
 Happy will it be for us, my friends, when the 
 discovery of our hearts has laid us thus low. 
 " licfore honour is humility," {ProtK xv. 33.) 
 By " pride the angels fell from heaven ;" (Tim, 
 iii. 6. ) by pride man also fell on earth ; by pride \fQ 
 sink deeper still in the abyss of sin ; and by pride 
 obstinately persisted in, with them we must for 
 ever be cast into the bottomless pit. 
 
 Humility and lowliness of mind are the only 
 ways by which we can ascend from the depths, 
 of corruption. By humility alone we can be led 
 to seek the restoration of the image we have lost 
 upon earth ; and by * humility we shall mount, as 
 on the steps of Jacob's ladder, to the heaven for 
 which we were originaly designed. O precious 
 humility, what a friend art thou to fidlcn maa ! 
 But how may we obtain tliis virtue of humility? 
 lli^rt is the question : and what answer can be 
 given ? Know thyself So far as we see the tru,th 
 of our state ; so far as we re^dly inq^uiie into the 
 iiiystciy of iniquity within ;so far as we are con- 
 vinced of the deep and utter apostasy of our na- 
 ture ; so far, anduo father, shall we be humbled. 
 JN-ow to eti'ect this, hath, been my purpose in the 
 preceding discourses on these Avords, which suj)- 
 ject will be concluded in the present. O that 
 the truths they contain may, through the illu- 
 mination of the Holy Spirit, be made the means, 
 if but to any one soul, of true humility; and con- 
 sequently, of leading it to him who promises *'ta 
 
 ■* Wiut is here sp&Iiea of humilily, :mist be luuicrstood to imply uo tttore 
 th.va that the scr.*> of our guilt alone ci*n. make the gospel welcome to us, 
 For it i> thh hjr..blu:^disc«jvery of oitr «na hotttts^ YyliiUt. gvuTJiwes US Ihut 
 
i)f the Heart. 67 
 
 revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive 
 the heart of the contrite !" {Isal. Ivii. 15.) 
 
 That the heart of man is desperately wicked 
 I have attempted to shew, from the consideration 
 of some of the chief tempei's of his soul : 
 from whence it hath appeared, that he is by na- 
 ture un believing-, prouci, self-willed, disobedient, 
 impatient, angry, envious, full of hatred, mali- 
 cious, revengeful. I shall farther pursue this 
 mortifying subject in the consideration of his 
 earthly-mmdcdness and vile affections. 
 
 We are fallen under the dominion of flesh and 
 sense. Every object from without tends to en- 
 snare us, and to draw forth the worldlinesA and 
 lust wUich is within us. All our wisdom is chiefly 
 employed in contriving to make provision 1to\ 
 these ; whilst the lusts themselves,, " the lust of 
 the eye, and the lust of the fleshy" insatiate as 
 the grave, are daily crying. Give, Giv^. 
 
 1. The lust of the eye, or theleve of money^ 
 is naturally fixed in our hearts ; and how deeply 
 you may easily see, if you will consider the man- 
 ner of getting or using the unrighteous mam- 
 mon. 
 
 It must be observed, before I enter particularly 
 into the workings of this temper, that covctous- 
 iicss sometimes reigns alone or chief in the heart, 
 sometimes it is acconipanied with other interfer- 
 ing vices ,-alone, when the covetous man is mere- 
 ]} intent upon heaping up, longs to see so much 
 m his bags ; goes and counts over his sums with 
 secret deiight ; marks every piece; and worships 
 witii most unfeigned affection his golden god. 
 Sometimes accompanied, when otlier vicious 
 passiona also call for their gratification. And 
 iicre the greatest profusion of money may be coii- 
 si^^ent with the most covetous desire of it. The 
 statesman, waose love of the unrighteous maui» 
 
6s The Deceitfidness and Co irruption 
 
 nion shall make him infamously to fleece the 
 public, may yet spend his thousands of that ill- 
 gotten treasure in bribery and luxury. The 
 tradesman, whose attention to enrich himself 
 makes him wear out his life in almost sleepless 
 industry and care, may yet be a squanderer of 
 those very riches in a tavern or bagnio. The 
 highwayman, whose love of filthy lucre tempts 
 him daily to hazard his neck at the gallows, may 
 yet be found bestowing that very idol on his 
 nnstress in a brothel. These may all be just as 
 strong instances' of this temper as the miser. The 
 only difference is, their other vices at times are 
 more predominant, and they clash with each other. 
 Pride, lust and vanity, take the ascendency, and 
 then the fruits of covetousness are dispersed, and 
 new calls arise to exercise it. Hence a young- 
 person may be as covetous as an old one. though 
 the former never kept five guineas long at a time 
 in ins possession, and the other never spent live 
 shillings out of his thousands but in absolute 
 necessaries. I note this, because fc^r persons im- 
 agine that covetousness and prodigality can be 
 so nearly allied. 
 
 Having premised this, I say, the love of money 
 h naturally fixed in our hearts. This will beev- 
 ident in the desires of the heart after it. Now 
 examine yourselves whether some or other, more 
 or few'er, of the following symptoms have not 
 appeared in you. AVhen you have seen another's 
 titfluence, have you never felt the secret wish,. 
 '' O that it Avere mine?" When alone, hath not 
 vour mind been runnino' out in imaoinarv pros- 
 pects ? grasping at the distant hope of atfiuence ? 
 and pleased with the shadow, though every ap- 
 pearance of actual success Avas wanting in your 
 vieAV'S } Hath not this principle set you on con- 
 triving how to abound ? Yea^ hath it not been 
 
of the Heart, iS3 
 
 ■'^n your imagination the chief good, and infinite- 
 ly superior to *' the kingdom of God, and his 
 righteousness ?" You at least must be convinced 
 of this, who will consider the anxiety which ha- 
 bitually you shew after the world ; the vexations 
 when things favour not your gains ; the delight 
 when the unrighteous mammon flows in upoii 
 you ; and the uniform plan you keep in view, of 
 securing and increasing your store. The world 
 wakes with you early iu the morning, and the 
 thoughts of gain prevent the thoughts of God: 
 you go forth into the world engaged in the 
 pursuit of gold, not godliness : you weary 
 yourself, it may be, till night ; and late 
 lie down with this upon your heart. Thus it is the 
 first thing with you when you awake, and the 
 last before vou sleep : nay, your very dreams, it 
 may be, are tinctured with the same, and place 
 you still amidst the business, merchandise and 
 labour of the world ; and your fancy imagines 
 a new scene of hopes and fears and joys. Nay, 
 even your very prayers (if time be spared for 
 what you call your prayers) are interrupted by 
 the same lucrative thoughts. The sabbath is 
 polluted by them ; the holy table of the Lord,, 
 which you presume to approach, is defiled with 
 them ; your *' heart is full, and out of its abuu- 
 dance" the streams flow uninterrupted. 
 
 I A/ould observe, that whilst the constant prev- 
 alence of this temper, in a greater or less degree, 
 is the sure mark ofthe bondage ofcorruption in the 
 worldling; the renewed heart will find great cause 
 to mourn over the remainders of the same inor- 
 dinate concupiscence, and to condemn those i- 
 dolatrous desires which would intrude themselves 
 even into their most solemn services. 
 
 From this source a correspondent conversa- 
 tion naturally flows, JNIen feel themselves iu 
 
70 The DcceitfulnC'Ss arid Corncption 
 
 their clement when the discourse turns uponmat^ 
 tcrs suited to make them worldly-wise. They 
 Avill take pleasure in recounting their advantages : 
 *' It is naught, it is naught, saith the buyer ; 
 but when he goeth away, then he boasteth/' 
 (Prov. XX. 14.) The lips of such persons wilt 
 be open to flattery and fawning toward their pa- 
 tron or their customers : they will be very rea- 
 dy to reflect on a tradesman that undersells them ; 
 they will studiously avoid, as painful and inter- 
 ruptive of their views, whatever is " for the use 
 of edifying, which might minister grace to the 
 hearers ;" and be silent when such discourse is 
 started ; but when tlie world and the thing's 
 thereof is the topic, their tongues will be let 
 loose, and their attention fixed ; these are the 
 symptoms of earthly-mi ndedness ; and where 
 circumstances give them scope for appearing 
 they never fail, though in different measures, to 
 discover the power of this corruption in the 
 heart. And this will be farther 'evident in their 
 manner of getting money, which will ever be, 
 more or less, by acts of fraud and injustice ; by 
 unreasonable profits, by adulterating their goods, 
 or being scanty in their measures ; by lending 
 at unlawful advantage ; by making the neces- 
 sities or ignorance of others a handle to oppress 
 them ; by borrowing or running into debt, wli^n 
 they have no real intention or prospect of re- 
 paying ; by making the Lord's day a day of 
 merchandise ; by withholding restitution ot ill- 
 gotten gain :.so true it will appear that the love 
 of money is the root of all evil ; and that wherev- 
 er it is men's grand aim to *^ abound, and they 
 make haste to be rich, they cannot be innocent.'' 
 (Prov. xxviii. 120.J 
 
 There is no wickedness of the heart more fla- 
 grant it may be, or lcs3 taken notice of than this* 
 
of the Heart, 71 
 
 '* The god of tliis world" hath closed the eyes 
 of his votaries, yea, hath gilded with every spe- 
 cious name the most abominable of our corrupt 
 tempers : we call our covetousness a proper regard 
 for our families ; our slavery to mammon, hon- 
 est industry ; our love of the world, prudence ; 
 and our rapaciousness, minding the main cliance. 
 And thus whilst this maxim is received, "Get as 
 much as you can in an honest way ;" that is to 
 say, without risking your neck at the gallows, 
 we see men, the slaves of this abominable temper, 
 quiet and easy, without any apprehensions of 
 their sin or danger ; yea, rather blessing them- 
 selves in having cared for their own houses, and 
 acted the part of a good relation in accumulating 
 for them so genteel a portion. 
 
 The use of money, as well as the manner of 
 getting it, shews the covetousness of the heart. 
 By natural obligation, as well as by the positive 
 law of God, we are bound " to do justice, and to 
 love mercy :" (Micah vi. 8. J and in this chiefly 
 consists our dutj' towards our neighbour : but to 
 both of these covetousness opposes itself more or 
 less ; and makes us unjust and unmerciful towards- 
 our fellow-creatures. A faithful examination of 
 our hearts will shew us quickly in what measure 
 this spirit hath reigned in us. 
 
 Justice is " the rendering unto all their dues, 
 ^^ and owing no man any thing :" but covetous- 
 ness kith harpy talons, and is. too ready to hold 
 fast whatever it hath grasped. Hence money is 
 parted with as so many drops of blood by the 
 avaricious : and the most feel too great an at- 
 tachment to self in the matter. In worldly deal- 
 ings we may observe it, in people's backwardness 
 to pay the debts they have contracted; by their 
 .endeavours to beat down, the price of any thing 
 and save a trifle, it may be, at the cxpence of 
 
^2 The Deceit fulness and Corruption 
 
 many lies; their great partiality to self in their 
 bargains and contracts ; their grudging the ne- 
 cessary demands of tlic state, and readiness to 
 defraud it in customs and taxes ; their robbing 
 God's altar of the portion his service demands ; 
 counting lightly of his ministers, and thinking 
 it no duty to communicate to them of their world- 
 ly things. These, among innumerable other in- 
 stances of injustice, are the evidences of a covet- 
 ous heart. 
 
 Mercy is *' the regard we show to objects in 
 ^distress." Covetousness makes a man selfish, and 
 unfeeling to the wants of others. Though many 
 a one thinks himself enough exempt from covet- 
 ousness, if he can say he is punctually honest, 
 and pays every one his due. But alas ! *^ If our 
 brother stand in need, and we shut up our bow- 
 els of compassion from him," how little will our 
 honesty excuse us from the charge of being un- 
 charitable r The subsistence and working of this 
 selfishness you must needs have observed, by the 
 most transient glance on the world or your own 
 heart. When an object of distress hath fallen in 
 your way, have you never avoided it ; and, *'likc 
 the pviest and levite, passed by on the other side?'* 
 (Ltihe^, 31, 32.) When that could not be donr, 
 and the importunity of want was clamorous, liow 
 surly have you spoken to hide your covetous- 
 ness, and added unjust reproach to their necessi- 
 ties? How little have you made it your care to 
 inquire for the needy, and to relieve them ? Where 
 and when have the hungry been fed, the thirsty 
 drank of your cup, or the naked been clothed by 
 you ? The sick" visited, the aged, the widow and 
 -the orphan relieved by your kind hand? And 
 this, when it ^\'as in the power of your hand to 
 give, without distressing yourself, or violating 
 any duty you owe to others. Though it may 
 
t)f the Heart. 73 
 
 he on such occasions you have a ready excuse. 
 You were greatly afraid of encouraging idleness^ 
 you have a family of your own ; you do not a- 
 bouud yourself : but are not tliese vain pretexts 
 to cover the selfishness of your heart ? I mean 
 not to countenance every idle vagrant ; but 
 where you know there is need, is your hand 
 open r Your care for your family is lauda- 
 ble, but it shews the covetousness of your heart, 
 when it makes you insensible to others, wants. 
 You may be low yourself ; but though you la- 
 bour with your hands for a maintenance, you 
 may still have two mites to spare to the greater in- 
 digence of others ; and whenever, according to 
 your ability, you are not " ready to distribute, 
 willing to communicate," (1 Tim. vi. 18.) you 
 are certainly under the influence of cov^teous- 
 iiess. 
 
 It must be remarked indeed, that there are ma- 
 ny, whose splendid appearance of benevolence 
 would seem to exempt them fromuncharitable- 
 ness : but it must be observed also, that a tender 
 constitution may not be able to v/ithstand tl:e 
 cries of an object in distress ; that the affectation 
 of liberality may overcome the sordidness of our 
 temper ; that the hope of '' hiding a multitude 
 of sins,"* (/^7?Z€.^v. 20. I Pet. iv. 8.) by such 
 (ignorantly esteemed) commutative acts of good- 
 ness ; that the importunity of a friend whom 
 we would not disobli2:e, and manv other sinful 
 
 't>^» 
 
 principles, not the true love of mercy, may be the 
 moti^Ts to our charity. And this is alwavs ev- 
 ident, if the pittance from your abundance goes 
 from you with reluctance ; if you are afterwards 
 connnendingyourselffor your generosity ; or if, 
 
 * A greatly mistaken text as ro me it secin$ ; hidino; the Tr^uliitudc c/'i.jAS, 
 refers to the sins ot the converted person in one place, and intht*o;heriuU;aaic'* 
 Site iUuritabie care to conceal then*, as opposed to reporiiii^ the«. 
 
 G 
 
74 The Deceitfulness aud Corruption 
 
 while you are not Avholly destitute of deeds of 
 almsgiving, you seek not to be in a capacity to 
 abound in them, as you might and ought. If 
 it be not in your heart to deny yourself many 
 things, that you may have the more to bestow ; 
 if yoQ have not the wants of your brethren hab- 
 itually as your concern ; you may see the want 
 of mercy, and consequently the influence of sel- 
 fishness. 
 
 I might further observe the same respecting lend- 
 ing, for a small sum lent is often a great charity. 
 Covet ousness hates to hazard apenny : the pay- 
 ment must be secured before the purse-strings 
 open, whatever be the call : "go and come again, 
 and to-morrow I will lend," says thy seliish heart, 
 ** when thou hast it by thee." The tricks, evasions, 
 and castings-about of the covetous are indeed 
 endless ; and oftentimes the greatest oppressions 
 are countenanced under the shew of Iriendship 
 and kindness. But what hath been said TnH 
 serve to shew what our hearts naturally are, and 
 -what in too many they continue to be ; and must 
 be in all, if preventing, restraining, converting 
 grace doth not keep within bounds the stream 
 of corruption, or dry up its fountain. 
 
 II. The fleshly lusts which dwell within us, 
 shew the "desperate wickedness of our hearts." 
 Lawless appetite hath now seized the reins, and 
 hurries on the body to sensual gratifications. By 
 indolence and excess provision is made for the 
 flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof; and as the effect, 
 impurity follows in tliought, in word and actions. 
 1. Indolence the flesh delights in. Labour 
 and diligence iare ts aversion ; though since the 
 fall expressly enjoined us. But in general labour 
 we must. The world produces nought but briars 
 and thorns till subdued by thesweatof the brow. 
 Though a few by the possession of affluence be- 
 
of the Heart, "^^ 
 
 come in some measure exempted from labour, 
 the far greater part must work before they eat : 
 yet the love ofidolence will appear the same in the 
 one as in the other. The morning- conies, with 
 v» liat reluctance do you rise ? It is too soon, it 
 is too cold, saith every man's natural sloth. *' A 
 little more sleep, a little more slumber, a little 
 more folding of the hands to sleep ;" {Frov. xxiv. 
 33.) necessity urges you to rise : but the same 
 temper follows you ; '' the fool foldeth his hands 
 togjether :" {Eccles. iv. 5.) any little excuse ia 
 easily seized to suspend your diligence, and trifle 
 away yonr time. And when you do work, you 
 often feel the thought, *^ what a weariness is it?" 
 *' I wish I had enough to live upon, I would theu. 
 sit down at my ease." If you hav,e seen others, 
 whose affluence hath been construed into a pre- 
 scription for idleness, have you not envied fhem 
 as more happy than yourself ? And in other points 
 you will iind the sluggard still in your work, not 
 doing it with all your might ; an eye-servant, a 
 loiterer ; lengthening the intervals of leisure al- 
 lowed you, or returning with reluctance to your 
 task. Or if every nerve is straining, and you 
 are labouring night and day to gain ; pray what 
 is at the bottom of all this ? Why usually an in- 
 tention to be idle at the last, and spend the end 
 of your life in pleasing indolence, when you can 
 say to your soul, '' Soul, thou hast much goods 
 laid up for many years, take thine ease ; eat, drink 
 and be merry." {Luke xii. 19.) 
 
 In the superior rank of life this temper seems 
 uncontrouled, except where ambition interferes. 
 What is usually the life of the great and the afflu- 
 ent, but varied scenes of pleasure, calculated 
 merely to gratify indolence ? Amusements, cards^ 
 &c. visits, sleep, sauntering, eating or drinking, 
 or some insignificant work (^^vhicb may te bet- 
 
'76 The Dcceltfidness and Coi^ruptlGn 
 
 ter called play) these take up all their time : and 
 to nioiTOAv is only a repetition of the sloth of to 
 day. The rich cannot be at the pains to super- 
 intend their own accounts. The Dignitary in 
 the church fills his stall at his ease, and devolves 
 the drudgery of prayer and preaching to some 
 needy substitute. Labour is the general aversion ; 
 whilst every thing that can gratify indolence is 
 contrived and purchased at any expence. 
 
 It is from this temper that, though Ave so of- 
 ten hear every body complaining of the badness 
 of the times, we can find so few willing to exert 
 themselves to restrain it. The magistrate, the 
 minister, the people, care not to trouble them- 
 selves ; the law lies dormant, zeal is extinguish- 
 ed, and sloth sheds its soporiferous influences all 
 around. 
 
 2. Excess follows close on the heels of indo- 
 lence. They mutually minister to each other. 
 Meat, drink and sleep are what the natural mau 
 lusts after, not merely to sustain nature, but to 
 pamper it : not to satisfy its just demands, but 
 to gratify its inordinate appetites. 
 
 The niceness and curiousness of the affluent, 
 wliere eating is among the grand concerns of life, 
 is pretty evident. The high sauces, ragouts, and 
 strange inventions of the pimps of luxury, to 
 j)rovoke the desire of eating beyond the demands 
 of lumger, and the universal readiness of all to 
 partake of such incentives, shew by what beasti- 
 al appetites Are are governed. Thus on one ta- 
 ble the four quarters of the globe shall be ran- 
 sacked for turtle, and ortolans, and spices and 
 <lesert, at an expence that Avould have provided 
 lor an hundred families of the needy ; and, Avhere 
 circumstances forbid such daily indulgence, yet 
 the same temper shcAvs itself Hath not a feast 
 pleased you ; and the prospect of its approach 
 
ef the Hearts 77 
 
 Been dwelt upon with delight ? When some nice 
 dish was brought on, was not your before palled- 
 appetite whetted anew ? or did you not regret 
 that it came in so late? Did you never take a 
 pleasure in talking of the good eating you par* 
 took of or were going to ? Have you never op- 
 pressed nature till she sunk under the load ? Yoa 
 will need only observe a Sunday evening's con- 
 gregation to discover in it the gluttony of tlie 
 poor, as much as in the habitual snoring on tlie 
 soft couch after dinner of &uchas are daily more 
 iuxurious. 
 
 The desire of drinking, though perhaps not 
 more common, is yet more taken notice of r 
 What a thirst is there after Hquor T The brute 
 beast quenches his drought at the river, and is 
 satisfied ; wliilst the man who leads him thither 
 drinks beyond reason when nature is no longer 
 thirsty 1 Hence, at the expence of health and 
 strength and fortune, and every consideration 
 that can be near or dear, we still see the drunk- 
 ard " filling himself with strong drink ;'* 
 pouring in liquid fire^ that lie may thirst and 
 tlrink, and thirst and drink again. Jjut when 
 men proceed not to these grosser excesses, and 
 fashion or decency, or some such like motive- 
 withholds them, the heart still shews its dispo- 
 sition, by the pleasure felt '' when the liquor 
 sparkles in the glass and moveth itselF aright ;. 
 (Froo. xxiii. 31.) by sitting long at the cups ;'' 
 by taking what is called a cheerful glass ; by 
 customary indulgence after meals, th>i-ough pre- 
 tence of I know not what advanta^'e to dJo-est- 
 ion, &c. and by frequenting needlessly places of 
 public entertaiiunent through pleas, of business 
 or company. 
 
 These symptoms shew the tendency of the heart 
 
78 The Deceitfulness and Coyn^uption 
 
 where grosser excesses may have been avoidecL 
 Inordinate lov^e of sleep comes under the head 
 of sloth ; long continuance of it belongs to excess. 
 When a third part of your time or more is spent 
 on your pillow ; when a great deal of the day as 
 well as the night is wasted on your bed ; when 
 you rise heavy, and not refreshed from your 
 morning or mid-day slumbering ; it can hardly 
 be but that irregular appetite must have domin- 
 ion over you. The body thus indulged is filled 
 vvith the fuel of lust ; and no marvel that it makes 
 so many to be '^ like fed horses in the morning, 
 every one neighing after his neighbour's wife,'' 
 {Jer, V. 8.) 
 
 3. Impurity is strongly the bent of man's 
 natural heart.. I will not enter into the grosser 
 indulgences of it, which modesty bids rather to 
 conceal than mention ; but only hint at some 
 of those more unnoticed instances of it, in which 
 many lie theslaves of their vile and wicked hearts, 
 without suspecting the dreadfulness of their state. 
 Our fallen nature is full of lewdness : we need no 
 other teuiptation but from within. ^' Every man 
 is tempted when lie is drawn away of his own 
 heart's lusts and enticed." {James i, 14.) What 
 corrupt imaginations rise up in the hearts of all 
 from the days of their youth? How readily are they 
 rntertaiucd, indulged, delighted in ? especially 
 w hen alone and on the bed of sloth ? An<l where 
 this is the case, how ready are you to please your 
 eyes with some inllaming object ? How prone 
 to seek the snare, where you have felt evil desires 
 excited ? and to pursue, instead of avoiding 
 the persons and pleasures whence Satan hath 
 taken occasion to entangle you ? These are the 
 beginnings of lust : **Out of the heart proceed 
 €vil thought, & thence adulteries.' Y^^^^---xv. 19) 
 The tongue v/ill partake of Ui€ defilement that 
 
of the He<irt, 7C) 
 
 IS vvithin. Gross indecencies in conversation are 
 indeed at present in general remitted to the vul- 
 gar ; but the delicate lasciviousness of the more 
 refined shews the same abominable temper in the 
 secret inuendo ; the double entendre ; and the 
 thin veil of a witty expression suited more surely 
 to insinuate into and lix tlie vile idea more firm- 
 ly upon the memory. These *' unclean spirit^ 
 have gone forth out of your mouth," (Rev. xvi. 
 13.^ or your fancy hath been entertained with 
 them, you have either smiled approbation, or 
 seemed only pleasingly to frown in silence ; at 
 least have not testified your abhorrence of them. 
 Whilst too often, what openly-corrupt conver- 
 sation goes forward ? and, shameful to tell ! even 
 the old make the young to blush with their ob- 
 scenities. The conduct under such an influence 
 nmst be conformed to the temper. 
 
 I will not speak of the more criminal indulgen- 
 cies of the fjesh, of the grossest nature ; but 
 would have every one of you call to mind the 
 many undue liberties you have taken with any 
 person, because you were alone ; the dishonour 
 of God's temple, your own body ; the satisfac- 
 tion and pleasure enjoyed in a loose book of 
 amours or plays ; or the like obscenities more 
 strikingly expressed on the stage : the feasting- 
 your eyes with an indecent picture ; the allowed, 
 though sinful freedoms so common at balls and 
 in other mixed companies ; and the innumerable 
 ways which the flesh contrives decently to grat- 
 ify its corrupt desires. Whilst, as the effect of 
 Huch indulgences, your minds feel the continued 
 impression of them, and your senses, even when 
 locked up in sleep, are still haunted with the im- 
 age and impure fancies, which were entertained 
 when yon were wakings 
 . These are the dire marks of our desperately 
 
80 The Deceitfubiess and Corruption 
 
 ^vicked hearts. Corrupt indeed are we, and be^ 
 come abominable; *' from the sole of the foofi 
 even unto the head, there is no soundness in us, 
 but the whole is wounds and bruises and nutri- 
 fying sores." (Isai i. 6,) The more we are at- 
 tentive to what hath passed in us, tlie more Me- 
 shall discover this vile nature of ours, and feel 
 the need of crying, - Purge me with hyssop, that 
 1 may be clean; wash me, that I may be whiter 
 than snow," ( PsaL li. 7.) Yea, and when we 
 Have begun to be made whole, *^this war in our 
 members, this flesh that lusteth against the spi> 
 ntr (Gal. v. \7.) willrequire ail our labour, 
 watchfulness and prayer, to '' keep it under and 
 bring It into subjection." (\ Cor. ix. 27j 
 
 I shall conclude the subject with this one ob^ 
 servation. 
 
 That the knowledge of this desperate wicked- 
 ness of our hearts can only come from the Spirit 
 ot God, by his word enlightning our minds ta 
 understand our errors : for those who are evi- 
 dently under the grossest influence of the foreoo- 
 mg evils, and one should think, must be unavoid- 
 ably convinced of them, are quite insensible of 
 It. 1 he most worldly hearts are usually the most 
 regardless of their wretched state : and they wha 
 are '' lollowing all uncleanness with greediness," 
 are led blindfold to their ruin, as the adulteress, 
 ** who eateth, and wipeth her mouth, and saith 
 I have done no wickedness." (Pr6>i;. xxx. 20.) 
 But \yhen God*s light shineth into our hearts, 
 then is our darkness revealed to us ; conviction 
 of sin flashes like lightning on our consciences r 
 and the more of this light we obtain, the more: 
 humbling are our reflections. 
 
 I have pitied the ignorance of a decent forma- 
 list, whose astonishment hath been raised when^ 
 ail expeneneed christian hath expressed his deep 
 
of tht Heart. 81 
 
 apprehensions of his o\ni vilcneas : and the iin- 
 awakened devotee hath suspected, from his con- 
 fessions of the '* rememhrance of his sins beino: 
 grievous to him, and the burden of them really 
 intolerable,"*' that he must needs have been a 
 peculiarly bad man in his time, and committed 
 some atrocious wickedness : whereas the only 
 difference between them is, that the one is en- 
 lightened to see and quickened to attend to those 
 workings of natural corruption in his heart and 
 actions ; whilst, however more evident they ap- 
 pear in the conduct of the o ther, yet the '" dark- 
 ness hath blinded his eyes^ that he cannot see 
 them. And this it is that makes every true be- 
 liever really write down under his own name *^of 
 sinners I am chief;" because the views he hath 
 of his own fallen nature can be equalled by noth- 
 ing which he discovers in the conduct of others. 
 \i what you have heard hath this blessed hum- 
 bling effect upon any of your hearts, my brethren, 
 one great end of my speaking will be answered, 
 and *' the revelation of the gospel of the grace of 
 God in Jesus Christ," will indeed appear precious 
 unto you, concerning which I purpose to speak 
 
 more fully in the ensuing discourses, 
 
 '♦•.....•.. .»..••»«.... «j^ 
 
 ^ Confession ia. the Cotajuuaioa Serrice. 
 
SERMON VI. • 
 
 TIIE SPIRITUALITY OF GOD's LAW. 
 
 Calatians III. 10. 
 
 CrnSRD IS EVERY ONE THAT CO>mNUETII NOT IK ALt. 
 THINGS WHICH ARE WRirfEN IN TIIE BOOK Of THE LAW 
 10 DO IIIEM. 
 
 THE immortality of the soul hath been a 
 trutli received in all nations and all ages. 
 The light of the Gospel hath infallibly confirm- 
 ed it. Man therefore is a creature, whose pre- 
 sent existence must be considered as bearing a 
 necessary connexion with futurity ; and his eter- 
 nal state, as being so infinitely more durable, 
 must be regarded by him as unspeakably more 
 important than his temporal. 
 
 That he is a dependent creature, and, as en- 
 dued with conscience, accountable to some su- 
 perior being for his conduct in this life, hath been 
 also universally received, and cannot now be rea- 
 sonably disputed ; since Revelation hath laid it 
 down among its most evident truths, that *'God 
 will judge the world in righteousness, by that 
 man whom he hath ordained ; of which he hath 
 given assurance unto all men, in that he hath 
 raised him from thedead." (Acts xvii. 31.) That 
 then the actions of men shall be laid in the ba- 
 lance of justice, and a suitable sentence follow 
 the inquiry. 
 
 If man be thus accountable for his actions, it 
 must arise from some rule of duty prescribed 
 iivd known : what that rule iS; as well as the 
 
The Spirituality of God's Law. 83 
 
 sanctions annexed to it, will deserve our atten- 
 tive consideration. 
 
 We arc in nothing more liable to mistake than 
 concerning the law of God, and the penalties an- 
 nexed to it. Every man naturally desires to be 
 happy. Every one is willing to persuade him- 
 self he shall be so. Every man therefore would 
 have such a rule as shall certainly comprehend 
 himself within it. Hence all the vain labours to 
 lower down the true standard from the perfection 
 of obedience to sincerity ; and then establishing 
 such measures of sincerity, as vary according to 
 the corrupt taste of those who-thus exalt them* 
 selves into legislators. 
 
 On the other hand, the sanctions have suf- 
 fered the same violence as the law. The dread 
 of eternal misery is terrible indeed. Nature 
 shrinks from it. The language therefore of holy 
 scripture must be explained in some milder sense. 
 Hence the duration, the place, the intenseness, the 
 universality of the torments of the wicked, have 
 been respectively and strenuously controverted by 
 those who had too much reason to apprehend the 
 weight of them : whilst from self-wrought no- 
 tions of God, and leaving the scriptures to wan- 
 der after airy speculations, others have invented 
 for themselves a wrathless deity, either too in- 
 dulgent to punish at all, or inflicting merely to 
 purify, and with a view to bring the whole race 
 of mankind finally and happily from the furnace, 
 when their dross hath been consumed, and the 
 divine principle purged and extricated from the 
 intanglements with which llesh and sense have 
 surrounded it. 
 
 Now the only way we can shun the rocks of 
 error is by keeping a constant eye upon tlie chart 
 of divine truth. The God who alone hath a 
 right to our service, hath fully revealed his mind 
 
84 The Spirituality ofGocTs Laxv. 
 
 and will relative to these matters in the scriptures, 
 has prescribed the ride and declared the sanction, 
 ^' To the word therefore, and the testimony." 
 
 The Apostle, in the epistle from which the 
 words in the text are taken, is writing to the 
 church of the Galatians, on a matter then greatly 
 controverted; namely, ''whether it Mas neces- 
 sary for the Gentile converts to be circumcised, 
 and to keep thclawof ]\Ioses ?'' (ActsKv. 1 — 6*. ) 
 The Judaizing teachers among them had sapped 
 the very foundation of the believer's hope, by 
 setting up the law as a covenant of life, and 
 pleading for obedience to it as the intitling ground 
 of their acceptance with God : whilst St. Paul in 
 every place resolutely set himself to oppose an 
 opinion so dishonourable to his Master, so con- 
 tradictory to the gospel, and so destructive to 
 men's souls. In this epistle and another to the 
 Romans, he expressly and formally enters into tlie 
 question, and confutes the pretences of his ad- 
 versaries, from the consideration of the spiritu- 
 ality, extent and perfection of the law ; the im- 
 possibility in the present state of human nature 
 of satisfying its demands, and the design and 
 end of it, both as moral and ceremonial ; which 
 Y^as not to furnish any with a title to life, but 
 ^' to lead all to Christ, that thev mii^ht be justi- 
 fied by fiiith." (Gal, iii. 24. j 
 
 So far therefore from being capable of saving, 
 it served only to condemn as many as trusted to 
 ]t ; since " as many as are of the works of the 
 kw, are under the curse ; as it is written, cursed 
 is every one that continueth not in all things 
 A\ritten in the book of the law to do them." 
 {GaL iii. 10.) 
 
 And this reasoning of the apostle with, the peo- 
 ple of that day is left on record " for our admo- 
 iiition," that we like theui might not "be turned 
 
The Spirituaiitj/ of GocTs Law, ^5 
 
 aside from the hope of the gospel," .to depend on 
 any broken reed Avhich can only run into and 
 pierce the hand that leans upon it. And it is 
 with this view, that I purpose to open the words 
 read to you, that when we see the perfections of 
 obedience which God's law, the rule of our duty, 
 indispensibly requires, and the tremendous curse 
 wliicli it denounces against every transgression 
 we may be the more solicitous to "fly from the 
 sword of the avenger to the city of refuge," the 
 •cross of him *' who hath redeemed us from the 
 curse of the law, by being made a curse for us." 
 (Gai, iii. 13.) In speaking to the words read at 
 present, I shall endeavour to shew the following 
 particulars : ^ , 
 
 I. What law the Apostle here refers te. 
 
 ir. AV'hat the demands of that law contain. 
 
 III. The impossibility of our compliance there- 
 with. 
 
 I. The law the Apostle here refers to, is pecu- 
 liarly the moral law. He declares it to be that 
 law '• which concluded Jews and Gentiles both 
 under sin:" (Rom.m. 9-) that law, by which 
 ail tlie world was found guilty and stood con- 
 demned before God : (Rom, iii. ig^) that law 
 the ofience against which produced death before 
 Moses' days ; (Rom.y. 14. J and that law, by 
 obedience to which, wherever it could be found, 
 life would be certainly attained. (Gal, iii. 21, J 
 These are characters which alone suit the moral 
 law. 
 
 Some indeed refer all that the apostle says to 
 die ceremonial law, or at least to that dispensa- 
 tion under which the Jews were, considered j>u rely 
 as it was Juciaical ; and thereby make it a private 
 contro\'crsy in which the world at present is no 
 ways concerned. But it is evident tlxat the aiat- 
 H 
 
S5 The Spirituality of Gods Lua. 
 
 ter in dispute touches tlie very nerves of the 
 gospel ; namely, whether faith or works justify 
 us before God ; and we have full as niucli con- 
 cern in it as the Galatians themselves. There 
 "was a law from the beginning which man was 
 hound to obey. It was like its author perfect ; 
 coming from God it could not but be so : and it 
 was to be suitably observed, he can receive from 
 his creatures no service but such as becomes their 
 dependence upon him ; and this must be absolute 
 and intire. This is the eternal and unalterable 
 rule of duty. The traces of this obligation 
 through man's corruptions were become griev- 
 ously obscured, yet in the worst times ^' God was 
 not withojjit a witness" in the conscience. Men 
 at all times and in all places knew that they who 
 did things contrary to that law were worthy of 
 death. {Rom. 1. 32, J The Jews had one ad- 
 vantage over others : God committed to them 
 his lively oracles. . He wrote with his own linger 
 on tables of stone this eternal law of obedience : 
 and in typical institutions of his own appoint- 
 ment shewed them deliverance from its condem- 
 nation. It never was designed to save them. 
 It was given that ''sin by the commandment 
 might become exceeding sinful ;" (Rom. vii. 
 \S.) that it might be '' a schoolmaster to them ;" 
 (Gal. iii. 24. J that they might turn their eyes 
 from this law of works to a gospel of grace, con- 
 tinually held forth in every bleeding victim. 
 The moral law delivered to Moses on m.ount Si- 
 nai was not a new law, peculiarly framed for and 
 appropriated to them ; it was the old comn:and- 
 ment which had been from the beginning ; a law 
 by which all mankind was to be judged, and be 
 justified or condemned, according to their obe- 
 dience to or transgression of it. The peculiar 
 advantages they enjoyed by the law, were a 
 
The Spirit ual'ity of GolVs Laxv, S7 
 
 clearer and deeper conviction of tlieir impotency 
 to keep it, and their misery under the failure ; 
 inul fuller discov^eries of God's gracious designs 
 of relief from it in the promised seed. 
 
 AVhen therefore the \<i\v is spoken of, we must 
 notconcei\-e that the mosaical lav/, contained 
 in the ten commandments, is another law distinct 
 from the moral, by which Jews or Gentiles were 
 othcrvv^ise equally bound. There never was but 
 one moral law from God : there cannot be : it is 
 unalterable. However, in sundry times and di- 
 vers manners the promulgation of it may be made.. 
 All men are and must be under it to the end of the 
 world. God must cease to be, before his law* can 
 YcLvy or cease to bind men's consciences. 
 
 IL The demands of this law come next to be 
 considered. And these are obedience in every 
 view and instance absolute and compleat ; doing 
 God's will on earth as it is done in heaven. ''A 
 continuance in all things written in the book of 
 the law." Our rule of duty is perfect and intire ; 
 nor may one jot or tittle of it be broken. *' Give 
 me thine heart'' {Prov. xxiii. 26.) in the utmost 
 simplicity and sincerity, is its firstinjunction; for 
 *' God requireth truth in the inward parts. " (^P.saL 
 li. 6.) The principle must be pure. This is es- 
 sential to all obedience. It is the rectitude of the 
 temper which constitutes the acceptableness of 
 the service. The extent too of our obedience 
 must be as large as our rule. All God's com- 
 mandments, the least as well as the greatest of 
 them, demand our submission : and this with 
 the highest intenseness of affection. " Thou 
 shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, 
 and with all thy soul, and with all thy might, and 
 with thy strength." {Matt, xxii, 37^) Imperfec- 
 tion is transgression. If the least measure of 
 love be wanting,, the obedience under the law is 
 
85 The Spirituality of God's Laxt, 
 
 not absolutely perfect. God will have an intir€ 
 i>ervice or none. One defect as effectually de- 
 stroys all title to life by the law as a thousand 
 transgressions : and the whole must be perpetual; 
 continuance in all these things to do them being 
 the unalterable prescription. The longest course 
 of obedience, once interrupted, ceases directly to 
 be a legal righteousness. Tlie curse enters the 
 moment that sin enters. A life of a thousand 
 years, spent like an angel of God, would, accord- 
 ing to the covenant of works, lose all its reward, 
 if but in the dying moments a vain thought or 
 an idle word escaped us. The law is inexorable : 
 '' The man that doth those things, he and he only 
 shall live by them." (/?(?7;?.x.5.) It makes no pro- 
 .vision for failure : *'The wages of sin, of every 
 sin, is death." (iiow. vi. 23.)"^ovv *' if there had 
 been a law which could have given life, verily 
 righteousness should have been by this law." 
 {Gal. iii. 21.) Such obedience as this would 
 have given a legal claim to life : we should have 
 stood before God "righteous, as he is righteous." 
 The favour of God, not by grace but by right, 
 would have been necessarily connected with this: 
 God must have been delighted with his own im- 
 age. But, 
 
 III. No man hath ever thus confonned to the 
 rule of duty. "The scripture hath concluded all 
 under sin." The law could not be fulfilled through 
 the weakness of the flesh: "All have sinned, and 
 come short of the glory of God." (Rom. iii. 9.3.) 
 The moment any person truly begins to consider 
 his state, and to bring forth his heart and life be- 
 fore the law of this holy Lord God, conviction 
 must seal up his lips in silence. Many indeed 
 there are, whose ignorance and unhumbled pride 
 lead them to claim the reward of obedience : and 
 many more hope to deserve it before they die, 
 
Tfie SplrituaVUy of God's Law, 89 
 
 tlioiigh the one and the other are under the most 
 fatal delusion. But this will be disputed by the 
 good livers, as they think themselves, who trust 
 that they are righteous. It may not therefore 
 be amiss to manifest a little more explicitly the 
 fact of disobedience, and shew you, that so fair 
 from keeping all the commandments in the high- 
 est measure continually, you never for one day 
 truly kept any of the commandments in the low- 
 est measure : but having been a transgressor from 
 the w^omb, you continue so to this hour. 
 
 I have indeed already at large laid open to you 
 the ** carnal mind which is enmity against God; 
 and shewn you that it neither is subject to the 
 law of God, nor indeed can be." (Rom. viii. 7.) 
 I have proved that every living soul is thus car- 
 nal ; and as a consequence thereof, that he is es- 
 sentially a sinner, wanting that principle with- 
 out which there can be no obedience. 
 
 This alone might be sufficient; but because 
 the matter is of such importance, I pass on to a 
 review of our evident transgressions against the 
 law, in order more fully to support the charge 
 just laid against us. Though it may startle some 
 to be accused of idolatry, profaneness, sabbath- 
 breakLng, murder, adultery, theft and perjury; 
 it is a fact, that you are guilty of all. I might 
 indeed plead your own petitions for m^ercy, after 
 tiie rehearsal of each commandment,* and the 
 acknowledgments you are contmuaily making 
 to the same purpose in many others places of our 
 Liturgy : for surely you are not allowing your- 
 selves thus deliberately, solemnly and repeated- 
 ly to utter what you deem only so many fab- 
 hoods. But I would rather wave this proof, to 
 
 * Buibxiu- before the cora:Banduieats iathc coiixmunioa. ser«ice» 
 
90 The Spirituality of God's Law, 
 
 enter more intimately into the subject, and shew 
 you the ground of such acknowledgments. 
 
 It must be observed that " the law of God is 
 spiritual." (Royn. vii. 14j Our Saviour's coni- 
 jnent upon it declares how far it reaches. Each 
 command comprehends under it not only out- 
 -Avard acts but inward, yea, and every intention 
 or thought that hath either a more immediate or 
 distant tendency to violate it. 
 
 The law begins with the objectof worship and 
 the nature of it : who is the true God, and how 
 he must be served. God alone must be the ob- 
 ject of our worship. We are called upon to have 
 no other ; and to worship him, is to pay to him 
 that supreme regard, tliat faith and fear and love 
 which we may not give to any other. Nowwha 
 hath thus sanctified tlie Lord God in his heart ? 
 What have we been doing but setting up against 
 him so many idols of jealousy ? It matters not 
 "whether we have made to us- *^* gods of wood and 
 stone, which are no gods ;" or put in the fine 
 gold, witli C'jEsar's image upon it, ourconfidence:. 
 "A'hether we have worshipped at the shrine of a 
 deceased or perhaps imaginary Venus, or supreme- 
 ly fixed our affections upon some living object ; 
 whether we have cried ** Baal, help us;" or fled 
 to creature-dependences-: v/hether we have w ith- 
 the Americans sacrificed to devils, or feared the 
 faces of men; wherever or in wlvatevcr wc have 
 loved, feared and trusted upon the creature more 
 than the Creator, there we have had other gods 
 JDCside him. 
 
 As God alone must be worshipped, the nature 
 of that worship next claims our attention. lie 
 must be worship}x?d in spirit and in truth ; and 
 in ways only of his own appointment. We are 
 equally guilty of idolatry in w^or^hipping the 
 true God after aM'rong manner, as if we worship-- 
 
The Spirituality of God's Law. gl 
 
 peel a false god. When the Israelites "proclaim- 
 ed a feast unto the Lord " before the golden calf, 
 they wer'e as much idolaters as when " tliey erect- 
 ed the tabernacle of Moloch and the star of their 
 god Remphan." Images with us are no longer the 
 mediums of worship. I will suppose you never 
 bowed to them, nor have been tempted todo so ; but 
 are you therefore wholly free from idolatry ? Can 
 Ave find no idolaters but in the deserts of Afric, 
 among those wlio prostrate themselves before the 
 rising moon ? or must we travel to the distant 
 East to behold the bending votaries of a Chi- 
 nese pagod ? Are they alone in this respect cul- 
 pable, who in the country of grossly idolatrous 
 Romanism bow the knee to a god which the ba- 
 ker hath made, or adore the dead bones of a 
 man ? Alas ! I fear there is not a protestant 
 church in the world where as great idolatry al- 
 most is not in the Avorshippers ; not to m.ention 
 the misconceptions which are usually entertain- 
 ed of God, and that aptness to frame corporeal 
 ideas of the infinitely incomprehensible nature ; 
 I would only bt g you to observe the temper aixl 
 manner in which God's worship is performed a- 
 mongus ; and ycii will needs confess, that it 
 better suits a dumb idol, that '*havingeyes see^h 
 not, and having ear.-5 neareth not ;" tlian the all- 
 seeiiig, heart-searching Jehovah. Some indeed 
 there are who are worse than idolaters : they 
 worshipped some god, though a false one ; bdt 
 your neglect of God's w« rship in public, in your 
 families, and- m private, testiMes with what con- 
 tempt you treat the great, God and Saviour, ''in 
 ■ whoui yea live, and movi and liave your be- 
 ing. '^ (Acts xvii, 28 J You have risen u{>, and 
 he hath sustained 'you^ you have lain doMU in., 
 peace, because i^e has preserved you ; but hatli. 
 he seen a b^ud^d' ki;?e, a gi^atetiii acliuowledg-- 
 
S2 27/5 SplrituaUli) of God's Laxv, 
 
 nicnt of liis care, or a petition for its contin- 
 uance ? Not a word. You have left him " far 
 above out of your sight ;" you '' restrained 
 prayer before him." (Jobxv, 4.) Is he a God, or 
 is lie not, that you liave treated him with such 
 neglect ? 
 
 But you daily worship him. Plow ? *' in spirit 
 and in truth?" What, when so many vain thoughts, 
 so many worldly thoughts, so many wicked 
 thoughts, lodge within you ? Is this a worship 
 in spirit and in truth r What, when you are so 
 unsuitably affected with his glory, so irreverent, 
 cold, unmeaning and hypocritical, "drawing near 
 to him with your lips, when your heart is far 
 from him r" (IsaLxxix. 13. Mciit. xv. S.) Is 
 this the worship he demands ? Go wait upon the 
 meanest person you would ask a favour of; you 
 dare not treat such, as you have many a time 
 treated the eternal Majesty. 
 
 You are commanded to " sanctify that gre^it 
 and terrible name, The Lord thy God." ( Jsai. 
 viii. 13. J But how often hath this tremendous 
 name, been iu your mouth vainlv, wantonlv, 
 thoughtlessly, profanely, or passionately ? Were 
 the charge only brought against you for your 
 mentioning it so ol'ten in your prayers, wh^n 
 your heart hath felt no awe of his presence and 
 glory, you would see a catalogue of sins that 
 would increase beyond the number of the hairs 
 of your head. 
 
 Your sabbaths have been greatly polluted. — 
 That holy day hath been sometin^es a burden to 
 you. You have said, " When will it be gone ?"' 
 (yhnos viii. 5.) Yea, you have not waited for 
 its end. You have thought your own thoughts, 
 ** spoke your own wovds, and done your own 
 pleasure m it." (IsaL Iviii. 13j You have ne- 
 glected the public worship oiten pa the mo^ 
 
The Spirit uality of GocVs Law. ^3 
 
 frivolous pretexts. You liave attended, but with- 
 out any reverential sense of him whos<^ throne is- 
 in heaven, and his footstool the earth. You have 
 gone away, but not in a sabbatical temper. In- 
 dulgence, idleness, dress, visitings or worse, have 
 profaned tliat perhaps more than any common 
 days Your man-servant or maid-servant have 
 been detained from the service of God : you have 
 sacrilegiously converted God's right in them o\\ 
 that day to your own secular purposes. 
 
 Upon these facts I appeal to your respective 
 consciences, who is guiltless in any instance of 
 the breach of his duty towards God? Nor shall 
 we be able to give a better account of our obe- 
 dience to the duties of the second table. 
 
 The proud and naturally independent heart of 
 man will not,ashath been shewn before, easily bend' 
 to '^ give honour to whom honour is 6.\xq,^ {Horn, 
 xiii. 7.) Contempt of authority, disobedience 
 to superiors, ingratitude to parents, exalting 
 ourselves above our equals, and haughtiness 
 towards inferiors, have in innumerable instances 
 appeared. 
 
 But murder you never committed, no not in 
 thought. Do not be too confident: somebody 
 perhaps is now alive, whom you have wished to 
 be dead ; or some one hath died, whose death re- 
 joiced you. Was not this murder, think ye? — 
 Suppose you have not proceeded to the act of 
 imbruing your hands in innocent blood (yet 
 perhaps you may have contributed to this, and 
 been a party if not a principal many w^ays in 
 bringing on the untimely end) have you" never 
 been *' angry without a cause ?'' Never been 
 heated to say, ** Raca, or thou fool ?" Never 
 *' hated your brother ?" He who knows best his 
 own commands^ expressly charges these things ta 
 
94i^ The SpirlUialitii of God^s Law, 
 
 tlie account of nniRlcr. {Matt. v. C2. 1 John ilL 
 
 Adultery also you ^viil not confess. ^Vlly ?. 
 because you Aveie never taken, as the woman 
 brought to our blessed Lord, *^ in the very act." 
 (John viii. A.) "What of that .^ Say you ha\e 
 been really innocent of the grosser crime, have 
 you never " looked upon a Avoman to lust after 
 her }'' Hath your hand, your tongue, yo',ir eye, 
 never betrayed the unhallowed passion r Hath. 
 not your lieart entertained contrivances to effect 
 your gratification ? or indulged desires of doing 
 it, if in your power ? Then you have certainly 
 been an adulterer. (Matt. v. 21, £2. J Add the 
 instances noted before under the temper of im- 
 purity, and tell me if you can say, "I am pure' 
 from this sin ?" 
 
 It is ignominious to be a thief: you will not 
 acknowledge yourself to be subject to that im- 
 putation. But then hath net pride rather than 
 duty kept you within bounds ? And hath not 
 self often passed the line of justice, and adjudg- 
 ed to you what Avas not properly your own ? 
 Have you always " done unto others as you' 
 would in a changeof circumstances have expect- 
 ed from them, r" The love of gain, hath it not 
 ollen blinded your eyes, and covetousness laid 
 a bias on your integrity ? In your dealings, la- 
 bour, service, or whatever your respective em- 
 ploymcnts may have been, when you begin to 
 place things in the true point of view, you wili 
 see how swerving your walk h<ith been from the 
 rule of right, i Unjust gains, exorbitant profits^ 
 faulty or eye-service, impositions in merchan-. 
 dise, advantages taken of others' easiness, igno- 
 rance or necessities, v/ith a thousand nieans 
 which worldly wisdom hath devised to carry on 
 its grand design of getting and tlyivipg, testify 
 
The SpiriiuaUtif of GocCs Laxv\ ^5 
 
 the thief in the heart. Besides the numberless 
 acts of injustice to God, the king, and the ne- 
 cessitous, which have not, it may be, ever come 
 under your own cognisance or consideration, or 
 been a subject of the least concern. 
 
 I will suppose you never to have perjured 
 yourself before a magistrate, nor to have suborn- 
 ed others ; but you may be *' a false witness a- 
 gainst your neighbour" notwithstanding. The 
 tongue that never told a lie, w^ould be a wonder 
 which this world never produced : he only excep- 
 ted *' in whose mouth there was no guile." (\ 
 Pet, ii. 22.^ The designing lie, the pernicious, 
 the exculpative, the marvellous, or the jocular, 
 hath often, I fear, found a place in all our con- 
 versations. AYho is wholly guiltless of slander, 
 passing rash judgment upon others, of misrepre- 
 sentation or of mis-report? '^The tongue is a 
 world of iniquity." (James iii. 6.) He would 
 be a "perfect man indeed who could bridle it." 
 (James ill, 2.) 
 
 The concupiscence forbidden in the last place 
 goes to the bottom of the heart, reaching the very 
 first motions of sinful inclination towards the 
 things of others. If we have offended in the rest 
 but little, we shall be found herein to have offen- 
 ded much. For who hath not been conscious to 
 numberless motions of concupiscence, which have 
 scarce been formed into desire, and have never 
 been brought into act ? 
 
 These are the " transgressions and disobedi- 
 ence," which are threatened Avith a "just recom- 
 pence of reward." (Heb, ii. Q.) The rule is be- 
 fore you. Try your conduct : can it stand this 
 test ? Guilty or not guilty, is the question. — 
 Who must not lay their hand upon their mouth? 
 We have sinned. The fact is undeniable. In- 
 deed what else have we done but sinned ? What 
 
96 The Spiritual ill/ ofGo(Ts Laxc, 
 
 one of the commandments have we kept ? And 
 so far from continuance in them all, what one 
 day, yea, what one liour of our lives ever passed, 
 without some deviation from them ? What tlien 
 ran the law do ? it must condemn us ; it must 
 *' conclude all under sin, and the sentence of 
 -death eternal pass upon them, forasmuch as all 
 have sinned." {Gal iii. 22. Rom, v. 12.) But 
 is every man under this state of condemnation ? 
 Yes ; '* the whole world is guilty hefore God." 
 (^llom/\\\. 19.) Is there then no plea? Yes, 
 Ciuilty. But can we not escape the curse r No, 
 Jiot hy the law. Must we then lie down despair- 
 ing ? Certainly : for any thing we can do to helj^ 
 ourselves. ** The law is the ministration of death." 
 (2 Cor. iii. 7.) It is and can he in its nature no 
 other. It is our only and eternal rule of duty, 
 and we must keep it or perish, for any relief we 
 can ohtain from ourselves. 1 rest here to inti- 
 mate, 
 
 First, the deplorable state of fallen man under 
 a covenant of works. He is rolling up a stone 
 which above his strength, and continually returns 
 and crushes him. ** By the law is the knowledge 
 of sin." (^llom. iii. 20.) Vea, *' tlie strength of 
 sin is the law." (1 Cor, xv. 56.) And yet we are 
 so strangely wedded to it, that we are continuing 
 our impotent attempts to keep it, though the 
 seamless garment of righteousness once rent can 
 never be renewed by us, so as to cover our na- 
 kedness. It was the old leaven the devil infused 
 «nd it is still working to make man seek his sal- 
 vation by the works of the law. He knoMs his 
 poM'er is never so triumpliant, and his captive so 
 secure, as when this is the case. It was, I doubt 
 ■not, on this very account that our Lord said, tliat 
 " publicans and hailots entered into the kingdom 
 of heaven," whilst the apparent "children of the 
 
The Spirituality of God's Laxv. S7 
 
 kingdom," the devout, regular, self-justifying 
 dependers on the exactness of their conformity 
 to the rule of duty, ^' were cast out." (Matf^ 
 xxi. 31. — viii. 12.J Let us know ourselves, and 
 lie down under our condemnation. To feel our 
 misery, and to be reduced to self-despair, is to 
 be at the gate of mercy. 
 
 Secondly, What an act of astonishing grace is 
 it, that God hath made another covenant with 
 us, "estabhshed on better promises;" (Heb. Viiu 
 6.) wherein whilst the law is magnified by the 
 obedience unto death of God's own Son, pardon 
 and grace are purchased for us, and eternal re- 
 demption secured from all the destructive evils 
 which a broken law denounces. A covenant of 
 grace will be indeed "as fountains of waters, and 
 streams from Lebanon," to every soul that sees 
 his natural obligations, and his violation of them. 
 I hope we shall ever keep this covenant in our 
 view ; by and by, through grace, I may be en- 
 abled to open to you its riches and fulness. 
 
SERMON VII. 
 
 THE PENALTi' OF DISOBEDIENCE. 
 
 Galatiaxs III. 10. 
 
 CURSED IS EVERY ONE THAT COXTIXUETH NOT IN ALL 
 THINGS WHICH ARE WPaiTEN IN THE 1300K OE THE LAW 
 TO DO TIIE3I. 
 
 THE sanctions of the divine law succeeded in 
 order to the law itself. Unless enforced by 
 penalties it would be like a beardless arrow. The 
 great Legislator hath therefore solemnly denoun- 
 ced them : His pov/er is all-sufficient to fulfil 
 them : His holiness requires it : His truth obliges 
 him. . Ihe account given of the rule of curobe- 
 cHence is such as may justly alarm us. Our trans- 
 gressions of it are numberless, great and aggra- 
 vated. The law hath found us guilty. Justice 
 must take its course, " Every transgression and 
 disobedience must receive a just rccompence of 
 reward : Cursed is every one that continuetli not 
 in all things which are written in the book of the 
 law to do them." 
 
 There is nothing we are moreaver.se to receive 
 tlian God's declared determinations to punish sin. 
 As every man wishes for ha])piness, he Mould 
 quiet his fears with promises of peace, " thougli 
 Cod liath said, there is no peace." (Isai xlviii. 
 532.) The curse of Cod is ever-terrifying thunder 
 in a sinner's ears. He turns away from it. He 
 'xvould soften the tone of vengeance. He would 
 make a new Deity, all mercy, to overlook the 
 diislionour cast upon his holy law^ and out of 
 
The Tcnnltij of Disobedience. 99 
 
 complaisance to him siiUyinj;- the hcauty ofhis ho- 
 hne.ss, and falsilyiiig his truth. But " let God 
 be true, and every man 'i liar." (^Ro)u, iii. 4.) He 
 hath spoken, and who shall disannul it ? He is in 
 one mind, and who shall turn himbaek l!''(Isai, 
 xiv. 27. /^/>>xxiii. 13.) Better, far better, is it for 
 U!? to bow at present before his unchangeable law, 
 and trembling at the sanction, fly to the only 
 door of hope, than, trusting on lying vanities, be 
 covered with confusion, " when the devouring 
 storm shall come, and sweep away every refuge 
 of lies; {hai. xKviii. 17-) when he shall rain 
 upon the ungodly, snares, fire and brimstone, 
 storm and tempest, this shall be their portioi; to 
 drink/' ^Psal. xi. 6.) 
 
 lamabouttoopentoyou, my brethren, the curse 
 and " wrath of God revealed against all ungod- 
 liness and unrighteousness of men." (/^o;?z.i.l8.) 
 A subject we are most interestedly concerned in; 
 forasmuch as this unrighteousness is found in 
 every soul of us ; before God's bar can '^ripimaii 
 living be justified." (P^^/. cxHii. 2.) May the 
 awful terror of God's judgments force us to take 
 refuge in the arms of his grace, under the shadow 
 of whose wings we may be safe ; where no deluge 
 of wrath, no devouring scourge, no curse can 
 reach us. 
 
 I shall endeavour to shew, 
 
 I. That in the natural course of things the 
 curse of God's broken law must fall upon 
 every sinner's head. 
 
 II. The dreadfulness of that curse : and, 
 
 III. Add a word of application. 
 
 J. In the primary natural course of things, the 
 curse of a broken law must fall upon every sin- 
 ner's head. That we are all sinners is proved. 
 As sinners, wrath is due to us and pronounced 
 against us. Can we escape it, is the queotion* 
 
100 The Penalty of Disobedience. 
 
 By no powers of our own is it possible : sin once 
 committed cannot be undone. By two ways 
 men usually seek to escape the wag-es of sin. 
 *^ By sorrow for the past, and doing better for 
 the time to come." But neither of these can heal 
 the breach. 
 
 (1.) Sorrow for the past will not cancel the 
 obligation to suffer the punishment of transgres- 
 sion. This is the first refuge of lies to which 
 proud man betakes himself. But what will this 
 avail ? Will fountains of tears, day and night, 
 Wash out the stains from our conscience, or blot 
 out our sin from God's book ? They can no more 
 stop the course of God's law than the cries of the 
 criminal who is convicted for murder, or the tears 
 of the debtor who is arrested for his extravagan- 
 cies, ran stay the execution of human justice. 
 Besides, what is the cause of most of this sorrow? 
 Is it any thing more than a selfish fear of de- 
 served punishment ? And can this be any com- 
 pensation for the dishonour shewn to God's Laws ? 
 But be it what it will, the divine Law knows no 
 language, but *^ pay me what thou owest ;" and 
 in default thereof, delivers over to the tormen- 
 tors. God's word is, '* The soul that sinneth 
 J t shall die." (J^zeA:. xviii. 4.) Every sinner is 
 a convict in law. The sentence only remains to 
 be passed, and then execution will be made up- 
 on every attainted soul. 
 
 But, ^2.) \ye generally place greater hopes on 
 our doing better for the time to come. This 
 usually goes by the name of true repentance ; 
 a little sorrow for the past, and a good resolution 
 for the future : but alas ! this is as vain and 
 fruitless as the other. 
 
 Suppose yourself as good as your word. Suppose 
 you really could do what you say, could turn from 
 every evil way, and live henceforth as pure as an 
 
The Fenalty of Disobedieyice. lOi 
 
 angel ? Would that secure you ? Alas ! your 
 present and future obedience would be no more 
 than the Law required. You would be *^ an un- 
 profitable servant, doing' no more tlian was your 
 duty to do." {Luke xvii. 10.) You would have 
 nothing over. Your past oftence must remain 
 as before :. and it must therefore render all your 
 subsequent services in vain. You would not, it 
 is true, be condemned for present iniquity ; but 
 what would that avail, if still you must anssv^er 
 for the past ? Tell your creditor, you are deter- 
 mined to run no more in arrear, will he give you 
 a receipt in full on that condition? Yousce then^ 
 even on this supposition, sinonce committed be- 
 comes indelible by you. 
 
 But the supposition you can thiis^ do Bet- 
 ter, and the promise of doing so arc chimericuL 
 AV^^re you to l>ear a man, who after repeated' es^- 
 says never yet was able to finish one wheel or 
 part of one, engaging to coHiiplete some grand 
 and curious machine, on any penaky which 
 might be inflicted ; [ know not whether you 
 woald blame most his ignorance^ or his aiTo- 
 gance : yet not so great as yours, who resolve 
 tipDu pertcct obedience to God, after such fre- 
 ([ lent experience of inability to keep one of his 
 comaiandinjiits. Until you can cease to be a^ 
 corrupted creature, you cannot cease to trans- 
 gress ; and ifso, what 1 pray you, can your fu.- 
 ture conduct be but aseq^uel to the past, adding^ 
 sin unto sin ? and will a corrupt walk now atone: 
 for the same before t 
 
 Bat will not both these together, sorro-w for 
 the past, and sincere tlxo ugh imperfect obedience 
 for the time to come, av'ail for me with God ? 
 Y/iii he not pleased if I do my best ? I answer^ 
 
}02 The Penalty of Disobedknce, 
 
 You neither do the best you can, and that best 
 is bad too. 
 
 You do not the best you can. Who will dare 
 to say tliat he doth really keep every one of God's 
 commandments to the uttermost of v^ hat he might 
 have done ? Let any man but reflect upon hi» 
 conduct one day, and see whether he hath not 
 done things which he ought and might not have 
 done ; and left undone what he might have ac- 
 complished, for the glory of God and for the 
 good of his neighbour. We could no more stand 
 the plea of doing our best, than of obeying ia 
 perfection. 
 
 But after we had really done our best we should 
 only have increased our condemnation : for what 
 is our best, our very righteousnesses ? Are they 
 capable to stand the severity of God's judgments ^ 
 Can they appear before the holy law of God ? 
 Will they challenge the rev/ards of obedience ? 
 So far from it, that the very iniquity of our ho- 
 liest things must have one to bear it, or we are 
 undone, /^nd why ? because the corruption of 
 our nature delileth all we do. The best deeds of 
 the natural man are wholly unclean, have not a 
 jfepark of spiritual goodness in them. '' For who 
 can bring a clean things out of an unclean ?'* 
 (Job xi\^ 4.) whilst the heart of a renewed man 
 "being so but in part;, enough of defilement mixes. 
 i^ his best duties, to render them incapable of 
 pearing the scrutiny of the Law of God. * 
 
 The consequence then is, that if we stand on 
 the footing of our own obedience to the rule of 
 our duty, we fall inevitably under the curse ; 
 nor can any method we can devise or make use 
 of enable us to escape its execution. We must 
 suffer or perform. The latter is impossible, therefore 
 the former must be our portion. Which leads me, 
 
 ♦ SetArtKle Xfl. ar.dlUlL 
 
The Peyialty of Disobedience, 103 
 
 II. To consider what is the import of the 
 threatniiig God hath declared against the trans- 
 gressor, or the dread fulness of the curse denounc- 
 ed. The security of sinners arises from a dis- 
 belief or misapprehension of the real wages of 
 sin. Nor is there a soul who is saved from tlie 
 curse of the Law, but would look upon sin in a 
 more hateful light, if he really and fully appre- 
 hended the wrath revealed against it. 
 
 I will wave at this time the numberless evils 
 that are the present wages of sin ; though these 
 might lill volumes. The pains, the diseases, the 
 calamities, the afflictions, the misery and dis- 
 tresses, which in this present time are the portion 
 of the sinner ; and death itself, the last and most 
 dreaded of all. We may be assured from what 
 we already see and feel, that '' it is a fearful 
 thing indeed to fall finally into the hands of the 
 living God." {Heb. x. 31.) If theseare but " the 
 beginning of sorrows," what must the fulness 
 and completion of them be ? 
 
 I would pause a moment, that solemn awe 
 might fix upon every mind, when we are entering: 
 on a subject so tremendous. It is what you and 
 I, my brethren, have the most deep and inti- 
 mate concern in. We are the sinners to whom^ 
 the wages of sin are due. One transgression on- 
 ly deserves this wrath ; what will it then be^ 
 w^hen sinners have filled up the measure of their 
 iniquities, and as the sand of the sea their trans- 
 gressions are numberless ? O ! for a heart of 
 flesh to tremble for others and for ourselves. 
 
 If any scorners hear or peruse these lines, I 
 shall expect to be called uncharitable, or a mel- 
 ancholy enthusiast, and they will feel their 
 heart provoked '' to kick against the pricks,'* 
 But, sinner, know that these are the true sayings 
 of God, Thou must lUuv his v;ord bcibre tbou 
 
] i The Tenalty of Dholedience. 
 
 canst reject these terrors. They are now de- 
 clared with the kindest intention to thy soui, 
 lo press thee to " fly from the wrath to come." And 
 fly thou must or perish in the flames. O that 
 thou mightest feel, before it is too late to flee i 
 and that^^all would hasten their pace to the moun- 
 tain of refuge, lest the storm overtake them. 
 
 *' God wdl visit for these things." He hath 
 solemnly warned us that sin shall not go unpun- 
 ished. Aud a punishment he iiath assigned ade- 
 quate to its high demerit ; becoming the Ma- 
 jesty offended 1)y it. 
 
 Goil himself will punish. ** And who caa 
 stand when he is angry ? If his wrath be kin- 
 dled, yea, but for a moment, wiio may abide it ? 
 {Hcb, X. 3L Psal. Ixxvi. 7. — ii. 12. Nahum'u 6.} 
 lie is a consuming fire" able to punish as Avell 
 as to bless to the uttermost.. And \vhat a feav- 
 fui state mast that be, ^vhen he arises to vindi>- 
 cate the honour of his broken Law^, and to pour 
 out the vials of " indignation and wrath, tribu- 
 lation and anguish, on every soul that dotL 
 evil ?■' {Rom. ii. 0.) 
 
 The scripture hath briefly informed us concern- 
 ing the nature, place and endurance of the curse 
 of sin. Not the fulness ; for who but they that 
 feel can tell the fierceness of the lire, or the iu- 
 tolerableness of the pains ; And yet. the very 
 sound is enough to make the heart.of every oiae 
 that heareth it to tremble. " i 
 
 *' Tophet isordainedof old." {hai xxx. 3,3.) 
 Tlie place originally desi.g;jied for the devilj^'aiul 
 his angels, is now becon^e the liabitatiou; -of sin- 
 ful mc-n ; cventhine^ O sinner. " God hath pre- 
 pared it." {Matt. XXV. 41.) It is '' a place of 
 tornunt." {Lukexvi. 28.) They that dwell there 
 " have no rest day nor inght." {Rev. xiv.. 1.1.) 
 The chains of darkness surround them. Th^y 
 
The Penalty of T>isohedience. 105 
 
 dwell ill the shadow of death. " A furnace of 
 of unquenchable fire ; a lake which burneth 
 with sulphur ; a stream of living flames fed by 
 the breath of the Almighty." (^Isai. xxx. 33.) 
 These are the dreadful images under which God's 
 word reveals to us the prison of hell. 
 
 The nature of the torments inflicted therein is, 
 according to our nature, twofold. He that tak- 
 eth vengeance, punisheth "soul and body in 
 hell." (Matt. x. 28. J ^ 
 
 The soul in every faculty will feel the torment- 
 ing plague. The curse of God Mall fasten upon 
 it, and it will be ^' a worm that never dies." Ev- 
 ery reflection on the past will be like a scorpion's 
 sting that striketh to the heart. Every thought 
 sent out to take a survey of the future, will re- 
 turn filled with black despair, overwhelming with 
 anguish. The consciousness of the immediate 
 displeasure of the eternal God, will be ** a poison- 
 ed arrow that drinketh up the spirit ;" and the 
 storms of wrath continually apprehended will fill 
 the soul with terrors unspeakable : whilst all the 
 furious passions let loose upon the poor distracted 
 sinner; anger, malice, impatience, rage, like so 
 tnany boisterous winds upon the sea, contend 
 and toss the. soul from one abyss of woe unto 
 another. 
 
 The bod}'', a principal in sin, will also share in the 
 curse. It will lie weltering in flames consuming, 
 3'et unconsumed : tormented, without "one drop 
 of M-ater to cool the raging fire." (Luke xvi.24.} 
 For that the fire shall be real and eternal, the 
 scripture seems abundantly to affirm. Nor do I 
 see why it should be incredible, that he who 
 raises the body, should be able to preserve itun- 
 consumed in such a kind of suffering: or that it 
 would at all suit the frequent assertion of the 
 body's being " cast into hell," if the soul alone 
 
1 06 The Penalty of Disobedience, 
 
 was the sufferer. That our bodies will be spirit- 
 ual is certain ; but he that intlicts the punish- 
 ment can prepare a fire, whose subtilty shall af- 
 fect not our natures only, but also the angelical 
 And I doubt not but " the lire prepared for the 
 devil and his angels/' to which the accursed sin- 
 ner will be condemned, will torment them as well 
 as him. 
 
 ^Moreover, that the anguish will be intolerable, 
 very fully appears from those dismal expressions 
 of it, which lill the horrid caverns of Tophet. — 
 There ceaseless weeping, remediless sorrows, re- 
 vengeful but impotent blasphemies, " gnashing 
 of teeth, and gnawing their tongues for pain," 
 are heard on every side. *' Filled with the fury 
 of the Lord, as a wild bull in the net," ( Isai. 
 li. 20. J they roar out*in their pangs ; and shriek 
 echoes to shriek around. Then shall the most 
 dreaded of all present evils be courted as a friend ; 
 '^ men shall seek death, and shall not find it. — ■ 
 They shall desire to die, and death shall flee from 
 them," (Rev. iyi.6.) O fearful state of wretch- 
 edness, where the very arms of death are pleas- 
 ant ! With what horror then should we regard 
 each sin, that bringethdown both body and soul 
 to such intolerable woe ? 
 
 No mitigation or relief is there known or may 
 be hoped for. Every object that could soothe the 
 pains is removed. The voice of mirth, the songs 
 of vanity, the business, the companions, the a- 
 musemcnts, that often here lulled to sleep the a- 
 wakened conscience, are no more found. Sinners 
 are left naked to their sorrows ; and these roll on 
 like billow upon billow without ceasing : *'They 
 have no rest day nor night :" (Rev. xiv. l\.) 
 nay, they do not hope for any. No gleam of that 
 sweet comforter ever breaks through the outer 
 darkness. The hell of hells is this ; that what 
 
The Penalty cf Disobedience. 107 
 
 the sinner is, he must for ever be. Until God 
 ceases to be, he cannot cease to hate sin, nor hat- 
 ing to punish it. 
 
 Eternity is the only measure of suffering the 
 wages of sin. Could any message reach the 
 damned, that after millions of ages, more than 
 are drops in the ocean, sands on the shore, stars 
 in the hrmament, atoms in tlie universe, or num- 
 bers in calculation, that then their torment should 
 cease; surely they would in their chains leap for 
 joy, and endure because there was hope in the 
 end. But alas ! when all these ages shall be at 
 an end, their torments are as new as ever ; it is 
 still *^ but the beginning of sorrows." What ati 
 alarming thought ! when one spark from the fur- 
 nace, one pang of remorse is now so painful, so 
 grievous ; what must eternity be in never-ending 
 torment ! 
 
 No marvel the sinner's heart rises against so 
 fearful an expectation, and fain would soften 
 down and explain away tlie duration of eternal 
 misery : but it stands on the firm basis of eternal 
 truth. We must believe this or believe nothing : 
 All God's word sinks with it. 
 
 It is aliov/ed indeed, the word for ever implies 
 sometimes in scripture only a limited duration, 
 which is always determined by the nature of the 
 subject, or something connected immediately 
 with it ; but here it is so determined by its very 
 connexion as to be incapable of such a sense. — 
 The punishment of the sinner is expressive as of 
 the same duration as the ''life of the righteous." 
 (Matt. XXV. 46 J The torments of wicked men 
 arc declared to be as enduring as those of the 
 devils themselves ; and I conceive it could never 
 be said of any sinner, '' it was good for him never 
 to have been'^born ;" (Mark xiv, 9>\.) if after 
 any continuance of suffering, tlicre should tinaily 
 
108 The Penalty of Disobedience, 
 
 remain for him an eternity of bliss ; seeing all the 
 possible computations of time vanish into nothing 
 when placed against eternity, and are lost as a 
 drop in the ocean. Nor is there the least inti- 
 mation given throughout the whole book of God, 
 that the wages of sin shall ever be paid but by 
 the infliction and continuance of the punish- 
 nient. 
 
 Such is the curse of God revealed against sin. 
 Would God it might so deeply affect our hearts, 
 as really to beget in us the most awakened con- 
 cern about our sins. For Mdiich end, 
 
 III. I shall endeavour to enforce the matter 
 still farther upon every man's conscience for con- 
 viction and humiliation. 
 
 First, Tell me, daring sinner, can thy heart 
 endure, and thy hands be strong, when God shall 
 thus deal \vith thee ? What rock or mountain 
 shall cover thee from this curse of sin, when the 
 great day of God's wrath is come ? Perhaps thou 
 hast often despised these terrors of the Lord, and 
 hast been of those "fools who make a mock at 
 sin ;" (Prov, xiv. 9.) but know assuredly thy 
 shadow, when the sun shines on thee, doth not 
 follow thee so close as the curse of God perpet- 
 ually doth. It is upon thee rising up and lying 
 down, going out and coming in ; and thou art 
 living, thou art dying under it : and dying, it 
 may be, utterly unconcerned about it. Hadst 
 thou been by when Shadrach and his brethren 
 were cast into the midst of the burning fiery fur- 
 nace, would not the sight have dismayed thee ? 
 Hadst thou had the power to rescue them, what 
 would not humanity have caused thee to attempt ? 
 Yet they were safe in the protection of theirGod. 
 If the lire had not been restrained, their bodies 
 only for a moment could endwre the pain, and 
 then an eternity of bliss had leceived them. But 
 
The Penalty of Disobedience, lOd 
 
 thou art on the brink of a fiercer furnace of fire; 
 and God thy enemy, and <in eternity of misery 
 before thee ; and art thou not concerned about 
 thine own Hfe, thy eternaUife ? What infatuation 
 hath seized thee, that thou art so insens^ible ? — 
 Canst thou contx^nd with the Almighty Jehovah? 
 *' Hast thou an arm Uke God ?" (Job xl. 9 J — 
 Canst thou re^st his determinations, or elude his 
 judgment ? Dost thou fear when the forked Hgh t- 
 ning's glare flashes into thy chamber, or tremble 
 Avdien the thunder of God's power bursts from 
 the cloud and rocks the ground? And how canst 
 thou then look forward, so unconcerned, to that 
 dread hour when the Judge " shall be revealed in 
 flaming fire ;" (2 Thess. i. 7, 8.J> when the heav- 
 ens shall *' be wrapped together as a scroll, and 
 the elements melt with fervent heat ;" (Isai, 
 xxxiv. 4. — 2 Pet. iii. lO.J the earth be shook 
 from its foundations, and be dissolved ; and all 
 created nature sink around thee in one promicu- 
 ous ruin ? 
 
 Or wilt thou make him a liar, and his speech 
 cif none effect ? *MJath he said, and shall he 
 not do it ? Hath he spoken, and shall he not 
 make it good?" (Numb, xxiii. ig.) To indulge 
 thee in thy sins, will he dishonour his faithful- 
 ness, forfeit his justice, and deny himself ? Sure- 
 ly " the hope of the sinner is as the spider's web." 
 (Jobxm, \^.) But are not these, say you, the 
 phantoms which priestcraft hath invented to over- 
 awe the minds of the superstitious? No, sinner; 
 thou wilt find these are dreadful realities ; too true 
 for thee : and if not believed in time, thou wilt 
 be made to feel what now thou aflfectest to des- 
 pise. But the curse delays. The up-lifted arm 
 of vengeance is suspended. The collected wrath 
 yet waits a moment. The warning voice is heard. 
 K 
 
1 1 The Penal fij qf Disobedie/ice. 
 
 Sinner, arise, tremble ; look upwards. See with 
 an eye of faith that sign, that bloody sign. Par- 
 don and peace await thee beneath the banner of 
 the cross. O that thy heart felt thy sin and ruin 
 inevitable ; and sought, whilst yet he might be 
 found, that Jesus who can alone deliver from the 
 ivrath to come. Under his shadgw thou mayst 
 be safe. He will interpose his own body betweea 
 thee and the curse of G od : and there thou mayst 
 yet be hid in the day of God's fierce anger. His 
 deep wounds afford a safe retreat ; his heart is 
 opened for thee, that there thou mayst be cover- 
 ed from the descending storm. O that under 
 his wings thou mayst be gathered before the 
 trump of judgment awakes, and Time is no Ion* 
 gerl 
 
 Secondly, Beware of seeking help from the de- 
 stroyer. " The strength of sin is the law." (1 
 Cor. XV. 56.) Seek not to this for healing. More 
 perish not b^^ negligence than by error. We nat- 
 urally seek to fly the curse by flying to the law. 
 Pride ever weds us to it. We think still to make 
 our foe ovn* friend; but ever must the curse re- 
 main, whilst by the works of the law we seek ac- 
 ceptance with God : yea, never so sure remain as 
 when we fancy it is removed thereby. '*lf we 
 say we have no sin, Me deceive ourselves." {iJoJui 
 2. 8.) If we say, ''by works of righteousness 
 -which I have done," t shall be saved, verily we 
 have ''a lie in our right liand." We must be 
 dead to the law. W^e must expect no more to 
 escape wrath by it, than by rushing upon the 
 sword of our enemy. We have not kept it. We 
 cannot keep it. We are cursed by it. We are 
 undone by it for ever. We must know ourselves 
 to be so. We nuist feel ourselves ungodly. We 
 anust know that we have no strength to be oth- 
 erwise. W^e must lie down and say that we have 
 
The Penal ty of Disobedkrtce. Ill 
 
 sinned. We must despair for ever of ourselves* 
 One sin brings us to this state. But wliose sins 
 are not innumerable ? Ikware of all dependence 
 then on your own doings. Your sorrow, your 
 amendment, your promises, your endeavours, your 
 si ncerity, or ^rhate ver else ; these cannot save you^ 
 They must be utterly renounced ; they are in- 
 capable of removing your guilt, or obtaining 
 God's favour. Your case for any thing you caa 
 do is helpless and hopeless ; to see it to be so is 
 the very way to help and hope. For then, 
 
 Thirdhj, There is deliverance at hand. The 
 lost and the desperate need never perish for want 
 of help. The Son of God is come on purpose to 
 seek them. ** He hath redeemed us from the 
 curse of the law, by being made a curse for us.'* 
 (GaL iii. \^.) What we could never do he hath 
 done for iis. He hath become the sinner's sure- 
 ty. The law hath been put in force against him^ 
 He hath stood trial in our name and character* 
 *' He hath taken away sin by the sacrifice of him-- 
 self." (Heb.ix.Q6.) Sin is everlastingly ''con- 
 demned in the flesh," (Rom. viii. 3.) by the suf- 
 ferings of the Son of God. The law hath no 
 more demands upan Christ. He died for sin once^ 
 The curse is endured. '* There is no condemna- 
 tion to them that are in Christ Jesus ;" (Ronu 
 viii. l.J for li€ is risen again ; it is plain thereby 
 he hath obtained a legal discharge. Death hath 
 no more dominion over him, for he hath put an 
 end to wrath : All is finished. What a hope is 
 this ! A door of mercy is opened for sinners ! O 
 who will not croud into it ? With what urgency 
 should we press to him ? Guilt is confessed ; the 
 law hath decided ;. the executioner is at our heels. 
 O ! blessed Jesus, hear, help, save us, dying sin- 
 ners ! We fly to thee, for elsewhere help and hope 
 we find not ! Open to us y Lord, apen to us the 
 
1 1 2 The Penalty of Disohedience: 
 
 door of safety ! Open thy heart which once hied" 
 for us. Hide us in the cleft of this rock ! Then 
 shall we at a distance only hear the thunder's roll, 
 safe from fear of evil Where no law reaches, no 
 Wrath descends, no curse seizes the helpless crim- 
 inal : hut pardon, peace, redemption, glor}^ are 
 the blessings freely bestowed upon the chief of 
 sinners L 
 
■i^' ' .. W 'i'.'.....M" 
 
 SERMON Vlir. 
 
 jREDEBIPTION BY JE5US CHRIST, 
 
 Galatians III. 13. 
 
 €jmTST HATH red]':e]\ied us from the curse of TUS tAV,^ 
 
 13EtXG MADE A CU'PvSE FOIl US. 
 
 WHILST man affects to be '' wise above 
 what is written," the gospel of Jesus must 
 expect an unfavourable reception. At I'^son's 
 tribunal, truths, because incomprehensible, are 
 .counted absurd ; and it is .sufficient to stamp 
 them as folly, because tliey cannot be fully un- 
 derstood. Yet such are tlie grand truths of 
 Christianity : too deep for this shallow line tp' 
 fathom ; and simply resolvable into the authori- 
 ty and veracity of liim- who Iiath r-evealed- thein*- 
 .*' Whoever therefore will be truly wiee, nuist be- 
 come a fool that he: may be wiseJ' (1 Cor. iih 
 
 Tliat the eternal God should stoop, to be iii*^ 
 carnate ; thatdie, whom the heaven and the hea^ 
 ven of heavens cannot contain, should he, hi J 
 in the Avombof a Virgin ; that lie, '^ vrbio bind- 
 eth- the deep in swadlmg bands.'' (.Job xxxviii. 
 9.) should himself be wrapped in §wadlino>: 
 clothes and laid in a manger ; that he, wh©' 
 is the ancient of days, should be born an- 
 infant ; thathe, who is "the everlasting Fa t^>ei\" 
 should be a Virgin's Child : that he, wJw) hwx 
 
1 14 Redemption hy Jesus Christ 
 
 liimself'-- exalted above all blessing and praise " 
 should become " a man of sorrowslnd acquaint- 
 ed ,vith gnef;' that he, whose nature is im- 
 passive should agonize in the garden and bleed 
 under the scourge ; that be, " who only hath 
 immortahty,"si,onld "become obedient unto 
 death, even the death of the cross ;" that he 
 ^vho IS the most high and most holy, should be' 
 made an accursed thing, sufferingas the vilest of 
 malefactors, and the most infamous ofmankind • 
 lliese are mysteries, after which reason gropes iu 
 •va.n whilst faith assents, admires and adores. 
 iUvstenes, winch to dispute were the same as to 
 dLsbelieve, and to disbelieve is to be undone : 
 tor Iw that beheveth not shall be damned." 
 {Afark xvi. ]6'.) 
 
 The arguments proposed in the foregoing dis- 
 courses, have, I trust, served to convince as ma- 
 My as have seriously weighed their force, that our 
 state at present, by nature and practice, is des- 
 perate ;^ that we aie corrupt in our original, sin- 
 tu! in a I Gurways, incapableof helping ourselves, 
 concluded under the curse, the wages of sin.— 
 V/retched man, that I am," must every soul 
 needs cry, " V/ho ahall deliver me from the body 
 oi tins death .?" (Rom.MlU.J And the answer 
 to this question is the highest glory of the gos- 
 pel : " Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of 
 tlie law, being made a curse for us.." 
 
 Thi,s delightful subject, my brethren, it is al- 
 ways tlie very joy of iny heart to set before vou. 
 It is the foundation of all n^y own happiness; it 
 must be so too of yours, if you would be ever 
 iiappy. It IS here alone we can truly find deliv- 
 erance from our fears, peace from the accusations 
 of conscience, comfort in death, and after death 
 Me everlasting. If we think we l>ave any of 
 these on any other grounds; the tliaught is at 
 
Redemption by. Jesus Christ. 115 
 
 present delusive, and in the end will be fatal. O 
 that God would assist me worthily to speak of 
 the revelation of his grace in Jesus Christ, and 
 to shew the fulness that is in him \ The words 
 read will aiford these three considerations : 
 I. The person who hath redeemed us, Christ. 
 li. The manner in which he redeemed us, by 
 being made a curse for u-s. 
 
 III. The benelits which w^e receive by his re- 
 • demption of us. 
 
 I. The person who hath redeemed us is Christ, 
 The comfort and relief of the sinner depends on 
 the all-sufficiency of the Redeemer: the all-suffi- 
 ciency of the Redeemer must arise fiom his qual- 
 ifications for the work he undertakes. Christ is 
 thus all-sufficient from the dignity of his divine, 
 and the excellence of his human nature. He is 
 both "God and man, very God and very man; 
 and yet not two, but one Christ."* 
 
 Flr&t, Our Redeemer is ^cry God. This is the 
 corner-stone of our salvation. If Christ be not 
 xery God, ** our hopes are vain, we are yet in our 
 sins." This however is opposed by many, vv'ho 
 deny the " Lord that bought them." They blas- 
 pheme that holy Name whereby we are called : 
 they degrade him to a dependent, some farther, 
 to a mere human creature. They thus " live 
 without the true God in the Avorld ;" i^ph. ii. 
 12. J by such der.ial of the faith they raze the 
 foundations of Christianity, though they pretend 
 to espouse it, and are worse than the open infidel 
 Let us hear the word of God. There we shall 
 find that either there is no God, or Christ is that 
 God : for all his names, his attributes, his works 
 " and worship are ascribed to him. These are hon- 
 ours God cannot give unto another. The pos- 
 sessor of them must share in the essence of the 
 
 * Athanasian Creed. 
 
116 Redemption by Jesus Chrisi. 
 
 divine nature, or we musfc sink once more into 
 idolatrous polytheisra. This truth hath been ev^ 
 idently proved at large by many zealous ^^con- 
 tenders for the faith on.ce dehvered unto the 
 saints ;" and therefore I shallonly leave with you. 
 the scriptures which chiefly si>eak to the point, 
 with a short observation or two upon them. 
 
 That Christ is very God, the titles variously 
 ascribed to him declare. Sometimes absolutely 
 he is called God, (Acts xx. 28. J sometimes the 
 Lord ; (Colos. iii. 9.4^.) distinguished too witb 
 the pecuhar properties of Deity, '' the Lord of 
 Hosts and of Glory;" ( James ii. 1. Isa. vi. S.) 
 . sometimes by that incommunicable name Jeho- 
 vah. (IsaLwl I,) And these titles so especial- 
 ly his own, that he is siaidto be '' the true God, 
 (I John V. 20.) the only wise God ; (Jude^o.) 
 the ''God over all, (Rom. ix. 5.) blessed for 
 ever." Could such names be attributed to any 
 creature, we must for ever be at a loss to know 
 the peculiar name of him, to whom we owe our 
 adorations. But these are the distinguisliing ti- 
 tles of the Deity, therefore he who possesses tliem 
 is very God. 
 
 Plis attributes are as decisive a proof of his 
 divinity as his names. . They are the incommu- 
 nicable glories of the most lligh. If to be ''al- 
 mighty, (Rev. i. 8. J heart-searching, (Acts u. 
 24 J omnipresent, (Matt, xviii. 9A).) eternal, ( I 
 Tim. I 17.) incomprehensible, (Matt, x'l. 27. J 
 independent, (Johjix, 18.^ immutable ;" (Heb. 
 1. 12. j if this is to be very God, then Christ our 
 liedeemer hath the most undoubted claim to it 
 
 His works also proclaim his eternal power and 
 
 godhead. If " the heavens declare the glory of 
 
 .the Lord, and the firmament sheweth his handy- 
 
 work ;" {Fsal, xix. 1 ) if on the vast creation 
 
 the stamp of the Almighty appears ; if the briglit- 
 
Redemption % Jesus Chris L 1 \7 
 
 sun or twinkling stars, or all the brighter suns, 
 cherubs and seraphs, which burn before the 
 throne of God, proclaim the hand that made 
 them to be divine ; then Christ challenges this 
 honour. ^' All things were made by him ; and 
 without him was not any thing made that was 
 made. (John i. 3.) He spake and it was done/' 
 {Psal xxxiii. 9.) And he still " upholdeth them 
 all : {Heb, i. 3.) for his pleasure they are and 
 were created, {Rev.iy. 11.) by whom and for 
 Avhom are all things," (1 Cor. viii. 6.) And as 
 he is the Creator, he is also the Governor and 
 Judge of all. To him it appcrtaineth to exercise 
 every act of divine power ; to ^^ forgive sins; 
 \Matt, rx. 2.) to quicken whom he will; (^Johii 
 V. 21.) to send the Spirit; {Johii-^w. 26.) to raise 
 the dead;" {John xi. 43.) to execute the final 
 judgment; \Rom. xiv. II.) to determine the 
 eternal state of men and angels. {Matt. xxv. 
 SI — 46.) Well might we charge, as the Jews 
 did, {Matt, ix. 3 J any the highest created Be- 
 ing with blasphemy who should presume thus to 
 exalt himself. He that doth these things is God 
 alone. 
 
 Worship is solely due to the one eternal G^d. 
 *' To him every knee must bow, every tongue 
 must confess." {Ro7n. xiv. 11.) But this is paid 
 in the highest manner to the Lord Christ; is 
 claimed by him as his prerogative ; and offered 
 by saints on earth and angels in heaven. Jealous 
 for the honour of his Father, so as to be incapa- 
 ble of suffering the least profanation in the far- 
 thest courts of his house, he yet received and 
 vindicated the hosannas of the multitude '' in 
 the midst of^the temple," (3fatt. xxi. 15,) These 
 hymns of praise to the most High were no more 
 than his due, '^ who, being in the form of God, 
 counted it no robbery to be equal with God,'* 
 
118 Rcdei7iptio7t by Jesus Chris f, 
 
 {PhiL ii. 6.) We must honour the Son as^ we 
 honour the Father, '' {John v. 23, ) He that would 
 not from those who regarded him as a man, 
 i^Matt. xix, 17,) receive the leastmarkof divine 
 honour, most Avillingly admits an Apostle at his 
 feet worshipping him as his " Lord and his God," 
 {John XX. 28.) And they indeed are so fully 
 assured of his eternal power and godhead, that in 
 the deepest seasons of distress and difficulty they 
 call upon him, and resign '^ their dying soub" 
 {Jets vii, 59.) into his hands. Nor is he God 
 on earth alone adored, the hosts of heaven how 
 down before his footstool. "The angels of God 
 worship him," {Heb, i, 6.) One of the most 
 glorious visions of the upper world was this King 
 upon his throne, surrounded with his Seraphim ; 
 their faces veiled with reverential awe, and pouF" 
 ing forth their sacred homage and highest ador* 
 ation: " they cried one to another, and said, 
 |ioly, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts ; the whole 
 earth is full of his glory," {Isa.\i, 1. — 1£,) AncJ 
 when this present scene shall be no more, this 
 Still shall be the service of eternity, when ''every 
 creature day and night shall never rest sayings 
 Holy, holy, holy Lord God Almighty, which 
 was, and is, and is to come, (Rev. iv. 8,) Thou 
 art worthy, OLord, to receive glory, and honour, 
 and power, and blessing!'* (Rev. iv, 11,) Can 
 higher worship be offered ? If thi^ belong to our 
 Redeemer, surely he i^ very God. ^ 
 
 2. Christ is as truly man as he is God, Since 
 redemption was to be obtained in and by the na- 
 ture which had sinned, '' it behoved him in all 
 things to be made like unto his brethren, sin only 
 excepted," {Heb, u. 17.) This^ must have been 
 excepted, else he had not been *^'a Lamb without 
 spot or blemish ;" nor could he otherwise have 
 ^\ taken away the sin of the world j" for had h<^ 
 
Jledemption h\) Jtsus Christ, 1 1 9 
 
 been himself a sinner, he should have died under 
 his own iniquity. Now that he is very man, 
 and such a sinless man, the scriptures fully assure 
 us. As man he is formed of the substance of his 
 mother, ''partaker of flesh and blood," as other 
 children are, and born in the same way : yet 
 ^' sanctified in the womb, that he might not par* 
 take of that corruption, which by natural gener- 
 ation descends to every son of fallen Adam. He 
 was a '* holy thing, undefiled and separate from 
 sinners;" {Heh» vii. 26.) and for that purpose 
 "the power of the Highest overshadowed her.'* 
 {Luke i. 35.) As we are, he had the constituent 
 parts of human nature, a reasonable soul and hu- 
 man flesh. As other children *4ie increased in 
 wisdom as in stature." {Luke ii. 52.) He was 
 one with us in all the human wants and sinless 
 infirmities : his soul deficient in knowledge, af- 
 fected with grief, vexed with indignation, sen- 
 sible of reproaches, choosing to avoid sufferings, 
 exceeding sorrowful under them: (Mark xiii. 
 m, Mark iii. 5, Matt, xxvi. 38, 39.) his body 
 subject to weariness, hunger, thirst, pain and 
 death. {John iv. 6. Mark xi. 12. John xix. 28. 
 Fsal cxvi. 3. Mark xv. 37.) Thus he lived, 
 tbus he died as a man : yet was he not merely 
 man, but God-m^an ; possessing both natures in 
 all their plenitude in one Christ. 
 
 H. The manner in which Christ redeemed \x% 
 from the curse of the law, must be observed ; 
 namely, " by being made a curse for us." Where 
 we must remark, 
 
 Firsts His substitution for us. Secondly^ What 
 he bore as our substitute. 
 
 1. Christ, both God and man, was the sinner's 
 substitute. -' He bore our griefs, and carried our 
 sorrows." {Isa. liii. 4.) Our state was desperate, 
 you have heard. Nor was there found a remedy, 
 
JQO Redemption ^bi/ Jesus Christ, 
 
 iintil God, from the abyss of his wisdom, declar- 
 ed the counsel of peace which was betwixt the 
 Sacred Three. That one of them should take the 
 sinful nature, and suffer the curse, that justice 
 might be glorified in the punishment, and mer- 
 cy be exalted in the pardon of sin. The Son con- 
 sents to be the person. The covenant runs, " If 
 he will make his soul a sacrifice for sin, he shall 
 see of the travail of his soul, and be satisfied :'* 
 freely he complies. *^ Lo ! I come to do thy 
 thy will. (Heb. x. 7.) A body is prepared for him. 
 (^Heb. X. 5.) God lays on him the iniquity of 
 lis all. (Isa, liii. 6.) He is made sin for us, who 
 knew no sin." [2 Cor. v. 21.] He suffers, the 
 ^* just for the mijust." (I Pet. u'lAS.) Heoffers 
 himself to bear the sins of many, yea in his own 
 body on the tree, to bring in for sinners by his 
 own blood-shedding ** eternal redemption. " [Heb, 
 ix. ]2.] Here th(?n behold the second Adam : a 
 new covenant-head and representative, bearing 
 the persons and characters of his people, commu- 
 nicating with them in all things : being what 
 they are, and so making them one with him, that 
 all his transactions are their own. He a sin offer- 
 ing, a curse, a sufferer for them * they crucified, 
 dead, buried, rising, living in and M'ith him. [2 
 Cor. v. 21. Gal. iii. 13. GaL ii. 20. liojn. vi. 8. 
 Co I OSS. iii. 1.] 
 
 2. As our substitute, he underwent all that the 
 law clemanded from sinners. The curse in all its 
 extent and bitterness he endured from the cradle 
 to the grave, the award of sin was executed upon 
 him. And how heavily executed, a short review 
 of his sufferings will tell. See the Redeemer en- 
 tering the lists, sin and hell and death, yea God 
 himself against him. On him the poisoned ar- 
 rows of vengeance are to be expended. An out- 
 cast from the womb ! Sought for by the sword 
 
Redernptloit by Jesus Christ. 1521 
 
 soon as lie drew liis breath, a fugitive, a forlorn ; 
 *' a worm and no man,despi.sed and rejected of men. 
 Having no place to lay his head." [Zy^.liii.3. Mat, 
 viii. 20.] His whole life a series of labours, wants, 
 temptations, reproaches, persecutions, until the 
 ]iour came when peculiarly thecursedescended, and 
 *'t]iepowersofdarkness"iZi^A-exxii. 53.] prevailed. 
 Vv hen given into the hands of the devil, who is the 
 executioner of divine vengeance, and '' hath 
 tbe power of death," [Heb. ii. 14.] the wages of 
 sin ; he endured that fearful baptism of blood 
 and sweat, and tears extorted by the pains of 
 hell which came about him ; and then iinished 
 on a cross the great expiation, having '' des- 
 troyed thereby death, and him that had the 
 power of it." Would you be a witness of the 
 conflict, and see the burden of your weighty 
 guilt, go then to the garden of Gethsemane; and 
 in the silent darkness of that dreadful night, tbe 
 groans cf Jesus at a distance will direct thy foot- 
 steps to that scene of his sufferings. What a 
 sight of horror ! What agonizing pangs are theje ! 
 Wh}^ this strong crying and tears ! And lo I he 
 falls, he lies along the ground : from every pore, 
 the sweat and blood mino'led start inoreat drons 
 and trickle down ; the cold ground streams with 
 the purple gore : weltering he lies. O Jesus, Sav- 
 iour, what hath thus laid thee low ? ^Vhat ex- 
 torts from thee these bitter cries ? Thy deserts, 
 thy curse, poor sinner. But dost thou stand 
 agbast at this ? O couldst thou see my unknown 
 pangs ! my soul's exceeding sorrows e\ en un- 
 to death : my sore amazement ; my heaviness 
 past utterance ; these blasts of the breath of my 
 Father's displeasure ; *' this, this is the bitti r 
 cup" my soul cries to remove ; but, " Father, 
 thy will be done." {Matt. xxvi. 3J— 46\J The 
 
322 Redemption by Jesus Christ, 
 
 angels minister to him." \^Lukc xxii. 43.] The 
 dreadful storm abates : he rises : he seeks his 
 friends, his friends " asleep through sorrow." 
 But his enemies are waking : the traitor comes. 
 Betrayed and sold by one disciple ; denied by 
 another ; forsaken by all ; arrested as a thief, and 
 delivered into the hands of the wicked. 
 
 Follow him to the tribunal, and hear 'the cries 
 of a blood-thirsty people, and the sentence of an 
 unjust judge. See the insult, the mockery and 
 cruelty added to reproach. The scourges that 
 tear his sacred body, and open a*;ain the bloody 
 fountain ; the thorns pressed hard upon his tem- 
 ples ; new wounds to *' mar his visage more than 
 any man's;" [^Isa. lii. 14.] a visage already de- 
 formed with buffetings, and defiled with spitting. 
 What torments he endured! condemned to the 
 cross, it is bound upon him. He groans, he sinks 
 under the load. Yet ** as a lamb led to the slaugh- 
 ter, he openeth not his mouth :" {Isa, liii. 7.] 
 to Cah'ary he goes, there to be fastened on it. 
 O ! fearful curse, ^' If this be done in the green 
 tree, what shall be done in the dry r" [Luke xxiii. 
 31.] The cross is fixed in the ground : Jesus is 
 stretched upon it : stripped, to endure the shame 
 of our nakedness ; covered with clotted gore ; a 
 spectacle of woe i Stretched are his sacred arms ; 
 O whv ! these nails will tell. To be iixed fast 
 upon that tree ; in shame and torture to expire, 
 to endure the death, the accursed death of the 
 cross. They pierce his hands, they pierce his 
 feet ; the wounds are torn wide by the suspended 
 body. lie is lifted up. O sinner, look upon 
 him ! lifted up he is to take away thy sins, lie 
 bears them all on this accursed tree. Stay yet 
 a while. Behold the " man of sorrow.s truly, 
 sorrows like unto whose have never sorrows 
 been V \La7n. i. 12.] These sutierings for thee 
 
Pudcmption hi/ Jesus Christ. 125 
 
 he willinij^ly endures. He refuses the wine miu- 
 gkd with myrrh, that he may "" (hink the dregs 
 of the cup of trembhng." Creation beholds 
 astonished the Lorci of Life expiring. The sun 
 grows dark; the heavens lour; the eevth trem- 
 bles ; the rocks rend : whilst tears of blood de- 
 scend ; and in the pangs of death and dereliction 
 the Redeemer cries, *' iVly God, my God, wiiy 
 hast thou forsaken me ?" [Matt, xxvii. 46. J Tlieu 
 linislies transgression, proclaims it, and expires. 
 lie dies : the soldier\s spear opens hi^ heart that 
 beats no more : the blood and water flow ; still 
 warm, though life is gone. Thus dies on the 
 accursed tree the sinners substitute. Sin is aton- 
 ed for, justice is satisfied, the prisoner must be 
 discharged. His soul is not left in hell, nor doth 
 this Holy One of God see corruption. The grave 
 may not cover her slain. He hui'sts the bands 
 of death in token of his victory, and leads cap- 
 tivity captive. Death hath '' iio more domin- 
 ion over him :" as ** he was delivered for our of- 
 fences, he is raised again for our justification." 
 [Roin, IV. 25.] A pardoning God is found : A 
 pardoning God proclaimed. *' Mercy and truth 
 are met together ; righteousness and peace have 
 kissed each other." [Fsal. Ixxxv. 10.] The 
 bright perfections of the eternal God here unite 
 and form a new discovery of the Deity ; the 
 milder beams of merc^^ gild the throne ; and that 
 once consuming fire becomes approachable eveii 
 by sinners. Glorious is Jehovah now in pardon- 
 ing, and righteous in mercy. Which leads me, 
 
 in. To the benefits which by his blood-shed- 
 ding Christ has purchased for us: and these are 
 chiefiy,. 
 
 1 . Pardon of our sins and peace with God, ** In 
 wliom we have redemption through his blood, 
 the forgiveness of sins^ according to the riches. of 
 
124 Rcde7nptio7i by Jesus Christ. 
 
 his grace. Being justified by faith, we have peace 
 with God through Jesus Christ our Lord. God 
 is now righteous and just to forgive us our sins." 
 {Ro7n. V. 1. Eph. i. 7. Rom, iii. 26.] lie hath 
 exacted the penalty from our surety : the debt is 
 paid : the bond is cancelled. Jesus ^Miath taken 
 it out of the way, nailing it to his cross. AVho 
 is he thatcondemneth, *' since Christ hath died ?" 
 [^Rom. viii. 34. J This is our prevailing plea. This 
 is a sufficient answer to all the accusations of the 
 law, and the fears of a guilty conscience. The 
 more we consider the fulness of the surety, the 
 iuore shall we be confirmed in thesafety of those 
 who trust in him : He cannot fail us. ^' In l}im 
 there is plenteous redemption." [Psal. cxxx.7.] 
 All fulness ; yea, '* all and more than all that we 
 can ask or think.'* [Coloss, i. 19. JEph. iii. 20.] 
 The chief of sinners need not fear. '' He cart 
 save to the uttermost :" He came into the world 
 for this very purpose. *- Where sin abounded, 
 there shall pardoning grace abound." [Rom, v. 
 20.] God hath no quarrel with the greatest sin- 
 ner returning through Christ. ** He will be rrier-- 
 ciful to his unrighteousness; his sins and ini- 
 quities will he remember no more." (Heb, viii. 
 12.) His justice and truth are now as much en* 
 gaged to receive us graciously, as before they 
 were engaged to punish us rigorously. He can- 
 not but abundantly pardon. Plis glory now is 
 this ; '' Peace proclaimed on earth, good- will 
 towards men. {Luke ii. 14.) The wall of sepa- 
 ration is broken down." The veil of sin is taken 
 away. God stretches out the sceptre of his grace ; 
 commands us to touch it and live. '' Let bini 
 take hold on my strength, and make peace with 
 me, and he shall make peace with me." (hrt, 
 xxvii. 5,) See it fully demonstrated in this 
 blessed scripture. ** God was in Christ recon- 
 
Redemption hy Jesus Christ, 125^ 
 
 ciling the world untohimselfj not imputing their 
 trespasses unto them. Now then we are ambas'- 
 sadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you 
 by us, we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye re- 
 conciled to God." (2 Cor, v. 20.) 
 
 '2. By Christ's redemption of us from the curse, 
 we obtain all the promises of the Spirit. Until 
 this was removed there coukl be no intercourse 
 between the holy God and sinful man ; and if 
 this intercourse were not restored on earth, maa 
 must be for ever excluded from the prei>ence ot" 
 God : " Without holiness no man can see the 
 Lord." {Hcb. xii. 14.) But no such could be 
 found, unless the Spirit of holiness ^'created us-, 
 aneu'." Our corruption and weakness qualiiied 
 us for any work of goodness. Vile we were, and 
 vile we must for ever have remained, if not 
 ^' renewed in the spirit of our minds." Christ 
 therefore in delivering us from the curse hatii. 
 obtained the Spirit also to deliver us from the: 
 power of our sins. " lit hath led captivity cap- 
 tive, and received gifts for men, {Psal. Ixviii. 
 18. J even for the rebellious ; and he is now ex- 
 alted at the riu'ht hand of God," in virtue of his 
 obedience unto death, *'to be a Prince and a Sa- 
 viour, to give repentance to his people." {Acts 
 v. 31.) From him all power i^ derived :/'^Vit h- 
 out him we can do nothing : {John xv. 9,) but 
 all tilings tlnoughhimstrengtheningusJ' {Phil.. 
 i V. 1 3. ) All the graces of God's Spirit to enhght- 
 en, enliver, comfort and sanctify our souls, he 
 hath the dispensation of ; and sheds them abroad 
 in the hearts of those whom by his preventing 
 grace he stirreth up to seek him. Helping, their 
 infirmities in prayer, and blessing, them with aa 
 answer of peace, and '' an abundant supply of 
 the Spirit," according to. their necessities^ .We 
 T o 
 
126 Redemption by Jesus Christ, 
 
 have now a throne of grace open, and are bid 
 ** to come boldly to it, tiiat we may obtain mer- 
 cy, and find grace to help in every time of need." 
 (^Heb. iv. 16.) And whilst his blood is sprinkled 
 on our consciences, we may ** draw near in full 
 assurance of faith," and the most confident per- 
 suasion, that ^' whatsoever we shall ask in his 
 Diame, God will it give us. And that thus grow- 
 ing in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord 
 Jesus Christ, he will, having conducted us by 
 his counsel here, at last bring us to his glory." 
 (Psal. Ixxiii. 24.) For this also, 
 
 3. Pie hath by his blood-shedding obtained 
 for us not only present but eternal redemption. 
 (^Heb, ix. 12.) He hath removed the flaming- 
 sword that guarded the tree of life. He hath 
 opened the everlasting doors. '' He, as our fore- 
 lunner, is for us entered ; we are already set down 
 %vith him in heavenly places." (^Eph. ii. 6.) As 
 members of his body, we must follow our head. 
 " Where he is, there must we be also." The 
 promise is sure to all the seed. Though we have 
 a ''meetness for the inheritance of the saints in 
 light" wrought in us, our title to it stands oii 
 the everlasting righteousness finished upon the 
 cross. That Jesus was obedient unto death, is 
 all our plea : and at the last day we shall see our 
 obligations above all to the Redeemer, when we 
 shall receive *' eternal life as the gift of God,, 
 through Jesus Christ our Lord." {Rom, vi, 230 
 He that endured the cross must have the glory 
 of his purchase. No desert of ours "lifts us 
 from the dunghill to set us among the princes." 
 We shall then see it wholly obtained for us by 
 his merits, when ''with his ransomed people we 
 shall come to Zion with songs and everlasting 
 joy upon our heads." (Z?^. xxxv. 10.) They 
 that surrovuid his XlliW^; all cast their crowns at 
 
Redemption by Jesus Christ, 19,7 
 
 his feet : they ascribe to liim alone their mighty- 
 bliss : *' For tliou wast slain, and has-t redeemed 
 us to God by thy blood, out of every kindred, 
 and tongue, and people, and nation, and hast 
 made us unto our God kings and priests." {Rev. 
 V. 10,) Who wishes not to join then* praises ? 
 And do we wish it indeed ? Let us then learn 
 them here below. If now we find in him re- 
 demption ; if now we believe in him as our de- 
 hverer from the curse of the law ; if now we trust 
 in him alone for grace in time, and glory.in eter- 
 nity ; then v/ill he finish his new creation in us; 
 perfect what he hath begun, and bring us where 
 neither sin nor death are known, but He, the 
 once suffering, now exalted lledeemer reigns, 
 and all his saints adore him,, yea shall reign witii 
 him in glory everlasting. Amen, 
 
 ■.Ct:- 
 
SERMON IX. 
 
 SALVATION BY GRACE^ 
 
 Epiiesiaxs II. 8. 
 
 FOR BY nPxACE AKK ^-E SAVED, THROUGH FVITIT: AND THAT 
 N JT OF YOURSELVES ; IT IS THE GUT: OF GOD. 
 
 NO mistakes are so dangerous as tliose which 
 relate to our eternal salvation : yet through 
 the blindness of our own hearts, and wickedness 
 of others, who would '* pervert the right ways 
 of the Lord," we had need take great heed to 
 our feet, that they turn not out of the way. 
 Our only sure direction is the word of God. 
 This is appointed to be ** a lamp unto our feet, 
 and a hght unto our paths" {Fsalm cxix, 105.) 
 He that walketh after this rule, peace will be 
 imto him. As it is the universal guide, it is 
 open for every man's perusal, and plain to every 
 man's understanding. Many things rn it in- 
 deed, through a variety of circumstances, are 
 dark and hard to be understood, but they are 
 not points essential to our salvation. These will 
 afford matter to the end of the world for such 
 as prefer knowledge to practice, and choose ta 
 dispute rather than obey. The things of most 
 importance and necessary to be known are easy 
 to be understood i **lle that runs may read them. '* 
 ls;o comment is '1||yiting, but a desire to know 
 the truth, with a diS|)osition to follow it. Thus^ 
 ^'theBareans sought and found.'' (^c^xvii 11.} 
 
Salvation b^ Grace. t^g 
 
 And so to the end of the world, '"ifanyinaiv 
 will do- his will, he shall know of the doctrine 
 wliether it be of God," {Jofin\n. 17.) He that 
 is faithful to the little light he hath, shall iind 
 it '^ shine more and more unto the perfect day." 
 
 Let us beware then of calling any man master. 
 One is our Master, ^ven Christ. {Matt, xxiii. %.) 
 "■ Search the scriptures." (John v. ^9. J- It is 
 his command. Therein is contained all v/e rieed 
 to know. We have his promise to assist our 
 humble enquiries. "They shall all be taught: 
 of God." (JoJin vi. 45.^ Then the salvation 
 by grace, which the w^ords in the text speak ot^ 
 will be discovered, embraced and delighted in. 
 ** Comparing spiritual things with spiritual," we 
 shall have our hearts daily more confirmed "in 
 tlie truth as it is in Jesus." And if we persist 
 " to follow on to know the Lord," we shall find 
 the salvation by grace to issue sliortly in a sal- 
 vation of glory. 
 
 The grand dispute that in St. Paul's day rent 
 the church was, "Whether faith or works jus- 
 tiiied'the sinner ; whether man's desert or God's 
 free grace were the cause of salvation?" He was- 
 the strenuous asserter of the sovereignty of grace 
 and the freedom of justification. Yea, he reck- 
 ons these such essential truths, that he calls the 
 opposite doctrines another gospel. (Gal. i. 6.^ 
 Yet those who have agreed to receive his writ- 
 ings as given by the inspiration of God, have 
 nevertheless revived the errors he condemned, 
 and still seek justification by the law, and salva- 
 tion by works and not by grace. The following 
 plain truths are submitted to every man's con- 
 sideration, who will be at the pains of com.paring 
 them with the fountain from whence tome they 
 appear to be derived. May' they be the blessed 
 means of enlightening any heart in the kiiowU 
 
130 Saivalibn bif Grace. 
 
 edge of the truth, or of confirming the faith of 
 those who are seeking the salvation hy grace re- 
 vealed in the gospel. 
 
 I shall endeavour to shew from these word.s, 
 
 I. ^\1mt is the salvation here spoken of. 
 
 II. Prove that it is wholly of grace, 
 
 III. Shew the necessity of its being of faith, 
 that it might be by grace. 
 
 IV. Make some suitable application. 
 
 I. The salvation here spoken of, is owx fmal 
 salvation ; including all the various steps whicb 
 lead to it. This is evident from the preceding, 
 verses, v/here St. Paul mentions not only our re- 
 surrection together with Christ, but also *' our 
 sitting together in heavenly places in Christ Je- 
 sus;" {Eph. 2, CJ that is, by virtue of that 
 union which subsists between the head and the 
 members. His exaltation we are already inter- 
 ested in. Our salvation is as mucli secured for 
 us in Christ, as it will be at the last day : for 
 " by grace we are saved." He hath wrought 
 out the salvation for us in all its extent, of par- 
 don from the guilt of sin, deliverance from the 
 dominion of sin, and as " our forerunner is for us 
 entered" to take possession of the inheritance he 
 hath purchased by virtue of his obedience unto, 
 death, and to bestow it on them who " shall be 
 heirs of salvatipn." AVe must take the whole 
 salvation together. V We must not separate the 
 links of this chain of grace. Though Christ is:. 
 the author of eternal salvation, it is only to those 
 who here below know him as their Saviour, free- 
 ly discharging them from the guilt ; and, togeth- 
 er with the punishment, by his Spirit dehvering 
 them from the power of their sins. 
 
 H. This Salvation is wholly of grace. The 
 word grace has several meanings in scripture, 
 But here and in many otlier places its signilica- 
 
Saltation by Grace, 131 
 
 tioii is clear from the context. It is the gift or 
 an act of the mere favour of God. And to this 
 the whole of our salvation must be ascribed, 
 whether in the contrivance and execution or 
 communication of it : Salvation is wholly of 
 grace. 
 
 1. The contrivance of it was of grace. " The 
 things which are not," as much subsist in the 
 divine mind as if they were. God foresaw the 
 fall of man, and provided a remedy for it 
 ere it came to pass. His own glory is the end 
 of all his actions. In this ^' he w^ould glorify 
 the riches of his grace." (Ephes. i. 6.) This is 
 the good pleasure of his will : fallen man hath 
 nothing but misery to present. God will there- 
 fore have mercy, because he will have mercy: 
 He worketh after the counsel of his own will. 
 *' He hath saved us, not according to our works, 
 but according to his own purpose and grace, 
 which was given us in Christ Jesus before the 
 world began." (2 7'/;??. i. 9.) This is the origin 
 of our salvation from eternity ; the mere pleasure 
 and grace of God. Nothing foreseen in us, ei- 
 ther done or to be done by us, but the purpose 
 x)f his own will is the first cause. 
 
 2. The execution of this scheme of salvation, 
 planned out in the divine mind from eternity, is 
 wholly of God's grace : That God should '' not 
 spare his own Son, but freely give Ifte np for 
 us all:" (^Rom. viii. 32.) That the Son should 
 become man, ** for us men and our salvation :" 
 That he should *' by one oblation of himself 
 once offered obtain eternal redemption for us;" 
 {TIcb. ix. 12.) was what we could no more have 
 oonccivcd than we could deserve: yea it was 
 contrary' to all our deserts, and above all our 
 thoughts. The angels themselves could not fath- 
 om this abyss of love. This ''mystery hid from 
 
132 Salvation by Grace. 
 
 ag-es and generations" he hath revealed to us in 
 the gospel. 
 
 God knew full well what his Son must endure : 
 Christ saw for whatend he came into the world ; 
 for he was in the divine purpose ^^ the Lamb 
 slain from the foundation of the world." {Rev, 
 xiii. 8.) The obstinacy of men and their rcj.c- 
 tion of him was forciold : yet he gave himself 
 a propitiation for our sins ; and not for ours on- 
 ly, but for the sins of the whole world." (1 John 
 ii. 2.) It was an act of such astonisb.ing mercy 
 and rich grace as passed all understanding. 
 *' God commendeth his love towards us, in that 
 M'hilst \\t were yet sinners ,(:hrist died for the 
 ungodly." {Rom. v. 6,8.) livery demerit of ours 
 is disregarded, or rather sovereign grace triumphs 
 i|n giving the greatest gift imaginable to the most 
 undeserving. 
 
 III. The communication of this salvation toev- 
 Ciy individual who shall finally partake of it, is 
 purely of grace. Consider it as implying present 
 salvation from guilt and from corruption; or the 
 eternal salvation in heaven. 
 
 1. Salvation from guilt is wholly by grace. 
 ^Vc are considered in scripture " as enemies, as 
 ungodly, unjust, and dead in trespasses and sins." 
 {Roru, V. G — 10. Eph. ii. 1 ) There is nothing 
 in any man, \\hich seems in the most distant 
 manncr^to give him a claim to the divine mer- 
 cy. Our case is, as hath been shewn, utterly 
 desperate. God tuids nothing in us but sin, and 
 the disposition of the heart continually towards 
 it. A\'hocvcr is truly brought to God through 
 Christ, knows tliis to have been his very case, 
 until " (lod called him by his grace." The 
 King upon his throne issues the undeserved i)ar- 
 don. *' lie justifies theui^godly ;" {Rom, iv.3.) 
 and this, ^^ according to his good pleasure, which 
 
Salvation by Grace. ^' 135 
 
 he hath purposed in himself." {Eph, i. 9.) He 
 cloth not find us just, but makes us so. It is an 
 act of his mere grace and mercy ; Avithout the 
 shadow of desert on our part. Yea when we had 
 all the demerit that the enmity of our hearts, the 
 ungodliness of our lives, and our deadly state of 
 trespasses and sins could give us It is true, it 
 is on account of Christ; *' we have redemption 
 through his blood :" (Eph, i. 7j but the par- 
 don of sin comes not to us as the less^a matter 
 of favour, because '' he gave himself a ransom 
 for all." (\ Tim. ii. 6.) Christ's death and obe- 
 dience alter not our state of demerit : besides the 
 very gift of Christ, who purchased this great 
 mercy, is in the highest degree of grace. 
 
 C, Salvation from the power of sin is wholly 
 of grace : whilst guilt remained the throne of 
 grace was guarded hy a flaming cherub. It is 
 by the removal of this, that God doth return to 
 visit us, and send the Spirit into our hearts.— 
 Without this we must for ever remain the bonds- 
 men of corruption : " They who are in the flesh 
 cannot please God," (Rom. viii. 8. J And in 
 this state we remain until Christ delivers us 
 through faith in his atonement. Then our per- 
 sons " become accepted in the beloved :*' (Eph. 
 i, iS.) He takes possession of us for his own : 
 " He worketh then mightily all our works in us. 
 (Isa. xxvi. 12.^ We have nothing we have not 
 received " (\ Cor. iv, 7 J All our sanctiflca- 
 tion is as much the gift of God, as our justifica- 
 tion. We offer him only his own. '^ ]]y the 
 grace of God we are what we are." (\ Cor. xv. 
 \0.) Boasting is utterly excluded. We are not 
 only pardoned as rebels, but of mere bounty f^Ci 
 overy day, and the life which is given us is main- 
 tained from the King's table. '' The life m hieh 
 
134 Saltation hij Grace. 
 
 I will give them shall be in them, a well of wa- 
 ter springing up to everlasting life," (John iv. 
 14.^ All is of grace. Faith, repentance, love, 
 obedience, perseverance in well-doing, are all 
 expressly declared to be *^ the gifts of God,'* 
 (Eph, ii. 8. Acts V, 31. Gal v. 6. Heb, viii. 
 ]0. John X. 28.^ or the effects immediately pro- 
 duced by those gifts. 
 
 It must not be inferred from hence, that we 
 are machines, actuated merely by im[)ulses from 
 without or within ourselves. By no means. The 
 first of God's gifts in sanctification is *^ the res- 
 toration of our will to its right choice of God as 
 our ]\Iaster." He calls upon us daily to make 
 use of the measure of grace which he hath given 
 us, with the promise of the increase of it. We 
 choose what God approves. The choice and 
 work consequent thereupon is not the less our 
 own, because *' his grace prevents us that Ave may 
 have a good- will, and worketh with us Avhen we 
 have that good-will." (Article X.^ 
 
 3. The eternal salvation of our souls is also of 
 grace. It is certain that God hath promised to 
 reward us '' according to our works. " (Rev. xx'i'u 
 12. I Cor, XV. 4lO And that there will be in 
 the day of judgment a proportion between the 
 ivork and the reward. Some will " shine as stars" 
 of greater magnitude than others : but eternal 
 life will not cease nevertheless to be the gift of 
 God through Jesus Christ; and we shall, " as 
 many as are saved, look for eternal life as the 
 mercy of the Lord." (Jude 21. J Tor not only 
 have we obtained the first step of admission into 
 the kingdom of heaven by grace ; and the sub- 
 sequent ones, which in God's appointed way of 
 holiness >ve have taken through the same, but 
 also our inheritance is still *' a purchased pos- 
 session," (Ej)h,h 14 J Christ's perfect obcdi- 
 
Salvation hi/ Grace. 135 
 
 ence affords the only legal claim to life eternal. 
 We receive it therefore as of promise thr aigh 
 him. There will be in us " a meetness indeed fur 
 the inheritance amongst the saints in light;'* 
 (Coloss, i. VI.) and this greater in one than in 
 another ; but no meritorious claim. No man 
 will then say, *' I am worthy." No, he will be 
 surprised even at what Christ adjudges to him, 
 as conscious how unworthy he is : if he must en- 
 ter into the kingdom, it will be for ever to pro- 
 claim, ^' Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, to 
 receive glory, and honour, and praise, and bless- 
 ing.'' (Rev. iv. \\.) 
 
 III. It is of faith that it might be by grace. 
 (Rom. iv. \6.) It could be of grace no other 
 way than by faith. Faith stands opposed to 
 Avorks in the next verse : '' Not of works lest 
 any man should boast." {Eph. ii. 9-) If works 
 of any kind preceded our acceptance with God, 
 it would be no more of faith ; nor consequently 
 by grace. This is the alone medium by which 
 the gift of God can be conveyed to us to secure 
 the whole glory to himself. Those who know 
 not the necessity of thus receiving the gift of 
 God, from a deep conviction of the impossibil- 
 ity of doing any work pleasing to God until 
 their attainder is reversed, ever oppose this meth- 
 od of salvation as too abasing. And they who 
 object to it, as having an unfavourable influence 
 on morality, shew evidently their utter unac- 
 quaintedness both with the nature of true faith 
 and the effects of it. 
 
 *^ Faith is a divine conviction of the veracity 
 of God in his word." The general object of it 
 is the word of God : the effect wrought by that 
 word is conviction of the truth. The agent is 
 CJod : '' It is the gift of God." A man can no 
 more reason himself into true faith, than he ca» 
 
136 Salvation by Grace. 
 
 create a world: all external evidence is of itself 
 incapable of producing it. The head may have 
 nothing to object, when the heart is as far as 
 ever from ^'believing unto righteousness/' nor 
 feels any of the constrainings of divine energetic 
 faith. Though the external evidence be from 
 God, there must bean internal divine conviction 
 also. It is the work of the Holy Ghost "to con- 
 vince of righteousness, {John xvi. 8.) and en- 
 able us to believe/' {Phil, \, 29. ] Cor. ii. 14.) 
 The great object of faith in the word is Jesus 
 Christ, and all the promises which are in him : 
 these revealed by the faithful God, faith acqui- 
 esces in and embraces. And in this submission 
 to the righteousness of God, and acceptance of::.. 
 salvation by faith, there is implied, 
 
 First — An acknowledgment of a state of ab- 
 solute helplessness and guilt : whilst v/e imagine 
 we Ijave any thing of our own to commend us 
 to God, faith is made void. The salvation by 
 grace proposed to faith is only for the lost and 
 desperate ; for those who are convinced they 
 are nothing, have nothing, can do nothing pleas- 
 ing to God. Until the soul be brought to this 
 state of self-emptiness, a man cannot " believe 
 to salvation :" He must be going about to es- 
 tablish his own righteousness. He will ever be 
 thinking that he hath or ought to have some 
 claim to the divine favour above another man. 
 He will be trusting, in whole or in part, on some- 
 thing done or to be done by him, instead of 
 what has been done for him seventeen hundied 
 years ago : but when any soul is taught his real 
 state, then he is assured he must be saved by 
 grace, or not at all. The grand mistake is here. 
 Kfcn know not the depth of their natural cor- 
 ruption, wickedness and weakness. This dis- 
 
:saLvanon oy crrate. isj 
 
 covered, salvation by grace through faith will 
 meet no more abjections. 
 
 Secondly, In receiving this salvation, faith 
 simply submits to the truth declared. It re- 
 ceives the ^' record of God, that he hath given 
 unto us eternal life, and this life is in his Son." 
 (1 John v. 11.) It doth nothing to merit sal- 
 vation, nor does the possessor of it see any de- 
 sert in himself more than in the vilest of sinners. 
 Faith freely takes what God freely gives : the 
 sinner's heart, as the beggai-'s Imnd, readily re- 
 ceives the gift of grace. 
 
 Thus it is, that through faith at first we are 
 brought into a state of reconciliation with Go<l ; 
 and '' being justified by faith, we have peace 
 with God through Jesus Christ our Lord :'' 
 {Roni. V. 1.) and ever after it is the support of 
 our souly or ratlier the channel of conveying to 
 us the supplies of grace for all our life of holi- 
 ness ; " The life I now live in the flesli. I live by 
 the faith of the Son of God." (GaL ii. 20,) 
 Ijclleving the certainty of the promises in him, 
 •' we draw waterout of these wells of salvation :" 
 ( IsaL xW. 3.) and our final perseverance and 
 eternal happiness come in the same way ;. *^ be- 
 ing kept by the power of God through faith 
 unto salvation." (I Pet. L 5.) He that en- 
 duretli to the tm\, the same shall be saved," 
 (Malt. X. 22.) We shall endure if our faith fail 
 not. From the whole, I trust the salvation by 
 grace through faith hath appeared to you plainly 
 to be the word of God ; and have nothing more 
 to add than a short application from what has 
 been said, 
 
 1. What encouragement doth the gospel give 
 to every sinner who sees his guilt and misery ? 
 **■ It is a faitl;ful saying, and worthy of all ac-- 
 M£ 
 
138 Salvatio7i hy Grace, 
 
 ceptation, that Jesus Christ came into the world 
 to save sinners ; yea, the chief of sinners." 
 (\ Tim, i. 15.^ No man need despair because 
 he is a poor and miserable wretch that hath no 
 works to plead ; nothing *' but evil, and that 
 continually." Salvation is of grace, ** without 
 money and without price ;" {Isai, Iv. 1.) and 
 therefore free for every guilty soul. Think not 
 that because sin hath abounded, that therefore 
 you are far from hope. By no means : *' where 
 sin hath abounded, there shall grace much more 
 abound." (Ro7?i. v. 20.) God's salvation is one. 
 Whatever degrees of guilt men may have con- 
 tracted, it bears the same favourable aspect ta j 
 all. They who have the least sin must be ' 
 damned if they do not plead it ; and they wha 
 have the greatest are sure of pardon and ac- 
 ceptance if they do. It is not suspended on 
 any conditions of previous endeavours and la- 
 bours, and resolutions of amendment ; for that 
 "were to destroy the riches of the grace, and to- 
 counteract the very designs of God. You are 
 110 more required to do any thing to merit it, 
 than you are to pluck the sun from the heavens^ 
 or stay the current of the seas. Indeed you 
 might as easily do the one as the other. You are 
 undone and lost ; your case is desperate : CJod 
 will glorify his grace in pardoning you. lie 
 sends his Son : he declares " lie is well-pleased 
 in him," and with all that come to God by him ; 
 here is the gift. It is as free as the Irght of the 
 sun : *' Look to him and be ye saved, all the 
 ends of the earth." {Isai. xlv. 22.) He wants no 
 good thing of you. He asks for no such thing 
 from you : '* Believe, and be saved," {Jets k\ i. 
 31.) is the gospel word. In self despair thus 
 to be found at the foot of the cros3 is salva- 
 tion begun ; and tliat life derived from a be- 
 
Salvation bi/ Gi^ace. \^d 
 
 lieving view of Jesus delivered for our offences, 
 and raised again for our justification,'' {Rom, 
 iv. 25.) will carry on tliis salvation until grace 
 sliall have accomplished it, and '' we shall see 
 him face to tace." (1 Co7\ xiii. 12.) 
 
 2. The sin and danger of seeking salvation m 
 any other way than by grace, is exceeding great. 
 I speak now particularly of our present accept- 
 ance with God, which many are continually go- 
 ing about to obtain '' by works of righteousness: 
 which they have done," or by blending faith and 
 works together, as concurring causes of their ac- 
 ceptance. Nothing reflects such dishonour upon 
 God, nothing can be so surely fatal to ourselves; 
 as such an attempt. 
 
 It reflects such high dishonour on God and his 
 Son. It saith, '' Salvation is no more of grace f 
 for is any thing besides " Christ's one oblation 
 once offered" needful to merit your acceptance ? 
 Then you associate yourself with him, become 
 a partner of his undertaking, and rob him of that 
 peculiar glory of which he is so jealous. But he 
 wants nothing of you : he can receive nothing 
 from you ; because indeed you can offer nothing 
 which must not still oft'cnd. Which of your 
 good deeds will you bring to the cross as auxi- 
 liary to the Saviour's atonement ?" With what 
 abhorrence must it be rejected by him, " who 
 by the eternal Spirit ofiered himself without spot 
 unto God ?" Surely had any such spot been found 
 in him, as is in every v/ork of yours, he had died 
 in vain. Besides, Mdiere were the riches of grace 
 if you contributed ever so little to the purchase? 
 " If it be of works, it is no more grace, other- 
 wise Avork is no more work." (Rom, xi. 6.) 
 God's glory in pardoning is utterly obscured, 
 and it is no longer the gift of God. 
 
 And what can be so fatal to yourself } You 
 
*40 Salvation hy Grace^ 
 
 thus cut yourself ofF from the only metlorl of 
 salvation ; you counteract tlie desio," of Gof 
 
 foundation^ti:;\T£'LthS,To' :fe3e':t" 
 
 to bear the seventy of Gods justice " f ! 
 broken reed you have leaned upon w 11 'run i to 
 
 then too late discover, that those ., ho wo .Id 
 
 not plead a salvation bv arace Mill nev^v 1,1 
 
 to escape the damnation of Si '''''" 
 
 t1,n%?r' ^'''''^"' '° <^'°''' ho^^ honourable to 
 the Redeemer, how safe for the undone sinner 
 how effectual to eno-ao-e his henrc t^ n ,*'"""' 
 this n^ethodof gosr^^i:!:; i,'? ci" i's'af 
 know e,lged to be alAnajestV and all m C • 
 Chnst all-g!onous and all-surtlcient. AVe have 
 g.ounds ot confidence the most endu. „V\, a 
 .sat,sfy„,g , and for all the grace we rece "e feci 
 he constramings of the d?bt of gratitude ,n^ 
 »icnse as the gift bestowed on u& " " 
 
 '■ecl^n °r-5"°-' ''?"°* '^"^ ^<= the immediate ef- 
 fect ot fauh ,n tins salvation : and obedience 
 
 Tor f-!!H ''°"f T\ ^^'^S'>t as M^ell as day! 
 ^01 tuith worketh by love' and th]< ;. ti 
 ove of C;od, that we kip In^ co"! J,,^* ^^ 
 
 o iloL''";rr """'^ -ueiio longer cou,:;:.! 
 
 totievous (1 Jo/m y. s.) O with what deliohf 
 <loesa smner saved by grace "run th S?o f 
 G< c s commandments, for he hath set his cnrt 
 iu iob^ ^'^ ^^'"'"' "^i-^-- '"-^ Whatattainn en 3 
 
 h n "hVT' "°' ^'' ^' -clvancing towa, 
 X lA^ 1 , 1°''^ constrameth him ?" (2 CW 
 V- 14.) And thus what all the impotent endeav-: 
 
Salvation hy Grace. ' 141 
 
 ours of man by bis own powers covikl never ef- 
 fect, tbe faitb of God's elect doth work : not 
 '' making void the law, but estabUshing it ;" 
 {RoiiL iii. 31.) establishing it on a basis which 
 nothing can move ; enabhng us to obey it on 
 principles that powerfully influence ; and urg- 
 ing us on in the pursuit of perfection absolute 
 and intire as the summit of our hopes and the 
 consummation of our felicity. 
 
SERMON X, 
 
 ON THE NATURE OF TRUE HOLINESS. 
 
 Epiiesians II. 10. 
 
 TOR WE ARE HIS WORKMANSHIP, CREATED IN CHRIST TE- 
 SI'S UNTO GOOD WORKS, WHICH GOD HATH BEVORE OR- 
 DAINED THAT WE SHOULD WALK IN THEM. 
 
 THE great Apostle Paul knew best the ten- 
 dency of the principles he preached. He 
 '\vas not afraid that the doctrines of free grace 
 would lead men to licentiousness. He had hap- 
 pily experienced the contrary in his own soul, 
 and seen the blessed effects of them on thousands 
 of others. He knew *Svhat the law could not 
 do, in that it was weak through the flesh," {Rom^ 
 viii. 3.) the gospel, ** which is the power of God 
 unto salvation," could effect. The discovery of 
 the amazing grace of God in Jesus Christ laid a 
 constraining influence upon the soul, w^hich the 
 brightest displays of the beauty of virtue, or the 
 clearest convictions of moral obligation, never 
 could produce. Many have thought that the 
 Apostle was a dangerous guide, and needed the 
 correction of his brother James ; as well as all the 
 fme comments M'hich they have since invented 
 for maintaining the honour of religion, and se- 
 curing the interests of morality. But James, as 
 well as Paul, if they were alive, would disclaim 
 the vain efforts of these reconcilers. St. Paul 
 was as zealous an advocate for true holiness as 
 St. James ; and St. James as true an advocate 
 for faith, and one who expected salvation hj 
 
On tht Nature of true Holiness. I4S 
 
 grace, as much as St. Paul. They laid the same 
 foundation, and built with the same materials. 
 ** Jesus Christ was their chief corner-stone." 
 (^Eph. ii. 20.) By faith in him they expected 
 *^ justification to life ;" and they raised the su- 
 perstructure of real holiness thereon. The ** pu- 
 rification of the heart," St. James as much as- 
 cribed to the efficacy of faith {Acts xv. 9 — 14.) 
 as St. Paul. But amidst the cry which is made 
 about the interests of morality, what is become 
 of the practice of it ? Where is that to be found ? 
 I am afraid the self-seeking, pleasure-loving, 
 honour-loving, money-loving conversation of 
 our boasted champions for morality, will prove a 
 bad comment upon their doctrine. The fine- 
 spun reasonings on the beauty, fitness, and in- 
 trinsic excellence of virtue, look indeed pretty 
 enough upon paper ; but I cannot in the view 
 of them help thinking of what was said of tlie 
 mask in the fable, O lepidum caput, sed cerebrum 
 non hahet, Alas I The vain precepts of heathen 
 philosophers, or the modern improvements of 
 them under their christian disciples, are alike im- 
 potent to restrain the power of a corrupted na- 
 ture. They have no influence to produce what 
 they enjoin : they leave us, just as they found 
 us, admiring and transgressing them. 
 
 Let us see then whether the gospel of Jesus 
 hath not more amply provided for the honour 
 of God, and the obedience of his people ; and, 
 with the richest grace bestowed, demands and 
 produces the most exemplary con\*ersation. " We 
 are his workmanship, created^.in Christ Jesus un- 
 to good works, which God hath before ordained 
 that we should walk in them. '* 
 
 These words afford us a view of the state and 
 conduct of every real christian. 
 
 L The principle of his spiritual life. 
 
♦144 On the Nature of true Holiness. 
 
 II. The power communicated to him to enable 
 him lo walk and please God ; and, 
 
 III. The w-ay in Avhich in heart and life lie 
 continually advances; namely, the ''good works 
 which Gnd hath before ordained that he should 
 walk in them." 
 
 I. The principle of all spiritual life is Christ. 
 Until we are joined to the Lord " the motions of 
 sin which are in our members do work to bring 
 forth fruit unto death." (Roju. vii. 6.) Our na- 
 ture, with all the labour and pains which may be 
 bestowed on it, will never cease to be a nature 
 "• dead in trespasses and sins." {Eph, ii. 1.) We 
 must be quickened before we can live ; and live 
 before we can " walk and please God. Christ is 
 this quickening spirit." fl Cor. xv. 45. J Spirit- 
 ual life is a new creation in him : therefore we 
 are said to be " begotten, born again, made par- 
 takers of a divine nature, one Spirit with the 
 Lord, members of his body, of his tlesh, and of 
 his bones." (C Pet, i. 4. "John iii. 3. 1 Cor. vi. 
 17. EpJi, v. 30.) As really as ''in Adam we have 
 died," so really " in Christ must we be made 
 aiive." (1 Co)\ xv. £12.) Until we are so, it is 
 impossible to do any good work : for " as the 
 branch cannot bear fruit of itself except it abide 
 in the vine, no more can ye, except ye al^ide in 
 me." {John xv. 4.) There must be as real a 
 union betwixt Christ and us, as between the 
 members and the head, or between the root and 
 the branches : " Without Christ we can do noth- 
 ing." (John xv. 6.) Until lie dwell in us and 
 we in him we cannot live unto God, no more 
 than a limb can live separate from the body, or 
 a branch bear fruit when severed from the tree. 
 This is God's work. In the second creation we 
 are as much his workmanship, as matter was in 
 the first, lie must give the life he commands ; 
 
On the Nature of true IIoluicss. 145 
 
 " I passed by thee in thy blood, and said unto 
 thee, Live." {Ezelc. xvi. 6.) There is no more 
 power in a natural man to do good works, than 
 for ''EzekieFs dry bones" {Ezek. xxxvii. 3.) to 
 arise and stand upon their feet. God's Spirit 
 must breathe ere we can Hve : this Spirit is in its 
 fubiess resident in Christ. ** He quickeneth 
 whom he will : {John v. 21.) He is at the right 
 hand of God exalted, to give repentance unto 
 liis people." (^c^^ v. 31.) His first act of grace 
 towards us is his choice of us, then he draws us 
 that we may follow him : ''That I may appre- 
 liend that for which I am also apprehended in 
 Christ Jesus." {PhiL iii. 12.) And in order 
 hereunto his first work in us is the enlightening 
 our minds by his word to know him as our Re- 
 deemer and Saviour. He that " caused the light 
 to shine out of darkness," doth as sovereignly 
 sliine into us "to give us the light of the knowl- 
 edge of his glory in the face of Jesus Christ." 
 (2 Cor. iv. 6.) Faith then, the bond of union 
 on our part, embraces the promises in him ; for 
 the divine truth, when accompanied with divin(; 
 light, brings its own evidence along with it : 
 *' We know and believe the love that God hath 
 unto us." By this faith we live, or ratliei-, as 
 the Apostle expresses it, " Christ liveth in us :" 
 for he is our life: " All our fresh springs are in 
 him." From hence arises a wonderful diiference 
 in our state. '^ We are passed from death unto 
 . life." All our views, desires, dispositions, de- 
 signs, are altered ; and this will be confirmed by 
 those effects v/hich naturally now flow from the 
 new creation in Christ Jesus, 
 
 This deserves especial notice. It is men's folly, 
 that they are for attempting the practice ^\lthout 
 knowing the principle of holiness. A\'ash the 
 
146 On the Nature of true Holiness. 
 
 Ethiopian's skin with all the water of the sea, 
 and you will see the black unchanged. It is his 
 nature. So is corruption yours. It is deeper 
 rooted than the tawny hue of the Ethiopian, or 
 the spots of the Leopard. Take this one scrip- 
 ture: ''If any man be in Christ, he is a new 
 creature;" (^Cor. v. \7.) and there your way 
 is open. You must be created anew in him, and 
 then your heart will have the true and genuine 
 image. You will '* put on the new man, which, 
 after God, is created in righteousness and true 
 holiness." (Eph. iv. 24.^ 
 
 11. The power to put forth into act the life we 
 receive, is derived from the same source. He 
 not only prevents but follows us ; *' worketh in 
 lis that we may have a good will, and worketh 
 with us when we have the good will. " (Art. X. ) 
 
 The peculiar office of the Holy Ghost is said 
 by our church to be *' sanctifying the elect peo- 
 ple of God." (Catechism.) And this he doth 
 by representing to us in his word tlie obligations 
 we lie under to obey, and communicating power 
 to enable us for obedience. 
 
 1. The Holy Ghost represents to us in the 
 word the obligations we are under to walk and 
 please God. He shews us how much we are in 
 duty bound to do so : '^ For we are bought with 
 a price, that we may glorify God in our bodies 
 and in our spirits which are God's." (1 Cor. vi, 
 20.) He hath the most undoubted right in and 
 over us, who hath paid so dearly for us, as to 
 give **his own blood" to redeem us. 
 
 This view of our state most powerfully engages 
 us to answer the end of his purchase, by '^yield- 
 ing ourselves, body, soul and spirit, a living sa- 
 crifice to him, holy and acceptable, which is our 
 reasonable service." (Ro???. xii. \.) Indeed, 
 wliat can be so reasonable, and therefore so ob- 
 
On the Nature of true Holiness, l\7 
 
 ligatory, as that **he who gave himself for us* 
 that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and 
 purify to himself a peculiar people," (litus-'ik, 
 J4.J should see iu us *' the travail of his soul,* 
 and be satislied?" (Isa, liii. 11 J 
 
 2. It not only appears so reasonable, but there 
 is a ** constraining power of love shed abroad in 
 our hearts," inclining us to and enabling us for 
 tlie practice of the things which are excellent. 
 The Holy Ghost in the scripture so represents 
 the ^ove of Christ in his salvation to our hearts, 
 that it constraineth us, cr-j-^ix"^-., carrieth us along 
 with it as a mighty stream. For when this love 
 is known and believed, its " breadth and length, 
 and depth and height," ever fixed upon our 
 hearts, then we cannot but love God again and 
 walk before him in all holy obedience. The 
 influence of this principle of love to produce ho- 
 liness in us is evident : it is itself '^the fulfilling 
 ofthelavv^." (Rom. xiii. \0.) But we can ne- 
 ver reason ourselves into this love. It is the of- 
 fice of the Spirit not only to set before us the 
 grounds of it in the character of a pardoning 
 God, but to '* direct our hearts into the love of 
 God." (2 The-ss, iii. 5. ) The gospel becomes 
 effectual, not merely by moral suasion, but by 
 divine operation. This power habitually is min- 
 istred to us from Christ for the work of sancti- 
 fication. '* Out of his fulness we receive." 
 (John'i. \6.) Our works are begun, continued 
 and ended in him. Christ (in whose hands the 
 ministration of the Spirit is lodged) as the life 
 of our souls, communicates to us light and love; 
 and these dispose us to and enable us for the prac- 
 tice of *' righteousness and true holiness." 
 
 I would wish you never to lose sight of this 
 source of our obedience. All our holiness is de- 
 rived from above. If we see not tliis,, oui' misr 
 
14S On tlie Nature of true Holiness. 
 
 take will be endless ; and our labour after holi- 
 ness only the more estrange us from it. Vi'c 
 shall be Ijuilding a Babel to confound ourselves : 
 and if hereafter we should be undeceived, shall 
 have our work not only to begin, but our wall 
 built with untempered mortar to pull down also. 
 Which brings me, 
 
 III. To consider that practice of true holi- 
 ness, which the soul *' created in Christ Jesus 
 is ordained to walk in." 
 
 Holiness is " the conformity of the heart 
 *' to God." It is having our will like God's 
 will, and our ways directed by the rule of our 
 duty. It is the answer of that emphatical peti- 
 tion, *' Thy will be done on earth, as it is in 
 heaven." {Matt, vi. 10.) As the proof of it 
 goes through every the minutest action of our 
 lives, the time would fail me to enumerate all 
 the particulars wherein in heart and life it ap- 
 pears ; in all holy desires and dispositions to- 
 wards God, and in those works of righteous- 
 ness ^' which are good and profitable unto men." 
 Bill it v/ill be necessary to set before you some 
 of its most striking parts, and beg you to judge 
 yourselves thereby. 
 
 Let me only observe in what folio weth, I 
 would not be understood to affirm, that every 
 • rue believer hath tliis state of perfect conform- 
 ity unto God. I will not say, that any ever did 
 on earth attain to " be perfect as our Father which 
 isin heaven is perfect." But this I may venture to 
 assert, that wherever a soul doth not watch and la- 
 ])our, and pray, and " press towards the mark, 
 to be holy as God is holy, in all manner of con- 
 versation," (1 Pet. i. 15.) he can have very 
 little reason to imagine himself one with Christ, 
 vir a real partaker in the blessings of the gc-spek 
 
 The following instances of a right spirit will, 
 
On the Nature of true Holmes^. 14^ 
 
 vherever they are found, be gracious evidences 
 that you are not christians *' in word and iu 
 tongue, but in deed and in trutli," For if you 
 are such, 
 
 (1.) You will have a hearty approbation af 
 the holy law of God. Though it cannot be a 
 covenant of life to you, it ceases not to be a rule 
 of obedience, and you will acknowledge it to be 
 '' holy and just and good," however contrary 
 to your '^ carnal mind, and the law of your mem- 
 bers which warreth against it." {Rom. vii. 23.) 
 Far therefore from esteeming its prohibitions ar- 
 bitrary, its commands severe, or its sanctions ri- 
 gorous, you will say with the Psalmist, '^ I es- 
 teem all thy precepts concerning all things to 
 be right." (^Psalm cxix. 128.) And this view 
 will make you "delight in the law of God after 
 the inner man." {Rom. vii. £2.) so as to count 
 it your greatest joy could you wholly be con- 
 formed to its ])lessed precepts. Your language 
 will be, *' O that my ways were made so direct^ 
 that I may keep thy statutes." {Psalm cxix. 5.) 
 
 (2.) You will have a single eye to please God 
 in all you do. This shews there is written upon 
 your heart, " Holiness unto the Lord." If you 
 are Christ's, you will have the simplicity which 
 is in Christ." An eye directed straight for- 
 wards, and examining, " what will the I^ord 
 have me to do ?" A sincere desire to please him 
 in all things : a constant regard to the prints of 
 his feet, and a purpose of soul to follow him ia 
 tlie narrow path of strict universal obedienceo. 
 For " he that saith he abideth in liim, must him- 
 self walk as Christ abo walked." (1 John ii. 6.) 
 And where this is the case, you will find a daily 
 increasing victory aver the world ; and a grow-- 
 ing purpose never to. turn to the light liand or to 
 N % 
 
150 On the Nature of true Holiness^ 
 
 the left after any of the golden baits, which plea- 
 sure, gain or honour may strewaround you, in order 
 to catch your 'eye and ensnare your heart. And 
 hereby you " will keep a conscience void of 
 offence towards God and towards man ;" {Acts 
 xxiv. 16.) at least it will be your daily study to 
 do so. In order to which you can allow your- 
 self in the commission of no known sin, or the 
 omission of any known duty, but inquiring 
 ^* what is that good and perfect and acceptable 
 ^vill of God ;" \^Rom. xii. 2.] you will be not 
 only ' a hearer, but a doer of it.' [Jaines i. 25.] 
 You will be able to appeal to the heart-search- 
 ing God, that ' his law is your delight.' [FsaL 
 cxix. 70.] You will have confidence towards 
 him, in the consciousness of an unfeigned inten- 
 tion to please him ; and it will give you habit- 
 ual satisfiedness that your soul is right with him, 
 ivhilst you can thus say, *' Search me, O Lord, 
 and try the ground of my heart ; prove me and 
 examine my thoughts : look well if there be any 
 "Way of wickedness in me ; and lead me in the 
 "way everlasting." [Fsa/. cxxxix. 23, £4.j Yea 
 it will be the very *' joy and rejoicing of your 
 heart," to be assured, " that in simplicity and 
 godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom, but by 
 the grace of God, you have your couveisatioa 
 in the world." [2 Cor. I 12.] 
 
 (3.) If holiness be in your heart, then you 
 %vill feel with a most tender sensibility the least 
 thing which would grieve God's holy spirit ia 
 you. Your conscience will be as the apple of 
 your eye. Have you never felt the acute paia 
 that but a particle of dust occasions, when irri- 
 tatinc^the coats of that tender organ, and ob- 
 servecfthe carefulness you used to prevent such 
 zxi accident, or your solicitude to remove it ? 
 Such 12 the geiuibility in the soul of a believer 
 
On the Nature of true Holiness. 151 
 
 "with regard to sin : the eye of his spiritual mir.d 
 cannot sillier beams there ; it must destroy his 
 faculty of vision soon : no outward notorious 
 sins can possibly be indulged. If a '^presump- 
 tuous sin ever gets dominion over him," it dark- 
 ens all his hopes towards God, and its dire ef- 
 fects within are too sadly evident. It usually 
 for the time blinds the eyes and hardens the 
 lieart : but a mote will be grievous to the holy 
 soul. He counts nothing little which is offen- 
 sive to the pure '' eyes of that God with whom 
 he hath to do." Hence the very thoughts of 
 his heart are under restraint. A sudden evil im- 
 agination afflicts him : " If," says he, " I regard 
 iniquity within, shall not God search it out ? 
 For he knoweth the very secrets of the heart." 
 [Psal. xliv. 21.] He fain would keep himself 
 pure in heart, and have '' a house swept and gar- 
 nished," continually to welcome the divine in- 
 habitant of his sou!. 
 
 (4. ) Til is will make you, if you are true-hearted, 
 very careful to ' 'abstain from all approaches to evil. 
 [ 1 Thess. v. 252.] Can a man take hre in his bosom 
 and his clothes not be burned r" [Frov. vi. 27.] 
 No more may you presum.e to put yourself into 
 the v/ay of temptation. The vices themselves 
 may shock you, when the steps which lead to 
 them appear innocent. It is often said, " What 
 harm can there be in this ?" When, in fact, all 
 the harm which usually overwhelms us comes 
 from small and unperceived beginnings. " The 
 beginning of sin is as the breaking out of wa- 
 ter." [Frov. xvii, 14.] If once a small breach 
 is made, every drop which passes through ^\id-. 
 ens it* . The innocent amusements, as they are 
 called, the necessary business of the world, and 
 customary civilities of it, seem very allowable, 
 nay laudable ; and yet I may venture to affirm,. 
 
15^ On the Nature of true Holbiess. 
 
 that more souls perish by what appears to be 
 lawful, than by what is acknowledged to be vi- 
 cious. If you would be pure in heart, there- 
 fore, the pleasures ot sense, however innocent ; 
 the thingsof the world, however needful ; and the 
 respect of it, however desirable, must be regarded 
 with a jealous eye. We may not *' go out of the 
 world ;*' but we can be scarcely too sparing of 
 the pleasures of it ; too careful over the en- 
 gagements of it ; and too much weaned from 
 its regards. We must be in the world ;" but the 
 believing soul will not " be of the world." 
 
 (5.) Where true holiness is in the heart, there 
 will be an abiding desire after its increase and 
 perfection. Wherever a sou) begins truly to. 
 love God, he will desire to love him more ; and 
 as he advances, his longings increase. A heart 
 united to Jesus never thinks he can love him too- 
 much, or serve him too well : but he pants after 
 higher degrees day by day ; " forgetting the 
 things winch are behind, and reaching forward 
 to those that are before/' {Phil, iii.^ 13.) It is 
 true, that *' through the frailty of oup nature 
 we cannot always stand upright ;" " we know 
 but in part ;" (1 Cgv. xiii. 9.) we love but in 
 part ; we pbey but in part ; but this our state of 
 imperfection is our grief. We would be hke 
 God. We would be no longer ungrateful ta 
 him. Vv'e would be 'holy as he is holy in all 
 manner of conversation.' This is the spring of 
 all those ardent prayers, that jealous seif-exam- 
 ination, that desire of reproof, that serious in- 
 quiry into God's mind and will, wliich is tlie 
 christian's daily walk. And so doing he doth 
 " increase with the increase of God, going ou 
 unto perfection." (Coloss. ii. 19.) 
 
 (6\) The soul renewed in holiness aspires after 
 its absolute and intire completion in heavea* 
 
0)1 the Nature of true lloliuess, 153 
 
 Heaven is the place of holiness : it is the es- 
 sence ot* that happy state, that there all " that 
 is in part is done away, and that which is per- 
 fect is come. " (iCor, xiii. 10. J We therefore that 
 are in this tahernacledo groan earnestly, desiring 
 to he absent from the bod}', that we may be present 
 M'ith the Lord. [i2 Cor. v. 4, 5, 6.] For then see- 
 ing him as he is, we shall be like him. (1 John, 
 iii. 2.) The man after God's own heart, shews 
 how he was, and we ought to be affected : ''My 
 soul is athirst for God, yea, even for the living- 
 God ; when shall I come to appear in theprescnce of 
 God ?" [Psal. xliii. 2-.] The chased roe, panting 
 before its pursuers, and parched with heat and 
 thirst, longed not more for the cooling stream, 
 than his soul longed for this blessed state of 
 happiness. All besides 'vvas little in his eye ; his 
 crown, his victories, his wealth, his fame, his 
 honours, were trifles compared to this ; he was 
 content to part with them ; he found no satis- 
 faction in them ; they w^ere not his portion ; one 
 mighty longing filled his soul ; and it was this, 
 to ^' awake up in the fuhiess of God's likeness, 
 and then he knew he should be satisfied with it.' 
 (Psal. xvii. \5.) 
 
 Happy will it be for you, brethren, if such as 
 I bave described be the temper of your soul. 
 You may then be assured you are ahve to God ; 
 or in the language of St. Paul, '' you live, yet 
 not you, but Christ liveth in you.' (Gal. ii, ^0.) 
 This is true holiness, and as distinct from all the 
 daubings of Pharisaical outside, or hypocritical 
 delusion, as the genuine brilliantdifiers from im- 
 itative paste. These are the works which " God 
 hath before ordained that we should walk in 
 them." 
 
 I would conclude at present with these two 
 cautions. 
 
154 On the Nature of true Holiness. 
 
 1. Beware of mistaking mere external works 
 for true holiness. Holiness is seated in the heart ; 
 every act receives its goodness fiom the principle 
 from which it flows, and the end to which it is 
 directed. The external works of the generally 
 esteemed devout, decent and charitable, arc usu- 
 ally as far from being acts of real holiness as any 
 of the works of the openly children of disobedi- 
 ence : they proceed from as unrenewed hearts, 
 from as unchristian tempers, and are directed to* 
 as unsanctified ends. 
 
 You may attend your church twice on a Sun- 
 day. You may go or week-days too. You may 
 frequent the sacrament. You may say prayers 
 in your house and alone. You may read the 
 psalms and lessons for the day. You may be 
 be " no extortioner or unjust." You may be in 
 many things unlike other men ; neither given ta 
 swear, nor drink, nor lewdness, nor extravagance^ 
 You may be a tender parent, a careful master, 
 and what the world calls an honest man : yea, 
 you may withal be very liberal to the poor ; be 
 regarded in the world as a pattern of piety and 
 charity, and respected as one of the best sort of 
 people in it ; and yet, with all this, be the very 
 character which, '' though highly esteemed 
 among men, is an abomination in the sight of 
 God." (Luke xvi. 15. J 
 
 For if you have never seen your " desperately 
 wicked heart," been united to Christ by faith, 
 and received from him newness of life : if vou 
 know not experimentally what is meant by *' fel- 
 lowship with the Father and hisSon JesusChrist ;" 
 if your devotion hath not been inspired " by 
 faith which worketh by love ;" if your worship 
 hath not been " in spirit and in truth ;" from a- 
 real sense of your wants, and an earnest desire 
 and expectation of receiving from liim " in whom 
 
On the Nature of true Holiiicss, 155 
 
 all fulness dwells :*' if this hath not been your 
 case, your devotions have been unmeaning ce- 
 remony ; your book not your heart hath spoken ; 
 and the tinkling cymbal of sound, not the fer- 
 vent effectual desire of prayer, hath come from 
 your lips. ** Bring no more vain oblations." 
 {Isa. i. 13.) Though you should thus read and 
 kneel, and pray all the days of your life, you will 
 never have offered one spiritual service. These 
 your very attendances on forms and ordinances 
 are your delusion and condemnation. 
 
 Your decent conduct proceeds not from a sense 
 of ** the love of God which is in Jesus Christ our 
 Lord." You have never felt any thing of its 
 constraining influence ; nor have you a heart 
 really hating iniquity as such. But open vices 
 may be inconvenient to you, may blast your re- 
 putation, affect your business, or hurt your pride, 
 (for pride is at the bottom of all self-made holi- 
 ness) and therefore you abstain from them. While 
 these two things you do, you love this present 
 world, desire its esteem, its gain or its gratifica- 
 tions ; and you hate the image of God in the 
 children of his grace. You dislike their self- 
 denied cond^K^t : you cannot bear the light of 
 their holy lives ; you are provoked when they 
 would unsettle you from your false bottom of 
 formality. You think you are good enough al- 
 read}^ You seem to fear being over-righteous 
 more than the ** blasphemy against the Holy 
 Ghost." And if this be so, believe it, you are 
 an utter stranger to vital godliness. Your heart 
 is unhumbled and unholy ; and all your orna- 
 mental shew is but gilding the coffin of a corpse, 
 or whiting your sepulchre. '' You must be born 
 again," (John iii. 1.) if you would *' bring forth 
 fruit unto God." 
 
 Nor tliiak that you are charitable, if the love 
 
156 On the Nature of true Holiness, 
 
 of Jesus and his brethren be not purely the mo- 
 tive of your gifts. A naturally generous heart, 
 a tenderness of constitution, a desire of being 
 thought Avell of, or rather the fear of being 
 thought niggardly, may draw from you a pit- 
 tance of your store, or some more considerable 
 benefaction in your life ; or at your death may 
 be dispensed as you hope *' to cover the multi- 
 tude of sins."* But is this charity ? Alas ! you 
 might not only give your superfluities, but ' be- 
 stow all your goods to feed the poor,' you might 
 even * give your body to be burned for them ;'* 
 and yet be utterly destitute of charity. (1 Cor, 
 xiii. 3.) If self-seeking, self-pleasing, or self- 
 ends guide you, (and guide you they must, until 
 ' the love of God be by the Holy Ghost shed a- 
 broad in your heart.') — (Rom. v. 5,) Though 
 you had defrauded others of the money you have 
 given, you had not more effectually transgressed 
 against the law of love. 
 
 •f Let every soul look well within. It is easy to 
 be deceived ; thousands are so. * The form of 
 godliness' many hold ; ' the power of it' few. 
 Be ye of those few. 
 
 2. As far removed from real holiness are they 
 who have only learnt right notions of religion, 
 but whose hearts have not yet been influenced 
 by them. It is a very common case this. By 
 education we may have had true principles in- 
 stilled into our understandings : or afterwards 
 by our connections, acquaintance and attachment 
 to those who profess godliness, we may have learnt 
 their mode of speaking, and adopted their senti- 
 ments ; and this too from a speculative convic- 
 tion of the truth. Hence we may run to hear the 
 gos])el, contend for the ministers of it, know how 
 duties should be performed, discover the vanity 
 
 * Sec the note in the fifth Serinou. 
 
On the Nature of true Holiness. 157 
 
 of formality, be ready to rebuke the Pharisee, yea 
 have a zeal for the truth, even to sutler for it 
 persecution and loss. And all this may be ac- 
 companied M'ith the appearance of spirituality, 
 Mith fervors of devotion, a readiness to pray with 
 others, and various gifts of knowledge and ut- 
 terance. AVithal, the conduct may be reformed, 
 outwardly irreproachable ; and yet the heart be 
 neither truly for nor with God. Yea, farther, it 
 is certainly more than possible even to have been 
 the means of saving others souls and to lose our 
 own : and after all, to be only near the kingdom 
 of God and never enter into it ; ' almost but not 
 altogether christians.' 
 
 We may not have hated sin as sin, and because 
 God hates it; nor loved holiness as holiness, and 
 because God delights in it : our views may have 
 l>een merely to our own advantage, to avoid hell 
 or to gain heaven ; (views right enough in their 
 proper place) whilst at the bottom of our hearts 
 we have not been actuated by a desire of God's 
 glory ; influenced by virtue derived from the 
 living head ; nor been constrained in the begin- 
 ning, continuance and end of our conduct, by 
 the real experience of our Saviour's love. 
 
 Self-deceit is deeply rooted in our hearts. We 
 cannot be too jealous over them. The most ho- 
 ly will be the most inquisitive; most careful to 
 iix their eye ' on Jesus the. author and linisher 
 of his salvation' in them ; and then to be bring- 
 ing forth * those works of faith and labours of 
 love' which lie will remember in the day of his 
 appearance and glory. 
 O 
 
SERMON XI. 
 
 THE FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT, 
 f 
 
 Epiiesiaxs y. 9. 
 
 FOR THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT. IS IX ALL GOODNESS AND 
 RIGHTEOUSNESS. 
 
 \ll^HEN we were infants, we were by bap- 
 ▼ T tism admitted into" the family of God ; 
 we were received into the bosom of the churcl), 
 and were regarded as disciples of the religion of 
 Jesus. We tlien partook of the seals of tiic 
 covenant, and engaged by the mouths of our 
 sponsors, as soon as \ve came to years of discre- 
 tion, * to walk worthy of our high vocation 
 and calling.' It was prayed for us, ' that all 
 carnal affections might die in us ; and that all 
 things belonging to the spirit might live an<i 
 grow in us.' (Baptismal Service.) The con- 
 tinued assistance of the Holy Ghost was im- 
 plored to enable us to be faithful to the vom s 
 we had made ; and we were solemnly ad- 
 nionishcd to remember our promise and pro- 
 fession, wliich was to * follow the example of 
 our Saviour Christ, and to be made like unto 
 him.' (Baptismal exJwrtatiou.) As we come 
 to years of discretion, it becomes us seriously 
 to examine, whc ther Me are walking according 
 to these engagements ; since it is on this depends 
 the fmal accomplishment of the promises then 
 on God's part made to us. Else if we break our 
 vows, * our circumcision becomes uncircum- 
 cision;' our baptism can profit us nothing, ^e 
 
The Fruits of the Spirit. \59 
 
 sliall continue, as we were born, '- cbiklreii of 
 wmtli/ (Ephes. ii. 3. J and, inherit the curse 
 instead of the blessing'. Here then is the ques- 
 tion ; Am I now a child of God ? and is it resolv- 
 able by another, ' Am I led by the spirit of 
 God ? For as many as are led by the spirit of 
 God, t'hey are the sons of God.' (Rom. viii. 14 ) 
 And these leadings arc evident by the fruits. 
 '^ The fru-it of the spirit is in ' all goodness and 
 righteousness.' If this be our state, ^^ell ; else 
 \\e are like the ingrafted branch M'hich never in- 
 corporated with the tree, ' dried up and wither- 
 ed, whose only use is to be gathered and cast into 
 the fire and burned.' {John xv. 6.] 
 
 Let ever}' man try what spirit he is of. 
 * Many false spirits are gone forth into the 
 world.' [1 John i\% 1.] There is a fallen spi- 
 rit, boasting of its virtues, which is ' enmity 
 against God.' [Rom, viii, 7.] There is * a 
 spirit of the world,' [1 Co?\ ii. 12.1 well re- 
 ceived and generally wtII spoken of, which is 
 contrary to Christ. And there is a spirit of 
 darkness, who assumes ' the garb of light,' 
 [2 Cor. XI. 14.] and fathers his impositions on 
 those ' who have no pleasure in the truth, but 
 have pleasure in unrighteousness.' (2 Thess. ii. 
 19,.) Hence, some have pretended to the guid- 
 ance of the spirit of God, whose lives were 
 ' earthly, sensual, devilish ;' and others, whilst 
 they have boasted of extraordinary impulses and 
 communications, have departed from their pro- 
 fession, and ' ended iu the flesh. We must trv 
 the spirits whether they are of God. [1 John 
 iv. ].] 13y their fruits ye shall know them, 
 [AIatt,\\\. 20.] The fruits of the spirit arc 
 these, love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentle- 
 ness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.* 
 {Gal. V. 21; 22, 23.) These none but God's 
 
160 The Fruits of the Spirit. 
 
 spirit ever did or can produce : these, "svhcrevcr 
 tlicy are, radically overturn the powers of dark- 
 ness, and brin^i^ with them the full evidence of 
 their divine origin. ' This hath God done.'- 
 {Psal. Ixiv. 9.) 
 
 We will examine these fruits a little distinct- 
 iy,for in them goodness and righteousness consist. 
 
 1. Love. The ^ first and great commandment 
 of the law is, The love of God ; (^Matt. xxii. 
 :37.) and the next and like unto it is, To love 
 our neighbour as ourselves :' {Alatt, xxii. 39.) 
 both these manifest themselves to be in the 
 hearts of the children of God. Love appears 
 in the regard shewn to the object on whicli it 
 fixes. These are esteem of, desire after, de- 
 light in, and conformity with it. In the real 
 christian these are supremely fixed ' on God 
 in Christ.' His esteem of God will be most ex- 
 alted and reverential : ' Whonr have I in heaven 
 but thee?' His desires after him ardent. 'There 
 is nothing upon earth I desire in comparison with 
 thee.' {Fsal. Ixxiii. 25.) This is daily mani- 
 fested by his diligence to maintain communion 
 ^^■ith him in prayer, meditation, the word and 
 sacraments. His delight in God is above all 
 things else his chief joy. ' I\Iy soul shall be 
 joyful in the Lord : {Fsal. xxxv. 9.) yea I will 
 greatly rejoice in the Lord ; my soul shall be 
 joyful in my God.' {Isai. Ixi. 10.) His conform- 
 ity to him is universal and daily increases ; 
 Avhilst in every good word and work it is his la- 
 i)0ur ' to grow up into him in all things, who is 
 the head, even Christ.' (Ephes. iv. lo.) Doth 
 this character suit you ? Thus the spirit works 
 in every believer. And to his neighbour the 
 same spirit begets love unfeigned ; evident in 
 the kindest expressions of it towards his soul 
 and body. * Rejoicing M*ith those that rejoice, 
 
The Frulis of the Spirit, 161 
 
 and weeping witli those that weep ; (^Rom, xii. 
 lo.) ready to distribute, willing to communi- 
 cate (1 Tim, vi. 18.) to the necessities of the 
 indigent :' consulting all their wants and seek- 
 ing to relieve them ; and by instruction, admo- 
 nition, reproof, consolation, chielly diligent to 
 advance their most important interest, that of 
 tlicir immortal souls. This is love. 
 
 But can no man be under the guidance of 
 God's Spirit, who habitually affects other things 
 more than God in Christ, and who seeks not to 
 ualk iu the exercise of fervent charity ? Certain- 
 ly no. Christ saith, 'He that lovethany thing 
 more than me is not worthy of ine. {Matt. x. 
 37.) And we are commanded to be always 
 ready, ii'need be, to lay down even our lives for 
 the brethren.' (1 John iii. 16'.) So that the 
 matter comes to a short issue. A\'hat liatli God's 
 word deterDUiacd ? But who doth thus love Ciod 
 and his brother? Is not this reducino; the chil- 
 dren of Crod v.'ithin a very narrow compass r 
 True. But it reduces them only to the scripture 
 declarations. Kominally the children of God 
 are numerous enough, really they are few. Be 
 assured if a man ha.ve not this spirit of love, he 
 belongs laot to Christ. 
 
 2. Joy. They have very mistaken' notii^ns of 
 the gospel, wlio think the rehgi^on of it a melan- 
 choly service. It is found to be peiifectfoedom. 
 from every s-Iavish and distressing fear, by such, 
 as entev into the 44^ue spirit of it. Othi'r joyi 
 are vain or wicked or transitory : yea^ all the 
 joys of earth and s?nse,. when sought as a portion^ 
 quickly ch.ange into ceaseless and. remediless sor- 
 lov.s ; k\ut the fruit of righteousness is tru£ joy* 
 it is a 'joy in the Holy Ghost.' It flows, imme* 
 '4ii:itely from the fountain of all hkssin^. It ia> 
 O % 
 
162 The Fruits of the Spirit. 
 
 ail holy joy, tending to promote the purity of our 
 souls : yea it is a joy ' unspeakable and full of 
 glory.' (\Pet,\.^.) We ' rejoice in the Lord, 
 for he is become our salvation.' (Isa. xii. 2. J 
 In ourselves, Avhilst proving our own work, we 
 see the evident effects of divine agency in every 
 present state : ' For all things work together for 
 good to us:' (Rom. \\ii. 28.) in every future 
 prospect; * Rejoicing in hope of the glory of 
 God.' (Rom. V. 2.) What a joy is this ? sub- 
 ject to none of the interruptions of other joys, 
 but possessed independent of the w^orld. A joy 
 that even in afflictions, in temptations, in sor- 
 rows, in reproaches, (2 Cor. vii. 4. James i. 2. 
 "2, Cor. vi. 10. Actsv,4\.) burns Avith an v*nex- 
 tinguished flame. 
 
 Nor must I omit the peculiarity of it as it re- 
 gards our brethren. Their prosperity brings in 
 fresh fuel to it, as * one member of the body 
 shares in the honour put on another.' (1 C6>r. xii. 
 £6.) The envious, selfish dispositions of the 
 natural mind are mortified, and we regard their 
 happiness as our own. Thus joy abounds, and 
 still the Comforter enlarges the measure of it by 
 increasing the grounds of it. 
 
 3. Peace. It is the Spirit's work to ' create 
 peace.' And this he doth by * shining into our 
 hearts through the word, to give us the light of 
 the knowledge of the glory of God in the face 
 of Jesus Christ.' {^Cor. iv. (>.) He testifies of 
 Christ, brings home the record to our souls, that 
 G_od in him is reconciled, and 'gives us peace in 
 believing;' {Rom. xv. 13.) paying us, as it were, 
 the legacy our dying Master left us, * Peace I 
 leave with you, my peace I give unto you.' 
 {John xiv. 27.) This 'peace passeth all under- 
 standing ;' {Phil. iv. 7.) and the possession of 
 it keeps our souls serene amidst all the changes 
 
The Fruits of the Spirit, l63 
 
 of this mortal life. Thus entered into 'that 
 kingdom which is righteousness and peace,'(i?ow. 
 xiv. 17.) the mild dispositions of , the Prince of 
 Peace appear in our conduct. Peace is our la- 
 bour here upon earth ; yea, though we often 
 dwell with those ' who, when we speak for peace, 
 make them ready to battle.' {PsaL cxx. 7.) We 
 would maintain it with the whole world, by avoid- 
 ing every occasion of dispute, ' giving no of- 
 fence in any thing ; (1 Cor. x. 32.) as "far as li- 
 cth in us, living peaceably with all men :' (Rom, 
 xii. 18.) receding in many instances from our 
 right, rather than break this bond of unity, and 
 often quietly suffering rather than seek a litigious 
 redress. We would restore it where lost, by be- 
 ing the first to seek reconciliation ; by reuniting 
 those who are at enmity ; by * speaking those 
 soft w^ords which turn away wrath ;' {Prov. xv. 
 1.) by every kind office which can sweeten the 
 hearts imbittered with variance. Thus the Ho- 
 ly Ghost leads. AVhat a different spirit from that 
 which is in the world ? There hatred, variance, 
 stiife, emulation reign ; and slander, detraction 
 and malice cast about the firebrands of dissension, 
 seeking to * separate very friends.' Keturn, O 
 Prince of Peace, return. Diffuse this gracious 
 spirit in the midst of us; teach us to copy thy 
 good- will towards men. 
 
 4. Long-suffering. A gracious fruit of right- 
 eousness. It is the very character of God. It 
 is a part of the divine nature. Where it dwells, 
 there God*s Spirit dwells. And how greatly shall 
 ^VG need to exercise it ? ' In the world we shall 
 have tribulation.' {John xvi. 33.) It cannot be 
 otherwise, whilst here we dwell among lions ; 
 * among men, whose lips are set on fire, whose 
 teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a 
 sharp sword/ {Psai. Ivii. 4.) Injuries, uakind- 
 
164. The Fruit of the Spirit 
 
 ncss and provocations w?il daily beset us. Our 
 nature on this would swell and rage, ^^retarning- 
 evil for evil, and railing for railing.' But the 
 soul taught of God hath learnt a different les- 
 son ; * forbearing one another, and forgiving one 
 another, as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven' 
 vis:' i^Eph. iv. 32.) and this * not until seveii 
 times, but until seventy times seven.* {Matt. 
 xviii. 22.) It is true, Me shall fnid a corruptc^l 
 heart rising up and saying, ' Do I not well to he 
 angry?' But we shall be enabled to suppress these 
 perverse ^-notions of sin m our members;' an4 
 set a guard, not only on the words of aur tongue, 
 Of the features of our couutenance, but on the 
 very thouglits of our heart ; that so, Vnot only 
 evil speaking, but all inward bitterness and an- 
 ger and MTath may be put away f om us, as be- 
 Cometh saints.' (A/;//, iv. o\, — v. J.) If wo 
 meet with ill usage from- men wlthoitt, ve shall 
 forgive, pity and pi ay for them. We shall not? 
 so mucli as wish their hurt. Wc sliall remembe? 
 * W'Tigeaneeiy mine; I wili repay, saith the Lord.'' 
 (Rem. xii. 190 ^1" '^"^'^ '^'•^' crossed at liome ;- 
 (and in our own families usually lin^s the chief 
 exercise of our lono'-sutferinii) if we find those 
 MiiO are imder us pervers-e, self-willed, stubborn, 
 undutiful ; or those set over us iniperious, haugh- 
 ty, and capriciously out of humour ; Ave shall 
 seek to overeome the one by patience,, forbear- 
 ance and kindness towaids them ; and the other, 
 by that 'yielding Vrhich paeilieth wrath ;' (Keel: 
 X. 4. J by that submisiiveness, that silence which 
 extinguislu's the coals of anger. * fathers, pro-- 
 voke not your children to wrath ;' (Eph. vi, 4.^ 
 servants, ' obey your masters, not answeriiig again ,^ 
 (lit us ii. 9') iirc tl>e express marks St. Paul in- 
 stances of the exercise of this blessed temper. — - 
 Ta walk thus, will s-hew that wc have ' i-eciiv-ii. 
 
TJie Fruit of the Spirit, 165 
 
 the grace of God in triitli,' and drank into liis 
 Spirit, ' who endured such contradiction of sin- 
 ners against himself, (Ilel?. xii. 3.) yet opened 
 not his mouth,' except in pity and prayer for his 
 murderers. Need I remark how httk^ this spirit 
 is seen in the workl, where rage, impatienceand 
 self-will disturb the earth, and raise perpetual 
 storms ? 
 
 But are none who pretend to I know not 
 what goodness and the spirit, as impatient and 
 fretful as those whom they pharisaically stile 
 their carnal neighbours ? Perhaps they are. But 
 their calling themselves christians will not prove 
 them to be such ; if they have not the spirit of 
 long-suffering, they are not of Christ. Their 
 professions are but delusions, and their hope 
 * the hope of the hypocrite which perisheth.* 
 (Job viii. 13.] 
 
 5. Meekness, gentleness; these are parts of 
 righteousness nearly allied. If they be consid- 
 ered separately, meekness may intimate the tem- 
 per, and gentleness the expression of it in the 
 conduct. This was what the blessed Jesus re- 
 commended so strongly to his disciples imita- 
 tion, '' Learn of me, for I am meek and lowly 
 of heart ; (Matt. xi. 29 J and all who are his 
 sheep hear his voice and follow him ;' (John 
 X. 27j and where the temper is thus kind and 
 softened, gentleness will speak in every word 
 and action. No bitterness, or clamour, or fierce 
 disputes will be in our lips, the law of kindness 
 will dwell there ; and words, soft as descending 
 snows, drop from the good treasure of the heart. 
 And in the life it will be seen ; not in the cere- 
 monious compliments of the lip and knee, not 
 in the mere sounding professions of respect, not 
 in the false civilities which have no meaning or 
 a bad one ; but in the ingenuous openness of the 
 
16G The Fndt of the l^p'irlt. 
 
 eoinitenance; the simplicity and sincerity of the 
 conduct ; and the unaffected benevolence to- 
 wards those who we know dislike and injure us. 
 And at home especially it will make us kind and 
 courteous to all about us, tender over them, as- 
 siduous to serve them, and pleased with the task. 
 I know no part of a christian's conduct which 
 makes him appear more amiable than the exer- 
 cise of these graces, and which .so effectually 
 disarms the malice of those who cruelly, di^- 
 dainfully and despitefuliy speak against him./ 
 (PsaU XX xi. 18. J Nor is the absence of this 
 spirit but among die sad proofs of an unrenew- 
 ed heart ; and to be a lion in our house, and 
 frantic among our servants, \s> as much an evi- 
 dence of sin's dominion, as to swear or lie. 
 
 6. Goodness. To this word many lay pre- 
 tensions, but its meaning few understand and 
 fewer practise. Were you to hear a man of this 
 world describe the character of goodness, he 
 >vould represent it as consisting in taking care 
 of what is called the main chance ; advancing 
 somewhat in the world ; paying every man his 
 due ; doing no harm ; and being an honest man. 
 And so good lie flatters himself he is. Again, 
 the goodness of pharisaical formality consists in 
 an exterior of decency, devotion and charity. The 
 regular appearance at church, or the daily service 
 at home, with something bestowed to the relief of 
 the necessitous, afford a righteousness, which, from 
 the concurring testimony of the world, it would 
 seem almost presumption to question. But I 
 liave before laboured to expose the folly of these 
 j)retcnces. Tiic honesty of the worldling, and 
 the forms of the devotee, have just as much, 
 genuine goodness in them, as the love of tlic 
 workl h'ltii of heavenly-niindedness, and ignor- 
 aucc and pride of hiin\ility and spiritual under- 
 
The Fruit of the Spirit. 167 
 
 But there is a real 2:oo(liiess which 
 the spirit oF Gofl works in the heart, which it 
 becomes eacli soul to prove in himself. A *^-ood- 
 iiess, not wrought by and out of ourselves ; 
 (for ' in us, that is, in our tlesh, dwelleth no 
 good thing' ;') [^Rom. vii. 18.] but the emanation 
 of that divine nature of which, through the Holy 
 Ghost, we have been made partakers. It con- 
 sists in the approbation and conformity of the 
 heart to that law of God which is holy and just 
 and good.' \^Rom, vii. 12. J It appears in an uni- 
 form practice of ' whatsoever thhigs are excel- 
 lent and of good report ;' it makes us patterns 
 of self-denial, spirituality, and close walking 
 with God. It urges us to seek the salvation of 
 •all men, and prompts us to every labour of love 
 for their souls or bodies. It acts from a princi- 
 ple of pure love, and simply regards the honour 
 of Jesus, and the good of mankind. A good- 
 ness, which outside religion hath nothing to do 
 with ; and the world cannot receive ; but in 
 whicli the soul tlrnt is in Chribt must be daily 
 exhorted to abide and abound. 
 
 7. Faith. This is 'the fruit of the spirit.' 
 The word faith in scripture admits of different 
 interpretations. Here it stands for veracity and 
 fidelity : veracity in all our words and promises. 
 So far'as we are in him who is the faithful and 
 true witness, we shall seek to speak the truth 
 from our heart.' (FsaLx\,2.) We shall abhor 'ly- 
 ing lips and a deceitful tongue.' (Psal. cxx. 2.^ 
 A\'e shall use '' no tlattcring speeclies; {\Thess, 
 ii. 5. no cloke of guile ; but speak the truth as 
 in his presence, ' who searchest the heart and the 
 reins.' A christian's word is sacred : the spirit 
 of truth guides him. Need I observe then 
 whose spirit they follow, who think good breed- 
 ing binds them to hypocrisy, or who pretend the 
 
168 The Fruit of the Spirit. 
 
 business of the \vorkl could never be carried on 
 ^v ithout dissimulation ; That to ask more thau 
 they intend to take, to commend their mer- 
 chandise above its real value, is allowable iu 
 trade. So true is the son of Sirach's observa- 
 tion, ^ as the nail sticketh fast between the 
 joining' of the stones, so doth lying between 
 buying and selling, (Ecdus. xiii. 8.^ These 
 are of their father the devil, and the works of 
 their father they will do. He was a liar from 
 the beginning.' (John viii. 44.^ 
 
 Fidelity in our engagements is here included 
 in faith. We shall be true and just in all our 
 dealings;' * not slothful in business ;' (Ro?7i, 
 xii. 11. J not needing another's eye to quicken 
 our diligence ; but conformable to the couli- 
 dcnce reposed in us, fulfilling punctually what- 
 ever we have engaged for, though we are losers 
 by the bargain ; ready to pay what we owe at 
 the time stipulated, and acting with men as we 
 would do with the Lord himself if he were up- 
 on earth. Why are there so many com])laiuts 
 of knaveiy, idleness, and imposition ? ^^'hy can 
 you scarcely go into a shop where you must not 
 guard against being cheated? or employ a work- 
 man who will not neglect your business unless 
 your eye is over him ? It is because the heart is 
 a stranger to the grace of God, and has none of 
 that * fruit of the spirit, which is in all good- 
 ness and righteousness and truth.' 
 
 8. Temperance. *If you walk after the spi- 
 rit, you will not fulfil the lusts of the tlesh.* 
 (Gaf. V. 16.) As ^your conversation will be in 
 heaven,' you will be very temperate in the use 
 of all things upon earth. If you possess abund- 
 ance, you will ^ use this warhl as not abusing it/ 
 [1 Cor. vu.3\.] If your station be distinguish- 
 ed in life, you will not be conformed to the vain 
 
The Fruits of the Spirit. I69 
 
 customs and fashions of it. * The pride of life, 
 you know, is not of the father, but is of the 
 -world.' (1 John ii. 16.) You will not measure 
 your temperance by what others do, but by what 
 your bible marks out to you. If you do not 
 abound in this world's goods, your desires will 
 be moderate. Having * food and raiment yoa 
 will be therewith content.' A little will serve a 
 pilgrim on his travels : our treasure is reserved 
 for us in heaven. The cravings of corrupt ap- 
 petite you will daily learn to mortify. You will 
 not only abhor that * surfeiting and drunken- 
 ness, that chambering and wantonness,' which 
 debases men into brutes ; but you will set a 
 guard over the first motions of those * fleshly- 
 lusts which war against the soul.' (1 Pet. ii. 11.) 
 When you eat it will be for nourishment, not 
 for indulgence ; and you will drink to quench 
 your thirst, not to gratify and inflame your appe- 
 tite ; * making no provision for the flesh to fullil 
 the lusts thereof ' [Rom. xiii. 14.] You will keep 
 yourself pure; not only abstaining from forbidden 
 gratifications, but using those that arc lawful 
 with a holy moderation ; not going so tai as you 
 might, lest you should be led to exceed the 
 boundary prescribed and fall into intemperance. 
 Knowing how corrupt your nature is ; how 
 prone to lust ; how riveted to the world ; how 
 fond of vanities ; jealousy will be ever on the 
 watch, and taking the alarm on the approach or 
 appearance of excess. Thus you will walk cir- 
 cumspectly, * not as fools, but as wise.' (Eplics, 
 V. 15.; 
 
 Let me just hint, that to have the heart fixed 
 on the vanities and fashions of the world, to be 
 anxiously engaged in the pursuit of gain, to in- 
 dulge the flesh in its cravings after meat or 
 
170 The Fruits of the Spirit. 
 
 drink or sleep or apparel ; to be at no pains to 
 remove every provocation to excess, and to 
 pamper, instead of beating down the body ; 
 these are the sure proofs of a soul which * is 
 sensual, not having the spirit' (Jude 19 J 
 
 These now are the tempers, and this the con- 
 duct, where ' the fruit of the spirit in all good- 
 ness and righteousness' appears. And you are 
 just so far the servant of our Saviour, and no 
 farther, than these fruits manifest themselves in 
 you. Many, even of those who profess a spiri- 
 tual walk, deceive themselves with the vainest 
 hopes ; and though they continue under the in- 
 fluence of worldliness, selfishness, fretfulness and 
 indulgence, Avill not be persuaded that they have 
 neither ' been baptised into Christ, nor put on 
 Christ.' . . . 
 
 May the spirit of grace be to them a spirit of 
 conviction, whilst they see the unsuitableness of 
 their hearts and lives to the fruits of genuine 
 righteousness ! 
 
 And should not you and I, brethren, be much 
 humbled, that these fruits, though really posess- 
 ed, abound no more in us ? Surely they who have 
 the tenderest and most awakened consciences 
 will be most affected with the view of their im- 
 perfections, and stirred up importunately to cry 
 for fresh communications of power and grace to 
 bring forth more fruit. If this eifect be wrought 
 in you, such fervent effectual prayer will be a 
 present evidence to you, that * the spirit of God, 
 who helpeth our infirmities,' is with you as a 
 spirit of supplication ; and an earnest that he 
 will be in you as a ' spirit of righteousness, 
 strengthning you with all might in the inner 
 man.' {Epkes. iii. 16.) to bring forth those fruits 
 unto holiness, the end of which is everlasting 
 life.' [Rom, vi. 22.] 
 
SERMON XII. 
 
 THE NECE^rry of personal holiness. 
 
 Hebrews XII. 14. 
 wrrnouT holiness no man shall see the lord. 
 
 AMONG the various sects which have arisen^ 
 ^ disturbing the peace of the church, aiul de- 
 basino- the purity of the gospel, no error hath 
 more effectually struck at the root than theirs 
 who pervert the most glorious truths ot God to 
 Establish a system of lewdness and hcentious- 
 ness. Antinomians enow in practice there have 
 been in every age ; in none, I fear, more than 
 the present i and it is no wonder therefore that 
 a corrupted heart hath perverted many ; ana 
 brought their sentiments into a conformity with 
 their conduct. We naturally believe what we 
 desire The merest shadow of an argument will 
 pass when prejudice hath blinded the eyes. 
 Hence, because such as I am speaking of ' have no 
 pleasure in the truth, but have pleasure in unright- 
 eousness, God hath given them over to strong 
 delusions to beheve a lie.' [2 Thess. ii. 11. J The 
 most life-giving promises prove their snare, and 
 the sure foundations of grace in the Redeemer 
 become to them an occasion of falhng. In the 
 mean time they avow a confidence of safety 
 greater than that of other men. Their danger 
 therefore is more imminent, and their damna- 
 tion less evitable. If any such should hear these 
 words, or cast their eyes on these lines, I would 
 beg them not to be hasty in their censures,, but 
 
17j2 The Necessity of personal Holiness, 
 
 simply weigh the following arguments for per- 
 sonal holiness, and not reject them if they are 
 conclusive. 
 
 I have endeavoured to shew you in some mea- 
 sure the nature of holiness, its principles and 
 practice, and the particular fruits which grow 
 and flourish wherever the heart is vitally united 
 to Christ the living vine. Let no man accuse 
 of a dangerous tendency principles which lead to 
 such a conversation. If the enemies of the gos- 
 pel will effectually confute it, as they pretend 
 to do, let them produce from other principles a 
 practice that will bear this test, and hath such 
 marks of divinity stamped upon it. It were 
 enough to make a man smile (if the subject was 
 not too serious) to hear the jealousy of those 
 who have not experimentally ' so much as known 
 if there be any Holy Ghost ;' and whose lives 
 *re wholly governed by the interests of tleshand 
 sense, testifying their apprehensions about the 
 decay of morality, and their fears lest these 
 doctrines of grace, which enable a man to * walk 
 as Christ also walked,' and actually are seen to 
 have this tendency universally on those who truly 
 embrace them, should make good works to be 
 neglected, or considered as unnecessary. Should 
 the moralist, whether Deist, Arian, Socinian or 
 Orthodox, consider the truths which have been 
 laid down, he will perhaps be found, with all his 
 zeal for works, to have exceeded the professed 
 Antinomian in true holiness hardly so much as 
 one Ethiopean exceeds his fellow in complexion. 
 Wiiilst, sure I am, as many as are believers in- 
 deed will always be so powerfully MTought upon 
 by the force of the obligations lying upon them, 
 as by their conduct to shew forth a spirituality 
 of temper and holiness of life, that may con- 
 
The Necessity of personal TMincssi 173 
 
 found at least, if it doth not convince those who- 
 speak evil of their good conversation in Christ. 
 
 I am to shew you the absolute necessity of 
 personal hoHness. And I shall endeavour to dO' 
 it from the following arguments. May the Spi- 
 rit of hoHness make them effectual to the edifi- 
 cation of all who hear them ! 
 
 First. It is one great design of God's eternal 
 purpose and choice that we should be holy. — 
 There are innumerable disputes about the deep- 
 things of God's election and fore-knowledge, 
 which, through the heat and bitterness where- 
 with they have been managed, seem to have af- 
 forded ratlier * matter for questions, than to have 
 ministred godly edifying. Secret things belong, 
 unto God.' (^Deut. xxix. 290 We had best 
 leave these deep points in silence; and beginning; 
 with what is plainer, advance by degrees. When 
 we come to heaven, the scheme of God's eternal 
 counsels will be better known to us. But what- 
 ever predestination or election there be, or. be not,., 
 this is certainly God's eternal decree, that the 
 people of his grace should * be holy as he is holy. 
 Tor this he hath chosen, us in Christ before the- 
 foundation of the world, that we should be holy 
 and without blame before him in: love.' (Epk 
 i. 4.) This- at least is his predestination, that 
 ' we should be conformed to the image of his 
 Son.' (Rom. viii. £9.) And ' whoever are elect 
 according to the fore-knowledge of God the 
 Father, are so through sanctification of the Spirit' 
 unto obedience.' (1 Feter i. 2.) It is no essen- 
 tial requisite to salvation,^ that a man believe any 
 absolute irrespective decrees of God ;. it is no^ 
 exclusion from it that he utterly rejects them :: 
 but it is essentially necessary that he finds thish 
 decree of holiness fulfilled in him, aiidUiatwhei*e>- 
 
1 74 The Necessity of personal Hol\ness\ 
 
 iinto he is appointed actually taking place. With- 
 out this the decree of God is certainly against 
 him, and he hath no part nor lot in thesalvatioa 
 that is in Jesus. 
 
 Secondly. It is among the chief ends of Christ *s- 
 death, ' to purify to himself a peculiar people, 
 zealous of good works. (Titus \\. \^.) For this 
 purpose was the Son of God manifested^ that he 
 might destroy the vv^orks of the devil/ (1 John 
 iii. 8.) His chief work was sin. By this his 
 dominion was upheld. Jesus, the name of ou? 
 deliverer, expresses his office : * He shall save his. 
 people from their sins.' {Matt. i. 21.) He doth 
 it by dying : thus purchasing anew a property ia 
 lis, and' 'redeeming us from the hands of our en- 
 emies, that we might serve him without fear, in 
 lioliness and righteousness before him all the day^. 
 of our life. {Luke v. 75.) When he gave him- 
 self tor us,' it was with this very view, * that he 
 mighfe sanctify and cleanse us.' {Ej)h.v.9.6.) And 
 this he actually works in all his people : they arc 
 5iaints> holy brethren, conformed to their head, 
 * a holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices/ 
 f 1 Fet. ii. 5.] It is then as much as all our hopes 
 •are worth, that we see this great end of Christ's 
 death answered in us. ' He that hath this hope 
 in him, purifieth himself even as he is pure. [1 
 Johji i:ii. 3.] If any man saith he hath fellow- 
 ^>hip with him, and walketh in darkness, he is a 
 liar, and the truth is not in him.' [1 Joh7i i. 6.] 
 Let no man dream of any benefit from Christ's 
 death in eternity, who doth not experience the 
 quickening, sanctifying efficacy of it in time. 
 ' Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound ? 
 God forbid. Hov/ shall we that are dead to sin. 
 Jive any longer therein ?' [Rom: vi. £.] Every 
 real believer is crucified with Christ ; is dead 
 witli him unto sin^ that like as Chi ist was raised 
 
The Necessity of personal Hotiness, 175 
 
 from the dead by tlie glory of the Father, he also 
 should walk in newne^ of life.' \^llom. vi. 4.] 
 How blasphemoiisly then do they speak, who, 
 whilst by their wickedness they are 'crucifying 
 the Son of God afresh, and putting him to open 
 shame,' plead his death as the prescription for 
 their iniquities, and make the holy One of God 
 a minister of sin ? 
 
 Thirdly. The justification of a sinner by faith 
 in Jesus Christ, necessarily binds and leads hi in 
 to the practice of holiness. It is allowed that the 
 hatred of sin and the love of God, are the grand 
 roots of all true holiness- ; whatever therefore most 
 powerfully produces the one, will most effectu- 
 ally secure the other. But this is. peculiarly the 
 property of faith. For when can sin ever appear 
 to us so exceeding sinful, as when faith leads us 
 to the accursed tree, and bids us ' look upon hini 
 whom we have pierced ?' {Zech. xii. 10.) Where 
 can God's displeasure against sin so affect our 
 hearts, as when we see in the strong lines- of the 
 Kedeemer'sblood, what ' an evil and bitter thing 
 it is r' And where are we so> bound, so forced to 
 lothe ourselves and sin, as when we eye his bloody 
 sacrifice and hear his groans, andsee his mangled 
 hody, and look into tlie prints of the nails ; and> 
 as it were with Thomas, ' thrust oui hand into 
 his side?' Must we not then 'count ourselves 
 dead indeed unto sin, {Rom. vi, 11.) and hence- 
 forth- live unto God, servants of righteousness 
 "unto hohness r' {Rom. vi. 13.) or where can 
 God's Love so Biightily constrain us, as when 
 faith represents him in the glorious character of 
 a pardoning God in Christ : What can engage 
 our hearts to him if this doth not ? W liat can 
 bind us to walk before him and please him, if 
 not this * love for him who hath thus so loved 
 us ?* (1 John iy. Ip.) God then hath bound us 
 
17^ The Neccssiti^ af pQrso7ial Holiness^ 
 
 to holiness by these strongest ties. He appoints^ 
 faith as the means, and holiness as the end ; he 
 knew that true holiness could be no other way 
 produced. The appointment therefore of the 
 former, as the medium of conveying his salvation 
 to us, is the proof of the necessity of the latter* 
 And if this effect be not wrought, our faith is. 
 delusion. 
 
 Fourthly. All the means of grace imply the- 
 necessity of holiness, as this is their very use, 
 that by them * we may grow up into him in all 
 things, who is our head, even Christ' {Eph. iv. 
 15.) Are we to * desire the sincere milk of the 
 word ?' It is that ' as new-born babes we may 
 grow thereby;' (1 Peter ii. 2.) that we may be 
 'sanctified through the truth.' {John xvii. 17.) 
 Are we called upon to ' pray without ceasing ?' 
 (1 Thess. V. 17.) It is in order to receive the sup^ 
 ply of the Spirit of holiness for our growth in 
 grace, and advancement ' towards the measure 
 of the stature of the fulness^of Christ' Are we 
 exhorted to christian fellowship ? It is that we 
 may * watch over one another to provoke unto 
 love and to good works.' {Heb, x. 24-.) This is- 
 the point ever aimed at, that we 'may increase 
 with the increase of God, {Coloss. ii. 19.) and be 
 going on unto perfection.' {IleL vi. 1.) 
 
 Fijthly. We are constantly in scripture pressed 
 to holiness, as the issue and due improvement of 
 all its doctrines. Whoever reads but with a cur- 
 sory eye the epistles, particularly of St. Paul, 
 Avill see how he not only intersperses occasional 
 reflections in a way of moral inference, but al- 
 ways sums them up in a point, as a ground from, 
 whence to urge those practical duties which con- 
 clude all his writings. Having first established 
 the great truth of redemption through the blood, 
 of the Lamb^ in its variety of connections and 
 
The Necessity of personal HoVmess. 177 
 
 different respects with regard to God and us, 
 this is his deduction ; * Having therefore these 
 promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves 
 from all lilthiness of the flet;h and spirit, perfect-- 
 ing holiness in the fear of God/ (2 Cor, vii. 1.) 
 Hence all the pressing exhortations that we should 
 *walk worthy of our high vocation and calling; 
 {Eph. iv. 1.) that we should adorn the doctrine 
 of God our Saviour in all things ; {Titus ii. 10.) 
 that we should maintain those works which are 
 good and profitable unto men;' {Titus ixi, 8.) 
 and especially in our stations and relative capa- 
 cities behave ourselves * as persons professing god-, 
 liness ; with the most solemn injunctions on the 
 faithful, that if any man be disobedient, if any 
 man defile the temple of God, if any man turn 
 back to the love of the world, if any man walk 
 dishonourably to this holy profession ; they are 
 * to note that man, to have no company with 
 him, no not so much as to eat, but to regard him 
 as a denier of the faith, and worse than the in- 
 fidels' (2 Thess. iii, 14. 1 Tiin. v. 8.) around them. 
 Let any man seriously read this, and say whether 
 St. Paul, though eminently an asserter of salva- 
 tion by grace, was not as strenuous an advocate 
 for holiness as the foremost of his colleagues. 
 
 Sid'thli/. That we should be holy, is the design 
 of all the dispensations of God in his Providence. 
 If he gives prosperity, it is that his goodness 
 should enofao-e our hearts to love and serve him. 
 If he chastises, it is to purge and refine us. This 
 is liis view in the more general judgments he sends 
 upon the nations of the world, ' that the inhab- 
 itants thereof may learn righteousness.' {Isa. 
 xxvi. 9.) This is his purpose with regard to in- 
 dividuals. * He chastnetb us foi our profit, that 
 we may be partakers of his holiness.' {Heb. xii. 
 10 ) The dross of base aiUcctions is designed to 
 
178 The Necessity of personal Holiness, 
 
 be consumed in the furnace of affliction, and * the 
 peaceable fruits of righteousness are actually 
 brought forth by those who are duly exercised 
 thereby.* {Heb. xii. 11.) You see it is God*s^ 
 uniform design in all he doth, by his Providence 
 as well as by his grace, that this great effect may 
 be produced, of being * holy in all manner of 
 conversation.' And how are we then bound to 
 correspond with him herein, and to improve our 
 situation, whatever it be, to the attainment of 
 this gracious purpose and design of God ? 
 
 Seventhly, Holiness is of absolute necessity in 
 order to admission into the presence of God. 
 Except a man be * meet for the inheritance of 
 the saints in light,' he cannot partake in it. 
 G lory and grace only differ in degree. We have 
 *an earnest of our inheritance' in the blessed 
 communications and consolations which the spi- 
 rit ministers unto us, When heaven comes the 
 full harvest only comes of what on earth we had 
 already the first-fruits. * The pure in heart shall 
 see God.' (Matt. v. 8.^ Whilst nothing can enter 
 the sanctuary where his honour dwelleth, * which 
 defjleth or worketh abomination.' (Rev. xxu 
 27. J It is a strange mistake with which * the 
 god of this world blinds the minds of those who 
 believe not,' that they may get * to heaven at 
 last, though their heart and lives should not be 
 so strict and holy as the scriptures enjoin them 
 to be.' But suppose it possible : What would aa 
 unholy soul do in heaven ? What happiness could 
 he taste from the glory and service of that bles- 
 sed place, whilst under a total incapacity to rel- 
 ish the least measure of their joys ? To be ever 
 loving, admiring, praising the blessed God, to 
 be following the Lamb whithersoever he goeth, 
 to be employed day and night without ceasing, 
 in his temple, to be in the nearest and tenderest 
 
The Necessity of personal Holiness. \7Q 
 
 coramunionof soul with him, and with the ador- 
 ing saints and angels, our brethren and compan- 
 ions ; what happiness can you possibly have in 
 these exercises, if now they are irksome, your 
 aversion, and your burden ? If now your con- 
 versation be on earth, not in heaven, if now you 
 are living in the enjoyment of the pleasures of 
 sense, and not by faith ; if now you are * serv- 
 ing foolish and hurtful lusts,' instead of * pre- 
 senting your body, soul and spirit a living sacri- 
 fice, holy and acceptable to God;' (Rom, xi'i. I.) 
 if now you are seeking happiness in the vanities 
 of time, instead of looking forward to the riches 
 of eternity ; if now the company of God's peo- 
 ple and their employments you disrelish and 
 avoid ; if here you are content to take up your 
 abode, and cannot say, that * to depart and to 
 be with Christ is far better ;' (Phil. i. 23.) if 
 earthly, sensual, devilish tempers now reign in 
 you, instead of the pure, peaceable, holy, heaven- 
 ly, Christ-like dispositions of the child of God ; 
 you may be assured there is no entrance for you 
 into the presence of God ; you are under an ab- 
 solute incapacity of drawing near to him ; you 
 have, you can have no idea of or relish for the 
 happiness of the saints ; you can be no more sen • 
 sible to it than the blind to the beauties of vi- 
 sion, or the deaf to the powers of harmony. But, 
 Eighthly. Without holiness you are not only 
 incapable of seeing God and enjoying him, but 
 you are actually and by express sentence ex- 
 cluded from it. ' When the Son of a man shall 
 come, he shall send forth his holy angels, and 
 gather out of his kingdom all things which of- 
 fend, and which do iniquity, and shall cast them 
 into a furnace of fire.* [Matt. xiii. 42.] *No evil 
 shall dwell with him.' [Fsal. v. 4.] Sin and ex- 
 clusion from his presence, are necessarily con- 
 
1 80 The Necessity of personal Holiness. 
 
 nected. ' They wlio obey not his gospel must 
 be destroyed ;svith the brightness of his coming.' 
 [2 Tlfess. ii. 8.] * He that committeth sin, is of the 
 devil.' (I John iii. S.) By such disobedience 
 against God he testifies what master he hath chos- 
 en to serve ; and his wages will be as his work. 
 * The wages of sin isdeath.' {Rom. vi. 23.) They 
 'Nvho join with God's enemies will have their por- 
 tion with them, in the ' everlasting fire prepared 
 for the devil and his angels.' (Matt, xxv. 41.^ 
 All pleas in the great day of the Lord will be 
 fruitless, if the heart hath been the servant of 
 sin. To have cried, Lord, Lord, in his temple ; 
 to have heard the voice of Christ in our streets i 
 3'ea, to have prophesied in his name, and done 
 many wonderful works, will avail nothing, 
 if holiness hath not been our temper and prac- 
 tice. He will say to every unholy soul in that 
 day, * Depart from me, I never knew you, ye 
 workers of iniquity.' (Luke xiii. 27.J 
 
 These are clear and convincing proofs of the 
 absolute necessity of being holy here, in order 
 to be happy hereafter : and should lead every 
 man into the most serious inquiries into his state 
 and temper. * The righteous scarcely are sav- 
 ed ; and where then shall the ungodly and the 
 sinner appear ?' (\ Pet. iv. 18. J 
 
 I shall conclude with these observations. 
 
 L If personal holiness be so absolutely neces- 
 sary, * how ^tw will be saved ? Strait indeed is 
 the gate, and narrow is the way which leadcth 
 unto life, and few there be that find it.' (Matt. 
 vii. 14. J It is often charged as a matter of 
 great uncharitablcncss, but to confess your faith 
 in what God hath thus so solemnly declared. 
 Every one hopes to be saved at last ; and ihat, 
 at least, those are safe who are not worse than 
 themselves. But this is the blindness of the 
 
The NecesaitTf of personal Holiness. 1 8 J 
 
 unholy, and the false 'hope of the hypocrite 
 Avhich*^ pcrishcth.' Goers word is the only stand- 
 ard. To this must each man's state be referred. 
 He requires of all real holiness, * out of a pure 
 Iieart, and good conscience, and faith unfeign- 
 ed.* (\ Tim. i. 5.) And to this, it is evident, 
 few can make any just pretensions. 'The un- 
 rigliteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God. 
 Be not deceived : neither fornicators, nor idol- 
 aters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers 
 of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor 
 covetous, nor drunkards ; nor revilers, nor ex- 
 tortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.' 
 (\ Cor. vi. 9.) Now were but these alone ex- 
 cluded, (and excluded they must be, as God is 
 true) I fear the remainder who walk not in any 
 of these things will be but few. More especial- 
 ly if we add unto them, ' all who walk in hatred, 
 •^variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, he- 
 resfes, envying, murders, revelings and sucli 
 like :' (Gal. v. 20.^ we shall still reduce the 
 nuiiiber less. But there are other express ex- 
 clusions from God set upon ' the fearful and un- 
 believing and abominable, and all liars.' (Rev. 
 xxi. 8. J Nor are they less removed from him, 
 ' who are lovers of their own selves, boasters, 
 proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, un- 
 thankful, unholy, traitors, heady, high-minded, 
 lovers of pleasure more than lovers of (lod/ 
 f2 Tim. iii. 4. J In short, the profanersof (kkTs 
 sabbath, the dishonourers of his name, the ne- 
 glectors of his worship,' (Exod. xx. 7 — K).) 
 come under the same condemnation. Nor nmst 
 we forget that numerous generation, ' wlio are 
 pure in their own eyes, yet are nc5t ^v ashed from 
 their filthiness ;' (Prov. xxx. ]^.) who have 
 the form of godliness, but deny the power of it." 
 
 Q 
 
182 The Necessity of personal Holiness, 
 
 {Q Tim. iii. 5.) I might add, lastly, the unfaith- 
 ful to their convictions, those * who love the 
 praise of men more than the praise of God ;' 
 (Jolm xii 43.) those 'who put their trust in 
 man, and their heart departeth from the Lord.* 
 (Jer. xvii. 5,) The lukewarm * neither hot nor 
 cold,' (Rev. iii. 16.) thathalt betweenGod and 
 Baal ; and every man who hath not learned ' to 
 deny himself, to take up his cross and follow 
 Christ,' {Matt x. 38.) in all that holy conver- 
 sation and godliness which you have heard des- 
 cribed. And will not the conclusion from these 
 j)|©mt§5S;t)e, that they are * few which shall be 
 ^^aved ?' {Luke xiii. 23.) A remnant, indeed, 
 ■ like that i^ the ark, or those plucked out of So- 
 dom. 
 
 Let no man be offended at this truth, and at- 
 tend to^i the infidel reasonings of his corrupt 
 heart aljfiout unpromised mercy ; but simply re-^ 
 gard tMese express scriptures. They are G^^^ 
 wofiJ, ' Heaven and earth shall pass away, but 
 one jot or one tittle of his word shall never peBs 
 away until the w'hole be fulfilled.' {Matt, xxiv/ * 
 35.) There are no secret exceptions. * God 
 cannot alter the thing which is gone out of his 
 mouth.' [FsaL Ixxxix. 34.] He must deny him- 
 self, if any soul continuing and dying in any of 
 these things, be ever finally saved. But ' God 
 cannot lie.' {Titusi. C.) * His truth abideth for 
 ever in heaven.' (FsaL cxix. 89.) The unholy 
 must be eternally unhappy. * Without holiness 
 no man shall see the Lord.' What an awaken- 
 iug admonition ! 
 
 2. What reason then hath ever\* man to look 
 well to his heart ?' 'Be not deceived, God is 
 not mocked ; for whatsoever a man soweth, that 
 sball he also reap.' {Gal. vi. 7.) It is requisite 
 that we strive for the mastery,' that we ' press to- 
 
The Necesalti) of personal Holiness, 1 83 
 
 wards the mark,' that we * be temperate in all 
 things,' that * we work out our salvation 
 with fear and trembling,' that we ' bring forth 
 daily fruits meet for repentance, and make 
 our profiting appear,' if we mean to come into 
 tlie presence of the most High and most Holy. 
 It is not a hasty resolution, a warm impression^ 
 a partial reformation, a round of duties, or a 
 name of godliness, which will bring us thither. 
 
 * (rod requireth truth in our inward parts ;* 
 (Psal. li. b'.) he calls for our heart ; [Prov. 
 xxiii. 2(i.] and that chearful, universal, abiding 
 continuance in well-doing, which shews * his ser- 
 vice to be perfect freedaui ;' and obedience our 
 choice and delight. 
 
 And here, if we are sincere with G od, we shall 
 have abundant cause to humble ourselves, * to 
 strengthen the things which remain,' to exam* 
 ine ourselves closely, to watch against *a deceit- 
 X ful and desperately wicked heart,' and to be 
 looking up for continual supplies of grace, to 
 
 * perfect in us that which is lacking,' and to fin* 
 ish the new creation, until the Lord of our life 
 
 * shall present us before the presence of his glo- 
 ly, with exceeding great joy, without spot or 
 wrinkle, or any such thing, in perfect conform* 
 ity to his own blessed image.' 
 
 3. As many as have any attamments in Holi- 
 ness should, with humble acknowledgments of 
 his grace to whom they are indebted for all, 
 walk by the same rule, and mind the same 
 things, (PhiLin. 16.) * For we have not yet 
 attained, or are already perfect.' {PhiL iii. 12.) 
 
 Whilst we arc on our pilgrimage, two things 
 especially we need to abound in, humility and zeal. 
 
 Firsts Humility. ' For what have we that we 
 have not received } and if we have received it^ 
 why should we glory as though we bad not re* 
 
184 The Necessity of personal Holiness. 
 
 ceivcd it ?' [I Co?\ iv. 7.] Whatever we are, 
 * it is by the grace of God we are what we are. 
 [1 Coi\ XV. 10.] Wt are liis workmanship.' 
 The whole is from him, by him, and must be as- 
 cribed to him. Besides, the remainders of our 
 old nature afford us daily cause of abasement 
 before God, and call upon us to say continually, 
 even in our highest attainments, * I am nothing.' 
 iSeco72dli/y Zeal. For when holiness is the aim, 
 "we cannot be too zealously affected. We need 
 not fear excess here. We cannot love God too 
 much, or serve him beyond the bounds of duty. 
 An unbounded field is before us. * God's com- 
 niandments are exceeding broad.' \Fsal. cxix. 
 06.] Blessed are they who keep them with their 
 M'hole heart, [Psal. cxix. 2,] and labour for 
 this as the 'one thing needful,' that every hour 
 ihey advance towards the kingdom, they may 
 grow into a greater meetness for it -, until all 
 tiieir fervent effectual prayers and labours are 
 answered, * the kingdom comes ;' and perfect 
 holiness and perfect happiness, in God and wuth 
 God, become their everlasting portion. 
 
SERMON XIIL 
 
 THE MEANS OF HOLINESS^ 
 
 2 Peter I. la 
 
 CITE DILIGENCE TO MAKE YOUR CALLINGAND ELECTIOtt 
 SURE. 
 
 1HAVE been emteavouring to^ set before you 
 the nature, aiicl to convince you of thene* 
 cessity of holiness. A task in these days the 
 more needful, when by some persons vice is called 
 virtue ; when in otliers Satan is * tFansformed in- 
 to an angel of light y and when most people act 
 as if indeed ' heaven was open fop all men,' and 
 * tlie gate no longer strait or the way narrow. — 
 Be w are that ye also be not led away by the error 
 of the wicketL (2 Pe^. lii 17.) Let tlie word of 
 Christ dwell in yourichly.' {CoL uk 16.) Bping; 
 every dissert ioiv to be proved thereby; every doc* 
 trine to its test ; every prescription for your con- 
 duct to its commands. * If any speak not ac- 
 cording to this rule tbere is no light in them. *" 
 f /v^. viii. Q.O.) You will then find that the great 
 Gild God proposes is^ ^ that the mauof God shouUll 
 be perfect, throughly furnished for every good 
 work;/ (Q Tim. ul \7^) and you. will, receive- 
 kindly the exhortation 'and set diligently about 
 the practice of his commandments;, and earnest- 
 ly endeavou-r ta * woj?k out youu own saivatiooi 
 with fear and trembling i [PA'i/. iL 12,], giving; 
 all diligence to« make your calling, and e lee tiont 
 suie.' (2 Pets i. 10. > The means and the eadaie* 
 
186 The Means of Holiness. 
 
 inseparably connected. Though * God worketh 
 in us to will and to do of his good pleasure, [Phil. 
 ii. 13.] and every good and every perfect gift 
 Cometh from above ;' [Ja?72csi. 17.] yet must we 
 * be workers together with God.' He does not 
 act upon us as machines, but as men stirs us up 
 to labour, strive, wTestle, press towards the mark. 
 Our diligence must not be the less, because it is 
 his power alone which can strengthen our weak- 
 ness ; but the greater, because he will give more 
 grace to those who improve the measure he hath 
 bestowed on them. ' Be strong therefore in the 
 Xord, and in the power of his might.' [Eph. vi. 
 10.] God hath himself pointed out the way 
 ivherein we should go, and promised his blessing 
 upon the diligent use of the means. Our business 
 therefore is to be found waiting upon God in his 
 instituted way. And so doing we shall not fail 
 to * grow in grace, through the more abundant 
 supply of the Spirit of Christ ministered unto us,' 
 [PhiL i. 19.] 
 
 Whoever then would increase in holiness, and 
 "be grov/ing up into his image in all things, * who- 
 is our head, even Christ,' [Eph. iv. 15^] must be 
 found in the use of the following means of grace ; 
 .-namely, diligent attention to God's word, medi- 
 tation upon it, examination by it, prayer, mutual 
 communication, and solemn covenanting with 
 •Christ at his table. 
 
 First. A chief means of grace is the word of 
 God heard or read. Its promises must ccnstrain 
 ■us, its threatnings over-awe us, its conmiands 
 direct, its prohibitions restrain us. But this ef- 
 fect cannot be produced farther than our hearts 
 are attentive to il. If then we know not the 
 scriptures, we must err from the way, and our 
 conduct be guided by other maxims than the 
 truth of God. And this is indeed the ground of 
 
The Means of Holiness. 187 
 
 all our sin and misery, that we have left the ora- 
 cles of divine revelation, to follow the devices of 
 our corrupted hearts. *To the word therefore, 
 and to the testimony, bearch- the scriptures.* 
 {John V. 39.) This is the way to eternal life — 
 And this must be done dihgently. Tiie matters 
 they contain are infinitely important to us, and 
 deserve our deepest attention. When you read 
 the scriptures therefore, you must ' seek for the 
 truth as for silver, and search for it as for hid 
 treasures.' {Frov. ii. 4.) Your eyes ^mustpre- 
 vent the night-watches' to be occupied in the 
 blessed work ; that you may know God's will 
 and walk in it. You should do it throughly.— 
 * All scripture is given by inspiration of God.' — 
 From the Alpha to the Omega we are to consider 
 the precious truths, as all of them 'prolitable for 
 reproof, for correction, for mstruction in right- 
 eousness. (2 Urn. iii. 16 ) And to compare spirit- 
 ual things with spiritual' (1 Cor. ii. 13.) And 
 this daily. The word of God must be our con- 
 tinual study. * O how I love tliy law, all the 
 day long is my study in it.' {Psal. cxix. 97.) 
 For this the Bereans were so highly commended, 
 that ' they searched the scriptures daily.' {Acts 
 xvii. 11.) Indeed what is so proper, what so 
 needful for us as this, that we should begin our 
 days with inquiring at God's mouth, and con- 
 clude them with his counsel } For * when thou 
 sleepest it shall keep thee, and when thou awak- 
 €st It shall talk with thee.' {Frov. vi. 22.) Add 
 also, seriously. The matter is weighty ; eternity 
 depends upon.it. It is God's voice is heard. — 
 Let the heart stand in awe of him. Mr. Boyle 
 had so great a reverence for God's word, that he 
 used to read it upon his knees. We should at 
 least feel a temper as deeply serious as that pos- 
 ture implied ; and withal humbly. * Speak, Lord, 
 
188 TH Means of Holiness. 
 
 for thy servant hcarcth/ iniist be our language. 
 Not caviling, but abeyiug; not curious, but sub- 
 mi ssh'e : then shall we find the power of God 
 present in his word, and its effects upon our hearts 
 "wershty and intluentiai We shall daily be cast 
 into its njould ; and God's holy wokd will pro- 
 duce holy temj>ers in us. 
 
 Seconal]/^ Let youc meditations thereon b© 
 sweet and frequent, if you would grow thereby. 
 It is having the truth rooted in our hearts, (as 
 the seed covered up fixes in the ground) that 
 makes it bring forth fruit unto holiness, Many 
 hearers of the word, ^ like men beholding their 
 natural face in the glass, go away straigTit and 
 forget what manner of persons tliey were. ' {James 
 i. 24.) But we are charged '^to keep these words^ 
 in our hearts, to talk of them when we sit in ouu 
 house, and wlien we walk by the way, and when 
 we lie down, and when we rise up/ (Dcut. vi. 
 7,) It is by *^ setting God in his word always- 
 before us, that we shall not be moved.' It is for 
 'want of this that the devil so often cometh and 
 taketh the word, * like the seed which fell by 
 the way side, (Alatt,yj{\\:. \.) out of our hearts. *^ 
 Treasure up the truths you read and hear. Go: 
 forth with this for your meditation through the 
 day. See whether you can say with thePKophet, 
 * Thy words were found by me,, and I did eat 
 them ; and thy word was unto me the joy and, 
 rejoicing of my heart.' (Jev. xv. \i5.) What 
 digestion is to our food^ that Lsmeditatiouto tlie 
 woid ; it makes it incorpoiate into oursubstance, 
 and minister nourishnieut, strength and conso- 
 lation to us. 
 
 Thlrdlij, Call youi heart often to deep and se- 
 rious examination by it. *^ Prove your own- 
 selves, know your ownselvesj' (£ Cor. xiii. 5.) 
 is the apostolic iaji^^nction, and most highly nc- 
 
The Means of Holiness, 189 
 
 cessary ifyouAvould * increase with the increase 
 of God.' Our corrupt and deceitful hearts have 
 need of the most jealous eye over them, lest they 
 turn aside from the path of holiness. We thus 
 discover the heginnings of sin, and detect the 
 insinuations of error ; and ' by searching and 
 trying our ways we return unto the Lord.' {Lam, 
 in, 40.) Hereby we see where our hearts are 
 weakest, that we may put an especial guard on 
 that side ; what graces we most need to exer- 
 cise ; what are the dangers of our place, temper 
 and stations ; what ' the sins that most easily 
 beset us,' and what requests we have particularly 
 to make unto him, ' out of whose fulness we 
 may receive power and grace.' 
 
 This business should be done at least once in 
 the day, and the most suitable time is at even, 
 wlien we review the transactions that have past. 
 We should blame the merchant or considerable 
 tradesman, whose negligence deferred to keep 
 account daily of his profit and loss : nor could 
 M^e think, without fair and regular reckonings, 
 his business likely to flourish. No more can our 
 souls grow in grace, without the like diligence 
 in our spiritual concerns ; which, as they are of, 
 so much greater moment to us, deserve so muck 
 greater inspection and inquiry into them, I' 
 cannot wonder that many professors so decline, 
 * that grey hairs are upon them and they know 
 it not,' (Rosea vii. 9.) when they are so negli^ 
 gent about this matter, so superficial in their in- 
 quiries about their progress, and so easily satis- 
 fied with themselves, though their profiting ap- 
 peareth not. Yea, when most they need to look 
 into themselves for humiliation and conviction, 
 like men in debt, they decline the search, be- 
 cause they are afraid to know the reality of their 
 state. It is a bad sign, when we want not to 
 
190 The Means of Holiness. 
 
 go to the bottom of our hearts, to know tin? very 
 truth of our case, that Ave may present it before 
 the Lord. Like the spreading cancer, such de- 
 clensions threaten apostacy throughout. ' Prin- 
 dp Us obsia ; Resist the beginnings :* is a max- 
 im as appHcable to our souls as to our bodies. 
 Whilst they will be most alive to God, and walk 
 nearest with him, who bring their hearts closest 
 to be tried by his word, and most carefully re- 
 mark every deviation from it. 
 
 FourtJdxj, Prayer is an especial means of grow- 
 ing in holiness, I may call it indeed the chief! 
 It is, as it were, the key of heaven which un- 
 locks the treasures of grace. All holiness is de- 
 rived from the Spirit of God. This spirit is 
 promised * to those that ask.' S^Luke xi. 13.j 
 Our fruit therefore unto holiness being accord* 
 ifig to the measure of the grace bestowed upon 
 us, it will chiefly depend on the diligence of our 
 application to him, who hath the fulness of it to 
 bestow. 
 
 Prayer is the desire of the heart after God. 
 It arises from a sense of want, acts in depend- 
 ence on the promise, and expects an answer ac- 
 cording to its necessities. ' For they who hun- 
 ger and thirst after righteousness shall be filled/ 
 [Matt, V. 6.] Holiness of heart and life is 
 prayer carried into practice. As we are diligent 
 in the one, we shall find correspondent effects in 
 the other. The soul that goes continually to the 
 throne of grace, and lives through the day in 
 the spirit of prayer and supplication, cannot but 
 feel a determination of heart against sin ; a la- 
 bour ' to perfect holiness in the fear of God,' 
 and such a sense of the divine presence as is at 
 once restraining and transforming. 
 
 Wlioever hath read the histories of the holiest 
 men will find them to be remarked, as peculiarly 
 
The Means of HoUuess, ig\ 
 
 men of prayer. Whilst on the other hand, no 
 sooner doth any man begin to turn back, than 
 his first declensions are usually most visible in 
 his closet ; until, the dominion of sin return- 
 ing, prayer is totally laid aside. For if prayer 
 does not make us leave sin, sin will soon make 
 us leave prayer. At least if the form be observ- 
 ed, all the power of prayer will be gone. The 
 hps and not the heart will be found speaking 
 before God. 
 
 Our blessed Lord himself, as man, thus ob- 
 tained the power of submitting wholly to his 
 father's will. He 'was heard, when with strong 
 crying and tears he made supplications.' \^Heb. 
 V. 7.] And if He was thus made perfect and 
 obtained grace, how nmchmore have we need to 
 redouble our requests, and seek herein especially 
 to cop} his example ? 
 
 Prayer is of various kinds, public, family and 
 private He who would have his fruit unto ho- 
 liness must abound in all prayer and supplication 
 in the spirit, and watch thereunto w^ith all per- 
 severance.' [Ephes. vi. 18.] Public worship is 
 a most blessed exercise, and most influential on 
 the practice of holiness. They who heartily join 
 in it, will necessarily feel their hearts quickned 
 to every good word and work, towards those with 
 whom they have united their voices in these so- 
 lemn exercises. * Where two or three only have 
 consented together to ask any thing,' God hath 
 assured us he will give it, [Matt, xviii. 1().] 
 And how much more may we be confident, that 
 our mutual supplications and intercessions shall 
 find an answer of peace, when in the great con- 
 gregation, \vith one mind and one mouth, we 
 consent to pour out our desires before the throne 
 of grace ? Family worship is also most requi- 
 site in order to holiness. As the Prophet, di- 
 
192 The Means of Holiness. 
 
 rected by the Spirit, calls upon God ^ to pour 
 out his fury upon the famihes which call not on 
 liis name :' [Jcr. x. 25.] so we may be assured 
 that God's peculiar blessing will rest upon the 
 houses where his honour dM'elleth. What can 
 be imagined so effectual to restrain ourselves and 
 all under our roof from offending ? AVhat so 
 powerful to quicken our concern about pleasing 
 and serving the Lord, as the sense of his near- 
 ness to us, and our dependence upon him ? 
 And what will so effectually tend to beget this, 
 as a constant, open joint-acknowledgment of his 
 goodness, and supplication for his grace ? AV'hat 
 can lay upon ourselves more striking obligations 
 to go in and out before our housholds, examples 
 of faith and godliness, than the remembrance of 
 our prayers with them and for them ? And what 
 so likely to be influential on their hearts, as 
 joining with us in ardent petitions for grace, 
 iiearing their case importunately spread before 
 God, and the solemn engagement repeated, 'that 
 ^ve and our house will serve the Lord ?' [Joshua 
 xxiv. 15.] Let the masters of praycrless fami- 
 lies tremble. Ungodliness must be in their dwel- 
 lings. Their children's, their servants' blood, as 
 M-ell as their own, is upon their heads. But es- 
 pecially must private prayer be exercised. We 
 * must speak to our father Avhich is in secret ;' 
 {Matt. vi. 6.) must speak to him with the confi- 
 dence and humble freedom of children ; telling 
 him the very secrets of our souls, humbling our 
 liearts for our very thoughts before him, and be- 
 seeching him, that knoweth what we need, to 
 supply abundantly our wants in Jesus Christ. 
 And this must be done with that importunity 
 and perseverance which our Lord recommends 
 by the parable of the unjust judge, and enjoins, 
 "when he bids us * always pray and not faint.' 
 
The Means of Holiness. 19S 
 
 I low often we should be in secret prayer, it is 
 impossible to deteniiine. Every man's circum- 
 stances must be considered, and the peculiar sit- 
 uation he is in. David prayed * seven times a day ; 
 (P^tf/. cxix. 164.] Daniel thrice.* [Dan.\\.\0.) 
 But at least morning and evening are naturally 
 suggested unto as the most proper seasons, that 
 Me may begin and end the day with God. Whilst 
 throughout the day, whoever are panting after 
 nearness to and communion with God, will send 
 forth many an ardent desire from their hearts in 
 the intervals of leisure ; and oftentimes in the 
 midst of business, company or labour, a wami 
 ejaculation will dart upwards, that in silence 
 pierces the clouds, and 'ascends as incense before 
 tlie throne.' In this way we may be assured tlie 
 works of holiness will advance in our hearts. 
 And when we have endured a little while, all our 
 praters shall be changed into pinises. 
 
 Fifthly, To prayer I add mutual converse, as 
 very helpful to the work of grace. As wg are 
 travelling the same road, the experience of oth- 
 ers will be the more useful to us. We have the 
 same enemies, the same cause, the same corrup- 
 tions, the same path of duty to follow, and the 
 same hope of glory in the end : and to secure 
 this it is our wisdom to consult together ; * in the 
 multitude of counsellers there is safety.' [Prov. 
 xi. 14.] We shall need therefore speak often 
 one to another ; whether to encourage the feeble- 
 minded, warn the unruly, admonish the rash, or 
 counsel the distressed ; and shall find the great- 
 est profit by 'confessing our faults one to anoth- 
 er, as well as by praying for each other.' In 
 all other things frequent conversation is thought 
 most useful to accomplish any species of iu- 
 structioUj and whv not here also : Indeed we shall 
 
194 The Means vf Holhias. 
 
 know little of the way to heaven, nor shall v, e 
 walk in it, if we satisfy ourselves, as the many 
 do, with hearing, it may be, a sermon on a Sun- 
 day. We must have these great truths in our 
 mouths on other days, delight to speak of our etei - 
 iial concerns, and count the blessings of the com- 
 munion of saints, in all the branches of it, among 
 our chief enjoyments upon earth. It is impos- 
 sible for any minister in the world to take the 
 full and particular care of each individual of his 
 flock : his work is rather ' to preach the word.* 
 It is every man's business ' to exhort his brother 
 daily.' \Heb. iii. 13.] And wherever there is 
 any spiritual life among us, there will necessarily 
 arise a desire to converse together about the 
 things of God ; to ' watch over one another 
 A\'ith a godly jealousy ;' [2 Cor. xi. 2,] to open 
 our hearts freely ; to speak our suspicions ; to 
 rebuke with freedom and tenderness, and to 
 ' huild up each other in our most holy faith.' 
 The practice of true holiness is never so con- 
 spicuous as where this genuine simplicity of 
 heart, and enlarged charity to thcbrcthren, shew 
 themselves by a free and heart searching con- 
 versation together. Self-deceit is then more de- 
 tected, the principles more sifted, mistakes dis- 
 covered, backslidings reproved, and if a man 
 sin, lie is * j'estored in the spirit of meekness/ 
 If I was to ascribe the lukewarm and unoriia- 
 mental walk of those who make a jyroftssioji of 
 religion to any one cause, pcirhaps it is as much 
 owing to this as any, that they want tlietruesim- 
 })lieity of heart which Moukl lead them to more 
 experimental conversation ; instead of tliat tri- 
 fling, general, unedifying discourse M'hich usual- 
 ly prevails amongst them : A rehgious kind of 
 gossipping, and justly censured by those who 
 are without, as u prying into other's faults, in- 
 
The Means of IlaVuiess, 195 
 
 stead of drscovering and amend rng \\v/\y own. 
 
 Sivthli/i I would conclude with recommend- 
 ing a serious and devout attendance at the Lordj 
 taWe. Nothing can have a more direct tenden- 
 cy to quicken us in the good ways of the Lord, 
 than that ordinance iu which our Saviour makc:^ 
 all his love to pass before us. What can kindle 
 in our hearts such a tlame of love, so greatly 
 conlirm ou-r taith, enliven our zeal, increase our 
 hatred of sin, or urge us to copy his example, 
 as when we are remembering the Lord's death,. 
 "wlicn we are commemorating his blood-shedding 
 tor us, reflect upon the evil of sin, and see that 
 holy Lamb of God leading the way before us in 
 the path of righteousness ? Hither therefore 
 should v/e often repair, to renew our solemn sur- 
 render of ourselves to him, and to receive the 
 pledges of his everlasting love to us.< Whenever 
 we have opportunity with delight approach- 
 ing his tabic, and eating and drinking his body 
 and blood, with true discernment, to thestrength- 
 ning and refreshing our souls. This will contin- 
 ually serve to bind our hearts in bonds of nearer 
 union to our holy Head, and obhge us to v/alk 
 worthy these solemn engagements * in all holy 
 conversation and godliness ; adorningthe doct- 
 rine of God our Saviour;' and convincing the 
 Avorld, that the religion of Jesus hath a power 
 and efficacy to cast the whole man into its mould : 
 not merely to distinguish us from others by a 
 christian name, but by a divine nature : so that 
 we become * one with him, and he with us.* 
 
 Happy are they who in these things seek daily 
 to abide and abound. They cannot fail of suc- 
 cess. Holiness thus will become more our ha- 
 bit and disposition ; * continually exercising our- 
 selves unto godliness,' we shall strengthen our- 
 selves day by day mightily \ until all our ene- 
 
196 The Means of Holiness, 
 
 Tiiies being put under our feet, our warfare will 
 he finally ended, and we shall go where there is 
 no more corruption, no more sin, no more ene- 
 mies, no more danger, no more need of wrest- 
 ling, watching, praying, labouring ; but that 
 which is perfect, being come, our work of ho- 
 lines will be accomplished, and an eternity of 
 happiness shall receive us. There we shall see 
 God ; shall be with him, and be like him, and 
 * enter into that rest,' which no tongue can de- 
 scribe nor heart conceive, nobly called in our 
 liturgy, *' our final consummation in bliss, both 
 in body and soul, in his eternal glory/ 
 
 I have only to add my ardent prayers and 
 wishes, that every one of you may be using these 
 means, that you may come to this happy end* 
 And if but one soul only be influenced thereby, 
 i shall tliink all my pains amply repaid, when I 
 shall meet you in the great day of our Redeem-* 
 cr, and this labour of love, among others be laid 
 at his feet, to your joy, as well as my own. May 
 his grace bless what his grace hath helped me to 
 speak, and to Him shall all the praise and glory 
 be ascribed for ever aiid ever* 
 
SERMON XIV. 
 
 THE BLESSEDNESS OF THE RIGHTEOUS^ 
 
 Proverbs XII. 28. 
 
 IX THE WAY OF RIGHTEOUSNESS IS LIFE, AXD' IN THE 
 TATfl-WAY THEREOF THERE IS NO DEATH. 
 
 IT is a common and dangerous prejudice which 
 is entevtained against the ways of true reli- 
 gion, that they are dull, forbidding and melan- 
 choly : and hence young people especially arc 
 discouraged by the gloomy prospect ; and regard 
 a life of hohness as obhging them to part with 
 every present enjoyment for austerities and mor- 
 tihcations, httle less than a cell and sackcloth. 
 -And perhaps the mistakes of some professors of 
 godliness have not a little contributed toconfirni 
 these prejudices : who, whilst they have substi- 
 tuted moroseness for gravity, and reckoned a 
 downcast look and darkened, brow the proper in- 
 dex of a serious mind, have put fresh stumbling- 
 blocks ill the way of those who judge diieily by- 
 appearances.. But theve is no real cause for'thi's 
 in the nature of the religion- of J.esus. Just tlie 
 contrary. . As. none enjoy so much in ward .peiH.:;j 
 and. serenity, none, can hav^ so much cause for 
 chearfulness as tliey who, VwalUing humbly. with 
 (iod, (Mkah vi. 8. J seek iu;. t]ie lirst place his 
 kingdom ar^drighteousness.YJ/^/^/.yi. '33.) TAig 
 sons of God, hke Isaac, are truly * 3ons>o£Ja*^]i(- 
 tci ,' not the boisterous mirth.of foofe, oitheiiv 
 temperate salliejs of wantonnes^, ijbit.aiLii^iijitjLMrl- 
 
198 The Blessedness of the Righteous, 
 
 composure and delightful calm, arc the privileges 
 of the souls of those who have an interest in ev- 
 erlasting promises, and ' are the sons and daugh- 
 ters of the Lord Almighty.' f2 Cor. vi. 18 J It 
 is the interest indeed of the grand enemy of souls 
 to misrepresent the paths of duty, to frighten us 
 from pursuing them by lying suggestions ; and, 
 like the spies who went up to view the promised 
 Canaan, to * bring an evil report on the good 
 land :' (Numb, xiii. 32. J thus he discourages the 
 hearts of those who are willing to enter. But * let 
 no man's heart fail ;' (\ Sam, xvii. S9,,) can it be 
 imagined that God ever intended religion should 
 lessen our happiness below ? and that he should 
 leave to a ' world lying in wickedness,' enjoy- 
 ments greater than his own children possess ? 
 •* that be far from him.' He hath provided for 
 them upon earth the chief portion, and intends 
 the comforts of their faithful service in this life 
 shall be the foretastes of their eternal blesscd- 
 2iess in a better. For *in the way of righteous- 
 3iess,' and in this alone, * is life,' the truly hap- 
 py life ; and 'in the path way thereof,' to all 
 "who abide in it, ' there is no death ;* but glory, 
 lionour and immortality, await them in the man- 
 sions of bliss above. 
 
 To enter more explicitly into the proof of 
 this, I would observe, that happiness is to be 
 obtained either from ihc gratifications of sense, 
 i^nd the enjoyments of the world, or from the 
 denial of these in a life of faith and holiness i 
 which two are contrary the one to the other ; 
 and as far as the soul is engaged in tlie pursuit 
 of the one, it will despise or disrelish the other. 
 Now if it can be proved that the world, and the 
 things of it cannot afford us the happiness we 
 W^nty and that the service of the Lord, and the 
 consciottjDesa of his fi^vour, can * give us ex- 
 
The Blessedness of the Rightedus. \9Q 
 
 cecding abundantly above all we can ask or think ; 
 {Ephes, iii. 200 then surely we shall act as fool* 
 ishly as sinfully, to seek ' from broken cisterns, 
 w4iich can hold no water,' {Jer, ii. 13.) those 
 draughts of happiness, which the living waters 
 that flow from the rock Christ can only minis- 
 ter to the soul. 
 
 The world promises happiness from three great 
 sources ; Pleasure, Riches, and Honour. But 
 neither of these fulfil their promises to us either 
 in life or death. The ' god of this world, who 
 was a liar from the beginning,' {John viii. 44.) 
 doth ever prove so to those who, deceived by his 
 offers, pursue as their happiness ' the things 
 which are seen and temporal, instead of the things 
 which are not seen and are eternal' (2 Cor, iv. 
 18.) 
 
 I. The world promises us happiness from the 
 enjoyment of Pleasure. Decked in the attire of 
 fashion, tliis smiling Delilah ' sitteth in the high 
 places of the city ;' and with inviting tongue 
 deludes the young and thoughtless into her snare, 
 with assurances of every bliss. * I have per- 
 fumed my bed with myrrh and cinnamon ; come, 
 let us take our fill of love until the mornings 
 let us solace ourselves with loves,' {Frov. vii. 
 18.) But how are these promises fulfilled ? 
 Scripture and experience will quickly determine* 
 
 ^Vtla of all men under the sun ever more dil- 
 igently sought happiness from indulgence than 
 Solomon? or who had such opportunities of 
 boundless gratification ? A king, absolute in his 
 government, flowing with abundance, blest with 
 the most refined taste> and endued with the ten- 
 derest sensibility : see him eager in the pursuit, 
 and determined to spare no pains or cost to taste 
 the sweetest draughts of that Circcan cup. * 1 
 said iii my lieaxt, go to now, 1 will prove thee 
 
^00 The Blessedness of the Righteous, 
 
 -Nvith mirth, therefore enjoy pleasure.* (Ecclex 
 ii. 1. j Straight pleasure and mirth rang through 
 his palaces ; luxury crovvnetl the board, wine 
 sparkled in the flowing bowl, harmony tliarmed 
 the ear, and passion rioted in the arms of beau- 
 ty : thus for a while the court of Comus was in 
 Zion. I withheld not, * says Solomon, my heart 
 from any joy.* {Eccles. ii. 10.) But after trial 
 did it recommend the experiment r No ; * Be- 
 Iiold, this also is vanity. I said of laughter, it 
 is mad ; and of mirth, what doth it ?' {Eccles, 
 ii. 2.) These poor unsatisfying delights entirely 
 disappointed his appetite ; an immortal soul 
 could taste no real joy from the low gratifica* 
 tions of a beast, however refined. 
 
 And saith not every day's experience the same } 
 Look into your own heart, and say, what happir 
 ness have all your pleasures brought you ? Have 
 you not ever been disa|)pointcd in their posses^ 
 sion, and grasped a shadow where you thought 
 to embrace a substance ? Your hea?t liath beatt 
 high in the prospect of some delightful scene ; 
 but when it came, it palled, upon the taste ;, was 
 rather tiresome than pleasing, and (ii«gnsted moie 
 than it deliglited you. AikI in an hour of re- 
 tirement, when reflection returned, and tl:e delu- 
 sions of imagination gave way to the just re- 
 monstrances of conscience ; how sensibly and: 
 painfully Imve you felt,. that. you chased a pl)an- 
 tom of happiness, which proved to be r^al ' va- 
 nity and vexation of spirit ?' .\'oa beat the. dull 
 round of pleasure, not so much for any, real joy 
 you tasted in it, as because you. knew not. Uow 
 otherwise to employ yourself ; and took refuge 
 irv thiS-cauPse of studied forg(;tl'ulncss, to avoid 
 the disagreeable task of Icokijig inward^ and. to 
 silence the secret clisconteut of au unsatisfied 
 niiiid. The absence of God. the Ibuutaiu of all 
 
The Blessedness of the Righteous, 201 
 
 consolation, hath left a void which nothing but 
 himself can fill. 
 
 This is all tlie happiness of the young, the 
 gay, and the admired : yea, too often (shameful 
 to tell) of those also, whose desires of pleasure 
 have outlived their power of enjoyment ; and 
 wrinkles and gray hairs proclaim their folly as 
 great as their sin. And is it for this that reli* 
 gion is neglected, and all the pleasures of Christ's 
 delightful service scorned and rejected ! 
 
 But there are delights to be found in the ways 
 of Christ which a pleasure-loving world * know^ 
 eth not of. Not as the world giveth, says he, 
 give I unto you.' {John xiv» 27.) No ; his 
 * joy is such as strangers to him intermeddle not 
 with;' (Prov. xiv. 10.) it is a pleasure suited 
 to the state of an immortal soul ; a pleasure 
 arising from the sense of the favour and love of 
 the ever-blessed God ; a pleasure which imme* 
 diately flows from the service we are engaged in, 
 and accompanies the soul in every reflection up» 
 on it ; a pleasure that rising within in the heart, 
 bursts forth in streams of peace and joy, and 
 continues increasing to eternity, * as a well of 
 water springing up into everlasting life.' {John 
 iv, 14.) The earthly vanities you pursue, es- 
 trange your hearts farther from God than they 
 are by nature. These carnal delights debase the 
 soul, and forge new chains to keep you eternal 
 prisoners under the bondage of corruption : for 
 his servants ye are to whom * you obey.' And 
 how can there be pleasure in slavery, or happi* 
 ness in chains ? But when you return to Christ 
 as your portion, tired with the fruitless pursuits 
 of the past, mourning over so much time abus* 
 ed, so many talents squandered, so much forget* 
 fulness of God ; then you begin to enter into 
 ^est. Christ shews you in his blood the pur* 
 
202 The Blessedness of the P.ighteeus, 
 
 cliasc he hath made for you of present happmess 
 and future glory : and invites you to come to 
 * fountains of hving waters, instead of the brok- 
 en cisterns' at Arhich you have toiled so long in 
 vain to draw. * Being jni,tified by faith, we have 
 peace with God.' {lioin. v. 1.) And these arc 
 among the first-fruits of the Spirit, which tliey 
 who beheve in him do receive, * peace and joy.' 
 {GaL V. 22.) It is true, to a pleasure-loving 
 soul, these, like objects seen by a jaundiced eye, 
 are ever misrepresented. The way to them thro' 
 tlie valley of humiliation looks forbidding ; and 
 a life of self-denial and * mortilication of our 
 members upon earth,' necessary to our contin- 
 uance in his love, seems to promise nothing but 
 wretchedness. But they who make the trial find 
 the difference, and are ready to set their seal to 
 God's truth, and to declare, that they have not 
 been, as before, disappointed of their hopes. 
 Each step taken in Christ's v/aysbj'ings pleasant- 
 Bess and peace. The very mournings of the soul 
 returning to its rest in him are delightful ; and 
 none know the joy of the tears of penitence but 
 those who drop them. Bough as the way ap- 
 pears, it is but as the gloomy avenue (not in it- 
 self destitute of pleasure) which opens to .some 
 delightful prospect : and these sweet sorrows are 
 quickly followed by ' peace and joy in believing.* 
 (Rom. XV. 13.) Nor for a time only.^ but all 
 life through the prospect brightens, the pleasure 
 is heightened. The intercours.e of the believing 
 Foul with God in secret meditation ; the com- 
 munion maintained with him in acts of prayer, 
 and silent aspirations to him ; the growing con- 
 formity of our hearts to his image, who is 'glo- 
 rious in holiness ;' the different joy that chris- 
 tian fellowship brings from any of the friend- 
 ships of this world ; together with the reviving 
 
The Blessedness of ike Righteous. 205 
 
 hope of, and eager looking for, * tliat glory 
 which shall be revealed in us,' {Rom. viii. 18.) 
 when from drinking of the streams below we 
 shall go to drink at the fountain-head above ; 
 these are sources of solid, substantial, rational 
 pleasures, as much superior to the poor joys of 
 sense, as the mild sunshine and genial warmth of 
 a long and temperate summer, exceed the sud- 
 denly expiring and crackling blaze of thorns. 
 
 II. The world proposes happiness to others in 
 affluence. Money is counted * the one thing 
 needful :' Money is supposed to bring all the 
 other blessings of this life with it. Under this 
 persuasion, like the horse-leach's two daughters, 
 the worldly mind cries, * Give, give; {Prov. 
 Kxx. 15.) joining house to house, and field to 
 field ; (Isai. v. 8.) and herein seeks its felicity. 
 But of this it may be said, happiness is not here. 
 The world cannot give it ; its abundance usually 
 removes us farther from it ; will not permit us 
 to know rest or peace. On principles of reason 
 it should seem evident, that all the treasures up- 
 on earth can never satisfy a soul that is immor- 
 tal ; and scripture fully assures us of it. ** A 
 man's life (meaning the comfort of it) ^ con- 
 sisteth not in the abundance of the thh\gs he 
 posscsseth.' {Luke xii. 15.) St. Paul, describ- 
 ing those who substitute gain for godliness, in- 
 forms us, ' that they who will be rich fall into 
 temptation, and a snare, and into many foolish 
 and hurtful lusts, which drown men in perdition 
 and destruction.' (I Tim. vi. 9.) And our bles- 
 sed Lord hath left us this awful declaration, 
 ' How hardly shall they that have riches enter 
 into the kingdom of God ! It is easier for a 
 camel to go through the eye of a needle, than 
 for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God/ 
 {Matt. xix. 24.) Surely then suchacquisitionij 
 
204 The Blessedness of the Righteous: 
 
 are little suited to administer the joy they pro- 
 mise. And whose experience doth not witness 
 it ? we foolishly call the rich happy. But could 
 we see their anxious care, their inward restless- 
 ness, the misery of desires delayed or disap- 
 pointed, which sometimes attends even the most 
 fortunate ; could we know their constoit fears 
 of losing, and thirst for more, which suffers them 
 not to enjoy their present gains ; could we to - 
 low one ' making haste to be rich,' through all 
 his toils and labours, his weary days and sleep- 
 less nights, and all his various vexations ; we 
 should be fully convinced of the truth of this, 
 that he who increaseth riches increaseth sorrow. 
 I may appeal to every man^s heart who hath 
 souo-ht happiness from this quarter, it this liatn 
 not^been his case. You promised youi;self you 
 should by and by be happy, when the other 
 thousand was added to your stock, or the next 
 purchase enlarged your estate ; you had your 
 wish, and yet you still wanted ; something was 
 lacking. You proposed new additions, and wait- 
 ed for'^^our happiness again. But a new thirst 
 uro-ed you again to new toils : and if the time 
 shSuld ever come that you shall think you have 
 enough, and, like the rich man in the gospel, 
 ' beo-m to pull down your barns and build great- 
 er ; "luid are ready to say to your soul, Soul, thou 
 hast much goods laid up for many years ; take 
 thine ease, cat, drink, and be merry :' {Lukexu. 
 18.) then expect the final disappointment, m 
 that alarming message, ' Thou fool, this night 
 thv soul shall be required of thee.' {Lide xii. i20. ) 
 Such is all the happiness of those who love this 
 piesent worid, and ' trust in uncertain riches 
 more than in the living God.' (1 Tim, yi. 1 /.) 
 But hath not Christ something more satisfying 
 to bestow ; something more durable to give to 
 
llie Blessedness of the Righteous. 205 
 
 tliose who seek their happiness in him ? Yes, 
 verily. ' I counsel thee, says he, to huy of me 
 f[ne gold, that thou mayst be rich.' {Rev. iii. 
 1 8. ) Christ is a portion, adequate to the bound- 
 less desires of the soul ; and ' the unsearchable 
 riches of his grace' make the possessor at once 
 affluent and happy. What are beds of sapphires, 
 or rocks of diamonds, compared with that blood 
 which sprinkles us from our sins ; the pardon of 
 the least of which the universe cannot purchase ? 
 Is not the gift of faith ' more precious than 
 gold which is tried in the fire ?' (1 Peter 
 i. 7. ) and every divine temper better than * cloth- 
 ing of wrought gold ?' These are present pos- 
 sessions, more substantial goods than the trea- 
 sures of both the Indies. Yet ' here is not our 
 abiding city :' this is not our inheritance, our 
 home. We look for * an inheritance incorrupt- 
 ible, undefiled, which fadeth not away. (1 Peter 
 i. 4.) Treasures laid up for us in a kingdom, 
 where moth doth not corrupt, nor thieves break 
 through and steal. {Matt. vi. 20.) A mansion 
 prepared for us in the city of our God ; a city, 
 whoce streets are gold, whose gates are pearl, and 
 whose foundations are precious stones.' {Rev, 
 xxi. 10 — 19.) The moment therefore we begin 
 to find our All in Christ, tormenting care and 
 restless anxiety no longer disturb our repose : 
 we * rise up in peace, for the Lord sustaineth us ;' 
 we lie down without a fear of losing what we 
 have laid up with him * who is able to keep that 
 good thing we have committed to him against 
 that day.' (2 Tim. i. 12.) Thus v/e can always 
 say, with the blessed Apostle, * I possess ail 
 things, and abound.' {Phil. iv. 18.) We have 
 IfeVnt that great lesson, * in whatsoever state 
 v/e are therewith to be content ; {Phil. iv. 11.) 
 S 
 
£06 The Blessedness of the Righteous, 
 
 and find that godliness with contentment is great 
 gain.' [1 Ti??i, vi. 6.] 
 
 Let any man compare this state of a soul 
 -walking in the way of righteousness with the 
 former ; and say, if such an one hath not chosen 
 the Ix'ttcr part.- And this is not an ideal cha- 
 racter : it is, blessed be God ! the experience of 
 thousands, who every day ' go on their way re- 
 joicing ;' and of many too, v/ho, under the se- 
 verest pressures of poverty and want, find in Je- 
 sus Christ that hid treasure [Matt. xiii. 44.] 
 they would not exchange for ' thousands of 
 gold and silver. For God hath chosen the poor 
 in this world, rich in faith, and heirs of the 
 kingdom, Avhich he hath promised to those that 
 love him.' [James ii. 5.] It is true, the present 
 comfort which the riches of Christ administer 
 above the vain fashion of a world which ' pe- 
 risheth in the using,' may hardly be made evi- 
 dent to the M'orldly-minded, ' the god of this 
 world ha\ing blinded their eyes ;' [2 Cor. iv. 4. J. 
 yet it is experimentally known by those who 
 pos&css it ; and rejoiced in, as the most endur- 
 ing substance, the most satisfying reality. 
 
 III. The Morld seeks to ensnare men's souls, 
 and promises them happiness in the possession of 
 honor. And indeed, to be distinguislicd in the 
 world, treated with respect, spoken of with admira- 
 tion, caressed by superiors,and imitated and admir- 
 ed by ecpials asapattern: theseare things exceed- 
 ing pleasing to the heart of a natural man, and 
 engage many far above the vanities of pleasure 
 or the scrdidness of gain. Yet doth the desire 
 of worldly esteem remove the soul as much from 
 true happiness as either of tlie former. The en- 
 joyment arising from tlie honour which comcj^i 
 fVoui man stands continually on a precarious 
 loimdation ; it totters before every blast of dis- 
 
The Ulesscdness of the Righteous. 207 
 
 respect, and ever rumour of malevolence. Even 
 here below, like 'grass on the house-top, it often 
 witheretli before it is pkicked up/ For what 
 can stand before envy ? The hopes of men, Hke 
 bubbles m the air, usually burst as they expancL 
 The labours of ambition are disappointed, the 
 pride of honour mortified, the idol of reputation 
 broken to pieces, and the friendships of the 
 world generally faithless. A\'ould a man Mho 
 hath made this his road to happiness but reflect, 
 he would be obliged to confess, that he had been 
 torturing himself to conform to the humours 
 and fashions of tlie world, seeking a phantom 
 of reputation light as a shadow, grasping after 
 a distinction vain and insignificant, making his 
 happiness depend on the beck or breath of a 
 worm like himself, and storing up for himself 
 many sorrows, which in the present chagrin he 
 must be often exposed to, or (if he should L^e 
 liappily brouglit to a sense of this folly and sin) 
 in breaking those bands of esteem, and getting 
 rid of the connections which were before the 
 business and desire of his life. Indeed, it is not 
 in man to create a happiness from himself ; it 
 is not in man to communicate it to others. It 
 were absurd indeed to suppose, that God would 
 suffer any of his creatures to enjoy a happiness 
 independent of himself. And more so, that sin- 
 ful men, whom misery follows as their shadow, 
 should be able thus to make each other happy. 
 But what shall we say when we consider far- 
 ther, what God hath declared of such lovers of 
 human honour : * Cursed is the man that trusteth 
 in man, and maketh flesh his arm. [./er. xvii. 5.] 
 The friendship of the world is enmity with God. 
 Whosoever will be the friend of the world is the 
 enemy of God. {James iv. 4.) How can }ou 
 believe who seek honour one of another? (^Johih 
 
COS The Blessedness of the Righteous. 
 
 V. 44.) If I yet pleased men, I should not ])C 
 the servant of Christ. (Gal. i. 10.) Go then, 
 and with these express declarations of God 
 against you, dare to be ha})py. O wretched hap-, 
 piness of the world, that hath the curse of God 
 resting upon it for ever. 
 
 But in the ways of righteousness is true hap- 
 piness arising from true honour, ' the honour 
 which Cometh from God/ An honour that de- 
 pends not on the breath of man to give or take 
 away. An honour the highest any mortal is ca- 
 pable of conceiving or enjoying. * Behold, says 
 St. John, what manner of love the father hath be- 
 stowed upon us, that we should be called the 
 Sons of God.' (1 John iii. 1.) What dignity 
 like this, to be 'the heirs of God, and joint- 
 heirs with Christ ?' (Rom. YUh 17.) The high- 
 est pinnacle of human glory is infinitely more 
 beneath it, than earth is distant from the re- 
 motest star. What connections can be so great 
 and honourable as ' fellowship with the Father, 
 and with his son Jesus Christ ?' (I John i. 3.] 
 No favour here will be denied us. ' Ask, and 
 ye shall receive.' (Johnxvi.Q^A,) For he 'hath 
 never said to any of the seed of Jacob, seek ye 
 my face in vain.' (Isai. xW, IQ.) Whathonoui 
 can be equal to that which the God of glory 
 bestows on his favourite children ?' 'Those that 
 honour me I will honour.' (\ Sam. ii. 30.) Or 
 what regard so desirable as his ? ' If a man keep 
 my commandments, my Father and I will lo\e 
 iiim, and come unto him, and make our abode 
 with him.' (John xiv. 23.) And their 'favour 
 is better than the life itself (Fsal. Ixiii. 3.) 
 A favour more enduring than the foundations of 
 the earth ; not like the precarious esteem of man, 
 but arising from the everlasting love and faith- 
 fulness of God. A favour, which secures our 
 
The Blessedness of the Righteous. 209' 
 
 happiness when all below threatens to destroy 
 it. A favour, that makes the possessor of it su- 
 perior to all human disgrace, unmoved at re- 
 proach, satisfied under oppression, and welcom- 
 ing the cross of Christ with all its ignominy. 
 A due sense of the nature of this favour it was 
 which wrought in Moses to * count the reproach 
 of Christ greater riches than the treasures of 
 Egypt ; (Heb. xi. 26J greater honor than to 
 be called the son of Pharoah's daughter.' (Heb. 
 xi. 24. J This made the disciples of Jesus come 
 from stripes and imprisonment, 'rejoicing that they 
 were counted worthy to suffer shame for bis name 
 sake.' (ActsY. 41. J Now surely these must be 
 paths of true happiness, that can thus make the 
 soul to cease from m.an, to rejoice in tribulation, 
 to enjoy itself independent of the world ; hon- 
 oured of God v/hen most despised of man, and 
 peaceful and easy, even when * cast out as the 
 filth and offscouring of all things.' 
 
 Thus here below, the soul which makes Christ 
 its portion, his v/ord its guide, his will its pleas- 
 ure, his grace its riclies, his honour its ambition, 
 his service its delight, 'holds on. its way and 
 waxes stronger and stronger ;' enjoying the pre- 
 sent sense of the divine favour, and happy iu. 
 the assured hope of the \glory, honour and im- 
 mortality prepared for him in heaven. (Rom, 
 ii. 7J ^ 
 
 The happiness of the way of righteousness is 
 yet more convincingly felt v/hen death comes to 
 put a final period to this mortal scene. . This 
 awful hour, that strips off the tinsel coverings of 
 folly,. stamps vanity on all beneath the sun, and 
 shews the insignilicance of time, and the im- 
 portance of eternity, displays peculiarly the de- 
 lights of the religion of Jesus. What can the 
 
210 The Blessedness of the Righteous, 
 
 M^orld 111 that clay offer its foolish votaries? Will 
 a party of pleasure suit the chamber of disease ? 
 or the songs of folly any more delight the ear 
 that listens with restless impatience to the strik- 
 ing hour? ^Vhat music will harmonize with dy- 
 ing groans? or what enjoyment can the brilliant 
 or brocade afrbrd, when the shroud is ready to 
 supplant them ? Will the sparkling bowl revive 
 any longer, when the parched tongue begins to 
 falter ? or beauty kindle the unhallowed fire v/heii 
 death sits ou the eye-lids, and chilling coldness 
 begins to creep over the heart ? Alas 1 too late ! 
 'Vanity of vanities, ail is vanity/ (Eccles.i. 2. J 
 IS now seen in characters too legible to be over- 
 looked. The retrospect on a life spent in pleasure, 
 hi plays, and operas, and drums, and routs, and 
 balls, and cards, and idle visitings, or those low- 
 er scenes of vanity which equally engage the 
 vulgar mind ; even these (supposing we are free 
 from the grosser pollutions of the world) will lilL 
 tlic soul with pangs of remorse and foreboding 
 fears. Then shall wx know what we have lost 
 by neglecting Jesus and the ways of righteous- 
 ness: and be made to feel, what before we would 
 not attend to, that these were not the paths of 
 real pleasure ; were miserrible comforts ; unable 
 to abide the test of a dying hour. ' Ah pleasure, 
 pleasure, (will such an one say) thou sorceress ! 
 thou destroyer of my sohI ! Ihou once smiledst 
 as with the charms of innocence, now 1 feel thee 
 *sting as a viper.' (Frov. xxiii. '59.,) 'Where 
 are thy promises of delight? Fool th.at I was to 
 believe thee ; and for the unsatisf^'ing gratifica- 
 tions of sense, to reject the real joy which Jesus, 
 tiiat neglected Saviour, offered togiveme at tliis 
 hour. Now I am comfortless ; I have trifled 
 awa\' n}y gckien sands; 1 have forgotten God, 
 ■'.m\ lie iiath fcr^saken me. How dearly l:ave I 
 
The Blessedness of the Righteous, ?11 
 
 bought my vanities? ' The pleasures of sin were 
 but^'momentary, but the pains of it are eternal.' 
 Such reflections will often arise, and close the 
 scene of vanity. And the dying hour will extort 
 those confessions of truth from the conscience, 
 in spite of the cruel kindness of friends and phy- 
 sicians, labouring to amuse and divert from these 
 racking thoughts the soul which stands upon the 
 verge of eternity. 
 
 But will riches bear that day's trial better ? 
 Ah 1 they who have ' put in the fine gold their 
 confidence,' will find that ' it profits notinaday 
 of wrath.' (Prov. xi. ^.) When death lifts his 
 arm, and, swift as lightning, his winged messen- 
 gers, disease and pain, enter the heart, vamisthe 
 hoarded treasure. See that generally esteemed 
 happy man, who trusted in riches, stretched upon 
 the bed of languishing ; his body is panting for 
 breath ; his throat is parched ; his heart flutters ; 
 his eyes grow dim ; restless he turns, and turns 
 again; sleep hath forsook his eyelids, pain tor- 
 tures him every moment, and life's silver cord is 
 loosing. What joy now can riches bring ? Sur- 
 round his dying bed with bags of gold, will they 
 alleviate the pains of the body, purchase a mo- 
 ment's respite from death, or silence the agoniz- 
 ing remonstrances of conscience? Alas I a golden 
 god is a dumb idol, neither ' able to kill nor make 
 alive,' Then, where earth and only earth hath 
 been the pursuit, what a vv retched state must it 
 needs be, to be torn from all men counted hap- 
 piness, to leave this dear world behind them for 
 ever, to go— ah, whither ? not to ' treasures laid 
 up for them in heaven,' not to the place, ' where 
 ttiey have made themselves friends of the mam- 
 mon of unrighteousness ;' but v/here that rich 
 man went, who ' lift up his eyes in torment,' {Luke 
 xvi. 23.) because in this life he had received 
 
S12 The Blessedness of the Righteous, 
 
 ** his good things, and was rich in this world, but 
 was not rich towards God." {Luke xu. 21.) 
 
 Now this is the boasted happiness of numbers ; 
 this the unutterable pleasure of dying worth so 
 many thousand pounds. O the strange stupid- 
 ity of man ! 
 
 Nor v/ill honour or esteem make our departure 
 at all more satisfactory. What will it then avail 
 you, that you have been caressed in the world 
 when you are ready to leave it ? If you have 
 made distinction your joy, how will your pride 
 be mortified when you go to the grave and mix 
 with common dust, where no crouded levee at- 
 tends you, unless the worms which cover you ? 
 
 If learning hath been your idol, you will find 
 no difference in death ; * the wise m.an dieth as 
 the fool, and then all his thoughts perish.' (Eccl. 
 ii. \6.) Nor will any of your attainments in 
 science, your skill in languages, tlie refinedness 
 of your taste, or depth of your penetration, in 
 that day profit you more than they did the great 
 Grotius, who with his dying lips is reported to 
 have complained, Heu vitamperdidi opej^ose nihil 
 agert^o ; ' I have wasted my life in incessant toil, 
 and have done nothing.' 
 
 What satisfaction will it be to you, that, after 
 you are dead, your name should be engraved in 
 the annals of fame, if it be not found ' written 
 in the Lamb's bock of life ?' All your honours 
 then will be as insignificant as the escutcheons 
 on your cotlin ; and stand you in no more stead 
 either to comfort your poor soul, or to acquit you 
 before the God * who is no respecter of persons.* 
 (Jets X. 34. J 
 
 Such thoughts perhaps may find tlieir way to 
 you at last, and cannot but produce self-condem- 
 nation and heart-rending anguish : proofs too 
 pregnant, that the ways which brought you hith* 
 
The Blessedness of the Righteous. 2 i ^ 
 
 er, though strewed with flo^vers, were neither the 
 paths oAife below, nor of hope above. 
 
 But in that awful season, when allhuman com- 
 forts fail, the ways of righteousness, that were 
 ever life and happiness, then peculiarly are en- 
 deared to us ; for ' in the path- way thereof there 
 is no death.' The living image of God,_ the real 
 christian sets like the western sun after its shin- 
 ing course, not lost in the ocean of the grave, 
 but onward moves to illumine a new horizon.— 
 His pleasures upon earth were all spiritual ; his 
 chief joy was 'a reconciled God in Christ,' ap- 
 T-.rehended by faith as his covenant God, his ev- 
 erlasting portion : ' for this God, he says, is my 
 God for ever and ever, he shall be my guide even 
 unto death.' fP^^/. xlviii. Uj What y/onder 
 then, if, when he knov/s he is hasting to his bliss- 
 ful presence, ' to see him as he is, (1 John iii. 2.) 
 face to face,' (1 Car. xiii. 12.) his heart exults 
 in the expectation ? His highest joys here on 
 earth were still imperfect; and, though infinitely 
 superior to the poor joys of sense, unspeakably 
 below what he hopes for in that kingdom, *Sy|iere 
 God hath prepared for those that love him such 
 good things as pass man's understanding.'' 
 ( 1 Cor. ii. 9.) He looks back on the past ; (for 
 the reflection is pleasing) and whilst withthank- 
 i'uhiess he traces the evidences of God's love, 
 adores the grace which he hath tasted ; disclaims 
 all merit, yet confident " in hope of the glory 
 which shall be revealed, expects eternal life the 
 gift of God in Jesus Christ," (^Rom, vi. 23.) 
 His present peaceful state amply repays all the 
 labours of a life of righteousness ; and if, instead 
 of the comforts which have followed him all the 
 days of his pilgrimage, he had never tasted ease 
 before, he would confess that the paths which 
 led him to such happiness in the pangs of death. 
 
214 The Blessedness cf the Right eous. 
 
 must needs be paths of life and peace. EtcniK y 
 now opens its unbounded prospect ; '^ tliecrowii 
 of giory, which fadeth not away," shines before 
 him. Angels surround his bed, ready to receive 
 Ills departing soul, and bear it on their wings to 
 the paradise of God. Hark! how they Miout 
 through the skies ! '^ Lift up ^ur lieads, ye 
 gates ; and be ye lift np, ye everlasting doors, 
 that tlie Heir of glory may come in ;" Jesus, 
 the God of Angels, stands ready to welcome him 
 to his bosom, and place him at his right hand 
 on a tlirone of glory. * They shall sit down 
 with me, says he, on my throne, as I am set dom^ 
 with my lather on his throne.' {Rev. iii. Q.\.) 
 Far therefore from trembling at the thouglits of 
 parting from the body, as the pleasurc-lovino-, 
 the rich, tlie esteemed of this world, who have 
 jeceived their consolation ; far from the desire 
 to stay, or casting longing, lingering looks be- 
 hind on a world he knows not how to part with ; 
 the behevingsoul stretches forth itself to heaven' 
 looks upwards and forwards with delight, nor 
 dreads the dark valley of the shadow of death ; 
 for there stand the golden gates of life and im- 
 mortality. Big with the expectations of eternal 
 glory, ravished with the foretastes of his mighty 
 bhss, the soul burns with the very fervent desire 
 It hath * to depart and be with Christ, which is 
 far better.' {Phil. i. 23.) And in a moment all 
 Its desires are accomplished ; '' Mortality i* 
 swallowed up of life." {9>Cor. v, 4.) 
 
 These are glorious and reviving truths ; not 
 the flights of fancy, but the declarations of God, 
 and witnessed to by the death of thousands, who, 
 with good old Simeon, have cried, *'Now, Lord, 
 lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, for mine 
 eyes have seen thy salvation :" {Luke W. £L9.) 
 and triumphed in the jaws of death : '' O death, 
 
The Blessedness of the Righteous, 215 
 
 where is thy sting ! O grave, where is thy vic- 
 tory !" (1 Cor, XV. 55.) 
 
 Such are the issues of the paths of righteous- 
 ness. Enough indeed to make the wicked say, 
 " Let me die the death of the righteous, and let 
 my latter end be hke his." {Numb, xxiii. 10.) 
 But we must first be found in the way of hoUness, 
 if we would partake in the comforts of it. My 
 brethren, if you approve the character as excel- 
 lent, and would enjoy this blessedness, then ^^go 
 and do Hkewise/' 
 
The Communicanfs^ Spiritual Companion. 
 
 INTRODUCTION".^ 
 
 No Ordinance more peculiarly merits the re- 
 gard of all professors of the religion of Je- 
 sus, than that which seals to them the blessings 
 of the covenant of grace. The decay of vital 
 and spiritual religion is evident in nothing more 
 than the generalneglectof these holy mysteries : 
 and a revival of it can never be hoped for, till a 
 serious concern about eternity awakens the soul 
 to enquire about the nature of the gospel salva- 
 tion, and the means of grace which lead to it : 
 to effect this, is the design of the following pages. 
 The careless professor will here find, I trust, 
 alarming notices of his danger, and calls to con- 
 sideration ; the ignorant, instruction ; the fear- 
 ful, solution of their doubts ; the sincere, assist- 
 ance ; the strong, increasing light, support aud 
 
 encouragement. 
 
 May the great Master of assemblies fix the 
 following truths deeply and abidingly in the 
 heart of tw^vy one who reads them." 
 
 CHAR I. 
 
 Of the Nature of a Sacrament, 
 
 A SACRAMENT is defined by the church, in 
 our excellent though concise Catechism, to be 
 ** the outv/ard and visible sign of an inward and 
 spiritual grace, given unto us, ordained by Christ 
 himself; as a means whereby we receive the same, 
 
The Communicanfs spiritual Companion. 2 1 7 
 
 and as a pledge to assure us thereof." In this sa- 
 crament of the Lord 'b supper, the bread and wine 
 are the outward signs, signifying that body and 
 blood of Christ which is received into the heart 
 by faith. The sign of the bread signifiesChrist's 
 broken body, the wine his blood shed for our 
 sins ; and the sign is mutual, for it represents 
 also our dependence upon and esteem of him, 
 whose body and blood under these signs we 
 spiritually partake of. 
 
 The original meaning of the word sacrament 
 signifies the oath by which the lloman soldiers 
 bound themselves to their general. Thus it is 
 our oath of allegiance, wherein we swear fidelity 
 to Jesus the captain of our salvation ; as they 
 swore that they would never desert their colours 
 in the day of battle, we also herein solemnly en- 
 gage to maintain irreconcileable war against all 
 the enemies of Christ without and within us, 
 fighting manfully under his banner against sin^ 
 tlie v/urld and the devil, and this at the peril of 
 our eternal damnation. So that whene\ er we 
 presume to come to Christ's table, without this 
 war against sin maintained in our conversation, 
 we become guilty of the body and blood of 
 Christ ; w^e incur the awful guilt of perjury; 
 and *'eat and drink our own damnation, not dis- 
 cerning the Lord's body.'' 
 
 This sacrament hath in scripture several par- 
 ticular names, which are expressive of the nature 
 and design of it. 
 
 1. The Lord's supper. It Is a spiritual repast 
 for the soul, as meat is for the body ; and as our 
 bodies are refreshed by the bread and wine, so 
 much more is the believing soul by the bo<ly and 
 blood of Christ therein shev/n forth. It is a chief 
 banquet in the family of Christ, as supper was 
 T 
 
2 1 8 The Commimkant's spiritual Companion. 
 
 among tlie ancients ; and therefore none of the 
 children should be absent, unless upon very ur- 
 gent occasions, lest they not only lose their 
 food, but incur the displeasure of their Father 
 for their neglect and irregularities. And it is 
 emphatically stiled the Lord's supper, forasmuch 
 as it was instituted by him at supper time, the 
 same n?ght in which he was betrayed, and then 
 a constant memorial of it commanded by him ; 
 ^nd herein it is so highly distinguished from all 
 common food, whether you consider the jMaster 
 of the feast the Lord of glory, or the spiritual 
 nourishment contained under these consecrated 
 elements. 
 
 2. It is called the communion of the blood of 
 Christ. It represents the intercourse there is 
 between Christ the head, and the members of 
 his body, called in the prayer after the commu- 
 nion, " the company of all faithful people." \\q 
 communicates to them herein his favour and 
 grace, his blood and righteousness ; and they 
 communicate their thanksgiving, acceptance, 
 love and gratitude : so that no persons can at all 
 partake in it, till they have a living union with 
 him, and are a part of his mystical body ; for 
 then only the nourishment and support can be 
 comnumicated to them. All who are not thus 
 united to Christ, are as branches cut off and 
 withered, and can receive no more benefit by 
 coming to the Lord's table, than a dead body 
 can from meat and drink. It is also a commu- 
 nion with the members themselves, as well as 
 'vith their head Jesus Christ, For zee being )na/ii/, 
 are Out one body ; and we eat of the same bread, 
 ..nci drink of the same cup, in token that wr de- 
 rive our Jife from one common fountain , .hat 
 we are all actuated by the same sj)irit, and have 
 as near an iiitcre.st in, and afit ctiou for one a- 
 
Of the Nature of a Sacrament, 219 
 
 nother, as the members of the same body have, 
 For xve are the body of Chins t\'' and members in 
 particular. What a strange absurdity then would 
 it be for an uncharitable soul, for one who is not 
 influenced by brotherly love, to approach Christ's 
 table, wlio would be there only as a mortified 
 limb ciit off from all living communication with 
 t;he rest, and full of putrefaction ? 
 
 3. It is called the New-Testament in Christ*^ 
 blood. Where a testament is, there must of ne- 
 cessity^ saith St. Paul, be the death of the testa- 
 tor ; for a testament or xvillis only in force after 
 men are dead. In the sacrament this testament 
 is opened : the blood of Christ, here emblemat- 
 ically poured out of his heart, shews it is valid 
 by his death : and all the legacies therein con- 
 tained are to be applied for and paid dow^n, ac- 
 cording to the purport of the will of the deceas- 
 ed ; and it is sealed with blood, as, on the ren-. 
 ovation of the old covenant on Sinai, i\Ioses 
 sprinkled the blood of calves and goats with scar- 
 let wool and hyssop on the book of the law, sig- 
 nifying thereby the sealing of the covenant ; so 
 here God condescends by this continual sign to 
 seal to us visibly^ for the assistance of our faith, 
 all the blessings of the covenant of grace in 
 < Christ Jesus, Assuring us by such an ordinance 
 of his own appointment, that this shall be, as the 
 rainbow in the clouds, the sure sign to us that 
 no deluge of wrath shall ever again sweep away 
 tliose who come to him by Jesus Christ. 
 
 The design then of the Lord's supper may be 
 partly seen from these names, and is full3^ ex- 
 pressed in one of our answers in the catechism ; 
 It was ordained ''for the continual remembrance 
 of the sacrifice of the death of Christ, and of the 
 benefits which we receive thereby." To both of 
 which points I shall speak a little. 
 
220 The Communkanf s spiritual Co7iipanio7i. 
 
 1. It was ordained *^for the continual remem- 
 brance of the s. 'vifice of the death of Christ." 
 Here we are taught to look upon himashleeding 
 for us upon the accursed tree. Here the Lamb 
 of God, as if he had been newly slain, is in the 
 ordinance set forth as crucified among us. Here 
 the broken bread represents his mangled body, 
 torn with scourgings and buffetings, pierced by 
 the thorns, the nails and the spear. Here we may 
 see his agonies, remember his mockery, reproach, 
 insults, and all the complicated miseries, which 
 made his sufferings the most afflictive that ever 
 earth beheld ; Behold and see, all ye that pass 
 by, zvas there any sorroxo like unto his sorrow ! 
 Here also we see his blood gushing as from his 
 side, when the soldier's spear entered his heart, 
 and forthwith came thereout blood and water. 
 This his bitter death mc are to remember ; and 
 that it was a sacrifice for our sins. As under the 
 law, the sinner laid his hand upon the victim's 
 head, in token of transferring the guilt of all his 
 sins upon him ; so here we must especially remem- 
 ber that the transaction before us is sacrificial 
 and vicarious. That Christ gave himself an of- 
 fering for sin, made himself a curse for us, as it 
 is ^\'ritten, Cursed is every one that hangeth oji 
 a tree ; so that we are to look upon him herein 
 as " taking away sin by the sacrifice of himself, " 
 and bearing the burden of your and my iniquities 
 in particular. And in this sacrifice of the death 
 of Christ m.any things are represented to us, as 
 included in the transaction, and which we are 
 called at the same time to remember. Such as, 
 
 1. The great love of Christ towards us sinners. 
 AVas ever love indeed like his ? well may it be 
 called love which passeth knozvledge. Angels are 
 lost in wonder, whilst they look into the mystery 
 of redeeming love; and how then should M'e, to 
 
Of the Ncifure of a Sacrament. 221 
 
 XV'liom this love is shewn, he astonished whilst we 
 are called to partake of it ? He died not for an- 
 gels, but for men ; and when ? was it when we 
 "were faithful, affectionate and obedient, that we 
 gained his heart to such an expensive manifest- 
 ation of his love ? no ; when xce xvere enemies by 
 'ivicked Ziwrks, when we were without strength 
 or power to love or obey him, even then, i)i due 
 time did Christ die for the ungodly ; in us there 
 was nothing but misery, Ave were lost in sin, 
 wilfully lost by our disobedience, without power 
 or inclination to seek for any favour at God's 
 hands : and he wanted not our services, his glo- 
 ry would have been unsullied, if he had given 
 us up to the fruit of our folly, and left us to our 
 deserved ruin ; neither can he receive an}- ad- 
 dition to his happiness by us, who is in himself 
 all-sufficient, and in his nature infinitely happy, 
 exalted above all blessing and praise. But, freely 
 moved by the mere benignity of his heart, and 
 out of pure compassion to us, Jesus ofiered to 
 stand in*our stead; and since to save us, he must 
 be made man, his love stooped to every mean- 
 ness of our condition, to the form of a servant, 
 to the death of a slave. Love brought him dowa 
 from the throne of glory, love clothed him with 
 a body like our own, love urged him on through 
 all the painful steps of his afflicted life ; the 
 waters of trouble v/ere never able to quench it, 
 nor the floods of persecution to drown it. Love 
 put the cup of trembling into his hand, love bid 
 him drink the last drop of all its dregs ; For 
 having loved his oxvn, he loved them unto the 
 end ; his love abode till he cried, // is finished; 
 when, having sealed with blood the sure and 
 well ordered covenant, his soul was dismissed, 
 ^nd he went to begin his triumphs over deatljr^ 
 T2 
 
222 The Communicant's spiritual Companion, 
 
 hell and the grave ; and when he arose again-, 
 love was his iirst expression, Go to my brethren 
 and sai), I ascend to my Father and your Father. 
 Love carried him to the right hand of God, and 
 there he is this moment shewing forth the un- 
 changeahleness of his affection, hy ever living 
 to make intercession Jhr us, and pleading before 
 the throne the marks of love so deeply engraven 
 in his hands and in his side. And when can ^vc 
 then be called so feelingly to remember this love, 
 as at an ordinance, where all its glory is made to 
 pass before us ? 
 
 2. AVe are here to call to mind the great evil 
 of sin. Never was it seen in such glaring colours, 
 as when it was written in a Saviour's sweat, and 
 tears and blood. Here sin indeed appears ex- 
 ceeding sinful Its horrid nature and deep ma- 
 li'gnity are seen throughout the whole transac- 
 tion, beyond what all the miseries which ever at- 
 tended it before could possibly lead us to con- 
 ceive. The cries of infants, the pains of sickness, 
 tiie groans of wretchedness, the agoni^ of the 
 expiring, and all the awful horrors of death, serve 
 in some measuie to tell us what an evil and bitter 
 thing sin is, mIucIi could have occasioned such 
 dire effects ; and yet one glance at the glass of 
 the sufferings of Jesus, Vvill reflect the horrid ini- 
 aoe of sin, in colours infinitely darker and deeper. 
 There we see it black indeed, when an incarnate 
 God ao'onizes under its load, m hen horror and 
 darkness tilled his soul with intolerable anguish, 
 and pain tortured his body till the sweat, as great 
 drops of blood, fell down to tlie ground. Was 
 iliis for sin ? yes, brethren, it was sin which juade 
 lesus exceeding sorrowful even unto death ; it 
 was sin made hmi sore amazed and very heavy ; 
 it was sin which extorted fromliim that piercing 
 crv, My Godj my Godj xvhy hubt thou forsaken \ 
 
Of the Nature of a Sacrament, 223 
 
 me ? Behold and tremble then, ^vhilst you look 
 upon this awful sight. Look in, and let these 
 sufferings cast a light upon your vile hearts; and 
 learn tolotheandabhoryourselvesandsin, whilst 
 liere you are taught to see its inexpressibly a- 
 bominable nature. 
 
 3. Herein remember also the inexorable justice 
 of God. Though love w^ould pardon, yet must 
 it be in a way wherein justice should be satisfied. 
 Sin required an expiation equivalent to its high 
 demerit ; neither earth nor heaven afforded any 
 such ; / looked and there zvas none to help. Jus- 
 tice demanded righteous judgment, such as had 
 been poured upon rebel angels cast down into 
 hell on their first transgression ; the thunderbolt 
 of wrath was lifted up to smite us sinners to the 
 lowTst pic ; Jesus steps between, and cries, Stay 
 them from going down to the pit, I have found 
 a ransom ; receives the deadly shafts in his own 
 body on the tree, and manifests the justice of 
 God more gloriously than could have been done 
 by the destruction of the whole hunmn race. — 
 For who is this } This is Jesus the Son of God, 
 the brightness of his glory, the e.vpress image of 
 his person ; this is the Lather's equal, the man 
 that is his felloiv ; this is the eternal God, come 
 to expiate his creatures' crimes. Satisfaction 
 was demanded ; he offers to pay, to overpay ev- 
 ery demand. The price agreed, the judge exe- 
 cutes his claim, Aivake my szvord, he cries, agai?2st 
 the shepherd ; the sword awoke to smite to the 
 uttermost, and take full vengeance for the sins 
 of a fallen world. It pleased the Lord to put 
 him to grief; he laid upon him the iniquities of 
 us all ; and \\ hat would have utterly crushed us 
 into hell, bruised to death the only Son of God. 
 Behold the severity of God, He spared not his 
 oicu Son ; see iieiciu what a liuirjng sword justice 
 
i::;U Th e Comm un icanfs spii^itual Companion. 
 
 holds, and liow it is honoured by such a sacriiice ; 
 see from hence what a fearful thing it is to fall 
 into the hands of the living God ; and in tliis 
 ordinance learn to tremble whilst you see nothing 
 but the blood of God himself capable of expiat- 
 ing your guilt, and satisfying the demands of his 
 own inexorable law, 
 
 4. This sacrifice calls upon you to remember 
 the conquest made by it. YoUj a child of wrath, 
 an heir of hell, a slave of Satan, here see your 
 liberty proclaimed, your tyrant destroyed, your 
 misery done away. A dying Jesus on the ac- 
 cursed tree comjuers for you ; death, hell and 
 sin, fall before him. Strong in weakness, he tri- 
 iimphed on the cross, spoiling the principalities 
 and poxvers of darkness, and making a shew of 
 them openly. By death he destroyed him that 
 had the power of death, that is the devil : as a 
 sweet singer of Israel expresses it : 
 
 ** And when I bled, and groan'd and dy'd, 
 
 " I ruin'd Satan's tlironc ; 
 ^* High on my cross I hung, and spy'd 
 
 " The monster tumbling down." 
 
 Thus he hath vanquished all our enemies for us, 
 hath bound Satan from hurting us, plucked out 
 the sting of death, and scaled up the bottomless 
 pit. Jlis death is our life, his fall our victory, 
 his cross our triumph ; well then may we glory 
 in it, and determine to know notlhng else but 
 Jesus, and him crucified, since hereby we become 
 3nore than conquerors, and are enabled daily to 
 tread down Satan under our feet. And in this 
 ordinance, peculiarly designed to strengthen otir 
 souls, this glorious victory should never be for- 
 gotten, no less for the honour of Jesus, than the 
 comfort to be derived from it to our own souls. 
 
 5, It siiould always remind us of his coming 
 
Of the Nature of a Sacrament, 225 
 
 again. It is as the pledge of our friend, put in- 
 to our hands to remember him in his absence, 
 and to assure us he intends us another visit. This 
 is to be a continual remembrance, to shew forth 
 the Lord's death till he come. Though he is 
 gone to heaven now, yet he hath promised us he 
 will return, and take his humble followers home 
 with him ; I go^ says he, to prepare a mansion 
 for y OIL When we see him present with us ia 
 the symbols of bread and wine, we should think 
 how quickly we shall see the sign of the Son of 
 Man in the clouds ; how soon we shall in our 
 flesh see God, and with our eyes behold him, 
 even that very body which the nails tore, and 
 the spear pierced ; shall see him, but now bright- 
 er than the sun when it shineth in its strength, 
 coming in the clouds of heaven with power and 
 great glory, accompanied by hosts of heaven 
 which no man can number ; coming to be glori- 
 fed in his saints^ and to be admired of all that 
 believe. And this will be a remembrance most, 
 comforting to those, who, by the present ordi- 
 nance sealing to them all the promises of God, 
 are assured that when he shall appear, then shall 
 they also appear xvith him in glory. 
 
 Such are the views which are included under 
 the remembrance of the sacrifice of the death of 
 Christ ; which leads, 
 
 2. To the consideration of the benefits we re- 
 ceive thereby. These are great and manifold. 
 In general, Jesus Christ makes over his whole self 
 to every believer, and therewith all the blessings 
 of grace and glory, which by his obedience unto 
 death he hath purchased for us. God, in giving 
 us his Son, doth also ivith him freely give us all 
 things ; and of these the following are the most 
 remarkable. 
 
 L The pardon of sin. This is the first and 
 
226 The Communica7ifs spiritual Companion, 
 
 grand purchase of the sacrifice of Christ ; his 
 blood was shed for the remission of sins. Sin 
 made the great breach between God and us ; its 
 guilt condemned, whilst its power enslaved us ; 
 Me lay under a curse, v/liich we could neither 
 remove nor endure : but Christ, by his under- 
 taking for us, hath opened to us a door of hop:', 
 a way in which God is righteous and Just to for- 
 give us OUT* sins, and to cleanse us from all un- 
 righteousness ; whilst he accepts our surety, and 
 exacts from him the immense debts with which 
 we stood chargeable. 
 
 In the gospel the glad tidings of free salvation 
 are brought to us, and we are called to embrace 
 them ; and here, for the confirmation of our 
 faith, God condescends to put his seal to his 
 covenant of grace, ratifying to us the purchased 
 pardon, and assuring us thereby, that he will be 
 TnejX'iJul to our unrighteousness^ and will remem- 
 ber our sins and iniquities no more ; and we tes- 
 tify our consent and hearty desire of its accom- 
 plishment, by coming to receive the free gift of 
 God in Jesus Christ, and casting our souls upon 
 the promise. How high the gift ! how great tlie 
 benefit ! pardon of sin ! a free pardon, without 
 money and without price; a pardon for the chief 
 of sinners, for a world of sinners ; though dearly 
 purchased by Christ, freely given to us ; a par- 
 don that silences condemnation, removes fear, 
 begets boldness. Doth the law accuse ? we point 
 to this sacrifice, and say, There is my satisfac- 
 tion. Doth conscience tremble ? looking to 
 Jesus how can we fear ? Are we weighed down 
 with our guilt peculiarly heavy, bound as under 
 an epah of lead, or lying under a burthen as the 
 sand of the sea ; this blood cleanseth from all 
 sin, unbinds every heavy burden, sets the prisoner 
 free, sends him forth from the pit of sin and 
 
Of the Nature of a Sacrament 227 
 
 doath, to partake in the glorious liberty wlierc- 
 with Christ hath made us free. Come then, ye 
 guilty sinners, whose black crimes cover you with 
 confusion ; come, ye leprous souls, who want to 
 wash and be clean ; come, ye burdened consci- 
 ences, and lay down your load at the foot of the 
 cross of Jesus Christ. He hath purchased all 
 your want, and invites you to come and take of 
 the water of life freely, to wash your crimson 
 sins away in the fountain of his blood, and to be 
 restored to the full enjoyment of God's favour, 
 just as if you had never sinned. Here is a par- 
 don for you, written in blood, and sealed in blood, 
 confirmed by the word and oath of God, that Z>j/ 
 twG immutable things^ in xvhich it is impossible 
 for God to licy zve flight have a strQ7ig consola- 
 tion, xvho have Jied for refuge to the hope set be- 
 fere us. 
 
 ^. Adoption cf children is another benefit of 
 Christ's passion. We who were aliens from the 
 commonwealrh of Israel, and strangers to the 
 promises, are brought nigh through tue blood of 
 Christ, and made lellow-citizens with, the saints, 
 and of tiie houshoid of God. His obedience to 
 death not only removes guilt, but confers favour 
 upon us. AV^e are hereby reinstated in all the 
 forfeited rights of children, which by our fall we 
 had lost, and receive the adoption of sons, as well 
 as are delivered from the curse of the law. In 
 this ordinance God the Father promises to be a 
 father to all those who come unto him by Jesus 
 Christ ; that he will give them a place in his 
 family upon earth, and an inheritance among the 
 joint-heirs with Christ in heaven. Tliat he will 
 take greater care of them than the most tender 
 parent, and love them with an everlasting love. 
 He gives them this pledge, as the father gave 
 the prodigal son the ring, whereby they ajre seal- 
 
228 The Communicanfs spiritual Co77ipanion. 
 
 eel to the day, of redemption ; and withal slieds- 
 abroad in their hearts his love begetting theirs : 
 because we are sonSy God hath sent forth the 
 SjJrit of his Son into our hearts, xvhereby xve cry 
 Abba, Father. Thus the children, coming to 
 their Father at thetable where their elder brother 
 hath provided a feast of love for them, receive 
 increase in every filial temper and disposition, 
 and grow up into him in all things, who is their 
 head, even Christ. Here then behold the pre- 
 cious purchase of a Saviour's blood ; that we, 
 the heirs of wrath and children of darkness, that 
 "we, dust of the earth, vile as men, abominable as 
 sinners, that we, aliens and enemies in our minds 
 by wicked works, should be brought nigh, not 
 merely permitted, as the prodigal asked, to be 
 put among the hired servants, but robed in the 
 Saviour's righteousness, placed among his chil- 
 dren, seated at his table, blessed with his favour, 
 partakers of the provisions of his house below, 
 and looking ioxan iyiheritance incorruptible and 
 undejiltd^ xvhichjadeth not axcay, reserved for us 
 in heaven. Well may M^e cry out with astonish- 
 ment, Beholdy what manner of love is this which 
 the Father hath bestoxvedupon us, that xve should 
 be called the sons of God I 
 
 3. Another benefit is the consolation and joy 
 -which are herein dispensed. To rejoice in Christ 
 Jesus, to have peace with God through faith, to 
 be filled with comfort and joy of the Holy Ghost, 
 in the present earnest and sure prospects of glory 
 to come, is in a peculiar measure the casein this 
 ordinance, where all things visibly tend to beget 
 confidence in God. Here we often get Pisgah- 
 views of tlie promised land ; here the mourning 
 saint finds joy, the we^y rest, the dejected en- 
 couragement, the strong increasing confidence; 
 here the spirit of faith applies the atonement, 
 
Of the Nature of a Sacramtnf, €29 
 
 Tiiid the sense of reconciliation often fills our souls 
 %vith joy unspeakable and full of glory, and Christ 
 intends his people should comfort themselves, 
 should abound in all spiritual joy, and come as 
 to a feast where gladness is sown for the upright 
 in heart. Here we should dry our tears, at least 
 if they fall, they should be tears of joy ; we should 
 put on the garment of praise for the spirit of 
 heaviness, and not sit mournfully before the Lord 
 of hosts, nor cloud the joy of the festivity with 
 sorrow on our brow, unless such a sorrow as St. 
 Paul mentions, As sorroxvjicL yet alxcays rejoic- 
 ing. A\'hilst thou mourning for our sins, we be- 
 lieve the greatness of the gift herein bestowxcl 
 on us ; and the Spirit witnesses with our spirit 
 to the work he hath wrought in us, and gives us 
 a present taste of our inheritance, before we are 
 actually put in possession of the purchased glo- 
 ry in heaven. 
 
 What a delightful ordinance 1 How many 
 thousands of real christians have experienced the 
 comforts of it, and daily continue to do so ?-^ 
 Real christians! I say not mere ceremonial visit- 
 ors : they feel, taste and handle nothing of the 
 word of life ; the bread and wine are to them 
 barren elements, dry breasts which afford no con- 
 solation ; but the soul vitally united to Christ 
 can say, I sal under his shadmv xvitk great de- 
 light. He brought we to his banfjuetiug house^ 
 and his banner over me xcas tore. He tastes the 
 joy therein dispensed, and goes away rejoicing 
 because he hath seen the Lord. 
 
 4. In this ordinance also there i% a xvqq distri- 
 bution according to ^vcvy man's necessities of 
 strength and power from Jesus Christ, for all the 
 n'ork a christian is called to ; it is one instituted 
 means of conveying* to beiievcrs the supplier of 
 
^50 The Co77inumica?ifs spiritual Companion. 
 
 the spirit for their wilderness-state, both to sub- 
 due their corruptions, and strengtlien their graces. 
 Here we draw water out of the wells of salvation^ 
 ^nd, like Elijah traveling to the mount of Iloreb, 
 receive from time to time our provision, in the 
 refreshnient of which we may hold on our way, 
 and wax stron<2fer and stronger, till we come to 
 tlie heavenly Horeb, the mount Zion, the Jeru- 
 raleni wliich is above. If our corruptions are 
 strong, here is grace to moitify them ; here we 
 are taught and do receive humility to supplant 
 pride, heavenly-minxledness instead of worldiiness 
 iind purity instcitd of pollution. The example 
 before us, as well as tl^e grace ministered power- 
 luily calls upon us to learn of him to be meek 
 and lowly of heart ; not to be of the world, even 
 iis he was not of the world; to walk in holiness^ 
 ^s he also walked. Are our graces all feeble and 
 weak ? where shall we blow the smoaking flax 
 into a flame, if not here, where every thing con- 
 spires to confirm our faith, to enliven our hopes, 
 to kindle our warmest affections, to enlarge our 
 charity, to inspire our zeal, to teach us meekness, 
 to quicken aur languor, to encourage our per- 
 severance, to excite our thankfulness ; in short, 
 to work in us every divine temper and dispo- 
 sition ? This blcssocl ordinance is designed to 
 strengthen us mightily in the inner man, to sup- 
 port us under all tliscouragements without, and 
 tears within, that we might goon from strength 
 to strength, from grace to grace, till wecom.eto 
 the blessed place where we shall go from glory 
 to glory. 
 
 Here the^n aj*e great and glorious pi ivileges 
 (Obtained by the precious blood of tiieSon ofCiod, 
 ;in(.l Mc are called u[>on to cojne and partake in 
 all of them ; and what excuse can we malvc ? Vio 
 uot we wafi.t a pardon/ is adoption a dcspicnbic 
 
Of tJie Nature of a Sacrament. ^5t 
 
 blessing ? is spiritual joy an insipid pleasure ? 
 or the gift of CrocPs Spirit an unnecessary assist- 
 ance? NV'hy then do so many slight the ordinane(i 
 of the Lord, and neglect this great salvation? 
 Do you disclaim any relation to Jesus Christy 
 and renounce his religion, tlKit you decline mak- 
 ing this profession, and have no desires after the- 
 benefits of his death and jxission ? Surely they 
 who never think of rcHiemberins;' the Lord's death 
 till he come, will be most unprepared to meet 
 him on a dying bed, or in a day of judgment. — • 
 I beseech you to consider this, you tliat forget 
 God, lest, by your slight of him, he be provoked 
 to give you up to your own inventions, and you 
 die in your sins, neither sprinkled with his blood,, 
 nor clothed with his righteousness, uor partakers 
 of his Spirit : be assured, they who forget 
 Christ now, will be disowned hy him iii the day 
 of liis appearing and glory. 
 
 CHAR IL 
 An Invitation to the Communion* 
 
 WHEN in the parable t lie table for the mar- 
 rtge-feast was sptead, the oxen and fatlings kil- 
 led, the servants in waiting, the royal bride- 
 groom seated, a message was sent to hasten the 
 guests, Come now, for all things are ready. 
 \V^ith this message, brethren, am 1 sent to every 
 one of you, beseechkig and intreating you for 
 Chrisl's sake, that ye would be reconciled to- 
 God, and as a token .thereof to come unto the 
 marriage-supper of the Lamb. 13ut as their 
 message of old was rejected, so too frequently 
 is ours. The most of you agree with one con- 
 sent to excuse yourselves, the farms and the 
 uierchandise, the cares and pleasures of tiiisditJa' 
 
£32 The Conmnnucanfs spiritual Cowpanioji, 
 
 sio engross your time, that you have neither in- 
 eliiiation nor leisure to attend the call ; and of 
 those who do- come, how many forget the wed- 
 ding garment, and tlirust themselves iu unwel- 
 come guests^ who, after having eatcu and drank 
 in Christ's presence, will be bound hand and 
 foot, and cast into outer darkness, where b 
 v/eeping and wailing, and gnashing of teeth. 
 To the one and to the othefof these, I will ad- 
 ih-ess the following words, before I enter upon 
 the consideration of the temper necessary for 
 the profitable partaking of the Lord's Supper. 
 And here I intend to shew vou, 
 
 I. I'lie great danger of neglecting this ordin- 
 ance. 
 
 II. The 2:reat oujlt of comino- to it unworth- 
 dy. 
 
 1. The great danger of neglecting this ordin- 
 ance. And this will appear, 
 
 1. If we consider it as the breach of the ex- 
 press commandment of Jesus Christ. It was 
 junong his last words the night, before he was 
 betrayed, that his disciples should do this in re- 
 ■manljrance of hinu The words of a friend are 
 always dear, but his dying words especially apt 
 to dwell upon the mind; and to neglect his last 
 commands would be then a sure mark of having 
 no friendship for him. Now this is evidently 
 the case with those who wait not upon the Lord 
 at his table to remember his death till he come. 
 'J'hey confess that they have no friendshij) for 
 hij]i, by their disobedience to the things A\hich 
 he hath commanded thfc:m. They live in the 
 allowed neglect of a positive precept, and there- 
 i)y bring down upon themselves the reward of 
 transgressors, who ha\e despised his counsels. 
 And diat you may see it is no sn^iall offence this, 
 I wish you to observe the heavy wrath of God 
 
An Invitation to the Cbnununioit. 2!J3 
 
 denounced against those wlio neglected to cele- 
 brate the passover (to wliich- our communion 
 answers, representing, to us a deHverance from 
 sin and hell, intinitelj gi'cater than that from 
 Ilg} ptian bondage) that soul- xcas to be cut off 
 from his people. Now if they xvho despised 
 Moses' law died xvithout )7xrcj/, of how muck 
 S07^er punishment suppose ye shall zee be thought 
 worthy, ifxce7iegkct so great salvation ? Care- 
 less sinners, who turn their backs on the Lord's 
 table, think little of the guilt this adds to their 
 state, and how severely every such neglected 
 opportunity will be answered for, when this Je- 
 sus shall come tO' execute judgment on all thtj 
 despisers of his nan>c and or<Hnanccs; 
 
 2. The great dangei* of neglect herein is evi- 
 dent, in that by socloing we continue dead in 
 trespasses and sins, E.vcept^ says Christ himself, 
 ye eat the flesh of the Sonqf nian, and drink his 
 bloody ye have no life in you. JVhoso eateth 
 my fleshy and drinketh my blood, hxith< eternal 
 life^ and I xvill raise him up at th^ lust day. 
 NoNV thoug'^h this prhnarily refers to the recep- 
 tion of the gospel^ and doth not exclude those 
 from eteimal life^ v/ho,- liaving received the gos- 
 pel, are v/aiting open God, with a purpose of 
 iieart of soon devoting:, their- souls to him in this 
 solemn ordinance ; it evidently excludes all those, 
 who have neither received Christ into their 
 liearts by faith^ nor- desire to be partakers of the 
 seals of his cov^enant ; it is not possible for such 
 to have any spiritual life in them ; they are dead 
 in trespasses-^and sins ; and-they declare hereby 
 their abiding indisposition forj anddisinclinatiou 
 to all the exercises of a spiritual life. The soul 
 whom Christ^ hath quickened, delights to be 
 niaintainingxlailv communion with him, to wait 
 
234- The Cammimkanfs spiritual Companmi. 
 
 in his house, and at his tabic, whenever he hath 
 opportunity ; but you have no such desires, no 
 such disposition, because you have cliosen death 
 rather than hfe, and are daily pursuing' a course, 
 the end of wliich must be everlasting destruc- 
 tion. Ask yourselt this plain question, Why 
 do not I come to the communion ? and what 
 can you answer, but that I am living in the pur- 
 suit of iniquities, M'hich I have no inclination 
 to forsake j and what is this but a plain ac- 
 knowledgment of the dreadful misery in which 
 you are lying every day, liable to the wrath of 
 (iod, and assuredly ready to receive it, if you 
 die as you live, without a new birth, from the-- 
 death of sin, unto the life of rigliteousncss. 
 
 3. The dano-er of nciilectino- the Jj>rd's table 
 J3 evident, as it includes the renunciation of our 
 covenant uith God. There are but two sorts 
 of people in the world, believers and luibelicv- 
 ers ; tliose who are within the covenant, and 
 tiio.se who arc out of it. AVhen we were infants, 
 the charitable act done for us in baptism, and 
 \\\Q conditional engagement then entered into, 
 ^\i\\ profit us notliing, unless we are putting in 
 our ownclaim to the blessings then promised; and 
 by partaking in the other sacrament, when Me 
 are come to the \ ears of discretion, declare we 
 tjjankfully embrace the covenant of grace, and 
 receive the signs and seals thereof, in token both 
 of our dependence upon Christ, and renewed 
 ijedication to him : where this is not done, we 
 dpny in fact our ba})tismal engagements, break 
 the covenant we have entered into, and declare 
 f»i:r disavowal of all the promises then made for 
 us. Hence we can claim nothing under it, and 
 arc left, though we may be professing members 
 of Christ outwardly, aliens from the conniwn-- 
 "ireaUli of Israel, and straf!;2;crs io chc proiniscs ; 
 
An Invitation to the Communion. 235 
 
 xvlthout Christy xvithout God, without the cove- 
 nant, ancl consequently xvitJiout hope, withput 
 grace, and without heaven. 
 
 4. The great danger of neglecting it is evi- 
 dent from the great wrath and indignation God 
 hath revealed against the dcspisers.of his cove- 
 nant. It is said in Romans i. 1 8. That the xvrath 
 of God is revealed from heaven against all un- 
 godliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold 
 the truth in unrighteousness. Here tlien you 
 may read your own condemnation ; who of you, 
 that is come to years of discretion, doth not 
 know the great duty lying upon you to remem- 
 hcr the death of Christ : Do not you condemn 
 others that live in neglect of the Lord's supper, 
 and what is tliis but condemning yourself ? You 
 ha\ e excuses, I know, but I warn you there will 
 none of them be taken in the day of judgment; 
 and your own consciences will tell you so, if 
 you v,'ill but give them time to speak. You 
 know your breaking the commands of God is 
 what nothing can excuse, and therefore you may 
 be fully assured that the wrath of God lieth up- 
 on you. O that from each of these considera- 
 tions, I knevv how to reach your hearts with such an 
 awful, with such a tender expostulation, as might 
 at once alarm and constrain you ; and what ur- 
 gent cause have I to speak whilst I see the 
 (headful neglect of many of you who never 
 come, and oi' others who come so seldom, that 
 the same coudcm nation lieth at their door. Are 
 all such flagiant transgressors ? Are all such dead 
 in trespasses and sins ? Are all such out of the 
 clnucb of God ? Are all such under the wrath 
 of God ? In what a fearful state then, brethren, 
 aie the most of you hving r In what an ungrate- 
 ful stL.te, wliere you make Christ's blood to be 
 shed in. vain for you ? Have you no sensibility 
 
256 The Communicanfs spiritual Companion. 
 
 of the amazing love of Jesus, of him ♦who lir- 
 ed, who bled, who groaned, who wept, who suf- 
 fered, who died for you ? Hath he undergone so 
 many things for you in vain ? And surely it is 
 as yet in vain : for do not you slight all his 
 mercies, despise his salvation, count the blood 
 of the covenant an unholy thing, and do des- 
 pite to the spirit of grace, whilst you quench all 
 his strivings ? But if love will not move, at 
 least let fear dismay you ; consider what it is to 
 be an outcast of heaven, to be a stranger to 
 God's covenant, to be an enemy to Christ, to be 
 marked out for the divine ven2:eance, to be with- 
 out a Saviour in the day of judgment, to be ex- 
 posed to the storms of eternal wrath, to be ban- 
 ished from God's presence, to be cast into hcH, 
 and have your portion with unbelievers ; yet all 
 this, fearful and tremendous as it is, lieth against 
 your soul. Thou, even thou art the man. Not 
 having communion with Christ, you are as a 
 branch dried up and withered, which men gath- 
 er and cast into the lire, and they are burned. 
 I beseech you, brethren, by the mercies of God,- 
 to consider these awful truths, and begin to ex^- 
 amine your souls, lest, with the thousands that 
 have gone before you, you should perish aft(ri 
 the same example of unbelief 
 
 Wut I mean not herein that, with all your siiis^ 
 and carelessness about you, you should approach 
 the sacred place where Christ spreads his tabic. 
 No. There is a serious inquiry necessary beforti 
 you presume to cat of that bread and drink of 
 that cupy which too many rasbly and unadvised- 
 ly thrust themselves to partake of, who have no 
 dis.cernment of the Lord's body. This there- 
 fore, 
 
 11. I address to you who come not, and aH 
 others Mho come withau undue disposition, that 
 
All Invitation to the Communion. £37 
 
 tliey consider the aggravated guilt of '' eating 
 and drinking their own damnation, not discern- 
 ing the Lord's bod3\" A fearful and a common 
 case. 2o discern the Lord^s body, seems to be 
 a phrase taken from the use of the senses in bod- 
 ily objects ; as the eye discerns a prospect, the 
 palate discerns its food, and the hand discerns 
 what it handles ; such spiritual discernment 
 must the soul have of Jesus Christ in this ord-. 
 inance, it must see him by the eye of faith, it 
 must verily and indeed receive him as actually 
 to nourish the soul, as the bread and wine to 
 strengthen and refresh the body ; it must so. 
 handle the xvord of life, as to apply the blood of 
 Christ, and his saving benefits. All which ne- 
 cessary presupposes a new life, a living principle 
 implanted in the soul, a resurrection from the 
 death of sin, and a desire of growth in grace ; 
 concerning which I shall speak more particular- 
 ly in the next chapter, only from hence it may 
 be easily apprehended. 
 
 1. Who they are that, " not discerning the 
 Lord's Body," eat and drink unworthily. 
 
 2. What^^is meant by " eating and drinking 
 their own damnation." 
 
 1. Who they are that do not discern the. 
 Lord's Body, and eat and drink unworthily : And 
 here I beg your serious attention ; the matter is 
 deeply interesting to you. I suppose our eter- 
 nal salvation is in nothing more nearly concern- 
 ed, than in a right approach to the Lord's table, 
 and therefore the following persons cannot pos- 
 sibly have any call to appear there. 
 
 (i.) Such as are without the knowledge of 
 Christ, the nature of his salvation, their owa 
 wants, or the benefits they are to expects As 
 our food does not profit us, when we have no 
 appetite oi digestion; so where knowledge is 
 
^8 The Communicn7ifs spiritual Covipanion. 
 
 wanting, the sacrament is mere bread' and wine, 
 and can in no wise minister to the soul strength 
 or refreshment. Indeed, how is it possible they 
 should remember Christ to any saving purpose, 
 who are unacquainted with his nature as Cod 
 and ^lan in mysterious union ; with his olhccs, 
 as a Prophet to teach, a Priest to atone and in- 
 tercede for, a King to protect and rule over and 
 in his people; and who have not so learned Christ 
 out of the scriptures, as to know why he saves, 
 or how he saves ? Here ignorance is a total bar ; 
 it is the darkness which cannot comprehend him. 
 And the case is the same where the nature of his 
 salvation is mistaken ; when any come to the 
 Lord's table, without seeing the intire freedom 
 of the salvation ; when they bring their works 
 and good life to make ihem accepted, instead of 
 laying down their sins at the foot of his cross ; 
 when they lean either in whole or in part upon 
 their own righteousness, instead of seeing him 
 to be their alone righteousness before God ; when 
 they think the doing their duty is to save them, 
 instead of renouncing that, as well as every thing 
 else, to plead only Christ's merit before God. 
 then spiritual discernment must needs be want- 
 ing. Again, when there is no knowledge of our 
 own sinfulness, when we are ignorant of the mis- 
 eries of our state by nature, and feel no burden 
 under its present corruption ; when we have no 
 sense of the perversencss of our hearts, and the 
 guiltiness of our lives ; when we have never felt 
 the desert of sin in the consciousness we have 
 provoked God to cast us into hell ; what should 
 such do at a table, where a Saviour only stands 
 for sinners' sakes ? Or, in line, if there be no 
 knowledge nor expectation of the beneMts pro- 
 cured by Christ, no desire of pardon, adoption, 
 grace, or consolation, it is impossible we would 
 
An Invitation to the Communion, 23^ 
 
 iiavc spiritual discernment, which consists in the 
 apprehension and application of these to the 
 soul. Jiow stands your knowledge then ? what 
 know yo'u of Christ? what of his salvation ? what 
 of your sins ? what of the benefits you are to ex- 
 pect ? are these dark and unknown ? is your un- 
 derstanding blind and ignorant? then you are 
 certainly unfit to come to his table, and are in 
 •the nature of things excluded from all the bless- 
 ings of the communion ; for the sacraments do 
 not of themselves work necessarily, but only ac- 
 cording to our discernment, according to the 
 exercise of our spiritual senses. 
 
 (2.) Those are evidently excluded from the 
 Lord's table, who live in any known sin, or the 
 allowed aixl habitual neglect of any known duty. 
 It were a horrid insult on the blessed Jesus, to 
 come with a conscience still defiled, or with hands 
 still uuwashen from oai* iniquities, to touch his 
 eacred sacramental body ; and therefore all whc/ 
 live in tiie open breach of his commandments, 
 should be uttei'ly cast out. And it were much 
 to be wished the ancient discipline were restored, 
 and all scandalous sinners cut off visibly, as they 
 are spiritually from the communion of Christ. 
 Our church addresses, in her exhortation, a most 
 solemn admonition by name to all such : '^ There- 
 fore if any of you be a blasphemer of God, (pro- 
 fane in any measure in your conversation) aa 
 hindcrer or slanderer o^ his word, an adulterer, 
 or be in malice, envy, or any other grievous 
 crime, (such as drunkenness^ or sabbath-break- 
 ing, and the like) repent, or come not, lest the 
 devil enter into you, as he did into Judas, and 
 iill you full of all iniquities." A wise admo- 
 liition indeed ! for uhat communion hath light 
 tuith darkness, or Christ with Belial? And how 
 can it ever be supposed that God would have res* 
 
•240 The Communicanfs spiritual Companion, 
 
 pect to any offering, -when he sees our hearts 
 going a whoring from him, after the abominable 
 thing which he hates? If you can see in your 
 soul that there is one allowed sin, wliich you are 
 unwilling to part with, and for which your con- 
 science condemns you, be assured that God is 
 greater than your heart, and must much more 
 condemn you. Whilst this is kept back, you 
 can have no part nor lot in the matter. The 
 mists of sin will hinder you from discerning 
 Christ, and your very appearance among his 
 people will be but profane mockery. And yet 
 how many dare come, whose conversations tes- 
 tify against them that they are yet un\vashen 
 from their iniquities ? How many, who live hab- 
 itually in pride and passion, pretend to drink 
 into a meek and humble Jesus ? How many, whose 
 superficial inquiries into their hearts shew they 
 are afraid to go deeply to work ? How many iu 
 the interval of the seasons let loose the reins to 
 worldliness and gratification ? And some I have 
 heard of, horrid to think it ! who suppose the 
 mere act of communicating is, the cancelling of 
 the past oifences, and a licence to sin again. — ■ 
 Surely such must ht in the gall of bitterness and 
 bond of iniquity. The cup of blessing is to them 
 a cup of trembling, and the bread of life a savour 
 of death unto death. And the like may be said 
 of those who live in the neglect of any know ii 
 duty, such as private prayer, pra3'erin their fam- 
 ilies, reading tlic scriptures, mutual exhortation, 
 and all other helps appointed for our increase in 
 gracti ; to neglect these, except once a month, 
 or once a quarter, for a dull week it may be, by 
 way of formal preparation for the sacrnnient, 
 whilst all the interval hath been spent in f<3rget- 
 fulncss of God, and^disregard of his service, or 
 in some course of vanity, caie or indulgence : 
 
A71 Invitation to the Commmihn. 24l 
 
 this, r say, is a direct proof of unsuitablencssj 
 for the ordinance : such an one can never dis- 
 cern the Lord's body. 
 
 (3.) They are excluded from any spiritual 
 partaking of the I.oitrs supper, who come mere* 
 ly to qualify themselves for an office. The im- 
 piety and profaneness of which is indeed past 
 the power of words to express. What ! can 
 w^orms of the earth dare trifle with the blood of 
 the Son of God ! and, merely to serve their own 
 secular concerns, pollute the altar of the Lord ? 
 Can any thing be so horridly insolent as to come 
 evidentl}/ with this thought ? ^* Lord, I am not 
 come here with any view to thy glory ; I am 
 not come here as an undone sinner, penitent and 
 believing, to receive the pardon of my sins ; I 
 am not come to remember thy death, nor ex- 
 pecting any benefits from it ; or at least these 
 are not my chief aim, I am come only to quali- 
 fy myself for an office, a mere temporal busi- 
 ness ; and were it not for this, I should gladly 
 stay away." V/hat a language this ! What spots 
 are these at our feasts ? What a hardness and 
 stupidity of conscience is such communicating 
 disposed to beget ? This is making the blood of 
 the covenant common indeed. I tremble for the 
 consequences. Knowing very w^ell, that tliough 
 Tvemay be deceived, God will not be mocked. 
 To have eaten and drank in his presence thu.% 
 will doubtless send us away at the lastday^ witii 
 a Depart from me, I never kntxvyou. And they 
 "U'ho now thus drink of the cup of the Lord, will 
 be found afnong those who shall then drink of the 
 wine of the wrath of God, -which is poured out 
 "without nilTture into the cup of his indignation. 
 
 (4.) They partake unworthily who only come 
 4it particular seasons, and, instead of having aa 
 X 
 
9A^ The Conununicanrs spirUual Cempunion, 
 
 habitual fitness, make all the work of the com- 
 munion to consist in a week's preparation ; as if 
 the Lord's supper was a mere ^lavish duty, and 
 a week's cleansing was all that is necessary to 
 approach it. These mistake the very nature of 
 the ordinance, and put their one week's prepa- 
 ration, instead of all those tempers and disposi- 
 tions which are required to be abidingly in the 
 soul. For it is not cleansing the outside of the 
 .cup and platter, it is not the abstaining from 
 gross sin, it is not saying so many prayers ex- 
 traordinary, or not going into company, or be- 
 ing strictly regularly for one week, that can 
 shew us to be faithful people. This is the 
 strano'est farce of devotion that can be conceiv- 
 cd, and can neither be pleasing in the eyes of an 
 licart-scarching God, nor at all answer the end 
 designed of preparing us for a suitable approach 
 to the Lord's table. 'J1ie work to be done is 
 ]ieart-work, not of the lip and knee ; and the 
 preparation is the inward trimming of our gra- 
 ces, not the outward form of a round of extra- 
 ordinary duties. None are meet to approach 
 the Loid's table, \\\\o are not every day main- 
 taining spiritual communion with Christ, and al- 
 ways ready for his table, whenever a call invites 
 them thither. There must be a, daily sacramen- 
 tal voM'ing fidelity to him, and an exercise of 
 faith in his death and the benefits of it, wherev- 
 er Chribt had real communion w'xXSx the soul. 
 Hence you ma}- see the absurdity of putting on 
 religion, only as our best cioaths, once a montli, 
 or a quarter ; and that sucli persons as these, in- 
 stead of being the fj iends of Christ, are no bet- 
 ter than ceremonious visiters, whose room would 
 be more w elconie than their company. Christ, 
 whose eyes are as a tiameof lire, and whosearch- 
 ,eth the heart and the reins, sees nothing but 
 
An Invitation to the Communion. 243 
 
 spiritual ignorance, under the mask of devotion, 
 and no inward sense exercised to discern him, 
 consequently not the least nieetness for an ap- 
 proach to his table • needs must lie address suck- 
 M'ith hoxv earnest thou in hither ? 
 
 (5.) To conclude : None can partake profit- 
 ably, who have not found acceptance with God, 
 through the righteousness of the Saviour, anrf 
 in consequence exj>erience the mighty power of 
 his grace on their souls. By the mighty power 
 of his grace, I mean that virtue derived fronx 
 Christ, whereby a dead sinner is quickened to 
 spiritual life, and endued with spiritual sensibil- 
 ity. If in this ordinance, the exercise of re- 
 pentance, faith, cliarity, thankfulness, humility, 
 and of all the other graces, is necessarily requir- 
 ed, in order to a discerning the Lord's- body, 
 then it is evident that they who are witiiout 
 tliese can never partake spiritually. Now wc 
 are ail destitute of these, till the spirit of God, 
 making the gospel of Jesus eifectual to us, en- 
 lightens our minds to see the fulness which is in 
 Christ, and inspires these holy dispositions into 
 our souls. We cannot repent and believe, and 
 love and be thankful, or humble, vvdien we will, 
 or by our own power, in our natural state ; we" 
 might as soon think of plucking the sun from 
 the lirmament, as of exercising one cf these 
 graces. They are ail the work of God, the parts 
 of the divine nature communicated to the chil- 
 dren who are begotten, not after the xcill of the: 
 flesh, nor of man, but of God Therefore if you- 
 do not know any such change wrouglit in you, 
 any such new creation, any mighty working, 
 like unto that which raised up Jesus from the 
 dead ; if you have not an experimental sense of 
 the quickening influence of the spirit of God 
 upon your soul, and have not begun to see that 
 
^iA T/ie Communicant's spiritual Companion^ 
 
 you kave passed from death unto life, from dark- 
 ness unto light, from the power of Satan unto 
 God, it is phiin you cannot possibly partake dis- 
 cerningly in this ordinance. Should you gi\*'e 
 ever so much meat and drink to a dead man, it 
 '^vould neither bring liim to life, nor nourish the 
 carcase. The case is the same, if there be no 
 spiritual life in the soul, there can be no 
 strengthening and refreshing* by the body and 
 blood of Christ. 
 
 2. These pei'sons therefore, one and another, 
 must needs be excluded from all the saving 
 benefits of Christ's death and passion ; and if 
 thus careless, ignorant, sinful, and unconverted, 
 they approach the Lord's table, they must needs 
 eat and drink their own damnation. A fearfuU 
 word indeed ! enough to make the ears of every 
 one that heareth it to tingle ; and which our 
 church well explains thus, " We kindle God's 
 wrath against us, we provoke him to plague us 
 with divers diseases, and sundry kinds of death ; 
 judge therefore yourselves, brethren, that ye be 
 not judged of the Lord." Here you see that 
 present judgments, and the wrath to come, are 
 the wages of such, ashy arash, unadvised, and un- 
 suitable approach to the Lord's table, are guilty of 
 the body and'blood of Christ our Saviour. And shall 
 wepro\oke God's wrath against us? Are we strong- 
 er than he ? Forgive my tender concern for you — 
 I am not speaking these things to grieve or dis- 
 turb you, but as beloved children I warn you. 
 You must be freely dealt with ; you will not 
 forgive me else at the day of judgment, if I 
 should now be unfaithful to your souls. I 
 press, I invite you, yea, I command you, in 
 the name of Jesus Christ, not to slight his ta- 
 ble, as you do. 13ut then judge yourselves whe- 
 tlier ye arc La the faith, for if ye are amongst 
 
Self-examination before the Lord's Supper, 245 
 
 those I have described, you cannot be welcome 
 guests, it' you live in ignorance or sin, if you' 
 respect merely a temporal convenience, if you 
 make it a matter of form, and have not a living- 
 principle of grace in your souls, abstain at pre- 
 sent, as you would not imbrue your hands ia 
 Christ's blood, antl crucify him afresh. Yet ab- 
 stain not altogether. As you value your ever- 
 lasting salvation, do not lie down in this state, 
 but hear the present call of Jesus ; look at his- 
 sacrilice that still bleeds for you; call upon him 
 Tvhilst yet he is near, to prepare your heart ac- 
 cording to the preparation of the sanctuary. 
 Let your past forgettulness, neglect and dishonor 
 of him, lie deep- upon your minds, and be among 
 those things which especially humble you be- 
 fore him. — And. then arise, as perishing sinners, 
 to lay yourselves at the foot of bis cross, to look 
 to him whom you have pierced, till faith in his 
 blood produces love in your souls towards him, 
 and a wilfmg heart leads you to his table, to 
 present yourselves a living sacrifice unto him. 
 Then shall the ordinance be as much to his glo- 
 ry, as your comfort ; and you shall find by- 
 blessed experience, that you do not only come,, 
 but are welcome,. 
 
 CIIAR iir, 
 
 Self' Examination, a necessary duty before xve 
 come to the Lord's Supper. 
 
 AS- the profiting- in the blessed ordinance of 
 the Lord's supper, depends chiefly upon tlie dis- 
 position of mind in which* we approach it, it 
 Avill become all, as St. Paul advises^ who would 
 come witb spiritual discernment, and return with 
 a blessing, seriously to exaniine themselves be- 
 X 2 
 
tiS The Co77imunkant''s spiritual Companion. 
 
 fore they presume to eat of that bready and dri?ik 
 of that cup. To comfort the afflicted, encourage 
 the doubting, and to help the sincere in this be- 
 half, will be the design of the present chapter, 
 as well as to quicken every soul to the too-ne- 
 glected work of communing with his own heart. 
 Our cliurch catechism will supply us with th.e- 
 four principal and essential points of inquiry ; 
 ^vhich» if we understand thoroughly^ and answer 
 faithfully^ we may come to the knowledge of 
 our state respecting God, and consequently ou? 
 titness or unfitness for the Lord's supper. And 
 '«bcse are, 
 
 L Whether we " repent truly af our former 
 sins, stedfastly purposing to lead a new 
 life." 
 
 IL Whether v/e " have a lively faith in God's- 
 mercy through Christ." 
 
 HI. Whether we *' have a thankful rememb- 
 rance of his death." 
 
 lY.. Whether *^ we are in charity with all 
 men." 
 
 PointS) each of which deserve a larger treat- 
 znent than this short exercise ; and yet you may 
 eome to some safe determination about them, if 
 voa will attend to what is now to be set before 
 youw 
 
 I. Then, to examine whether you '' repent 
 truly of your former sins, stedfastly proposing, 
 la lead a new hie," you must understand what; 
 iis meant by evangelical repentance and newness: 
 v)f life. I^shall describe them as including, 
 
 1. A sorrow tor sin. 
 
 S. Hatred of sim 
 
 3. Forsaking of sin. 
 
 4. An svideut change wrought upon youi? 
 
 j)eart and life.. 
 
 I. £.vaiigcUcal repentance includes scrrow fos^ 
 
Self-examination before the Lord's Supper. 247- 
 
 sin. They who sozv in teat^s, shall reap injoi/. 
 And when \vg have so much cause to to be ex- 
 ercising sorrow for our sins, and to mourn, as 
 when we are coming to look upon him tvhom we 
 have pierced — here the foundation of repentance 
 must be laid — we must lay to heart the great 
 dishonor we have done to God by our sins, how 
 many and great they have been, how vile our na- 
 ture and hearts are, as well as how perverse our 
 ways have been. We must reflect upon the in- 
 gratitude of sin, and how every act, every 
 thought of it, has added a pang to the Saviour's 
 agony. We must consider it as the grieving of 
 the spirit, the defilement of his temple our bo- 
 dies, and the abominable thing which he hateth. 
 We should reflect on the wages of sin, even 
 death eternal, and that of but one sin ; how 
 deeply then are we in arrear to the divine jus- 
 tice, when heart and life have been nothing but 
 sin ? Thus its evil nature and heavy guilt should 
 both conspire to beget in us the deepest sorrow 
 and remorse that ever we should dare trangress 
 against the Majesty of heaven and the Father of 
 mercy ; that ever we should be ungrateful to a 
 dying Jesus ; that ever we should provoke the 
 patient Spiiit ; that ever we should madly trifle 
 with our souls, and plunge them into such aw- 
 ful condemnation. But have such thoughts ever 
 been harboured in your hearts ? Are you now 
 desiring to tnourn for your iniquities ; and da 
 they, in these views, dwell upon your hearts aa 
 a sore burden, too heavy for you to bear ? Are 
 you sore smitten on the grievous remembrance, 
 and ready, like the prophet,, to v/ish for a head 
 of waters, and eyes like a fountain of tears, to^ 
 run dov/n day and night, for iniquities, which a 
 sea of your own tears would never wash away ? 
 IXo you know any such sorxow, and is the 'grief 
 
248 The Com?7iunicafit-s spiritual Compcuiion, 
 
 for your sins the bitterest cup you have ever 
 drank of ? This is a gracious disposition ; for 
 true godly sorrow worketk repentance unto sal- 
 ivation, never to be repented oJ\ 
 
 Q, Repentance implies an abhorrence of sin 
 and ourselves. Behold, says Job, / a}n vile, 
 therefore I repent and abhor 7711/ self in dust a?id 
 ashes. It is impossible, where a true sense of 
 sin is upon the heart, this should be wanting ; 
 the heart then rises up with indignation^ with 
 revenge against itself, as St. Paul expresses it, 
 and cannot bear the view of the past with- 
 out self-loathing. To think how vilely we have 
 acted, how insolently we have returned all God's 
 kindness with abuse, how we have turned all his 
 blessings into a curse, how we have slighted the 
 love of Christ, how we have resisted the Holy 
 Ghost in his word, in his providences, in all the 
 methods of grace he hath used with us ; in short 
 how we have sold ourselves, as it were, to work 
 wickedness ; and now to think of returning to 
 the bosom of our God thus polluted and defiled, 
 M'hat vile wretches must we be in our own eyes ?■ 
 and to see ourselves such, is absolutely necessa- 
 ry before we can return, l^ien, saith the Lord,. 
 thei/ shall return and reme7nber their oxvn evil 
 irays, and their doings xvhich were not good, and- 
 shall loathe themselves for all their iniquities and 
 for all their aboi72ina lions. Are you conscious 
 of any such self-abhoirence ? can you adopt the 
 language of Job's self-loathing, and in the view 
 of your sins tind the inward risings of disgust 
 and displeasure against yourself and them ? do 
 you appear in your own eyes a monster of in- 
 gratitude, and feel your heart detesting sin, 
 which hath made you so, more than you detesf 
 the vilest objects- iunature ? at least is it your 
 
Self'C-xaminailon before the Lord's Supper, 249 
 
 desire to hate it more than you do ? This is the 
 work of true repentance. 
 
 3. Repentance implies a forsaking of sin. Wc 
 cannot indeed but forsake it, if we have groaned 
 under its burden, and felt it3 odious ingratitude. 
 How shall we think of continuing a moment 
 longer in a state so displeasing to God, so griev- 
 ous to ourselves? Here the sword of the Spirit 
 is lifted up against every darling idol. Repent- 
 ing, we renounce our covenant with sin, and our 
 allegiance to Satan, and burst his bands, and break 
 his cords off from us. No known sin can be any 
 longer habitually indulged ; not only the out- 
 ward sins, whose open nature was more flagrant- 
 ly rebellious, such as profaneness, passion, lewd- 
 ness, drunkenness, lying, sabbath-breaking, cov- 
 etousness, and the like ; but the more secret 
 heart-sins will be renounced ; vain thoughts, and 
 vile affections, as well as actions, must be for- 
 saken ; no little sins any longer plead the privi- 
 lege of custom or necessity. If we are sincere 
 in our repentance, without pitying or sparing, 
 our eye will search every corner of our heart ; 
 and wherever we find the traitor, we shall bring 
 him forth and slay him before the Lord; and our 
 darling sin Avill meet with the severest treat- 
 ments ; that we shall lay most violent hands 
 upon, whilst repentance cries, Down with it, 
 clown with it, even to the ground ; a right eye, 
 a right hand, any thing, however near and dear 
 to uSj away it goes. Repentance makes thorough 
 work. It is not a partial reformation, this is in 
 many where repentance hath never wrought its 
 effectual work; and thousands have been undone 
 by the mistake, whilst conscience hath made 
 them part from some sins, and be more restrain- 
 ed and decent than before ; but they have still 
 dealt deceitfully with the Lard, their hearts have 
 
250 The Communicanfs spiritual Companion', 
 
 not been whole with him, and so they have gone 
 no farther than Ahab's humihation, or Hcrocrs 
 doing many things at John's preaching to him 
 repentance ; of whom the one still continued 
 idolatrous, and the other kept his brother PhiHp'a 
 wife. A person may be very nigh the kingdom 
 of God, and yet never enter it ; be almost, with- 
 out being altogether a christian ; look therefore 
 to your hearts herein, there is nodeceiving God : 
 and what a crying sin would it be to come to 
 Christ's table without a purpose of forsaking 
 whatever is displeasing to him ? Do you repent ? 
 is it evident from your conduct ? Doth not your 
 heart condemn you for any reserve made ? Can 
 you appeal to God for your sincerity, that you 
 desire to indulge yourself in nothing you know 
 cr suspect to be sinful ? Particularly, do you 
 heartily resist and seek to mortify the sin whicli 
 most easily besets you ? And is your repentance 
 for it proved to be real from this, that your sor- 
 row for it is not only your heaviest grief, but 
 that your heart is set most steadily against it, 
 and follows it close, desiring to destroy it root 
 and branch ; lest it should make you false to 
 your vows, and like the worm at Jonah's gourd, 
 make your fair blossoms of repentance w ither, 
 and bring forth no fruit? This will be comfort- 
 able, if, in the presence of God, you can claim 
 the proof of such a sincere, universal renunci- 
 ation of sin. It will be then indeed a repentance 
 fiever to be repented of, 
 
 4. Repentance implies a change of mind ; this 
 is the exact meaning of the Greek word »^'«vo.a : 
 for every real penitent is brought out of a state 
 of nature into a state of grace ; and all his aims, 
 apprehensions, views, and principles of action, 
 are as different as you can suppose those of any 
 two different persons ever to have been, so that 
 
Self-ejcamination before the Lord's Supper. 251 
 
 lie is well said in scripture to be borfi again ; old 
 things are passed awai/, and all things are be- 
 come nexv ; he is brought out of darkness into 
 marvellous light ; he walks not after the fashion 
 of the xvorldybut after Christ ; he looks not as 
 before to the things that are see^i and are tem- 
 poral^ but to the tilings that are not seen and are 
 eternal ; in short, he is changed into another 
 man, a nexv man, created after Christ Jesus in 
 righteousness and true holiness. Here then is a 
 Avide field for enquiry, and most essential to our 
 profitable partaking at the Lord's table, since 
 none but those who have begun to lead a new 
 life, can receive 'any benefit from attending on 
 the ordinance. You must therefore herein close- 
 ly examine yourselves. What do you know of 
 this inward change ? — Is your understanding 
 changed ? whereas you were blinds do you now 
 see ? you M^ere once darkness, are you now light 
 in the Lord f Have you a sight of yourself, of 
 God, of Christ, of all the things of the Spirit, 
 different from what you had before, so that your 
 judgment is altered ? Do you now discover the 
 misery of your state and nature, the vanity of 
 earth and time, the bondage of corruption, the 
 great need of salvation, the unspeakable patience 
 of God, the amazing love of Christ, the great- 
 ness of the invisible realities, and the importance 
 of only making one thing needful, even the se- 
 curing an interest in the kingdom of God and 
 his righteousness ? — Is your will also altered in 
 /its choice ? Have you begun to chuse Christ for 
 a portion, instead of the world ? do you prefer 
 his service to the service of sin ? and, instead of 
 the pursuits of this world, the pleasures of sense 
 and the vanities of time, rejecting these^ are you 
 embracing the ways of peace, and the paths of 
 holiness, which lead through faith to glory ? — 
 
S5G The Communicant's spiriiua! Companion:, 
 
 And are your affections changed ? Do you love 
 what you hated, and hate what you loved ? Is 
 Christ now the object of your affection, more 
 than ever your favourite sin hath been r at least 
 is it your desire and prayer that he may be so ? 
 Is it your delight to be found engaged in the 
 exercises of devotion ? or do you chide your 
 sluggish heart when it goes heavily to the blessed 
 work ? Are vou become more afraid of offending: 
 God, tlian the wliole world beside ? and are your 
 hopes chiefly fixed on the promises of his word, 
 and the expectations he bids you look to in eter- 
 nity, instead of this present evil world ? Is it 
 your joy t© see his interest flourish in the world ? 
 and is it a more sincere satisfaction to you to help 
 to turn one sinner from the evil of his ways, than 
 to partake in the greatest worldly advantages ? 
 In short, is it now become in a measure your 
 meat and drink to do the will of God, and is that 
 which you before loathed, namely, the denial of 
 your own vile heart, and the keeping God's com- 
 mandments, now become the constant desire of 
 your soul, and the thing that you long for ? and 
 cloth your whole conversation witness to this 
 cliange, and prove that you are indeed passed 
 from death into life ? that you walk no more as 
 other unconverted men, in the vanity of their 
 viinds, alienated from the life of God through 
 the Ignorance that is in them, because of the 
 blindness of their hearty but, as a child of light, 
 reprove the works of darkness, and testify against 
 the world that its deeds are evil ? And do }'ou 
 purpose to hold on thus doing, walking daily 
 more circumspectly, redeeming the time, and 
 stedfastly pursuing this course of newness of life 
 which God's holy word prescribes to you, what- 
 ever difficulties may bcfal you, and whatever more 
 than you yet see may be your portion, whether 
 
ScIf-examinatio7i before the LorcVs Supper. 253 
 
 of reproach, loss or persecution, for your fidelity 
 in Christ's service ? This is that evangclicai re- 
 pentance you are called to. This must be the 
 matter of your examination. If you can see no 
 such change, if you are as you ever used to be, 
 and never knew any time in your life when you 
 were convinced by the Spirit of sin, led to him 
 who giveth repentance, converted unto God and 
 born again, (a change in its effects as evident 
 and clear as to rise from the dead, or between a 
 dry tree and one full of leaves, blossoms and fruit) 
 then I say, you have not yet this newness of life, 
 you are still in a natural state, and ought not to 
 think of approacliing the Lord's table, till mat- 
 ters are altered with you, and till the great change 
 is begun, and is manifesting itself in your heart 
 and life. 
 
 II. You must examine yourself whether you 
 Iiave *' a lively faith in God's mercies through 
 Christ." Observe a lively faith, not a dead faith ; 
 not a mere speculative assent of the head to the 
 truth of religion, but a quickening, powerful 
 principle in the heart, a faith energetic, that 
 workjeth in us mjghtily. And this lively faith 
 shews itself in the following ways. 
 
 1. In directing us to Christ, as our alone pro- 
 pitiation. It brings us, burdened as v/eare with 
 our sins, to the foot of the cross, and there bid- 
 <ling us lay them down, points to the blood shed 
 for us, and pleads that propitiation \\\\\\ which 
 God is well pleased. In this way, and this only, 
 we must look for salvation before God; renoiuic- 
 Hig our own righteousness, emptied of all self- 
 suihciency, confessing our guilt, and only rest- 
 ing on him, who is ouratonementand our right- 
 eousness before Ciod. Into Christ's hands, as 
 our advocate, we commit our cause, that he may 
 Y 
 
254 The Communicant's spiritual Companion. 
 
 pl.^ad it effectually before the throne of God ; 
 and this with such satisliedness in the available- 
 ness of his intercession, as gives us confidence 
 towards Gii\^ and such a persuasion of Christ's 
 love, as that we can chearfully and contentedly 
 leave our salvation in his hands, assured that he 
 is more willing to help us, than we to desire it ; 
 yea, that he was pleading with his Father for us 
 before we began to look to him. I'his is the 
 lively faith which embraces the promises afar off, 
 and enables us to say, /;/ the Lord hare I right- 
 eousncss : through his blood have I the forgive- 
 ness of sins, according to the riches of God's 
 grace. The strength and confidence of our faitli 
 may be different in degree, but in ail Christ's 
 people it must be the same in nature. Some poor 
 mourning soul, discouraged with doubts, though 
 deeply renouncing all hope in Inmself, can only 
 feebly cast his soul upon promises which he holds 
 as it ^^•ere with a trembling hand ; yet this is 
 that good hope through grace, which, though 
 far removed from the full assurance of faith, is 
 the sound evidence of a believing soul, and ex- 
 ercise and experience will confirm it. Others 
 can, by the Spirit, Avithhundjle confidence claim 
 the sahation, rest satisfied in the sure and certain 
 covenant, and rejoice in x\\i\t perject love rrhich 
 casteth out fear, persuaded that Christ hath loved 
 them, and given himselj for them Inquire then, 
 Do you possess any measure of this temper ? Have 
 you a li^•ely faith ? Do }ou come with theempty 
 hand and a beggar's heart, to receive a free sal- 
 vation ; renouncingyour own righteousness, and 
 disclaimino- \c)ur duties as heartily as vour sins 
 in the Uiatter of acceptance with God r Do you 
 see enough in Christ to convince you he is able 
 to save such a sinner as you, vile and sinful as 
 vou. are ^ Th:it his blood eleanscth Jrom all sin^ 
 
SeJf-e.vamlnation before the Lor cV s Supper. 255 
 
 and that his righteousness imputed to yon, will 
 make you pleasing'^in the eyes of the (}od of 
 purity ? And are you satislied in his wilhngness 
 to save you, from all the free declarations he hath 
 made, and all the mighty and gracious Instances 
 of that willingness and ahility he hath given you "'! 
 Do these (his pov/er and willingness to save) 
 beget in your mind a determined affiance in him, 
 so that you can say, Here shall be my rest for'' 
 ever ; this Is all my salvation and all my desire ; 
 then you have the discerning eye that sees Christ 
 at his table ; the discerning taste that feeds upon 
 him, the discerning ear that hears his voice, the 
 discerning hand that receives out of his fulness,, 
 that wraps the robe of righteousness around you, 
 and makes you complete in him. 
 
 2. A lively faith lays hold of the strength of 
 Christ, as well as his atonement and righteous- 
 ness. Unable to do any thing of himself, the 
 believer, coming to him, can do all things through 
 Christ .strengthening him. Faith brmgs us to 
 him as the repairer of the breach, as the healer 
 of the deadly wound which sin hath given us, 
 and which made us insufficient to think or do 
 any thing pleasing to God. A lively faith seek.s 
 grace as well as pardon, and assures us it is to be 
 had in Christ. It tells us, that though without 
 him \ve can do nothing, yet in him, when we are 
 ^\'eak, we sh^all be made strong, strong in the 
 Lord, and in the pozvtr of his might ; hence in 
 the communion, the believer applies to him, and 
 rests all the wants and necessities of his soulup- 
 on Jesus, the Saviour. To enter into the cove- 
 nant, to abide in it, faith takes the grace of 
 Christ, makes him the surety to undertake for 
 us ; while we despair of our own power und 
 might, and draw from him all our suiiiciency. 
 And, satisfied that his power and might shall be 
 
^56 The Communicanfs spiritual Companion. 
 
 exercised for us, we rejoice in this confi- 
 dence, that mighty as our enemies are, and \\ eak 
 and helpless as we are, yet that we shall be viore 
 than conquerors through him that hath loved us. 
 Are you going to Christ with such application 
 for strength, and from him do you fmd strength 
 communicated to you ? Do you see that with- 
 out tliis grace you can do nothing ? Do you 
 sincerely renounce all hope in yourself, and make 
 iiim your rock, his everlasting arms your sup- 
 port, his grace the ground of all your conii- 
 aence ? This is to believe ; '' to have a lively 
 sense of God's mercy in Christ ;" for hereby 
 rhiis mercy comes home to our souls, we live up- 
 jn it and by it ; faith in Christ enabling us 
 continually to apprehend it, so as to bring peace 
 and pardon, and from it to derive strength and 
 power against sin. 
 
 III. We must inquire into our thankfulness 
 in '' the reniembrance of Christ's death," and 
 the great and precious privileges purchased by 
 his blood-shedding for us. If we are really sen- 
 sible of our fallen state, and have faith in the 
 transaction here represented to us, it is not pos- 
 sible but our hearts should indeed be filled with 
 gratitude and tiunkftdness to him who hath thus 
 loved itSy and given himself for us. And in pro- 
 portion as v/e gain a cleaver understanding of 
 our own misery, and the condescension and love 
 ©f Jesus Christ, our hearts will be more atiected, 
 and vv'e shall come overflowing with praises to 
 Wm, who hath died for us, and rose again. This 
 tliankfulness hath a thousand different points of 
 view, from whence it takes occasion to admire 
 and adore the grace of the Redeemer. Its most 
 lively exercise arises from himself, and next to 
 that from all the blessings given in and with' 
 liiuL We arc liUed with thankfulness that we 
 
Self-c.vaminailon before thcLonW^ Sapper. 957 
 
 have ever heard the sound of his name in our 
 ears, or tasted the power of liis graec in our 
 hearts ; that M:e have been made ah'cady par- 
 takers of so many blessings, and have so many 
 greater ones in store ; that not only the end is 
 so great and glorious, but that in the way we 
 have so many delightful seasons of reireshment, 
 where we may lind rest unto our souls. Clirist 
 living, dying, rising, ascending, sitting at the 
 riglit hand of God, each of these affords new 
 matter for thankfulness. This must be express- 
 ed by our lips, in hearty, humble acknowledge- 
 ments of his love and kindness towards us; and 
 not by our lips only, " but in our lives, b}' giv- 
 ing up ourselves to his service, and by v/alking. 
 before him in holiness and righteousness all our 
 days. " Have you any experience of such thank- 
 fulness in your heart ? Do not you see when any 
 person does you a great and unexpected favour, 
 in any temporal things, how your heart rises to- 
 wards them, and labours for expressions to testi- 
 fy the gratitude you feel ? and how careful you 
 are to please so generous a benefactor, if iie is 
 making you daily to partake of his bounty and 
 muniticence ? Now if these tritles so affect you, 
 and to be ungrateful and unthankful to man is 
 looked upon as brutish and savage,, how should 
 these great things, that in Christ are given you, 
 dwell upon your hearts ? liow should, you be 
 impressed and influenced by them ? Are yon so ? 
 Is your heart rising up hi the remembrance of 
 that greatest of all gifts, God's own Son, with, 
 tlianks too big for utterance r Are you praising 
 him with joyful Ups ?. or mourning at least over 
 the coldness of your heart that loves, and praises 
 him no more ? Doth your life testify the gratis- 
 lade of your heart, bv voui carefulness to coa- 
 Y 2. 
 
£58 The CommimkanVs sinr it ual Companion, 
 
 form to his \\\\\ and pleasure ; never to offend 
 liim, or grieving if you cio ; in every thing de- 
 siring to shew yourself no longer as your own, 
 but his, who hath purchased you at so dear a 
 price as his own blood, and called you to shew 
 forth his praise, by yielding yourselves to him as 
 alive from the dead, and your members instru- 
 ments of righteousness unto holiness ? at least, 
 is this your daily study, desire and prayer, that 
 you may be enabled more and more to serve and 
 please bim ? Tbis is to be thankful, this is the 
 proof that we have not received the grace of 
 God in vain. 
 
 IV. We must examine whether " we are in 
 charity ,v»ith all men." The religion of Jesus 
 Clnist is a religion of universal love ; and especi- 
 ally it is needful that when we come to remem- 
 ber him v,ho died for his enemies, Nve should 
 partake in the like temper of charity. And 
 herein you should examine yourselves. 
 
 First y Negatively. You must not entertain 
 any hatred or malice against any of your breth- 
 ren. The hands that are to be lifted up, and the 
 hearts to be brought to Christ's table, must be - 
 xvithout malicious wrath, as well as doubting, 
 Jf therefore any soul of you is living in anger, 
 implacable and unmerciful, proud and resentful, 
 unwilling to ask iorgiveness, or haid to ^rant 
 it , if tliere be one person breathing, whose of- 
 fences you do not from your heart give up all 
 desire and thoughts of revenging ; if you are - 
 tiot ready on the hrst evidence of repentance to 
 forgive ; and if you do not compassionate their 
 perverseuess, Mhere you may not be permitted 
 farther to shew the exerci^ of love, you may 
 be assured you can liave no portion nor lot in 
 the matter ; your temper utteily excludes you ; 
 it can never be a feast of love to a re\ engeful 
 
Self -examination before the LonV s Sapper, ^^^ 
 
 spirit : and though you may pretend forgive- 
 ness, and seem reconciled, yet if the venom of 
 mahce rankle in your heart, and you want there 
 the true spirit of charity, you are but as sound- 
 ing brass and a tinkling cymbal ; you cannot eat 
 of the Lord's body, nor have communion at his 
 feast, nor partake of his benefits. Not that this 
 merely is sufficient. — I only mention it to shew 
 the glaring impiety of many who dare come 
 with hearts full of uncharitableness, that prob- 
 ably the week before had been venting their un- 
 due anger, resentment and wrath, against those 
 who have oifended them, and have not mourned 
 over and carried these hateful tempers to Jesus 
 to subdue them. What a horrid profanation 
 for such to pretend to a communion of saints, 
 cr to belong to that body, where every part hath 
 the most tender care for its fellow-members ? 
 These surely are under wrath. These must repent 
 and have their hearts changed, or wrath will 
 shortly come upon them to the uttermost. 
 
 Secondly, Positively. We must be found in 
 the exercise of charity; that is, we must have 
 a tender feeling for the bodies and souls of men^ 
 whether believers or unbelievers ; and this ex- 
 pressed in all proper acts of kindness and love 
 towards them, according to their several states. 
 
 1. To unbelievers, those that are not in a state 
 of reconciliation with God ; who, though they 
 may be professors in the cliurch, evidence in their 
 lives tlie unrenewed state of their hearts ; tiiese 
 we must pity and pray for, must never be pro- 
 voked to hatred with their v/ickedness, must bear 
 with their opposition, abuse or reviling, must la- 
 bour to return them good for evil, and blessing 
 for cursing ; must be ready to shew our affec- 
 tion, by helping their bodies iu any time of want, 
 
^60 The Commuiiicanc^s spiritual Companion. 
 
 and readily ministriiig to their necessities out of 
 our abiindance,and especially desiring to help their 
 souls, to seize any convenient occasion of con- 
 versing with thein on their state, to apprize tl:em 
 of their daiiger, to improve any impressions 
 which God's grace or providence may have made ; 
 and labour in every way to pluck such brands 
 from the burning, whether by undeceiving them 
 if they rest on a form of godliness, or warning 
 them if careless and utterly ne^li2:ent. Are you 
 shewing forth any such exercise of love ? Have 
 you ever thus tenderly rebuked sin upon your 
 brother ? Have you pitied the misery of sin- 
 ners r Plave you borne m ith meekness and long- 
 s u fieri ng their provocations ? Are you gentle 
 towards all men ; not easily provoked ; ready 
 to pass by a transgression ; and never avenging 
 yourself, by ^vithholding assistance from your 
 greatest enemy, in his necessities ? Are you rea- 
 dy to every good word and work for him, heap- 
 ing coals of lire upon his head, to melt him down 
 if possible to a sense of liis ingratitude ? Or 
 whatever reluctance to it you find, in your le- 
 maining corrupt nature, is it your burden, and 
 resolutely opposed ? Can you pray aftectiojiate- 
 ly for your bitterest enemy, and long for his 
 conversion, that God may pardon him, as you 
 arc willing to do r This is a small, very small 
 part of the exercise of this extensive grace ; 
 but I fear enoui^rh to condemn us, who are readv 
 to kindle at every affront, to be impatient un- 
 der provocation, to want compassion, to be des- 
 titute of those bowels of mercies wbicii were iu 
 Jesus Christ, to forget how much God for 
 Christ's sake hatii forgiven us. Yet to this we 
 must seek to come, after this we must j)ress, or 
 we can never come to Christ's table acceptably, 
 for he cannot l>ear to be approached by yny 
 
Self -examination before the Lor els Supper. 261 
 
 heart, Avhcre love unfeigned hath not wrought 
 thib powerful work. 
 
 2. We must shew our love especially to he- 
 lie vers. To those who are of the same body, 
 whose conversation testifies the truth of the 
 grace which is in them ; over these Ave must de- 
 light, with these especially associate, at Christ*s 
 table, or elsewhere ; their bodies must be dear 
 to us ; whilst we do good to all, we must par- 
 ticularly regard the houshold of faith. But 
 their souls especially we must' watch for, mu- 
 tually jealous over, and caring for each other, 
 bearing with each other's inlirmities, desiring 
 each other's growth in grace, contributing to it 
 by conversation, by example, by prayer, and 
 every other means in our power ; exhorting and 
 admonishing one another, praying for, and with 
 each other, as brethren of the same family, as 
 children of the same Father, as partakers of the 
 same table, as hoping for the sam.e inheritance ; 
 we must love as brethren. A love which hath 
 been declared by many, to be equal, I might 
 say, to exceed that which nature implants in the 
 ^dearest relations of life. The true believer can 
 say, as Jesus Christ did of those who told him 
 of his mother and his brethren, he that heareth 
 Chrisfs wordy and doth it, the same is my broth- 
 * cr, my sister and mother. Have you such af- 
 fection towards the children of God ? Do you 
 delight in those who love God, and keep his 
 commandments ? Are you seeking to approve 
 yourself in every labour of love toward them, 
 and receiving with thankfulness their labours of 
 love toward you ? Have you the same regard for 
 their welfare, that your body hath for the sev- 
 eral members of it r and do you feel for them 
 and with them, in their trials, and alleviate their 
 burdens by partaking of them ? I have not space 
 
^62 The Communicant's spiritual Cojnpanion. 
 
 to enlarge the inquiry ; but these may serve as 
 short hints for your instruction, from whence 
 you may dravv^ a conclusion concerning your 
 state and temper, how far you are really found 
 in tlie exercise of these dispositions. 
 
 Blessed are they who have obtained any mea- 
 sure of these graces, blessed are they who are 
 seeking after them. The sincere desire after an 
 increase of grace, is true grace, and shall have 
 a growing accomplishment. '* Judge therefore 
 yourselves, brethren, that ye be not judged of 
 the Lord ; repent you truly for your sins past ; 
 have a lively and steadfast faith in Christ our 
 Saviour ; be thankful ; amend your lives, and 
 be in perfect charity with all men ;"" and this 
 not superficially, but from the heart, in sim- 
 plicity and godly sincerity, and ** so shallye be 
 meet partakers of those lioly niysteries.** 
 
 CHAR IV, 
 
 Considerations proper at the time of the cele- 
 bration oj the Lord's Supper. 
 
 HAVING in the last chapter set before you 
 what was necessary to be examined into, in or- 
 der to come to a right judgment of our state^ 
 and to approach with suitable dispositions the 
 table of our Lord, I come now particularly to 
 enter into the consideration of that frame of 
 spirit which we should be in at the solemnity it- 
 self Having the general requisites for tlie feast, 
 there is also lequired a particular exercise of 
 these graces, like trinmiing our lamps to go forth 
 to meet the bridegroom. For this end, when 
 we arc purposing to renew our approach to the 
 Lord's table, it will be useful at some season of 
 leisure to inquire particularly how we stand, 
 what progress we make in each of the afore- 
 
CGnsidcratioiis at the Lord's Supper. 253 
 
 mentioned tempers, andthat we spend some time 
 ill meditation and prayer with a view to the or- 
 dinance. Not that I mean to tie down any be- 
 liever to a regidar form which he may not omit, 
 or drive him from the table because the ordin- 
 ance was unexpected, or some pecuhar calls pre- 
 vented him from particular previous exercises of 
 r-etirement, examination, meditation and pray- 
 er : No ; though it were desirable to be thus 
 employed before, and in general such prepara* 
 tion will greatly conduce to the enlivening our 
 hearts, and be a mean of leading us in a more 
 sacramental frame to the table, yet he that hath 
 the Lord Jesus formed in him, is always called 
 upon to come and receive the tokens of his love. 
 At the celebration of the feast itself, the fol- 
 lowing observations will deserve our attention ; 
 and, I trust, minister to our edification. 
 
 I. How we should improve the time before 
 we come to the Lord's table. 
 
 II. How to demean ourselves at the table. 
 HI. The use we should make of what time 
 
 remains when \\'e return from the table. 
 
 I. At the celebration of the Lord's supper, 
 we should approach the table with a frame of 
 mind suited to the particular occasion. As, 
 
 I. M'ith a deep sense of our own un worthiness. 
 The service ended, whencommunicating begins, 
 some short time for recollection is afforded us ; 
 our first thoughts then should always be of the 
 great condescension of Christ, that suifers such 
 rebellious, such sinful dust and ashes as we are, 
 to approach his table ; the deeper sense we have 
 of our vileness, the more shall we admire the 
 grace of a dying Saviour ; and we can never e- 
 nough abase ourselves, the lowest w^e can think 
 of ourselves will be less than the truth of our state. 
 If the holy Patriarch could say, he zvas less 
 
£64- The Commu7iicanfs spiritual Compa7iion, 
 
 than the least of all God's mercies^ what may 
 we? Indeed the confession put into our mouths, 
 that "we are not worthy of so much as the crumbs 
 that fall from Christ's table," should now be 
 deep upon our hearts in some such thoughts as 
 these, •' What am I, Lord God, that I should 
 approach thy table? What am I, w^ho am un- 
 worthy to be put among the dogs of the tlock, 
 that I should be fed with children s bread? What 
 am I, that I should see the King at his table, 
 who have so dishonoured him as I have done ? 
 What am I, that I should come to claim such in- 
 expressible privileges ? I; who deserve nothing 
 but death, nothing but hell?" AsMephiboshetli 
 said to David, JVhat am /, that the king should 
 look upon such a dead dog as I am ? God, to use 
 the language of the Psalmist, loves to take us 
 from the dunghill, before he sets us among the 
 princes. He that humbleth himself shall be ex- 
 alted. 
 
 2. We should draw near with reverence and god- 
 ly fear, remembering with wdiom we are trans- 
 acting, even with the God of glory, before whom 
 ten thousand times ten thousand burningscraphs 
 minister, and whom angels adore ; remembering 
 what an awful work we are calling to mind, evcu 
 that scene which the earth trembled, and the sua 
 grew dark to behold ; remembering how great 
 an affair is now in hand, no less than the sealing 
 to us the eternal redemption of our souls ; these 
 views will shew us, that the frame of our minds 
 cannot be enough serious and reverential. If 
 God is always to be feared in the assembhj of his 
 saints, and to be had in reverence of alt that arc 
 round about him, w hen ought our exercise of 
 this temper to be so deep and solemn, as in this 
 most holy and sacred assembly ? If the angels 
 themselves approaching his thronC; are rcpre^ 
 
Considerations at the L-orcfs Stippi:r. 26S 
 
 rented as veiling their faces with their wings, 
 how ought awe to spread its silent dread upon 
 our souls and our countenance to receive the 
 sacred impression when we are approaching his 
 table ? Dare we rush into the presence of an 
 earthly monarch without veneration and respect? 
 and shall we not be much more careful hov/ w6 
 draw near to him, whose throne is in th-e heav- 
 ens, and whose kingdom ruleth over all P That 
 great Jehovah, that eternal God, who humbleth 
 himself when he beholds the things in heaven ;; 
 and how much more when he stoops to treat and 
 commune M^th poor dying sinful worms of the 
 earth ? 
 
 3. We should approacli without distraction. 
 The sense of God should banish every other 
 thought. We should leave; the workl beliind 
 us, and for the time seek to disengage ourselves 
 from every care or concern about it ; lifting up 
 our hearts to him to restrain our wanderings, 
 and fixed on the point before us, as much as may 
 be, without diverting from it, to the right hand 
 or the left. And in order hereto, it will be 
 
 ' profitable to keep our eyes from looking round 
 us, to have so settled our -worldly aiJairs before 
 as to prevent their intrusion, and to keep our 
 thoughts reeollected, that we may -^QtX ourselves 
 standing as it were, naked and open before him 
 with whom we have to do, seeing him that is in- 
 visible ; the tempers of our minds calm and se- 
 rene, and all our thouglits fixed, sedate and at- 
 tentive, 
 
 4. We should come with cheerful confidenc-e 
 in God, as our reconciled Father in Christ. As 
 we are not going to hear ourcondemnation, but 
 to receive our renewed acquittance and assurance 
 of favour, we should approach in the character 
 
 Z 
 
C66 The Communicant's spiritual Companion, 
 
 of children, should possess the confidence of 
 children, with gladness and singleness of heart, 
 coming to the table where our Father gives the 
 testimonv of his regard to us. To come with 
 slavish Uembling and confusion to a feast of 
 love, is utterly unseemly ; and shews either that 
 we are unacquainted with the nature of the 
 ordinance, or have not that faith which embra- 
 ces the promises, and realizes the sign. We 
 must remember we are approaching a table which 
 love, eternal love, hath spread for sinners. That 
 we have such a powerful advocate for us enter- 
 jcd into the heavens ; that we may come boldly 
 to the throne of grace, and not fear a disap- 
 pointment. And that therefore in the strength 
 of all this, we may without presumption, if Me 
 are really children of God, draw near with a 
 true heart, in full assurance of faith. This dis- 
 position is as honourable to God, as comforta- 
 ble to ourselves, and most needful now to be ex- 
 ercised, when e\ery soul should rejoice, and be 
 -exceeding glad, and triumph in the God of his 
 saJvation. When people come to the commun- 
 ion, as criminals to the bar, it plainly shews, 
 they are still undei' the law, and are in bondage 
 unto fear ; that they have been resting on their 
 own preparation, and their own wortliincss, as 
 though they mnst be in such a measure good, 
 and tliey were afraid they had not arrived at the* 
 ineasii.re tJiey proposed to the4iiselves ; thus" 
 making faith ^ old, and the promise of none ef- 
 fect. iJut belie\ iiig souls, {\i\\\q^^ jar a season, 
 ?J need be, i'hey be in heaviness ih rough mani- 
 Jold leniptaliu]is) \\\\\ be cheert'ul ones ; they 
 become humble, yet c:onfi(.lent : serious, }et 
 •jchecrful. 
 
 5. A\'e should iliaw near wjtli hunger and 
 .i^Uirst after right.eou:>ness. Just as at our meaW 
 
Covsiderafions at the Lord's Sftppcr, 267 
 
 appetite makes the feast, so it is here; IlefUetk 
 the hungty xvith good things, and sendeth the 
 rich empty aivaij. Such earnest cravings then 
 as your body hath after food, such your soul 
 sliould have after Christ, and his righteousnes?, 
 that you may be found in him. Consider what 
 you would feel if you travelled through a barren 
 and dry land, would you not say, Hungry and 
 thirsty your soul fainted ? Would not you cry, 
 AV'ater, water, to cool the burning tongue r — 
 M'ould not you drink deep into the stream, when 
 from the rock the river issued forth at your cry, 
 and refreshed your parched throat ? This world 
 is that barren land, your soul that parched trav- 
 eller, Christ the living rock, the ordinances the 
 pools of water, to which if any man thirst, let 
 him come and drink, yea, come and take of the 
 water of life freely. See then that your hunger 
 and thirst be felt; see that you relish and tind 
 such expressions as these, agreeable to your frame 
 and temper : As the hart panttth after the wa- 
 ter- h rooks, so longeth my soul after thee, OGod. 
 M\j soul is athirst J or God, even for the living 
 God ; when shall I come to appear in the presence 
 of God ! Then you will find your heart drawn 
 up to greater nearness to God ; your affections 
 will be more united to him ; and, as the refresh^' 
 ments of food to a hungry man, this feast will 
 be a feast of fat things, of fat things full oj 
 marroxv, of xvine on the lees xv el I refined, 
 
 G. We should come with enlivened expecta- 
 tions of receiving according to the necessities of 
 our souls. Having before examined our state in 
 order to discover what graces we most stood in 
 need of, what corruptions called for mortifica- 
 tion, what trying circumstances have most en- 
 dangered us, here we must look upon ourselves 
 as sure to receive grace and strength proportion* 
 
:'oS The Communlcanfs sph^itual Compa)iiQn, 
 
 t{\ to our wants. God, wlio calls upon us, is the 
 Lord of all grace, and he gives, like a King, lib- 
 rrally to every one that asketh, and this too usu- 
 ally exceeding abundantly aboxe all xve can ask 
 or think ; all that Christ has purchased, and that 
 is no less than all the blessings of time and eter- 
 nity, we may put in our request for ; and, in- 
 stead of being: th(juo"ht unreasonable in our de- 
 >ires, the more enlarged they are, the more pleas- 
 ing will they be to God, We cannot expect to 
 receive so much as he is willing to give ; full 
 measure heaped up and running over, will he 
 pour into the bosom of those v.ho come to him 
 •vitli enlivened faith, and big with expectation 
 of receiving, not for our deserts indeed, but for 
 hi^ righteousness sake. 
 
 7. AW^ should approach witli fervent charity. 
 This is commanded us above all things, and most 
 needful wlicn we are celebrating together this 
 visible conniiunion of saints ; where we join in 
 one body, to eat the same bread, and drink the 
 same cup. Before you come here, you will have 
 fcaken care to purge out the old leaven of malice 
 and wickedness, that as the elect of God, you 
 jnight put on bowels of mercies, kindness, long- 
 sutiering, and, with a peculiar affection, love the 
 l}rethren : here this love will have a lively exer- 
 cise on the objects before you ; you will find 
 your heart ascending up in prayer over them, 
 thankful for them, delighting in them, regard- 
 ing them as dear unto you as your own soul, at 
 least desiring to be soaifected, and chidingyour 
 heart for the deadness which at any time you ex- 
 perience. Then, whilst the minister of the Lord 
 is praying over them, that " the body and blood 
 of Christ woukl keep their bodies and souls unto 
 eve 1 lasting life," you will be wrestling in prayer 
 together for them, that they may not go away 
 
Considerations at the LoixTs Supper, 2^9^ 
 
 without a blessing , according to the promise^ 
 that xvhere two or three are agreed together eon- 
 cerning any thing they should ask in Christ^s 
 name J it should he given them. 
 
 8. V\ e should approach \yith a hvTly sense of* 
 the transaction itseit* Christ, crucified beiore- 
 our eyes, should pierce our hearts with shame for 
 our sins. His love should awaken our most 
 lively aifections; his unspeakable gift draw* out 
 our warmest gratitude ; and all our souJs, melted 
 into self-loathing, humble joy, and holy delight, 
 s-hould testify how highly we esteeui this most 
 solemn ordinance. These views dwelling upon 
 our minds, will greatly contribute to Fender our 
 devotions before we communicate, fervent, hum- 
 ble and joyous ; (and surely our hearts must be 
 hard indeed, if on our knees there before the 
 Lord we find not some gracious relen tings, some 
 delightful enlargements of soul towards Jesus. 
 Christ) nor is a lively, sensible experience oi- 
 these things, at any time more desirable or more, 
 proper than now, considering where we are, what: 
 we remember, and how we are interested in it. - 
 
 These are the things which will shew our frame 
 of spirit to be sacramental. Not that h would- 
 mean to say, tliat though we siioukl: come shortr/ 
 in one or other or all of these, we should there- 
 fore be unfit for the ordinance; no : but w& 
 should labour after these, be humbled for our, 
 great defectiveness and lowadvancen.ients, whilst, 
 the higher measures we attain of tl:ese things^: 
 the more comtbrtable will the communion be, as- 
 well as more profitable. 
 
 IL Having thus improved the short time be- 
 fore the Lord's supper, when we come to the ta- 
 ble, we must mind the grand business we have* 
 to do there, which is to receive Christ's pledge-^ 
 Z-% ^ ' 
 
£70 The Commmncanfs spiritual Companion, 
 
 in token that he hath received us, and to make 
 a solemn surrender oi' our souls to him ; so that 
 henceforth our Maker is our husband, and we 
 are no longer our oxtn, but his. Whilst the min- 
 ister then is about to put the elements into our 
 hands and to make his prayer over us, this sur- 
 render should be made in the following way. 
 
 '1. Deliberately. Having counted the cost, 
 on one hand we see a merciful and all-sufficient 
 Saviour, who hath all grace to pardon, and all 
 power to renew, promising us to undertake for 
 us, to bless, preserve and comfort us ; yet withal, 
 we being corrupt and fallen creatures, this can- 
 not be done without a course of self-denial and 
 mortification of our members upon earth, though 
 to encourage us to it, this be most intimately 
 connected with eternal glory. On the other 
 hand, we see the indulgences of flesh and sense, 
 the pleasures of sin for a season, but withal the 
 curse of God in time and in eternity : we are 
 therefore through grace fully disposed to re- 
 nounce the one, and chuse the other. This can- 
 not be done too clearly and coolly. Before at 
 our devotions, we cannot be too lively and fer- 
 vent in spirit, here we cannot be too deliberate. 
 Chusing Christ as our best portion, whatever 
 mortification and self-denial, whatever reproach, 
 whatever difficulties may attend his service, that 
 so we may not in a fit of devotion swear we will 
 go xiith him to prison arid to death ; and then 
 py and by, when corruptions strive, and Satan 
 tempts, or tribulation comes, be offended, and 
 go back from our engagements ; but so simply 
 and steadily set our hands to the plough, as 
 never to look back, but be faith Jul unto deaths 
 that -we may reeeive the crown of iife. 
 
 2. Humbly. We may not be conlident, but 
 in the Lord and the pouer oj his might. We 
 
Considerations at the Lord's Supper. 271 
 
 are promising things, the least of which is above 
 our strength. God must zvork in us to do, as he 
 hath zvrought in us to zvill ; and it is with this 
 view we must surrender up ourselves to him, Imm- 
 bly sensible that we are not in any wise sufficient 
 of ourselves, but we commit our souls into his 
 hands as ajaithful Creator. The sense of our 
 own nothingness should especially lie upon our 
 hearts, when we are admitted to this awful cov- 
 enant, and receive the seals of it into our hands. 
 All is from the Lord ; he alone that hath begun 
 his work in us can perfect the same, and enable 
 lis to abide taithful to the vows which are upon 
 us. 
 
 3. Chearfully^ We are a willing people ; we 
 give up our souls to Christ, and all we have, and 
 are to be for ever his ; not so much because we 
 are bound to do it, as because we delight to do 
 it. We are a iree-will offering ; dravvn, not 
 driven ; hearty not reserved ; love fixes our 
 choice, and Christ is to us all in all. We wish 
 we had a thousand hearts to give him, we would 
 not hesitate to part with any thmg he calls tor, 
 we would delight \^ that which he commands. 
 With a willing mind we take his easy yoke and 
 hi^ht burden, and are pleased with every oppor- 
 tuuit J of renewing our bonds, that we may there- 
 by ue united closer to the Lord our head. 
 
 4 Sincerely. This indeed is the life of the 
 whole. A double heart, a reserved surrender, is, 
 an abommation before God. If our eye pities, 
 or our hearts spare one evil temper, one sin, if 
 we should dissemble xvith our lips, and flatter 
 him uith our tongue, wo unto us ; he that seeth 
 our thoughts afar off, would condemn us even 
 on our knees at the table. Though we should 
 deceive ourselves by our hypocrisy, God cannot 
 be mocked. We must be sincere before him, our 
 
272 The Communicant's spiritual Companion. 
 
 naked souls should be exposed to his view, and 
 an lionest appeal to our hearts, that God himself 
 knows we desire to make no reserve. See to this, 
 that you make no partial surrender ; God must 
 have all our hearts, or none ; if we divide them, 
 by fixing one part on the world, if we would 
 plead for ever so little of its sinful indulgencies, 
 if we want to reconcile the services of God and 
 mammon, allowing part of our affections to the 
 pleasures, vanities, interests, or gain of this 
 present evil world, and think God will be satis- 
 fied with the remainder, weare utterly mistaken. 
 The true surrender is to give up all, and to take 
 Christ as Lord of all, our King to reign over us, 
 as well as our propitiation and atonement. This 
 is sinceritv, much talked of, little known. See 
 tliat it be your own case; without it the strong- 
 est promises, the greatest outward reformation, 
 the most lively pangs of devotion, a torrent of 
 tears, or the most solemn remorse, will but de- 
 ceive you. Coolly, humbly, cliearfull}'- and 
 wholly, without partiality and without hypocri- 
 sy, desire to give up your soul to ( hrist ; that 
 so you may be able to adopt the words of an ex- 
 cellent christian, and testify as he did : 
 
 " But if I might make some reserve, 
 
 " And duty did not call ; 
 " I love my Lord with sucli a love, 
 
 ^< 1 hat 1 would give him all." 
 
 It will be a blessed ordinance indeed, if yoa 
 can see such to, be the frame of your heart at 
 Christ's table, and seal it by the solemn plcdges^ 
 of the body and blood of Christ, which are put 
 into your hands. Here then you will see, 
 at the lirst view, the absurdity and ignorance it 
 betrays, to be coming up to the Lord's table ready- 
 ing some book of devotion, and in a formal dull 
 
Conskkrations at ike LovJls Supper. 273 
 
 ^\'ay to be supplying the want of spirituality by 
 such a lifeless repetition of a number of 
 Avords. Surely if you come to give up your heart 
 to Clirist, if you feel the obligations lying upon 
 you to do so, you can never need to read it out 
 of a book ; your eye should be on your heart, 
 not the paper; and you should be looking to the 
 dear Saviour, whom you are remembering, and 
 caUing forth this heartiness, simplicity, and sin- 
 cerity of soul, with which you chuse the Lord 
 for your portion. 
 
 Thus you may know how to behave at the 
 Lord's table. And then, 
 
 IIL When you depart from thence, I suppose 
 the following things will be a proper exercise for 
 you. 
 
 L You should retire to your place, and there 
 begin with an Amen to all that hath passed ; re- 
 newing before God the solemn renunciation of 
 sin, and choice of Christ, which you have made, 
 and the hearty purpose you have of abiding by 
 it. You should there o^tx again your earnest 
 supplications for grace to be faithful, and that 
 you may really be enabled to receive the Lord 
 Jesus, as a master to serve, as well as a portion 
 to enjoy ; that so this God may be your God 
 for ever and ever, and you may be his even unto 
 death. 
 
 2. You should depart with admiration of the 
 condescension and grace you have experienced. 
 That ever the God of glory should stoop to look 
 upon you ; that ever Jesus Christ should admit 
 you to his table ; that ever the Holy Ghost 
 should make your heart his dwelling ; that ever 
 such great and precious promises should be made 
 to you; that ever you should be permitted to 
 receive the seals of the covenant, established 
 with the high and holy One that inhabiteth e- 
 
274 The Co7nmunicanfs spiritual Companion, 
 
 tcrnity ; that ever he should institute such an 
 ordinance, to confirm your faith in his purposes 
 of mercy towards you. How astonishing is ail 
 this, enougli ahiiost to surpass behef, did not God 
 himself assure us that all this ishiswill concern- 
 ing us ! Yet still be more amazed, when yoa 
 consider what you are, a creature in the lowest 
 rank of rational beings, a poor worm w^hose breath 
 is in his nostrils, a dying man, sprung from the 
 dust, and returning to the dust again; and more 
 than all, a sinful, acorruptc^l creature by nature, 
 by practice become the abomination of that God, 
 who is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity ; 
 but now pardoned, adopted, counted righteous, 
 sanctified, exalted to the most amazing privi- 
 leges, even to be the heir of God, and joint-heir 
 with Christ. Hear, O heavens, and be aston- 
 ished, O earth! Admire, ye angels that surround 
 his throne, whilst ye minister to us below ! What 
 tongue can tell the wonders of redeeming grace ! 
 who can help breaking forth in astonishment. 
 What manner of love is this ! whilst overwhelm- 
 ed with wonder too big for utterance, in silence 
 we believe, admire and adore ? Such sensibility 
 will shew a right apprehension of the greatness 
 of the grace bestowed on us. And, 
 
 S. We should be filled with thankfulness. — 
 Such a frame is the coiisequence of the former ; 
 admiring the grace our nearts cry out, JVhat re- 
 ward shall I give unto the Lord J or all his hen- 
 efits bestowed upon me ? Praise the Lord, O mij 
 soulj and all that is zcithin me praise his ho/j/ 
 7xame ; praise the Lord, O my soul, and J or get 
 not all his benejits. I will praise him xvithjojj' 
 Jul lips, yea, as long as I have any being, luill I 
 sing praises to my God. These are the out- 
 breathings of the soul who hath tasted that the 
 Lord is gracious ; not the formal thanks of pha- 
 
Considerations at the Lord's Supper, 2,75 
 
 xisaical ceremony, but the inwai-d, deep, heart- 
 felt expressions of a soul, that labours to tell 
 the Lord Jesus hov/ deeply he admires the grace 
 in which he hath partaken ; and a blessed frame 
 this is. The comfort of it to the soul is as great 
 as the honour done to God thereby ; for whoso 
 offereth me praise, saith he, he glorijieth me. 
 
 4. We should depart with a sense of our great 
 imperfection in all our services. This is need- 
 ful, lest, if we have received much spiritual con- 
 solation, we should he exalted above measure ; 
 and truly cause enough there is for it, seeing in 
 our best attendances upon God, there is much 
 lacking, and when we have done all, may justly 
 say, we are unprofitable servants. yVnd who that 
 know^s his own heart, will not have cause to 
 mourn over some unbelief, some coldness, some 
 deadness, some wandering, some indisposition, 
 some want of a lively exercise of grace, some 
 undue affections ? This all must be laid -to our 
 corruptions, whilst all that is good in us, should 
 be ascribed to God's free grace, and the praise 
 given to him to whom alone praise is due. Oar 
 ver}' communicatings indeed would be our con- 
 fusion and condemnation, yea, even of the best 
 of us, if we had not one in heaven to bear the 
 inicjuity of our holy things, and to pardon the 
 imperi'ection of our services, as well as the guilt 
 of our sins ; and therefore always to be clothed 
 with humility ; and to stand before God in the 
 perfect righteousness of Christ, is the way to 
 be always acceptable of God, 
 
 5. We should rejoice in Christ Jesus, and in 
 tlicse fresh testimonies of Ijis love towards us. 
 'io be abased for \vhat we see amiss in ourselves, 
 and yet happy in Christ Jesus, explains that 
 strange, but blessed paradox of St. Paul, though 
 wrroicfuL yet aUcaijs rejoicing. Indeed cur 
 
27(> The Co7yi7yiU7iica7ifs sp'u'itual Co}npa)iio7h 
 
 sorrows are a part of our joy ; and that we can 
 feel or mourn over our imperfections, is no slight 
 testimony of Christ's love towards us : and 
 when shall we rejoice, if not now, when we have 
 seen the Lord, have found a welcome, and re* 
 ceived refreshment at his table : have joined 
 ourselves to him in bonds of an everlasting cov- 
 enant, having espoused our soul§ to him in truth 
 and in righteousness, and put on the seal of our 
 adoption, the ring of our contract, and enjoyed 
 spiritual communion with him, and obtained 
 new supplies of grace from him ? Surely may 
 we say, I will rejoice ayid be glad in thee, I xvill 
 rc)7iemher thy love inoy'^e than zvine. I will 77iahe 
 mentio7i of the loving-kindnesses of the Lordy 
 chfid the p)'aises of the Lo7^d\ acco7'ding to all the 
 g7'eat goodness that the Loi^d hath bestowed 
 uponme. Happy, holy joy ! how different from 
 the mirth of vanity, M^hich makes the heart sad ! 
 how different from the short-lived joys of this 
 ^rorld, which are but as the suddenly expiring 
 blaze of thorns. This is the foretaste of eter- 
 nal bliss, a drop of those everlasting pleasures 
 out of the ocean, from which we shall shortly 
 be replenished at God's right hand for evermore. 
 6. We should depart with fresh courage to 
 fight the Lord's battles against the world, the 
 fTesh, and the devil. It was said of the primit- 
 ive christians, when they met for these holy 
 purposes, that '^ they went in as lambs, but came 
 out as lions." So should it be said of us. Re- 
 ceiving strength from the Lord, we should de- 
 part with full purpose of heart to cleave unto 
 and labour for the Lord ; to shew forth all holy 
 zeal and boldness, and never to be ashamed of 
 our profession, or act unsuitably to it. This 
 ordinance should mightily confirm, strengthen 
 and establish us : so tliat our souls, manifestly 
 
Consideratiofis at the Lord's Supper. C77 
 
 refreshed by it, may be pressing forwards, amidst 
 surrounding enemies, with renewed vigour, to* 
 wards the mark for the prize of our high calling 
 in Christ Jesus. 
 
 7. Lastly, We should depart with in-creasing 
 desires after the kingdom of heaven. If in these 
 lower courts, the glimpse of glory be so delight- 
 ful, what must tlie full blaze of that beatific 
 vision be, when we shall no longer through the 
 the dark glass of faith, but face to face, behold 
 Jesus as he is ? When we shall see him with our 
 mortal eye enthroned, to bless and glorify his 
 people ; and find all our souls infinitely more 
 happy in the intimate union to, and coniniunioa 
 with him, than liow it is possible for us to con- 
 ceive. Here our joys are at best imperfect, and 
 some tears of sorrow for what remains of dark- 
 ness and sin, still steal down our cheeks ; but 
 there every tear shall be wiped from our eyes, 
 there imperfection will be no more, we shall be 
 like him, as he is, perfect as our Father which 
 is in heaven is perfect. Plath our faith then en- 
 tered into that within the vail, have we seen Je- 
 sus sitting on the right hand of God, how can 
 we but desire to depart and be xtith Christy which 
 is far better ? How can we but long for the 
 wings of ii dove, that we may fly away, and be 
 at rest in this dear Saviour's bosom ? Is faith at 
 present so comfortable ? is hope only so pleas- 
 ing ? v/hat must it then be when faith is lost in 
 sight, and hope in enjoyment ? See tl-iCn that 
 your souls pant high for glory, and that you go 
 away from this table with such a heavenly mind, 
 as both brings down a taste of heaven below, 
 and sharpens the desire after the full enjoyment 
 of everlasting rest. This will be a profitable use 
 of the ordinance. I can pray for nothing moic 
 A a 
 
^7S Tk£ Communicant'^ spiritual Companion, 
 
 conducive to your eternal salvation, than that 
 such may be abidingly and increasingly the 
 holy frame of 3'ourmind. Then you will know 
 the blessing of discerning the Lord's body ; 
 and find, by dehglitful experience, that the body 
 and blood of CJirist, thus received, v;iU keep 
 your body and soul unto everlasting life. 
 
 CHAP. v. ^ 
 
 Dlrectlojis for the Communicant's daily JValk 
 with Gociy after receiving the Lord's Supper. 
 
 HAVING hitherto led you on from the 
 nature of the ordinance to the dispositions ne- 
 cessary for partaking of it, and the frame where- 
 in we should approach the Lord's table, I would 
 conclude the whole with some considerations of 
 what sort our after-consideration should be, and 
 by what means we may be enabled so to walk, 
 .as becomes our profession. This being the great 
 end of tlie ordinance, that its influence may a- 
 bidc with us, and that it be not looked upon as 
 a ceremonious visit, which we may forget till 
 the time returns again. And here I solemnly 
 admonish all you, who have partaken in these 
 holy mysteries, to tal:e heed to youi^selves, lest 
 "ijou lose the things you have xcr ought. Remem- 
 ber Judas, who no sooner received the sop, but 
 Satan entered into him ; and, though he so often 
 had eat and drank at Christ's table, was a son of 
 perdition, and betrayed his Master. And there- 
 fore if, as we have engaged, we would take Christ 
 for our Master, and live as his faithful and cov- 
 enant-servants, or rather brethren and friends, 
 then must we sliew forth the following conver- 
 sation. 
 
 1. We should go forth into the world pro- 
 fessing his name. U'c :r»ust not be ashamed of 
 
Directions for xcalking zvit/t God. ^79 
 
 Christ, nor his cause ; we should speak for his 
 honour, and glory in his cross. 'Profession now 
 becomes peculiarly demanded from us as com- 
 municants ; and whilst in these evil days, vital 
 Christianity and real religion is branded with ev- 
 ery opprobrious name that an ungodly workl, 
 who know^ not the truth, can invent ; we must 
 heartily welcome these reproaches, and walk so 
 as to deserve them; not silent, hiding our heads, 
 sealing up our lips, and leaving the world to their 
 own ways, but by an open declaration at every 
 proper season bearing testimony against them, 
 that their works are evil ; boldly rebuking vice 
 by w^ord as well as practice ; having no fellozvship 
 with the unfruitful zvorks of darkness, but se- 
 parating ourselves from all intimate society vv^lth 
 every brother who walketh disorderly, wliosc 
 conversation agrees not with the simplicity of 
 the gospel. This will make us singular, it is 
 true; we shall be unlike the world, and displease 
 the world ; but wherefore did we meet at Christ's 
 table, but to makeoursolemndeclaration to him, 
 that zi)c are not of the zvorld, even as he is not of 
 the zcorld? and how shall we dare be so unfaitli- 
 ful, as to go forth and mix again familiarly, and 
 as bosom friends, with those who are enemies ta 
 the cross of Christ, zvho glori/ in their shame,' 
 zvho mind earthly things? To take up our cross, 
 and follow Christ, was our sacramental vow.—- 
 But how unfaithfully have many of you hither- 
 to performed it ? liow utterly strangers are yoit 
 this day to any reproach or shame for Christ's 
 sake? Where is your cross that you have borne 
 in the world ? Alas ! you go from the I.ord'^ 
 table and return again to the world just as be- 
 fore, lost in its cares, pleasures and vanities ; and 
 how then should the world possibly have any 
 cjuaj'rcl with you ? ye are of the zvorld.^ and there- 
 
^80 The Communicanfs spiritual Companion. 
 
 fore the woi^ld loves itso'uui. You never by your 
 profes.'iions disturb the slumbers or security of 
 the unawakened souls around vou : the form of 
 a ceremonious duty will reprove nobody, unless 
 tliere be afterwards something more of profession 
 than this mere act of communicating. But be 
 sincere, and then you cannot escape; go into 
 the world, speak as a christian, profess your views, 
 live for Christ, and then the world and 3'ou will 
 have no longer fellowship ; for if you are thus 
 cliosen out of the world, the world cannot but 
 hate you. Let this, brethren, comfort you who 
 bear forth Christ's name in the world, as well as 
 at his table ; the cross is an honourable badge, 
 to be reproached for righteousness sake is hap- 
 piness. The remembrance of our surrender to 
 Christ, will make us count all things light and 
 easy ; and suftering as a christian, Me need not 
 be ashamed ; we knozv in whom zve have believed ; 
 we knov/ under whose banners we have taken the 
 sacrament to fight ; and God forbid we should 
 quit our colours for shame, reproach, evil report, 
 dishonour or reviling, yea, though we were call- 
 ed for his sake to prison or to death. 
 
 2. We must practice as we profess. Going 
 forth to give up our whole bodies, souls and spi- 
 rits to Christ, and to walk worthy the high vo- 
 cation wherewith we are called, we should carry 
 av/ay with us impressed upon our hearts the vow^s 
 we have made, that sowheneversin would tempt 
 us, we may have this answer to make, How shall 
 I do this ziHc/icd thing, and sin against God, who 
 have but lately so solemnly given up myself to 
 him ? If Christ hath been pleased to take us for 
 his own, shall we rob him of the purchase of his 
 blood, and dishonour him who hath so highly 
 exalted us ? surely this would be as ungrateful 
 as guilty. The eyes of the world will be upon 
 
Directions for xvalking mt/i God. 231^ 
 
 tis, and tliey are piercing and quick ; if they sea 
 OLir conversation to be nothing different from-' 
 their own, they will say, IFhat do ye more than 
 others ? and what advantage will this give to 
 the adversaries of the Lord to blaspheme? — 
 'These,' say they, ^ are your communicants ; here 
 they are all devotion, but go home with them, 
 from church, and you see them as passionate and 
 proud, as covetous and worldly, as vain and trif- 
 ling, as false and deceitful, as any of their neigh- 
 bours.' And if this be the case with any of 
 you, brethren, what a curse will it bring upon 
 you ? what a disgrace will it be to your profess- 
 ion ! and how will religion be wounded, even in 
 the house of its friends, by your unbecoming con- 
 versation? i\lay not the adversaries of the Lord 
 then be hardened in tlveir sins, and confirmed in. 
 their prejudices, whilst they see under the out- 
 ward cloke of profession, that rank hypo- 
 crisy lurks witliin ; and saving ©utward ap- 
 pearance, that you are neither more hum- 
 ble, more holy, more mortitied, more heavenly- 
 minded than themselves ? Surely it were better 
 for such an one, unless mercy restore him, that 
 a millstone xcere hanged about his neck, and that 
 he rcere cast into the midst of the sea, than that 
 ever he approached the table of the Lord But 
 if you would not have this heavy guilt lying 
 upon your souls,, then^yoii must labour to adorn 
 the doctrine of God your Saviour in ail things,. 
 by such an unblamable conduct, that they who> 
 seek occasion against yoa may be disappointed,, 
 and find no evil thing, justly to say of you. — 
 Your lives should be as. the light of die morning, 
 which shineth more and more unto- the perfect 
 day, and youi: works such as may glorify your 
 Father which is^in heaven. Then, if men-speak 
 evil of your good conversation in Christ, these 
 A a ^ 
 
282 The Communkanfs spiritual Compamon. 
 
 adA^ersarlcs of tlie Lord should be found liars ; 
 a»it all who will inquire even here, will detect 
 tlieir malice ; and in the great day of tJie Lordy 
 they shall be covered with confusion, and receive 
 the reward of lying lips and a deceitful tonguCy 
 in the lake which hurneth with Jire and brim- 
 stone, which is the second death. 
 
 3. We must go forth particularly to exercise 
 the duties of our respective stations and relations 
 in life. Herein especially the power of religion 
 is shewn forth ; a passionate master, a fretful 
 mistress, a haughty husband, a self-willed wife, 
 a cruelta-ther, an undutiful son, a slothful ser- 
 vant, ova false friend, none of these can possibly 
 have any pretensions to real Christianity. To 
 suppose it possible, would be supposing a contra- 
 diction possible, that ligUt and darkness, Christ 
 and Belial could agree. Particular watchfulness 
 will be needful. In every family lies the great- 
 est proof of the sincerity of the members of it ; 
 they will prove their fidelity to Christ by their 
 love one towards another, shewn ia the consci- 
 entious discharge of their sevei^il relations ; the 
 master ruling v/ith gentleness, the .ervantlabour- 
 'ivig with chearfulness and fidelity ; the husband 
 kmd and tender, the wife meek and obedient ; 
 the father mixing parental affection with cor- 
 rection, the son manifesting filial love with du- 
 tiful submission, and so in every other case. — - 
 This will make our houses tcnvples ; ,and the 
 charity, forbearance, patience aad submission, 
 shewn one to another in such families, will be 
 the most convincing proof that Christ really 
 dwells under that roof; and such it is required 
 of communicants to be : and towards those who 
 are without, the same spirit must shew itself 
 
 (1.) In the uprightness of all our dealings, ia 
 ©UT intercourse with the world : fVe shall not go- 
 
Directions for 'walking xvith God. 283 
 
 heyond, or defraud our brother in any matter^ 
 but rendering to every man their dues ^ shall oxoe 
 no man any thing. Wt shall do our work as un- 
 der the bonds of the covenant, not with eye-ser^ 
 vice, as men pleasers, but as the servants of the. 
 Lord, doing the ivill of God from the heart — 
 We shall deal with each other in the simplicity 
 ^vhich is in Christ, renouncing every hidden work 
 of dishonesty, and abhorring the ajDpearaiices of 
 fraud and injustice. And thus v^alking under 
 an higher principle than the world is ever ac- 
 quainted with, even under the eye, and as ni the 
 presence of aheart-searching God, shall convince 
 even those we cannot convert, that there is a 
 power in the religion of Jesus Christ to do that 
 which nothing upon earth can do besides. 
 
 (2.) We must shew it in the meekness of our 
 conversations. The power of religion is glori- 
 ous, when it tames the impetuosity of our pas- 
 sions, softens our severity into mildness, and puts 
 a bridle both on our hearts and tongues. Com- 
 ing from the table of a meek and lowly Jesus, 
 we must needs learn of him to be meek and low- 
 ly of heart, if we would find rest unto our souls. 
 It IS strange hypocrisy to come with pretence of 
 seeking- ^//e ivisdom that is from above, which is 
 jij^st pure, then peaceable, gentle, easy to be in- 
 treated, and going home to disturb all around 
 us by our passions and perverseness ; instead of 
 gentleness; to be a lion in our house, and frantic 
 among our servants ; instead of easiness to be 
 intreated, implacable and unmerciful ; this is 
 not to partake of the table of the Lord, but the 
 table of devils, for these are the dispositions of 
 Satan. Let this thing, brethren, be seriously at- 
 tended to, let it appear what Christ at his table 
 hath d' n ior you, by the change wrought in 
 your t.mjers, by the mildness, sweetness, com- 
 
284 The Communicanfs spiritual Companion. 
 
 ^passion, forbearance, and gentleness of your con- 
 versation. 
 
 (3.) Be temperate in all things. In the world, 
 that its anxious cares and concerns do not en- 
 gage you immoderately. In your body, that 
 you deny its cravings, making no provivion for 
 the flesh, by sloth, drunkenness, gluttony or 
 pleasure, to fulfil the lusts thereof : They that 
 are Christ's, have both crucifed the xcorld and 
 the flesh icitli its affections and lasts. A world- 
 ly covetous communicant, a drunken intemper- 
 ate comn)unicant, a lewd and carnal communi- 
 cant, what can be so monstrous a thing ? Can 
 .we receiv^e the body of Christ in one hand, whilst 
 we grasp the world in the other? Can the same 
 eyes that have looked upon a crucified Saviour, 
 indulge wantonness or be greedy of gain r Can 
 these hearts that have been made the tcniples of 
 the Holy Ghost, erect the altar of Marnmon 
 there, or entertain those vile affections which 
 must defile the sacred place ? Let it appear then 
 that you are now no longer debtors to the flesh, 
 to live after the flesh ; that the zcorld is crucified 
 unto you, and you unto thexvorld ; that you have 
 higher enjoyments than flesh or sense, and nobler 
 prospects than earth can give you; and this may 
 well make you dead to the love of worldly things, 
 and temperate in the use of them. 
 
 (4.) Shew forth your love to your brethren* 
 As good stexcards of the inanijold gifts of God, 
 according as God hath given to every one, let 
 him mi)iLster the same to him that loxketh. Do 
 we abound in riches, let us abound also in hber- 
 ality ? have we but little, let us shtxv our dili- 
 gence to give of that little ? The trifle we conr 
 tribute at the table, should be as the first- fruit.^ 
 to sanctify our other gifts, in token that we do 
 tliem all in Christ's name, and foi his sake. But 
 
Directions for zvalking loith God, 28^' 
 
 there are other and far greater demonstration^ 
 of love, which v/e are called to exercise towards 
 our brethren, than the relief of their pov^erty, 
 such as bearing the infirmities of the weak, con- 
 descending to the meanest, ready to help them 
 with our presence, advice or influence, where 
 any or all of these may be necessary ; counting 
 none beneath our notice or regard ; seeing the 
 unspeakable condescensions of Christ to us, who, 
 though he was in the form of Gody and thought 
 it no robbery to be equal xvith God, yet humbled 
 himself] and made himself of no reputation, and 
 took upon him the form of a servant. Have we 
 really seen him come not to be 77iinistered unto, 
 but to 7ninister ? have we seen his love in giv^ 
 ing his life a ransom for us ? how ought we 
 then to love one another, yea, to be ready to lay 
 down, if need be, our lives for the brethren ? foi' 
 how dear ought those bodies to be to us, for 
 which Christ's body was given ? how precious 
 ought those souls to be in our eyes, for which 
 Christ's soul zvas sorroxvjul, even unto death ? 
 This universal love to all, but especially to those 
 who are of the houshold of faith, we must go 
 forth to exercise, that so all men may knoAV we 
 are Christ's disciples, by that unfeigned affec- 
 tion we bear one towards another. 
 
 (5.) Our conversation after this ordinance 
 should be more heavenly. What hath a chris- 
 tian any longer to do among the tombs of this 
 world, who is come from remembering a living, 
 dying, risen and ascended Saviour ? Our con- 
 versation, says St. Paul, is in heaven, from xvhence 
 we lookjor the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ. 
 Have we there remembered his coming again } 
 what have we then to do but to make ready for 
 k, that our affections being set on things in 
 heaven, not on things on earth, we may wel- 
 
^S6 The Co):Tmu72icanfs spiritual Companion, 
 
 comet the day of his appearance and glory. — 
 Here is the grand evidence of a christian. Others 
 direct all their aims, pursuits and designs after 
 the things which are seen, and are temporal ; he 
 seeks ahva^^s the things above, the things which 
 are unseen to others, but reahzcd by faith to 
 him, and most important, because eternal. See 
 that this be your experience, that every time you 
 communicate, you find the effects of it thus ev- 
 ident, in lifting up your hearts after Christ rn 
 the heavens ; in quickening your preparation to 
 meet him in the clouds, and continually making 
 you more ready and disposed for that inheritance 
 among the saints in light, which in the ordi- 
 nance was sealed to you, and to which you were 
 called. 
 
 Such should be our conversation after every 
 sacramental occasion, that all who see us may 
 take knowledge of us that we have been with 
 Jesus ; and behold from our walk the brightness 
 of the grace communicated tons, making us 
 shine as lights in the vv^orld, like Moses' face 
 when he came down from the m.ount of vision. 
 I would to God this was more the case ; and 
 that all that were joined to the Lord in bonds of 
 outward communion with him, Hvere thu-s one 
 spirit with him; walked more as Christ walked. 
 I am very sure it is thegreatgrief of every truly 
 christian heart, whenever they behold the con- 
 trary, and see these spots at our feasts feaiting 
 themselves xcithout fec^r, for whom is reserved 
 the blackness of darkness for ever. May you 
 and I fear for ourselves, and give greater f/i//^;'X7/ce 
 to make our calling and election sure, continuing 
 to w^alk thus as persons professing godliness. In 
 order to which, we shall find the following means 
 most highly conducive ; and I pray God you may 
 have such desires thus to give up your hearts to 
 
Directions for walking with God, ^^7 
 
 God, as heartily to exercise yourselves unto god- 
 liness in all the ways the Spirit points out to 
 you ; and these are chiefly, 
 
 1. \yatchfulness. 
 
 2. Prayer. 
 
 3. The Avord. 
 
 4. The company of lively christians. 
 
 1. To walk as becometh your christian pro- 
 fession, you must, be watchful. The enemies 
 whom you renounce are mightier than you, wise, 
 watchful and ensnaring. The devil continually 
 spreads his toils, and is never perhaps busier with 
 us than after such a season, when the fervour of 
 devotion being somewhat abated, our hearts are 
 more exposed to his attacks ; then he would step 
 in, tempt us to return unto folly, follow his in- 
 sinuations with some bait laid in our way, and so 
 work upon the remainder of corruption within 
 us, in order to betray us into his hands. Thus 
 after the sop, Satan entered into Judas. As not 
 ignorant therefore of his devices, we should es- 
 pecially beware of security. Let not him that 
 putteth Oil the armoury l)oast as he xoho taketh it 
 off. When the cold turf covers our head, theii 
 the xvicked wilt cease from troubling ^ and the 
 weary have perfect rest ; but here every step we 
 take we are among lions, and must stand on our 
 watch-tower, fearing always, and working out 
 our salvation with that trembling and care which 
 <:an only secure it. A holy jealousy is the great 
 preservative against falling away. The moment 
 we begin to slumber, our v/atcliful adversary is 
 
 ' ready to take advantage against us : but blessed 
 is the man whom his Lord xvhcn he cometh shall 
 find watching. 
 
 2. Prayer is the greatest means of preserving 
 the influence of this ordinance upon our hearts. 
 This is closely connected with the former, watch- 
 
5288 The Communicanfssp'mtual Cojiipanion, 
 
 fulness and prayer go togctlier ; we nust pray 
 that we may watch, and continue M':.tching un- 
 to prayer. It is not enough once to draw nigh 
 unto God, hut we should daily be keeping near 
 to him, aiid upon our knees in our closets acting 
 over again that surrender which we have made 
 at the table. Prayer is the breath of the divine 
 nature, of the new creation beguu in us, and by 
 it we should be offering up our souls daily to 
 him, from whom comer h our salvation. By 
 prayer mc should seek tu maintain an holy frame 
 of spuit, appearing solemnly and frequently in 
 secret in God's presence, that we may habitually 
 walk under the sense (;f it. Whoever hath any 
 experience of divine tlnngs, W'ill find hisconstant 
 need, and the gracious influence of earnest and 
 importunate prayer ; such an oue cannot but 
 pray, all his soul depends upon it, he knows he 
 shall quickly grow careless the moment he be- 
 comes prayerless ; and therefoie he remarks the 
 smallest decays in private prayer, stirs up his 
 soul to the lively exercise of it, and pleads for 
 the Spirit to blow up the fire of all holy graces 
 in his heart. To neglect prayer, or to perform 
 it with an habitual negligence and formality, is 
 a most suspicious sign that all approaches to 
 God at his table were mere matters of form, the 
 work of a day, not the spiritual exercises of the 
 heart, desiring nearness to and communion with 
 God ; for where this is the case in one ordinance, 
 it must be so in another : they who long to see 
 Christ at his table, are daily setting him before 
 them, when they bow their knees at his footstool ; 
 and this both prepares the way before, and keeps 
 alive the sense of what they have found at 
 Christ's communion afterwards. Pray there- 
 fore, I beseech you, without ceasing, as you hope 
 to stand fast, as you would be true to your en- 
 
Directions for walking with God. 289 
 
 gagements, as you profess the name of christian, 
 as you would walk as becometh your profession, 
 as you would shew forth the sincerity of your 
 surrender to Christ by the discharge of your sev- 
 eral relations in life, as you would have your con- 
 versation in heaven, I beseech you be diligent in 
 private prayer ; else you will dishonour your 
 vocation, you will walk in disobedience, as do 
 others, you will have your conversation upon 
 earth, you will be a slave to the world ; and not- 
 withstanding all you may do besides, your tali 
 will be more dreadful, and your ruin most inev- 
 itable. You must pray or perish. 
 
 3. The word of God is another great means 
 to keep us from falling. Herein we' must exer- 
 cise ourselves day and night. Out of it we must 
 be taught the way wherein we must go. This 
 must bQ the guide''to our feet, and the lanthorn 
 to our paths ; and in our course to glorj^, be our 
 jnap and chart. Conmiunion seasons are places 
 of refreshment in the way, to strengthen us for 
 our journey : Christ in the Avord is the way it- 
 self, in which after such refreshment we are to 
 vv'alk. To the word therefore you must apply, 
 to know more perfectly the mind of God, that 
 you ma}' follow it more faithfully • and if you 
 have been sincere with Christ, you will Ao so ; / 
 made haste, and delayed not to keep thy command- 
 ments ; you will keep the scriptures" upon your 
 heart, rising up and lying down ; they will be 
 daily in your hands at any season of leisure, and 
 particularly before you set yourself to the exer- 
 cise of prayer. Tliis is the way to be taught of 
 God, and instructed in the way that you should 
 go. You will find thus your heart built up, 
 more determined for Christ, and more stedfast 
 in his service ; having set his commandments 
 Cb 
 
B90 The Communicants spiritual Companion. 
 
 ever before you, and being stedfastly purposed 
 through grace not to sin against them. 
 
 4. Lastly. The company of hvely christians 
 as a choice means and wonderous help to keep 
 ahve the serious impressions made upon the soul. 
 As iron sJiarpeneth iron, so doth the countenance 
 of a man hisJriencL Experience will best con- 
 firm the truth of this observation. Man is by 
 nature social, needing the lielp one of another ; 
 and christians more so than other men, who have 
 new and stronger bands than nature to unite 
 them, and have many enemies that none others 
 know. To associate therefore for the purposes 
 of religious improvement, is not more comfort- 
 able than necessary ; Hoxv can one he warm alone ? 
 says the Propdet. But when w^e join to exhort, 
 reprove, rebuke, and admonish one another, then 
 the fire catches from heart to heart, each receives 
 some quickening, or consolation, or correction 
 from the others experience and conversation ; 
 and thus the conmumion of saints before the 
 Lord is still niaintained, till the season returns 
 when weshall.cometogether again inGod's house, . 
 and renew the bonds of union andfellowship one 
 with another. Let me therefore recomuK^nd it 
 to you to 'seek the company of those, whose 
 course and toiuluct is most holy, heavenly, and 
 zealous ; to be free one with another; to open 
 your hearts, as christians, in that mutual con- 
 fidence, which none but real christians have any 
 experience of, to delight in !<ocial prayer, and be 
 desirous to join in it w luncver you have oppor- 
 tunity. A conduct indeed, \\hich, to those who 
 know nothing of heart-religion, is always offen- 
 sive and disliked ; but Mhich all, who have seri- 
 ously set their souls to seek the kingdom of Cod 
 in the first place, liave found both mobt neces- 
 sary to keep alive their holy purposes, and most 
 
Directions for Prayer. 291 
 
 conducive to the comfort as well as edification 
 of their souls. 
 
 In this way you will always be going forward, 
 and be growing in grace as in days, riper for 
 glory as 3'ou advance towards it. You will be 
 walking in an holy conformity to your profess- 
 ion, and approving your fidelity to Christ your 
 ]\Iaster. And thus from eating and drinking at; 
 Christ's table below, you willshortly go to drink 
 with him the new wine of eternal consolation in 
 the kingdom of your Father. 
 
 CHAP. VL 
 
 Directions for Prayer. 
 
 PRAYER is the desire of the soul after God, 
 arising from a sense of want, and expressing a 
 dependance on his promises for a supply accord- 
 ing to our necessities. 
 
 Jt is evident that the heart must be engaged, 
 or there can be no prayer. Tlie words of the lip, 
 or the bending of the knee, are hypocrisy with** 
 out this. The tinest produce of the understand- 
 ing, whether the composition of others or our 
 own, is no better tlian sounding brass or a tink* 
 ling cymbal, if the spirit of prayer be wanting. 
 Whilst, on the other hand, the simplest express- 
 ions, yea perhaps the most ungrammatical lan- 
 guage, may convey the fervent desires of etfec- 
 tual prayer most acceptably, before the Godzcko- 
 trietli the heart and the reins. 
 
 The most natural method of prayer is the art- 
 less language of the soul, dictated by want, and 
 warmed with desire ; and I suppose every soul, 
 really awakened to feel his necessities, will be. 
 able, for the most part, to speak what he feels,, 
 without any assistance. 
 
592 The Commimkant'^s spiritual Companion. 
 
 I commend extempore prayer, because I have 
 not only my own experience, the experience of 
 all living christians, but the very reason of the 
 thing to plead for it. Yet there are cases and 
 circumstances wherein we may, no doubt, receive 
 assistance from the labours of others ; as Aaron 
 was a mouth to Moses, so there may be helps to 
 such as are slow of speech. 
 
 In secret we should not exclude forms of pray- 
 er, though for the most part they are rather a 
 clog than a help to devotion, when solely made 
 use of. They seem useful, 
 
 1. When used as a directory weplace'it before 
 us, having first considered it as applicable to our 
 state, and, in the exercise of prayer, enlarge up- 
 oi> the particular circumstances we are in. 
 
 5. At times we may find such a want of ex- 
 pression, as to need assistance of that kind, and 
 may experience our hearts more quickened by 
 it. " Here the end of prayer being considered, 
 what most promotes that is certainly best. 
 
 3. At first, having never been used at all to 
 pi:ay before, we may make use of the mouth of 
 our neighbours to express our own case, and 
 teach our lips a language, which the heart wants 
 to utter. 
 
 But the great use of forms of prayer seems to 
 be in social worsliip. 
 
 As prayer is the duty of every individual for 
 himself in secret, so is it also enjoined on all 
 christians in their social relations. The master 
 of every family is bound by the religion of Jesus 
 to make his house a house of prayer. When 
 christians meet together in private as well as in 
 tbe congregation, prayer is the most proper and 
 natural employment, \\bundant evidence of this 
 occurs in the New Testament. 
 
 The "ifts of God are variously dispensed. — 
 
Directions f 07^ Frai/er. 293 
 
 Some have a facility of expression, and readiness 
 of elocution, which is denied toothers. Hence 
 some can speak for others, without the assistance 
 of a form of prayer, and this is undoubtedly the 
 most profitable ; for in this case^ the knowledge' 
 of the peoples^ state gives the person who prays 
 an opportunity of adapting his requests n».ore ex- 
 actly to the case of those who join witn him ; 
 besides, that there is something much more en- 
 livening to devotion in such exercises, wheii' 
 done with propriety and judgment,, than in th^ 
 best composed forms. 
 
 But as these gifts of knowledge and utterance 
 may not be possessed by many, who yet desire" 
 to pray with and for each other^ there the spirit- 
 ual assistance of some experimental christian's- 
 prayer may be of the most abundant usefulness.* 
 I confess I cannot but wish that some wlio take 
 upon them to be mouths of others, had greater 
 ditlidence of themselves. To hear a man before 
 others praying absurdly, improperly and inco- 
 herently, is as offensive to men,, as it must be 
 displeasing to God ; and. can serve only to sliew 
 the pride, not the humility of the speaker, and 
 the folly, not the teachableness of the' hearers. 
 Prayer must be ever a reasonable service, it ceases 
 to be so when in such-hands. 
 
 But the sloth of some, and too great concern 
 of others, about the manner of acquitting them- 
 selves in prayer, are equally sinful. Instead of 
 improving their gifts and graces, they. continue 
 servilely bound to a form, however in itself good. 
 
 * As m!iny sincere people, who stand in need of lieip.s, eiilier for private cr 
 social pjii^'ur, may be al a lois (or pr-jper foriua, I wo'.Hd therefore retommeiid 
 Mr. JeuKi' Devotions, as by f':ir the most anuaaled and spirlluai oi' any lever 
 met with, and best suited both for families and 'the slates aijd evigencies of 
 particular christians. There are also in that Manual soin-; excelieat prayer-s 
 aad m I'd tations for the assistance of pious coiumuiiicaiii:, and a very sweet 
 aud Uevoui paraphtasc upon the creed. 
 
 Bb2- 
 
^4 The Commitnicanrs spiritual Companion, 
 
 They, to whom it is given, should use to the 
 honour of the giver, the gift he bestows ; but 
 if we make not the trial, we cannot tell what our 
 gifts are. 
 
 As every gift improves by exercise, so does the 
 gift of prayer particularly. We know not what 
 we can do till we try, and it is a certain fact that 
 persons of very slender abilities, and \\\\o could 
 iicarce express themselves clearly on any other 
 subject, having obtained, by exercise in prayer, 
 not only method, but propriety ; and many a 
 heart hath been warmed with the prayers of 
 tliose whom the world hath accounted weak as 
 ^veli as illiterate. Every person therefore should 
 make the attempt. 
 
 There is a shame and diffidence v»^hich usually 
 attends. the lirst essays, which may for a little 
 while distract. the attention, and make us too so- 
 licitous about the persons with v/hom we are, in- 
 stead of being w holly taken up with the consid- 
 eration of him to whom we speak ; but this in 
 general is soon got over by use. Mean time, I 
 suppose it would be very profitable for such as 
 begin the worship of God m their houses, or 
 ^\ith their friends, to have before them some 
 evangelical book of devotions, that if they found 
 themselves confused, or barren of thought, they 
 might recur to it, till they had attained greater 
 ease, and overcome that bashfulness which hur- 
 ried them. 
 
 Where there is really not a gift of prayer, 
 ■tvhere persons are conscious that they cannot so 
 proiitably perform the exercise of devotion with- 
 out the help of a composed prayer, there it would 
 be sinfid in them not to make use of it. 1 liave 
 heard of some, that because they could not pray 
 extempore in their families, ^\ould not pray at 
 all with them : which seems as absurd as to say, 
 
Directions for Prayer, ^95 
 
 because I cannot feed my family with delicacies 
 of my own prov^idinj^, they shall starve; thou.^h 
 I might have made use of my neighbour's offers, 
 who had broken his bread on purpose tor my use. 
 
 It must be observed that there are persons who 
 have much of the gift of prayer, who have not 
 the spirit of prayer ; these, like the ravens who 
 fed Elijah, bring good food to those vvho join 
 with them, whilst their own pride and vanity of 
 their abilities is the carrion on which they feed 
 themselves. Their prayers may be blessed unto 
 others, but they are an abomination to God, and 
 hring a curse upoa their own souls. 
 
 It will be needless to say many things in com- 
 mendation of prayer, either respecting its neces- 
 sity or excellence. The soul, who is brought to 
 a sensibility about his real state, feels both with 
 an evidence which is beyond all that we can 
 speak, and the soul who is yet dead in trespasses 
 and sins cannot pray, though we should write 
 volumes to persuade him to it. For he that con- 
 eth to God must first believe that he is, and that 
 he is arewarder of those who diligent li/ seek him. 
 All tlie miscalled prayers of unbelievers have no 
 more of a spiritual service in them, than howl- 
 ing hath of harmony. 
 
 i'or the sake of those v/ho have need of assist- 
 ance, I have subjoined some itw helps to prayer 
 which may be enlarged upon, and made particu- 
 larly applicable to the case of those who use 
 them; iiitimating by the way, that the more wc 
 unbosom the very thoughts and secrets of our 
 souls to God, the more prohtable will betheser- 
 vice. 
 
 Praying that a spirit of prayer and supplica- 
 tion may be poured out upon every soul into 
 whose hands this book may fall, 1 coinmend 
 them and it lo tiie grace ot our Lord Jesus Ciirist, 
 
^96 The Communicant's spiritual Companio77. 
 
 As no communicant can live without daily aj^ 
 plication to a thvone of grace, the hints about 
 prayer above given have an evident connec- 
 tion with the subject of the foregoing chap- 
 ters. I have only to observe farther, that in 
 the specimen of a prayer which follows, I have 
 descended from general confession to particu^ 
 lar. from general wants to particular ones. — 
 Persons must examine themselves where their 
 bosom sin lies, what graces they most need, 
 what temptations they most labour under, and 
 adapt any portion of what follows to their own 
 state and circumstances ; it being designed not 
 so much as a form, as to assist the infirmities 
 of the weak, 
 
 *[ If the JGlloxving be used as an assistance for 
 social zvorship, tiien the alteration of \\<djor I, 
 ^!isfor me, owr for my or mine, is easilij made ; 
 and in this case all the meniicn of particulars 
 should be omitted, and the pratjer confned to 
 the general conjessions and requests, omitting 
 the particular ones xvhere the blank spaces 
 stand xvithin hocks thus [ ]. 
 
 f[ Vou maij observe several breaks, xvhich nay 
 be considered as containing so many new heads 
 of prayer. Thus you are to connect any parts 
 of it, or Ofuit as you see occasion. 
 
 OTHOU most High and most Holy, whose 
 name is Jehovah, the all-seeing and heart- 
 searching God over all blessed for ever ; look 
 down in mercy on a poor unworthy sinner, de^ 
 sirinf'- to drav/ near the throne of grace in the nam.e 
 of the incarnate Saviour, and making mention of 
 his rigliteousness only. * [No other hope hath 
 my sinful soul, no other help I find but in him ;. 
 
 * Whatever isbtjtw'ccahooks thus [] may be oniitrcd without any hurt of 
 :he sens- or tonuccliou ; or if yov c:iv.se to use junj i-art of it, y^u ixicrv, Aft. 
 ;hali appear ])vopcr io so^- caic. 
 
Directions for Prayer, 297 
 
 for his dear sake regard my cries, and let my 
 prayer enter into thine ears, O Lord my God.] 
 
 [I come before thee acknowledging my sin ; 
 and my iniquities, Lord, would I not hide from 
 thee. Indeed they cannot be hid, for from thee 
 nothing is hid, nothing is secret. Yet, Lord, I 
 have too long and too often covered myself with 
 thick darkness, and neither saw nor desired to 
 see the evil which was in me. Blessed be thy 
 name, that thou hast caused the light to shine 
 into my beart, and hast given me any knowl- 
 edge of the hidden mystery of iniquity there.] 
 
 Behold, Lord, Ixvasshapen in wickedness, and 
 in sin did my mother conceive me ; yet how lit- 
 tle did I know of the evil of such a corrupted 
 nature, and its exceeding sinfulness ? It was hid 
 from my eyes ; but now I acknowledge I am 
 vile, and abhor myself : I am altogether become 
 abominable, there is no health in me ; evil, and 
 that continually and universally, hath reigned 
 in me : my transgressions are many, mine ini- 
 quities testifying also against me : when I reflect 
 upon the days that are past, confusion covereth 
 me ; the flagrant violations of thy holy law in 
 many instances witness against me ; my sins ia 
 number exceed the hairs of my head ; and yet. 
 Lord, how small a part of them do I see ? whilst 
 in thy book they have been written, and not a 
 word hath been in my tongue, but thou. Lord, 
 knowest it altogether, [I remember, Lord, with 
 particular condemnation my — *. And O that I 
 might go down mourning to my grave under it, 
 and abhor myself ever for it, even when thou 
 art pacified towards me for it.] 
 
 Enter not mto judgment with me, lest I be 
 
 * Here any particular sin whic^ afflicts your conscience, or which you de- 
 sire may more affect it, should be mentioned, and the particulars opened, that 
 your heart may be more struck with the mcatioa. 
 
2P8 The Communicanfs spiritual Companion. 
 
 utterly confounded. Shouldst thou "try nie, I 
 must plead guilty before thee, and acknowledge 
 my just desert to be the worm which dieth not, 
 and the fire wdiich is not quenched. Yea, Lord, 
 thou wouldst be clear in thy uttermost condem- 
 nation, for thou dost righteously, but I have re* 
 belled against thee. 
 
 Yet glorify thy name in mercy upon me, and 
 according to those gracious promises in which 
 thou hast caused me to put my trust, glorify thy 
 Son in pardoning and saving such a wretch as I 
 am. [Let it now appear, Lord, that the blood 
 of Jesus cleanseth from all sin by its cleansing 
 me ; and, sprinkled therewith, may my poor soul 
 be presented before thy throne with kind accep- 
 tance ! This is all my salvation ; I plead nothing 
 but this, that Jesus died for me. In his blood, 
 in his righteousness only dare I approach unto 
 thee, O thou most worthy Judge eternal.] 
 
 [Blessed be the name of my God foi his un- 
 speakable gift. Blessed be God for Jesus Christ ! 
 O strengthen my faith in his all sufficiency, and 
 let not the number or aggravations of my sins 
 discourage me; but, Lord, make his glory, his 
 obedience unto death, his cross, his crown, to 
 pass before me, that I may without all doubt be* 
 lieve in the satisfaction of my Saviour, and find 
 redemption in him.] 
 
 And thou. Lord of life and glory, come and 
 take possession of n^y heart, take the purchase 
 of thy blood, set up wjthin me thy kingdom, 
 and turn tliou me, that so 1 may be turned. An 
 helpless worm, the servant of sin, tlie sport of 
 temptation, the bond slave of corruption, thou 
 seest me. O break this yoke from otf my neck, 
 and bring me, Lord, into the liberty of the chil- 
 dren of God. [Hast thou not redeemed us from 
 all iniquity, to purify to thyself a peculiar peo- 
 
Directions for Prayer, 29D 
 
 pie ? Art tliou not come to bend our hearts in 
 submission to thy will, as well as to ransom us 
 from death and hell ? Here is my heart, Lord, 
 take and fashion it to thy holy will] 
 
 Behold, Lord, I groan being burdened. Since 
 thou hast called, 1 want to follow thee. But, O, 
 I find that sin hangs heavy on my soul, my cor- 
 ruptions war against me, and trouble me; and 
 my strength is as weakness before them. Help, 
 Lord, or I perish ! Come, exert thy power, and 
 set the captive free ! Enable me to lay aside ev- 
 ery weight, and the sin which doth most easily 
 beset me ! 
 
 ^ Herefolloxvs three of the great enemies of our 
 souls, Fr'ide^ Lust, aud IVorldliness ; no soul 
 hut hath need to cry mightily for pozver against 
 tJiem. : though, according to our several tem- 
 pers and states, some one of them will most es- 
 pecially endanger us ; accordingly, that part 
 7nay he made use of\ and the others shortened 
 iQr passed over. 
 
 Against Pride, 
 
 MY Pride thrusts hard against me that I should 
 f\dl. [I find within mc such high im.aginations, 
 such a readiness to resent, such warmth and 
 hastiness of temper.] [I found this day my spirit 
 Ixvrt by the reflections of — , by the obstinacy 
 of — , by the conduct of — , I murmured as if 
 my lot was hard. I regarded with envy — great- 
 er success, abilities and advancement.*^] Lord, 
 cast down every imagination which exalteth it- 
 self, and bring my thoughts into the obedience 
 of Christ ; make me content to be the last and 
 the least. Bow me to submission to every dis- 
 
 * T^iose arc some of the particalar, ;yet universal workings of Pride. The 
 specifying the time ai-d place, and persons, brings ih^' remenibrauce of it more 
 livul^ \\\))n U5, begf'ti (iijcpei- humility, and ;i\vukcr.5 greater carue^tness 
 
300 The Communicants spiritual Companion. 
 
 pensation, and keep me quiet under every prov- 
 ocation. [Make me ever to know myself to be 
 vile earth, and a miserable sinner ; that I may 
 find my temper really corresponding with my 
 words, when I confess myself to be nothing, and 
 less than nothing and vanity ; content to be as 
 low in others' eyes as I acknowledge myself to 
 be in thine, and profess to be in my own.] 
 
 Against Lust. 
 SUBDUE the hateful lusts which war against 
 my soul. Thou seest, Lord, how this flesh striv- 
 eth against the spirit, and how impotent I am to 
 resist [*Thou knowest how my heart depart- 
 ed from thee after — , how my eye wandered with 
 unhallowed looks — , how my folly wrought in 
 secret — , to bring forth fruit unto death ] O 
 save me, Lord, from my sinful self: give me 
 strength to restrain the wanderings of my de- 
 sires ; enable me to make a covenant with mine 
 eyes ; let my tongue cleave to the roof of my 
 mouth, rather than speak unhallowed words of 
 lewdness and my hand cut off ere it be reached 
 out to sin. [It were better for me to die, Lord, 
 than to dishonor thee and my own body.] O 
 make me a clean heart ! [Purify my desires, 
 teach me to possess my vessel in sanctification 
 and honour ; and may my body, as well as my 
 soul, be for thee, O Lord, presented unto thee 
 as a living sacrifice, which is my reasonable ser- 
 vice.] 
 
 Against IVorldUness, 
 
 DELIVER me from the love of this present 
 
 evil world. Lord, my heart is naturally eaithly 
 
 and sensual, [Thou knowest what a slave I 
 
 have been to the unrighteous mamm.on, O wean 
 
 * Wliat follows between [] will allovd place for any particularly buiublinc 
 rcficctions. 
 
Directions for Prayer. SO I 
 
 nie from the love of it ; may I be crucified unto 
 the world, and the world unto me. I [In my 
 transactions with — , I found covctousness ready 
 to make me unjust ; in looking upon — , I felt 
 the workings of concupiscence ; my backward- 
 ness to give to — , who needed, condemns my 
 worldliness ; in my bargain with — , I did not 
 enough consider him as myself] Lord, enable 
 me daily to resist all anxious cares and disquiet- 
 ing fears; subdue every covetous desire in my 
 soul; make me more circumspect and conscien- 
 tious in all my dealings, and may my daily care 
 be not to lay up my treasure upon earth, but ini 
 heaven ; by such an improvement of the talent 
 which thou hast intrusted with me, as may be 
 most to thy glory, and the rdief and com.fortof 
 my distressed fellow creatures and fellow christ- 
 ians. 
 
 O Lord, my strength as well as righteousness, 
 enable me to walk before thee, and please thee ; 
 may I not only cease to do evil, but learn to do 
 good ; write thy laws in my mind, and put them 
 into my heart. [Constrained by the views of 
 thy amazing grace, may I chearfully surrender 
 m3^ whole self to thee, to be employed in thy 
 work, and devoted to thy service. Yea, Lord, 
 I am thy servant, I am thy servant, since thou 
 hast loosed my bands ; as bought with a price, may 
 I glorify thee in my body and in my spirit which 
 are thine, and] daily let the fruits of righteous- 
 ness appear more abundant]}' in me, which are 
 through me, my Lord and Saviour, to the praise 
 and glory of God. [Thou knowest my wants 
 and my barrenness, how weak and feeble are my 
 graces, how cold my love, how doubting my 
 faith, how lukewarm my zeal, liowMicghgentmy 
 feai-^ and how imperfect all. Lord, strcn^'thcii 
 C c 
 
S02 The Communicanrs spUUual Compamoti. 
 
 inc with might in the inner man, fashion my soul 
 after thine own hlessed image, and daily out of 
 tl)y fuhiess give me to partake of the abundance 
 of grace.] 
 
 % HcreJ'ollozcs petitions for particular graces, 
 J. For Faith 1. Under the accusations of 
 i;uilt. £. Under the icorkings of corruptions. 
 ^. Under temptations, 4. Under afflictions. 
 yls you most need to exercise it under either of 
 these viercs, you xcillfind here assistance. 
 I. A Pray 1:11 for Faith. 
 1 . Under a sense of guilt. 
 
 Most merciful and gracious God, strength- 
 en m}' faith in thy promises, that I may, with- 
 out all doubt, cast my care upon thee, assured 
 that thou caiest for me. The remembrance of 
 iny past sins is grievous, [particularly — , and my 
 iieart sometimes is readv to fail.] Lord, enable 
 me to believe that thou dost in Jesus abundant- 
 jy pardon. May I see moreof his all-siiiiHciency, 
 that fear may ])C cast out, and that I may re- 
 joice in the assurance that thou hast received 
 me, and cast all my sins behind thy back. Yes, 
 Lord and Saviour, I dare not dishonour thee 
 more than I lune already done, by distrusting 
 thee. I know thou art able to save to the ut- 
 termost, ti^y blood can atone for all ; 1 belie^ e, 
 lielp thou mine unbelief. 
 
 ^2. Under the workings of corrupt ion. 
 
 1 am oppressed with corruption, a body of sin 
 and death compasses me round about. [Deep 
 calleth unto deep, and I am ready to say 1 am 
 cast out of iliy sight, particularly — , again.st 
 Avliicli 1 have ^tro^e and prayed, and o\er which 
 1 have inourntd, returns with new violen.ce, and 
 ])rings me almost t(> despair.] See, Saxicnr, my 
 lielph'ss bonl at thy ieet ; O rai>.e mev.p, suj^poit 
 me, enable me to lay held of tliy strength, and 
 
Directions for Prayer. 303 
 
 to trust, that 1 may not be confounded. O give 
 me faith, that I may overcome. Lord, I know 
 it is my unbehef which makes my bondage ; 
 break tiiou the chain, and set my soul at lib- 
 erty. 
 
 3. Under temptation.'?. 
 Temptations. beset me sore; they thrust at me, 
 that I should fall ; but in thee is my lielj). 
 [Thou seest, Lord, liow my path is compassed 
 about ; and how, through the violence of the 
 attack, the corruption of my own vile heart, and 
 my unbelief, iniquity prevails against me.] — - 
 \J' It did so at such a time — , in such a place— , 
 in such company — , under such circumstances — : 
 and though, Lord, from the bottom of my soul 
 thou knowest it is my burden, yet how shall I 
 stand ?] Let thine everlasting arms be under me, 
 lift up these hands which hang down, let my eye 
 be fixed on thee, strengthen me, fulf-il thy prom- 
 ises, confirm my heart to trust that thou wilt sup- 
 port me under my temptations, or make a way 
 for me to escape from them. 
 
 4. Under afflictions. 
 
 My worldly trials are heavy, [lam aflhcted m 
 my person by — , sickness in my family — , in- 
 juries from others — , loss or reproach — , un- 
 kindness from those who are so near and dear — , 
 disappointments, &c. |j Lord, thou canst make 
 them work together for my good ; may my heart 
 stand fast in thee ; enable me to believe thy kind 
 intentions towards me, that I may not only sub- 
 mit with patience, but rejoice in iiope. 
 
 * I mentiou here the prevalence of leiupiafion, b<.'cauj.e 1 fear there are few 
 r«al christidiis who have not cause to laiueat their faii-s a^s well en, to a.sk 
 strength to keep them troia failing. Spreading oiir temptations openly before? 
 the Lord^ and. exjiressly lueutioumg the ciituniblanceb ol thcui, is ol cspecittl 
 ttse to the le;u|>tt;d. 
 
 t Particulars luiist be iQontioued, 
 
204' Th e Commu7iicanfs spii^ltual CoinpaniGti, 
 
 II. A Prayer for the Love of God. 
 ENLARGE my ati'ections towards thee, O 
 tlioLi chief of ten thousand, and altogether love- 
 ly. What hast thou not done to engage my 
 heart ? uno-rateful as I have heen, niav I be so 
 310 more. JMay my soul be enflamed >yith love 
 unfeigned towards thee, beholding thy love, may 
 it kindle mine ; and daily as I receive fresh in- 
 stances of it from thee, may my returns of grat- 
 itude be more abundant. [Open my eyes to see 
 more and more the love wherewith thou hast 
 loved mc; make me to knov»' more of its height 
 and length, and breadth and depth : make me 
 to see more of mv own baseness and vileness, 
 that tliy dealings with me may more abundant- 
 ly impress and constrain my heart.] O that I 
 might love thee with a perfect heart. Lord, may 
 I be increasing in love, till seeing thee as thou 
 art, I shall love thee as I ought. 
 
 IIL A Prayer for Tear. 
 LORD, put thy fear into my soul ; be thou 
 ever sanctified in me; let mc ever tremble before, 
 and dread to oficnd thee. May the sense of thy 
 omniscience and nearness ever overawe my soul; 
 M hen sin would tempt, may I remember that thou 
 art present ; may my fear be as my love, filial ; 
 may thy displeasure be more grievous to me than 
 the pun'ishnient ; and may I hate to ofl'end thee, 
 because thou art my good and gracious Father, 
 more than because thou art withal the just and 
 lighteous Judge. 
 
 IV. A Prayer for Charity. 
 GOD of ail mercy, whose nature and name is 
 love, and who has taught, in amazing manifest- 
 ations of it in thy Son, what are thy regards to- 
 vards the childi^en of men, teach me to love 
 others, as thou hast loved me. O give me bow- 
 
Directions for Prayer, S05 
 
 els of mercies, kindness, gentleness, meeknessi 
 Alas, for tliis seKish heart of mine ! it is so ready 
 to kindle nnder provocation, to resent unkind- 
 iiess, and to be unfeeling towards others' weak- 
 Hess and wants. [Sucli-a person particularly my 
 vile heart is ready to dislike — \ &c. * Lord, take 
 this uncharitable spirit from me.]. Enable me to- 
 forgive, as thou for Christ's sake hath forgive a 
 nie. [May my censures all fall upon myself,, 
 where they are most due, that I may have none- 
 to cast on others.] Incline mv heart to excuse 
 the faults of others, to think no evil, and to hope" 
 all things favourable for them. According to> 
 the ability thou hast given me, may I readily 
 commauicate thy gift^^ according to the neces- 
 sities of my brethren. [Make my heart more" 
 tender to them, and sympathizing with their dis- 
 tresses, whether of body or soul.t] jNLiy their 
 sins grieve me more deeply, and call forth my 
 prayers and my tears over them, Lor<lj g^ivc 
 them repentance who knov/ thee not, [particu- 
 larly — :]: who are so near and dear to me: J [May 
 I not suffer sin upon them unrebuked ; and may 
 my conduct as well as my conversation be re-- 
 proving and exemplary.] Give m.e a mouth tO' 
 comfort the afllicted. May whatever talents, 
 thou hast lent mje of knowledge or utterance, be- 
 emploNTcl, so as niay be most subservient to the 
 good of mens' souls^, and. particularly of th.ose- 
 with whom I am mor-e immediately concerned. 
 Miy my hand be§- opened to relieve*^the indigent: 
 
 * Noihiag serves mjre elfectudlly to subdue oar.rcsentme:it agaiost auT^' 
 particu'ar person, than praying lop thciu by nanie.- 
 
 t Ai.."!is' souls are liie greatest objects ot cbarirv. ■ 
 
 t Uiicoaverted Iriendi and relations should never be forgolten b^is. 
 
 $ Thougli a.'iu^giviag be but a brauch of charity, wemust'see Ihatweabound'i 
 la the exercise of it, if we arc indeed in the iaMli ; and by the way it muse: 
 b^ obsan^ed, that as it will require some pains to enquire out Jhe trulv nece.v-- 
 JHtous, this is as ranch a part ol tlie duly, as the gift itself ; v,\.V:X\, for want off 
 be i;pt At the D.iiiis of ;!iis, often eneour;vire i(lK'n".-«, ijisU-'t- '•■ i ■••'r*-«ii 
 oL^icl. of .!)■ Vy. : .-^ ^?- 'h ih-'nc-d-;- , .ft. .-^ ;,-,.,, 
 
5 06 'Hie Commtmica^it's spiritual Co77ipanhn^ 
 
 according to my power : and as a good steward 
 of thy gifts, enable me conscientiously to be 
 concerned not only to give, bnt to bestow it in 
 such a way as may be most to thy glory, the re- 
 lief of real indigence, and the support of tlie 
 helpless. Make me not only liberal, but glad 
 to give, and ready to distribute, that the blessing 
 of a chearful giver may be through thy grace 
 upon me. [And accept, O- Lord, these small re- 
 turns of humble acknowledgment, as offered in 
 my dear Redeemer, in whose name alone is my 
 hope, and in whose blood I desire my best offer-^ 
 ings to be v/ashed, and in whose rigliteousness I 
 desire my best services to be arrayed, that they 
 may come up with acceptance on thine altar, O 
 €od.l 
 
 V. A Prayer for Humilki/. 
 GIVE me, O Lord, th^e genuine humility^ 
 which tbou delightest in.. Let an abiding sense 
 of my vile self and sinful services be ever on my 
 heart. When the deceiver would cause me to 
 compare myself with myself or others, O may 
 iny soul still turn to thy holy law, and be con- 
 founded before thee in dujst. And when the 
 gifts thou hast bestowed on me w^ould puff nic 
 up, let me remember not only that they are re- 
 ceived, but what an abuse hath been made of 
 them, and how much cause Ihave for confusion,, 
 instead of glorying before thee. 
 
 VL J Prayer for Zcah 
 
 AWAKEN greater zeal for thy glory in my 
 heart ; how lukewar.m and insensible to thy in- 
 terests, in the v/orid have I been, and am 1 still? 
 Lordf give me a deeper sense of thy majesty, and 
 a m.ore enlaiged knowledge of the value of im- 
 mortal souls,"that I may rise up against the evil 
 tiocrsj giievinir to see thee dishonoured,- anddeerx- 
 
Directions for Prayer^ S07 
 
 ly concerned to pluck those brands from the 
 burning. [Lord, may I chearfiilly suffer, count 
 no cross grievous ; and where duty calls, boldly 
 rebuke vice, whatever danger be incurred. Arise, 
 ,0 Lord God, anil vindicate thine own cause ; 
 >vhere is thy zeal and the soundings of thy bow- 
 els, are they restrained ? See our desolations, and 
 come with great might and succour us.] 
 
 Intercessions general and particular* 
 
 AND, Lord, hear my poor supplications for 
 ©thers as well as for myself. Thou seest what 
 desolations are wrought in the earth, how sin 
 covers the face of the world, and gross darkness 
 the people ; O send out thy light and thy truth, 
 that the ends of the earth may remember them- 
 selves, and be turned unto thee, O Lord. Es- 
 pecially visit our land with thy salvation ; we 
 have the form of godhness, and the profession of 
 thy gospel, but, O how far removed from the 
 practice and the power of it ! Return, O God of 
 hosts, return, lift up the light of thy countenance 
 upon us. [Remove not our candlestick away, 
 as by our manifold iniquities we have most justly 
 provoked thee to do, but remember thy mercy 
 %vhich hath been to a thousand generations, and 
 hear the prayers of tliy people who cry day and 
 night before tliee.] Raise up thy power, and 
 come among us, and with great might succour 
 US. Send out, v/e pray thee, labourers into thine 
 harvest; the land mournetij, the peopie perish 
 for lack of knowledge ; give them pastors after 
 thy own mind, who may exalt the cross of the 
 Redeemer, and be successful preachers of his 
 righteousness : bless the itw who truly labour 
 in the v^ord and ministry ; may thy grace make 
 thy word in their mouths effectual for thecon- 
 viciion, conversion, and consolation of mens' 
 
308 The Covimumcanfs spiritual Companion. 
 
 souls; particularly bless him who iirinisters to 
 ruy soul, and may he see of the fruit of his la- 
 bour in me, and multitudes be brought by his 
 teaching to theknowledgeof thesalvation which 
 is in Jesus Christ. Lord, make U5 more diligen?, 
 that our profiting may appear under the blessed 
 means of grace which \fe enjoy. Bless aU those 
 who are especially near to me under any ties cf 
 relations; may all my friends be thine ; my bene- 
 factors find in thy favour an abundant return,, 
 and those of this house and family be the objtfcts 
 of t h y pec u 1 i a r r c g a rd. * 
 
 And now, Lord, accept my humble praise for 
 all the mercies I have tasted, from the first day 
 even until now ; unworthy indeed, utterly un-- 
 worthy of the least of them I confess myself to 
 be. Blessed be thy name for the being I enjoy, 
 and for all the blessings of time which accom- 
 pany it ; but above all, blessed be the name of 
 my God for his redeeming love, for Jesus the 
 fountain oi grace, anrl for the great and precious 
 promises, given freely in huu to me a sinner. — • 
 Blessed be thy name for the knowledge oi^ him, 
 w])om to know is everlasting life ; for all the 
 means of growth in grace, and all the hopes of 
 the glory purchased, taken possession ot^ and to 
 be revealed by and in theLord Jesus my Saviour; 
 whose righteousness is my title, whose blood is 
 my plea, and who is to nie all and in all. la 
 his nam.e and word^^s I would, since he hath com- 
 manded it, sum up all my imperfect prayers, say- 
 ing. Our Father, 6tc. 
 
 Vou have here a long prayer, which may 03 
 easily shortened and adapted to your state, what- 
 ever it be :. remember only that your eye in all 
 
 your prayers- never lose sight of the Advocatjj, 
 * 
 
 * The parricolar states of hr««»ai:d and wife, parent .n.d child, n.iiijtcr r.:id 
 
Directions for Prayer. SO0 
 
 Jesus Christ the righteous, in and through whom 
 alone any answer of peace can be given to your 
 requests. All blessings in time and eternity are 
 the purchase of his blood on the cross ; they are 
 given into his power, as the peculiar head of the 
 mediatorial kingdom ; and are to be obtained by 
 that intercession, which he ever liveth to make 
 for his people. 
 
 As the foregoing prayer is intended as a help 
 to the sincere in general, it may be useful to add 
 something particular of the same kind respecting 
 the Lord's Supper, which, with some Meditations 
 on select passages of scripture, may serve to eu* 
 liven our souls before and at this ordinance. 
 
 A Prayer before the Lord's Supper. 
 
 DEAR Saviour of my soul, look upon the sin- 
 ner thou hast redeemed with thy most precious 
 blood. I come because thou hast bidden me, 
 and my soul needeth the refreshment thou hast 
 provided. Never do I draw near, but I bring 
 with me fresh cause of humihation, and carry 
 ncAv burdens to thee, my Lord, from which I 
 need relief. Look upon me in thy wonted com- 
 passion, and pity and pardon all the faithlessness 
 with which I stand chargeable before thee. Jesus, 
 my hope is in thee. Ten thousand times have I 
 forfeited all the mercies of mj God, but thou 
 hast been my advocate, thy blood hath spokea 
 for me; still, Lord, let it speak, and sprinkled on 
 me, purge my heart from dead works to serve 
 the living God. Bleeding Lamb of God, thy 
 open wounds afford a safe retreat to my poor 
 soul. I fly to thee to hide me. Let my iniqui- 
 ties be covered, let my backslidings be healed. 
 My deep complaints come up before thee ; this 
 body of sin, when shall my soul be delivered from 
 it ? Lord; mine eyes are unto thee. I have found 
 
3 10 The Comyniuilcant^s spiritual Compaiiion. 
 
 •renewed attacks from my corrupt and vile affec- 
 tions ;* to the blessed fountain opened for sin 
 and uncleanncss I ily ; O wash this spotted soul, 
 and heal the leprosy within. When now again 
 1 am drawing near to thee, draw near to my sin- 
 ful soul. Strengthen my confidence in thy love, 
 M'hen I partake of the instituted pledges thou 
 hast left me. O comfort me with the assurance 
 that thou art mine. Teach these eyes with tears 
 of penitence and joy to look upon thy broken 
 body ; give me thus that repentance unto sal- 
 vation never to be repented of. O, my Lord, 
 conquered by thy dying love, may every lust be 
 offered up a willing sacrifice at thy cross ; take 
 them, Lord, slay them before thee ; consume the 
 dross of base affections, purify my soul, and with 
 this sacred fire refine it like thine own. 
 
 Anointed Jesus, save me from every sin ; set 
 up within my soul thy kingdom of righteous- 
 ness, and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost ; 
 reign over a wilh ng subject, and let thy service 
 be ever the happy freedom of my soul. O what 
 bondage. Lord, like the bondage of corruption ; 
 what liberty so sweet as that which they enjoy, 
 who take up thy light burden, thy easy yoke. — • 
 Thou askest nothing from me which is not my 
 happiness to renounce; thou commandest noth- 
 ing wherein it is not my happiness to obey thee. 
 O then let me count nothing grievous which 
 thou dost enjoin ; anew I would make my sur- 
 render unto thee ; again would I solemnly seal 
 my soul for thine own ; enable me to approve 
 myself more faithful to the vows which are upon 
 me, and live more devoted to thee who hast died 
 for me. 
 
 Thou knowest, Lord, my simplencss, and my 
 
 * Paniculars must be enlarged upon, according to your latest temptations 
 and most bebetting corruptions. 
 
JDirections for Prayer. Si\ 
 
 faults are not hid from thee ; thou knowest it is 
 the desire of iny soul to love and please thee ; 
 it is my hitterness that ever I offended thee ; O 
 when shall I have done with sin ? when shall I 
 grieve no more thy Spirit in me^ O Lord when 
 shall it yet be ? Continue to be gracious ; draw 
 nie nearer to thy blessed self, that I may run 
 more eagerly after thee ; shew me more of thy 
 beauty, that sin may grow more hateful in my 
 eyes { lay thy hand upon me, and fashion me ; 
 (3 fashion me, dear Redeemer, in thy own blessed 
 image, and m^ake me wholly such as thou wouldst 
 liave me to be. INIake thyself known unto me 
 in the breaking of bread ; reveal thyself to my 
 poor soul as thou dost not to the w^orld ; make 
 me to taste the comforts of thy regard, that I 
 may be enabled for all thy service: and open my 
 eyes to heavenly things ; when I remember thee 
 on the cross, may 1 look to thee also on the 
 throne, and feel the weight of thy expected ap- 
 pearance continually influential over me. O 
 Saviour, that I may then be found of thee in 
 j)cace, and meet thee on thy throne of judgment 
 with kind acceptance and regard! Thou wilt 
 conic, I know thou wilt, and wilt not tarry. O 
 Lord Jesus, may I be ever looking for, and hast- 
 ing unto the day of thine appearing, and be 
 found watching, when thou shalt stand at the 
 door and knock. 
 
 Receive my thanks,'' dear suffering Saviour, 
 thou compassionate Iligh-priest, who canst be 
 touclied with the feeling of thy people's infirm- 
 ities, blessing and praise be ever thine. Help me 
 daily to be telling of thy salvation, till thou 
 shalt give me a place with those blessed spirits 
 of the just made j)erfect, M'hose happy labour is 
 cvcrlastinic soni>"s of thanksofivino* to thee, who 
 wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy 
 
3} 2 The Co7nmnnicanfs spiritual Companion. 
 
 Blood, and made us kings and priests, that ^e 
 niigbt reign with thee in tliy kingdom for ever. 
 Amen. 
 
 IT is supposed that every coinmunicant walks 
 in a continual course of seit-exaniination. The 
 temper described in chapter III. will affard the 
 most interesting points of inquiry. As we shall 
 ever find how short we come of that blessed dis- 
 position there described, we shall have continual 
 need for new confessions of sin and unfaithful- 
 ness, with renewed purposes of heart of cleaving 
 to the Lord. If any thing particularly humbling 
 hath befallen us, or any new temptation beset us, 
 we must spread it before the Redeemer, and pour 
 out our griefs into his compassionate bosom : 
 he is a kind Saviour, we knowTittle of the depths 
 of his bowels and mercies, if we did, Me should 
 never dishonour hhn as we do with our distrusts, 
 and should be more deeply melted down under 
 the sense of his amazing patience and love. One 
 view of Cinist in his transcendently gracious 
 character, as the dear Redeemer of lost souls, 
 Iiath more power and efficacy to break the bonds 
 of sin, and urge us to obedience, than all the 
 vows, promises and resolutions, wherewith we 
 can bind our souls. 
 
 CHAP. VIL 
 On Meditation. 
 
 AT the Lord's table, and before we go to it, 
 a most profitable exercise is ilivine Meditation ; 
 notliing serves more to spiritualize and enliven 
 the soul, than the consideration of some of the 
 great and precious promises, tliat in Jesus Christ 
 are ma<le to us ; or of those blessed portions of 
 scripture that more immediately speak of hiui 
 
On Meditation, SIS 
 
 whom our soul lovctli ; declare his offices, de^ 
 scribe his sufferings, or point us to the glory 
 which followed ; they are too numerous to be 
 collected : I will select a few as heads of Medi- 
 tation, which I shall endeavour to enlarge upon, 
 and refer you to many others, which will afford 
 like profitable improvement. 
 
 The interval which we spend during tlie cele- 
 bration of the Lord's supper, should be usually 
 most employed in this way. By this means our 
 devotion at the ordinance itself is kept from lan- 
 guishing, and we accustom ourselves more ha- 
 bitually to that communion with God, which 
 should be our daily walk. 
 
 MEDITATION L 
 
 Genesis iii, 15, 
 
 I rcilt put enmity hetxveen thee and the xiwrnan, 
 and betxveen thy seed and her seed : it shall 
 bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heeL 
 
 HOW wonderous the compassions of God 
 to fallen man ! he left him not to despair ; he 
 ^lew him not in his sin: he pitied, he pardoned. 
 See in this first promise, O my soul, how un- 
 willing the Lord is that we should perish. A 
 beam of light and hope breaks through the dark- 
 ness, and revives the guilty soul of man ; he saw 
 and believed: and shall 1 be now faithless? The 
 true light hath shined, the sun of righteousness 
 is arisen \n\\\ healing in his wings ; I see him 
 not through a glass darkly, but as it were face 
 to face, beholding the promise fulfilled by his 
 appearing in the fulness of time. What conli- 
 •dence then, my soul, should inspire thee, when 
 heie, before thine eyes, thou see&t th€ serpent's 
 Dd 
 
314 The Com munican fs spiritual Companion, 
 
 head bruised by the sacrifice of the woman'-s 
 seed ? O Saviour, let me adore thy grace, and 
 rest satisfied in the glorious victory thou hast 
 obtained. Thou was manifest to destroy the 
 ■works of the devil ; O fulfil in me this great de- 
 sign of thy coming, bring near thy cross to my 
 heart, and bruise at thy feet whatever is serpen- 
 tine and diabolical in this fallen nature ; make 
 me to know by experience of the efi'ectual work- 
 ing of thy mighty power, that thou art. this 
 promised seed. Let me stand a monument of 
 thy grace on earth, and bring me as a trophy of 
 thy victory to heaven. 
 
 MEDITATION IL 
 
 Psalm Iv. 6. 
 
 And I said, O that I had xvings like a dove : for 
 then xvoiild I jly axvay, and be at rest, 
 
 WHAT a wearisome world is this ! sin and 
 sorrow compass me about ; though some sweet 
 droj)s of heavenly consolation at times revive my 
 soul, yet how often hangs my harp on the wil- 
 lows, and how often is my head bowed down as 
 the ears of corn with drops of dew ? Lord, tliou 
 Iiast told me of a blessed rest which remaineth 
 for the people of God ; thou hast drawn me to 
 look up to it, to pant after it ; had my soul wings 
 to fly to thy bosom, how swiftly Mould I pierce 
 the skies ? N© timorous dove darting from the 
 lapacious vulture, seeks so eagerly its covert, as 
 n)y poor heart should fly from these sublunary 
 evils, to that sliadow of thy wings, where is ev- 
 erlasting rest. When shalf it yet be, dear Lord, 
 that my weary soul shall find in thee repose ? — 
 Hide me in the cleft of the rock, in thy bleed- 
 Atttf side ma\' mv sinful soul now fiml a safe re- 
 
On Meditation. 3"15' 
 
 treat : give me the wings of faith, that I may 
 fly to this relief from the pursuit of divine jus- 
 tice and a consuming law ; and when this clog 
 of earth that weigheth down my soul, shall be 
 shook off in the dust, and my imprisoned spirit 
 disentangled from the clay, then let the wings, 
 of love direct riiy flight to the heaven where thou 
 art ; and, close sheltered by thy once bleeding 
 side, let me bid an eternal adieu to sin and sor- 
 row. Ee patient, my soul, yet a httle while, and 
 hope unto the end ; he that is faithful and true, 
 saith, / mil give thee rest, 
 
 MEDITATION III, 
 
 Psalm cxix. 94-. 
 
 I am thlne^ save me : for I have sought thy^ 
 precepts. 
 
 YES, Lord, I am thine by every tie ; — 
 thine by creation^ thine by Providence, thine by 
 reden)ption, thine by grace, thine by every ob- 
 ligation of love, thine by repeated and solemn- 
 surrenders of myself unto thee, wholly thine am 
 I for ever bound to be : yet how sacrilegiously 
 have I alienated from thee what was thine; how 
 often have I faithlessly dishonoured thee, and 
 broken the vows which were upon me ; how like 
 a broken bow have I started aside, and still, 
 Lord, my vile heart, how prone is it to wander 
 from thee ? How shall I render to thee thine 
 own ? How shall I approve myself to thee ? Save 
 me, it must be thine own work \ v/ithout thee I 
 can do nothing to please thee :. save me from my- 
 self, from my sins, from my corruptions, from, 
 my weakness, visit me with. thy salvation.. 
 
 If thou set my heart at liberty, then shall I 
 run in the paths of thy commandments : Lord, 
 they aie righteouS;- just and good; I deligJu im 
 
316 The Co7?i77iu)iica7ifs spiritual Companioji, 
 
 tliem after the inner man. O that my ways were 
 made so to direct, that I might walk in them 
 for ever ; O that I could do thy will on earth, 
 as it is done in heaven. Prepare me for the 
 blessed service above, by daily power communi- 
 cated from thee^ to walk in tliy ways here below. 
 
 JMEDITATION IV. 
 Psalm Ixxiii. 25. 
 
 Wlioin have I in Heaven hut thee ? and there is 
 none upon earth that I desire besides thee, 
 
 LORD, what is heaven but thy favour and 
 reviving presence ? what is hell but thy absence 
 and displeasure ? the glory of thy sanctuary is 
 thy blessed self, without thee thoseshining man- 
 sions would be desolate ; thou art there, and 
 there to bless thy people with the enjoyment of 
 thyself; when shall I see thee face to face? — 
 Avhen shall my heaven come, to awaken up in 
 thy likeness, "to behold the transforming glory 
 of thy countenance ? O Lord, for thee my soul 
 longetb, to be where thou art, and as thou art. 
 O heaven, heaven, my God is there, he that is 
 the strength of my heart, and my portion for 
 ever; if thou art mine, (and that thou art, thy 
 promises have given me most reviving assurance) 
 3f thou art mine, what can I ask for more or wish 
 beside ? Lord, thou art all-sufficient AVhilst 
 here 1 linger out the moment allotted me, though 
 distant, too distant from thee, thou shalt be still 
 iny joy and my hope : What rival would steal, 
 away my alS^cctions from thee ? what earthly ob- 
 ject would intrude and rob thee of my love ?— 
 Lord, there is notliing upon earth 1 desire in 
 comparison of thee ; wealth, honour, and plea- 
 siire tempt mc away, but what can they give me 
 
0?i Meditation. 317 
 
 in exchange for thee ? are they not loss amli 
 clung ? are they not on the, balances h'ghter thaa^ 
 vanity itself? Think, my foolish heart, when 
 thou incUnest to listen to the syren's song, which- 
 on earth ensnares poor soulsanper<lition and de- 
 struction, think of thy better portion ; live oir 
 him who is alone able to supply the void within, 
 and from the never-failing streams which flow 
 from the fountain of all consolation, will re- 
 plenish thee day by day, till from the streams 
 thou comest to the fountain-head, rcceivest the" 
 fulaess of thy desiics, and dwellest in God, andi 
 God m thee.. 
 
 MEDITATION V,. 
 
 Caxticles viii. 14* 
 
 JSTahe liaste^ my beloved^ and be thou like to a roe' 
 or to ayoung.liart^ upon themountains of spices. 
 
 REMEMBERING here thy death till thy com- 
 ing again, L wait for thy appearance. Lord, I 
 know thou wilt come, and Avilt not tarry. O 
 that my soul may meet thee, as a bride adorned 
 for the bridegroom. I call thee^my beloved, and^ 
 art thou not such tome ? thy love to me con- 
 straineth my soul, thou chief of ten thousand,, 
 thou altogether lovely. Why are thy chariot- 
 wheels so long a coming? — Llook upwards, and^ 
 start at my own desires : how shall I appear be-- 
 fbre him, how shall I be regarded of him ? black. 
 i^s the tents of Kedar, dehied my garments, and- 
 false to my Lord, as I have been, can I wish for 
 his arrival? — lie hateth putting away ; he is» 
 i;ompassionate and kind ; he pities, he pardons;, 
 he saith, Return unto me, and Lwill return untc 
 you. Lord, 1 come to thee ; array me in thy' 
 D.d-2^ 
 
318 The Commiinicanf&sptrilual Companion. 
 
 coniliness, remove my filthy garmentSj call me 
 tliine own, and take thy spotless robes of right- 
 eousness, and adorn my soul, and then hasten 
 thy commg, my Beloved. Sweet are tiie moun- 
 tains of spices, where in thy ordinances thou hasfe 
 left a savour of thy blessed self; sweet is the re- 
 past which here thou hast provided for my soul, 
 but sweeter far wi)' be the feast, when thou shalt 
 favour the table with thy real presence ; and, 
 like the bounding hart that rushes from the 
 mountains steep, come down to me, and catch- 
 me up to meet thee in the clouds ^ there better 
 spices breathe their fragrance, for thou art there; 
 and where thou art, all blessing must abound. — 
 Haste then, and bring me to the holy hills, where 
 thou my Lord dwellest, and fill me with the joy 
 of thy everlasting love. 
 
 MEDITATION YL 
 
 Gantlcles i, 3. 
 
 y//j/ naniQ is as ointvie72t poured foi^thj themf ore. 
 do the virgins loxe thee, 
 
 THY name, dear Lord, is sweeter to my soul 
 than fragrant ointment to the faint and weary, 
 Jesus ! what music to tlie sinner sears ! the dear- 
 est, greatest, sweetest name, that heaven or eartiv. 
 affords,. What name like thine sheds joy and. 
 blessing on the holv souls above ? what name 
 like thine diffuses peace and hope on guilty souls- 
 below r thou art the all in ail. Make n:ie, Lord,, 
 to taste and see how gracious thou art ; shed 
 abroad in my heart a sweet savour of thy oint- 
 ment; from thee, my glorious priest, let the pre- 
 cious balm run down on me the meanest of thy 
 members; I am called by thy name, let me par- 
 take of thiae axioiuling. I love thee, O Lord. 
 
On MecUtatiojh 319 
 
 my Saviour, I wish to love thee more. My heart, 
 
 that it might' be a chaste virgin's heart for 
 thee, nor wander after other lovers : bind my 
 affections to thee stronger than death ; one spi- 
 rit with thee may I henceforth be : in mystic 
 vmion join me to thyself, and in that train may 
 
 1 be found of virgin souls, that, separated from 
 the defilements of the world, of flesh aad sense^ 
 follow thee, thou Lamb of God^ whithersoevey 
 thou leadcst them. 
 
 MEDITATION YU.. 
 
 Psalm Ixxiv. L 2. 
 
 How amiabfe are thy tabernacles^ O Lord of 
 hosts I Aly soul longeth, yea, even faint eth 
 for the courts of the Lord ; my heat^t and 
 my flesh crieth out for the living God> 
 
 YES, Lord, thy tabernacles are indeed amia- 
 ble to my soul ; I was glad when they said un- 
 to me, let us go into the house of the Lord. 
 Thy servant David at a distance Jonged, yea, 
 even fainted with desire for these gracious op- 
 portunities I enjoy : how thankful should I be, 
 that I can thus draw near thee ; so often enjoy 
 the welcome, returning sabbatlis, and meet so 
 often at thy table with my brethren and my 
 companions. Lord, raise up then my longings 
 aftei\ thee more fervently ; let my heart and' 
 flesh cry out more intensely for thee : thy tab- 
 ernacles are only amiable when thou dost mani- 
 fest thyself in the midst of us ; thy courts are 
 then adorned, when thou, O King, appearest in- 
 thy galleries, Cojit, vii. 5. — Thy table is a feast 
 indeed, when thou comest in to see the guests, 
 and givest the welcome benediction. To day, 
 XTiy Lord^ draw near to bless nie; awaken my 
 
S20 The Communicant^ s spiritual Companion. 
 
 thankfulness, open my lips, that my mouth may 
 shew forth thy praise ; raise up my heart to thee 
 in the heavens ; from the tabernacles of thy 
 grace, may my ascending soul mount up to the 
 tabernacles of thy glory. How amiable these, 
 O Lord, when shall I come to appear among the 
 shining host which dwell for ever there ! When 
 shall my soul abide in this temple for ever, and 
 go out no more ? Thou God of my life, who 
 hast given me to desire to see thee, thou wilt 
 not disappoint the desires thou hast kindled. In 
 my tlesh shall I see God. Praise the Lord,, 
 O my soul. 
 
 iiEDiTATiON vin: 
 
 Luke xxiii. 33. 
 
 DRAW near, my soul, and see this greatr 
 sight : this is thy God who bleeds tor thy ini- 
 quities ; see him led like a malefactor through 
 the streets of Jerusalem, and nailed like a mur- 
 derer to expire on a tree ;. because thou deserv- 
 est all this shame, and pain and death, therefore 
 he endures it tbr thee. Look into his wounded 
 temples, and see how deep the thorns have pierc- 
 ed ; his face is marred more than any man's, 
 black with buitetings,. and foul with blood ; his 
 weary head hangs down, and mingles tears with 
 glotted gore : yet, thou dear Redeemer, thy 
 beauty then is fairest, when thou appearest most 
 defiled; these tears, this blood, these sorrows^ 
 are my peace, my joy, my everlasting consola- 
 tion. Look up, sinful soul, and love a dying 
 Saviour ! See his hands extended wide, tiiey 
 open to embrace thee, 1 see them dropping down 
 most precious streams of blood ; they are iron 
 bound, but his love will break the chain, and 
 
On Meditation, 32 1 
 
 stretch them forth to lift me to his throne I' 
 They now are canceUing my deadly debt, my 
 bond of suffering is nailed with them, and torn ; 
 I see in the deep wounds of his hands, graven 
 as with an iron pen in a rock, a pardon written 
 with blood. Yes, Lord, I believe the chastise- 
 ment of my peace is upon thee, and that by these 
 pains I shall be healed. I look upon thy feet, 
 Lord ; they cannot as usual carry thee about do- 
 ing good, but they tread now on their last weary 
 step, and next will stand upon the everlasting 
 hills; tired with the way, mortality hath often 
 longed for rest ; briars and thorns have torn 
 them in the desert, and rugged paths afflicted 
 them : but no thorns so sharp, no path so rugged 
 as this, and no rest so needed as that sleep of 
 death, when pain shall torment no more. How 
 have I trod the dreadful paths of sin ? how have 
 my feet carried me from God to every vile in- 
 dulgence? I see my punishment in thee ; andO 
 that with tears I might bedew those deep and 
 deadly nail-prints, that tell me at once my crime 
 and my forgiveness. What ghastly wound gapes 
 wide beneath the heart, and pours down this 
 crimson torrent of mingled blood and water I 
 that bloody spear declares the cause ; how deep 
 it hath gone ; indignity offends the corpse, when 
 pain can do no more. It is well. It became him 
 to suffer these things, but why? my guilt had 
 made it needful ; yes, my soul, thou mayest re- 
 gard with astonishment the sufferer, and with 
 detestation the authors of this black deed ; but 
 if thou wilt see the origin, knock at thy breast, 
 and there the murderers dwell ; this sinful na- 
 ture, these vile affections, this deep rebellion 
 against the Majesty of heaven, these brought 
 the Lamb of God to such ignominy, torment, 
 and death. Here then at his cross let my indig- 
 
322 The C om7nu77kanVs spiritual Cojnpanion. 
 
 nation rise, here then let an holy revenge burn 
 within my heart, here let not mine eye pity, nor 
 my hand spare; these his enemies, his murder- 
 ers, 1 will bring them forth, and slay them before 
 him. Lord, let me keep back nothing from, 
 thee, who ga vest thy self to such suffering for me» 
 
 MEDITATION IX. 
 
 Hebrews vi. 18. 
 
 That xve might have a strong consolatio)}, wKo 
 have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope 
 set before us, 
 
 WHAT grounds of consolation doth the scrip- 
 ture propose to the afflicted soul ? Hunted by 
 the devouring law, trembling beneath the sword 
 of justice, unable to escape the stroke I could 
 not endure, mercy sets before me an open door, 
 and like Jael to Sisera (but with a much more 
 gracious intention !) invites me, faint and weary, 
 to repose my soul under her shadow. The guilty 
 soul, exposed to wrath eternal, here sees a beam 
 of hope arising, and our fears, like morning 
 clouds, pass away. Blessed be he, who hatu 
 opened and consecrated this new and living way 
 for the despairing and desperate, through a Me- 
 diator's broken body ; to this sure refuge will I 
 fly : Lord, help me to enter in that I may dwell 
 in safety ; let pardoning love fast bar the gate 
 against an accusing conscience and a condemn- 
 ing law; let thy faithfulness and truth be as a 
 brazen wall around me, that none of my fears 
 may break through, none of my sins destroy me. 
 Let thy power keep the strong hold of my heart, 
 that no son of violence may hurt me : thus let 
 my city of refuge be kept from every avenger, 
 and under thy shadow let me sit, not only with 
 
On Meditation. 323 
 
 safety, but great delight. Thou hast spoken, 
 and who shall disannul it ? Thou wiliest me to 
 be comforted, and why shall I refuse the conso- 
 lation ? Strengthen thou my faith, Lord, that 
 my joy may abound. 
 
 MEDITATION X. 
 
 Hebrews x. 38. 
 
 If any man draw back^ my soul shall have no 
 pleasure in him, 
 
 THE scriptures are full of warning ; take no- 
 tice, my soul, and with holy jealousy work out 
 thy salvation with fear and trembling. How 
 dangerous to draw back ! better never have 
 known the way of righteousness. Yet how com- 
 mon these departures from the faith ; how many 
 have I known, who seemed to begin in the spi- 
 rit, and hav-e ended in the flesh? set up my soul, 
 these pillars before thee in this our plain of So- 
 dom. Lot's wife may be seen in every street : 
 what is there to engage thee to turnback, or cast 
 a lingering look behind ? The world from which 
 thou art called is a view shadow, it is unsatis- 
 factory in the enjoyment, it perisheth in the 
 using, and it stands only as some mighty pile of 
 fewel to be destroyed by the fire. The creatures 
 of it are vain ; its indulgencies, what fruit do 
 they bring? and how like husks do its most gil- 
 ded baits disappoint our appetite? count then 
 the cost. Lord, my soul looketh unto thee ; 
 hold me by my hand, that I may not depart 
 from thee. I have such a foolish, such a back- 
 sliding heart, that if left but a day to myself, I 
 sliall turn aside ; but thou who hast led me so 
 far, wilt not now let me go ; by thee only can I 
 be holdeu up ; my heart is in thine hand, thou 
 
32A The Communicant'' s spiritual Companion, 
 
 shalt preserve me from the power of the enemy, 
 thou shalt teach me the way wherein I should go, 
 thou shalt guide me with thine eye. I know, 
 Lord, none can pluck me out of thy hand ; I 
 "will trust therefore, and not be afraid ; though 
 thousands fall on every side, thou art my shield 
 and rock of defence. Much have I experienced 
 of thy kindness and care, more I believe thou 
 hast in store. I wait for thy salvation, and I 
 have a good hope because of thy word \ here my 
 anchor fixes, if thou say, I will put my fear 
 into thine heart, and thou shalt not depart from 
 me; then may I with confidence rest upon thy 
 grace and love. 
 
 MEDITATION XL 
 
 1 CoR. vi. 20. 
 
 For ye are bought zvith a price : therefore glorify 
 God in your body^ and in your spirit ^ which 
 are God's. 
 
 IF any thing can engage my heart to the dear 
 Redeemer, it must be the views of his amazing 
 love and grace, and the sense of the deep obli- 
 gations these lay upon me; when I see the price 
 he hath paid for me, how can I except to his 
 claim ? It hath cost thee precious blood to re- 
 deem me from my state of endless misery, and 
 now thou challengest the return of service. Lord, 
 I am thy servant ; I am thy servant, for thou 
 hast loosed my bands ; I will, through thy grace, 
 make thy glory my great aim and end. 1 have 
 lived long to dishonour thee, henceforth may 
 thy name be exalted in me and by me ; my body 
 is for thee, O Lord it hath served divers lusts 
 and pleasures, but thou hast redeemed it from 
 die guilty service. It shall serve no more; every 
 
On Meditation, ^^S 
 
 sense, every member, let it be an instrument of 
 righteousness unto God. My spirit is thine ; 
 its passions, its vile affections, shall reigu no 
 more ; let purity be written on my inmost soul, 
 and my thoughts be brought into obedience to 
 thee, O Christ. Yet, Lord, after all, v/hat glo- 
 ry can redound to thee from such worthless ser- 
 vices as mine ? that thou condescendeth to ac- 
 cept them, bring me in more thy debtor still. 
 Well, Lord, I am more than content, I am hap- 
 py thus to be rendering myself to thee, and in- 
 creasing thereby my obligations ; glorify thyself 
 in me in mercy, till thou glorify me with thy- 
 self in the kingdom of thy glory. 
 
 MEDITATION XIL 
 Titus ii. 10. 
 
 That they may adorn the doctrine ofGedvur 
 Saviour in all things. 
 
 GOD is my Saviour ; that he is God, is my 
 comfort, for now I know his all-sufficiency of 
 power and love, able to save to the uttermost, 
 and rich in mercy to all that call upon him. I 
 am called to adorn that doctrine which bringeth 
 salvation, and teacheth us to deny ungodhness 
 and worldly lusts, and to live soberly, righteous- 
 ly and godly in this present world ; and it is my 
 serious purpose and desire to do so. My cha- 
 racter in the world will call for my first regard, 
 to walk in wisdom towards those who are with- 
 out ; to shew an unblanieableness of conversa- 
 tion, that they who are of a contrary part, may 
 have no evil thing justly to say of me. I will 
 labour to shew all good fidelity in my dealings, 
 to pay a conscientious regard to truth in my 
 
5^€ The Communicants spiritual Companion, 
 
 V. ords, to provide things honest in the sio;ht of 
 ail men, to be imlustrious in my calHng, to owe 
 110 man any thing, to abstain from tlie appear- 
 ances of evil, lest I make my brother to olfcnd, 
 J\Iy behaviour in my family, may it be ever such 
 us beconicth godliness ; 1 would go in and out 
 before them, as an example unto the believers, 
 I would watch particularly against self-will and 
 anger : I would always speak at my meals some- 
 ihing which should be for the use of edifying. 
 I would be constant in prayer with them day 
 and night, that the blessing of God may be in 
 the mids.t of us. I would watch over all around 
 me with a jealous eye, and above all, over my- 
 self, that I lay no stumbling-block in their way ; 
 I would instruct them to the best of my abili- 
 ties in the knowledge of the Redeemer of sin- 
 iiers, and seek that I and my house might serve 
 the Lord. In my particular transactions with 
 God in secret, I will endeavour to lay bare my 
 heart before him ; I will take his holy word ; I 
 will ask for his illuminating Spirit ; I will ex- 
 amine mine own self; no bosom sin, I trust, 
 shall find a hiding-place: my burdens of sin and 
 sorrow ^vil\ I la}' at the feet of my Lord. I will 
 plead whh him his promises, and leave my case 
 in ni}' great Advocate's hand. In this M^ay tlie 
 desije of my soul will be answered, and my Ile- 
 ,<leemcr honoured. Lord, adorn me with thy 
 Spirit, that I may thus adorn thy gospel, 
 
 MEDITATION Xin. 
 
 Hebrews vii. 25. 
 
 He is able also to save them, to the uttermost 
 that come unto Goct by h.im. 
 
 SALVATION is my great concern; I am the 
 creature of a day ; my body is of the dust, and 
 
On Meditatio7t. 327 
 
 -Teturning to the dust again ; I am in jeopardy 
 every hour. Here I have no abiding city ; as a 
 tenant at will, I may be dismissed at a minute's 
 warniiio; : but I have an immortal soul, a soul 
 that must be happy or miserable to eternity ; a 
 soul that must join angels in glory, or iiends in 
 darkness. How weighty then is the concern of 
 salvation ? and how importan't eacli moment 
 that shortens the span allotted me below ! 
 
 ^V^'hen I look within myself, how far from sal- 
 vation doth m.y staie appear ? A sinner I, viie 
 and abominable ; in nature at enmity with God^ 
 in practice a transgressor times beyond number ; 
 under guilt which I cannot remove, under cor- 
 ruption I cannot subdue, under wa^ath I cannot 
 avert, and such wrath as is for ever v/rath to come. 
 
 When I look to God, w hat can I expect ? hoh^r 
 in his nature, and therefore infmitely removed 
 from sin ; just, and therefore bound to j)unish 
 it ; unchangeable, and therefore punishing eter- 
 nally ;: omnipotent, there can be no resistance ; 
 omniscient, and therefore no escape from his no^- 
 tice. 
 
 Who shall deliver me ? Behold me, saith the 
 Saviour, I am he that bringeth salvation, salva- 
 tion to the uttermost, mighty to save ; atoning 
 blood shall sprinkle the throne of justice, eter- 
 nal wisdom shall guide thy steps, and almighty 
 power strengthen thee. My salvation is near, I 
 bring it to thee in my word, I seal it to thee with 
 my blood, and will accomplish it in thee by my 
 Spirit for ever. Do so, Lord ; if thou wilt save,, 
 none can destroy. 
 
3^8 The Communkanfs spiritual Companmi. 
 
 MEDITATION XIV. 
 
 Ephesians ii. 5. 
 My, grace ye art saved. 
 
 TRUE, Lord, or such a wretch as I must des- 
 pair ; mipotent and helpless to every thing which 
 is good, and prdtie to every thing which is evil, 
 what must become of me, if salvation Avas not 
 free ; it is of thy eternal purpose and grace that 
 there is any hope for sinners ; it is of thy grace, 
 that I am called out of darkness into thy mar- 
 vellous light ; it is of rich grace, that Avhen I 
 was dead in sin, I was quickened together with 
 Christ ; it is by grace alone I stand ; whatever 
 attainments I reach unto, still it is by the grace 
 of God I am what I am ; without this grace I 
 am nothing, have nothing, can do nothing, but 
 sin. And in eternity, as well as time, the grace 
 of my God will alone be exalted, when the top- 
 stone of the spiritual building is laid, it shall be 
 with shouting, crying, grace, grace unto it. 
 "When eternal life is adjudged me in the last day, 
 it will be the gift of God in Jesus Christ ; and, 
 through eternity, this will be the theme of all the 
 saved by grace. Thou, Lord, alone, art worthy 
 to receive blessing, and glory, and honour. If 
 it be of grace then, it is no more of works ; 
 why is my foolish heart then continually going 
 about to rob God of the glory of his grace ? it 
 is of ray pride and unbelief ; my unbelief that 
 staggers at the promise, and will not suffer me 
 to think God can be glorified more in the exer- 
 cise of sovereign grace in the Redeemer, than in 
 the execution of deserved vengeance on me, a 
 sinner. My pride, that fain would sacrifice to 
 its own drag, by offering something of my own 
 tp plead jfor my acceptauce, Lord, give me 
 
On Meditation. 329 
 
 clearer vle^vs of the riches of tliy grace, that my 
 unbelief may be confounded : and deeper dis- 
 cov^eries of the utter wretchedness of all I am 
 and do, that my pride may be abased : and thus 
 may I thankfully embrace this free salvation, 
 and may be content to be saved from first to last 
 as a sinner. 
 
 MEDITATION XV. 
 
 1 Peter iii. 22. 
 
 TFho is gone into heaven, and is on the right 
 hand of God; angels, and authorities^ and 
 poxvers, being made subject unto him. 
 
 WHAT a glorious contrast are my Saviour's 
 sufferings and exaltations ! He suffered, it be- 
 came him. The cross was ignominious, but the 
 crown he hath received exceeds in glory. He 
 was crucified in weakness, but now ail power is 
 delivered to him in heaven and in earth. The 
 scourges plowed up long furrows on his back ; 
 his face was disfigured with buflretings, his head 
 pierced with thorns ; but now he shineth as the 
 sun goeth forth in his strength, glorious in holi- 
 ness. The soldiers mocked, and nailed him to 
 the tree ; but angels now bow down, and hail 
 him over all God blessed for ever. He bowed 
 his head, and died for sin once ; now death is 
 swallowed up in victory ; the mount of Calvary 
 is exchanged for the mount of God ; the reed 
 for the sceptre of the universal kingdom : and 
 the iron nails for that rod of dominion, which 
 shall bruise his enemies to pieces, as the vessels 
 of a potter are broken. What cause then have 
 1 to rejoice in my King, so great and glorious 
 in himself, and exalted on my behalf,, to reiga 
 
S 30 TJie Coiiwnmlcant'' s spirlfual Cowpaniqn. 
 
 till he hath put all enemies uneler his feet ; if he 
 take my cause in hand, who shall he able to harm 
 me? What are fiends of hell, or men on eartly, 
 that I should fear them ? Be strong then, my 
 soul, in the Lord, and in the power of his 
 might ; he will make thee more than conqueror 
 on earth, till he shall take thee to i^ign with 
 himself in heaven. * 
 
 THE following texts, as they stand ranged un- 
 der different heads, Xinll afford abundant mas- 
 ter of Meditation ; and as the Bible xcill be 
 the best compamon to the Altar, I xcould icish 
 you ever to take it with you, and employ your 
 /cisuremo7nents then, and indeed always, chiej'- 
 ly in considering its great and glorious truths, 
 and ?neditating thereon, 
 
 HEADS OF MEDITATION. 
 
 I. Love or God. 
 Romans v. 8. John iii. l6'. Eph. ii. 4. 1 John iii. 1. Itcv,. 
 1. 5. 6. Titus iii. 4. 2 Cor. v. 14. 
 
 II. Faithfulness of God. 
 Heb.vi. 18. Deut. vii. 9. 1 Cor. 1. p. 1 Cor.-x. 13. 1 Thcss. 
 iv. 24. 1 John i. Q. 1 Peter iv. 19. Lam. iii. 23. 
 III. Pardoxixg Grace. 
 Isaiah i. 18. Psalm ciii. 8. Neh. ix.. 17. Heb- viii. 12. 
 Isaiah xliii. 25. Isaiah xliv. 22. Micah vii. 18. Isaiah Iv. 7., 
 1 John ii. 1. Luke vii. 47. Psalm cxxx. 4. Eph. i. 7. 
 
 IV. SxRENGTirNING GrACE. 
 
 2Cor. xii. 9. Isaiah xli. 10. Psalm cxix. 28. Psalm cxxxvixM. 
 3. Phil. iv. 13. Col. i. 11. 
 
 V. Under Temptation. 
 1 Cor. X. 13. 2 Peter ii. 9. Heb. ii. 18. James i. 2. Ileb. 
 iv. 15. 2 Cor. i. 4. Psalm xlvi. 1. Psalm xci. 15. Jer. xiv. 8.. 
 
 VI. Divine Teaching. 
 Isaiah liv. 13. 1 John ii. 27- Psalm xxv. 8. Jer. x.xxi. 34^ 
 J-olm xiv, 16\ Psalm xxxii, 8. 1 Cor. ii. 13. 
 
Heads vf Meditation. ^31 
 
 VIL Sufficiency of Christ's Atonemext and 
 
 Satisfaction. 
 
 Job xxxiii. M.. lieb. ix. 14. 1 Peter i. 19. 1 John i. 7. 
 
 Rom. viii. 1. Acts xiii. 39, 1 Tim. i. 13. Heb. vii. 25. Rom 
 
 rill. 33. ' ^^'^'"* 
 
 \ll\. Imputation of Righteousness 
 Rom. IV. 11. Rom.x. 4. Gal. ii. 9. Isaiah xlii. 01. phH 
 lii. 9. 1 Cor: 1. 30. Rom. iv. 6. Rom. v. 18. Isaiah Ivi. 1. 
 IX. Sanctification. 
 Jor xxxi. 33. Rom. viii. 4. Jude 1. 1 Cor. vi. 11. Rom 
 XV. 6. Jolm xvn 17. 1 The.s. v. 23. Exod. xxxi. 13. Het 
 xii. 14. Luke 1. /a. 
 
 X. Person of Christ. 
 Cant. V. 1^. Isaiah ix. 6. Psaim xlv. 8. Isaiah Ixiii 1 
 Cant. i. 3. Isaiah lii. 7. "* ^• 
 
 XI. Sufferings of Christ. 
 ; Isaiah liii. 5. Isaiah lii. 14. Col. ii. 11. Luke ii. 7. Matt. 
 51-13. Luke xiii. 31. xMatt. xxvi. 37. Mark xi v. 44. Matt 
 xxvii. 30. John XIX. 23. Matt.xxvii.29. John xix, 34. Matt* 
 xxvii. 60. 
 
 XII. Glory of Christ. 
 Acts V. 31 Mark xvi. 19. Acts vii. 55. Phil. ii. 10. Laiah 
 ▼1. 1— J . 1 Peter iii. 22, Rev, v. 5—14 
 
[ 332 ] 
 
 THE CONCLUSION. 
 
 AS the intention of the foregoing Treatise is, 
 through the grace of God, to render com- 
 municating a spiritual service, it will be neces- 
 sary to warn those into whose hands it may fall, 
 to be peculiarly careful not to rest upon the or- 
 dinance itself, or the exactness of their prepa- 
 ration, according to any form which is prescrib- 
 ed to them, but to look chiefly to their profiting 
 by it ; to observe whether their hearts are drawn 
 near to God in Christ, and in the memorial of 
 his death their expectation of his coming again 
 more enlivened. Formality is the most danger- 
 of all states ; and outward religion, where the 
 experimental knowledge of Christ is wanting, 
 removes persons further from the kingdom of 
 God, than outward vices ; the one puffing up 
 the pride of vain man, whilst the other lays him 
 open to conviction of his danger Let it not be 
 imagined that this is spoken to encourage out- 
 ward vices, God forbid ; no, but as an awful 
 warning to those, who, resting on the form of 
 godliness, deny the power of it. 
 
 May you be not almost, but altogether Chris- 
 tians : and if the great Master of the feast bless 
 these words to your illumination, instruction, 
 edification, consolation or sanctification. His be 
 the praise ; to Him alone the praise is due. 
 
mmt 
 
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