i-^ '1^^' ■ /*«*' 1' * V/ PBINCETON, N. J. No. Case, ^ No. Shelf, s,,. No. Booh; v^^ The John !>1. Kiebs Donation. ^^ r 4^1 <.> THE ^ PROTESTANT PREACJIJiR, BEIXG A SELECT COLLECTION OF SERMONS AND DISCOURSES, B Y T H E 4- Moil diftingumied BRITISH DIVINES, from the Reform A Tiojj to the Prefcnt Period, ox THE Moft IMPORTANT and INTERESTING SUBJECTS, to the cxclufion of all Speculai ion anJ Controversv. WITH SEVERAL VALUABLE ORIGINALS, now First PuKLrsuEn. The whole comprehending A Complete System of P R AC T I C AL DIVINITY. Hic — Sacerdotes casti, dum vita mant bat : QrnyjE pii VAXES, EX Phoebo dicna locuti; Q^KyjE 5XJI memores alios fecere merenpo. flRG. iEv.VI. VOLUME SECOND. LONDON: Printed FOR RICHARDSON andURQJJHART UNDER THE Royal Exchange. M, D c c, L X X X. "« k • ^/ TLOr CONTENTS O F T H E SECOND VOLUME. flt S E R M O N I. By Archbifhop Tillotson. The Reputation of Good Men after Death, page 3 SERMON IL By the Reverend John Evans, D. D» Chrifllan Contentment 17 SERMON III. By Bifhop Atterbury. On the Incarnation of our Lord 35 SERMON IV. By the Rev. Phillip- Doddridge, D. D, The Care of the Soul the One Thing Needful 49 SERMON V. By the Rev. Samuel Clarke, D. D. The Nature of Relative Duties 73 a SERMON ii CONTENTS. SERMON VL_ By BIfhop Butter, Upon Self-Deeelt 85 SERMON VIL By the Rev. Laurence Sterne. Job's Account of the Shortnefs and Troubles of Life I o I SERMON VIII. By the Reverend Samuel Price. Public Worlhip in all the Parts of it 115 SERMON IX, By the Reyerend Jeremiah Seed, M. A. Domeflic Love and Union Reccommended and Enforced 131 SERMON X. By the Reverend Jeremiah Seed, M. A. >* Domeftic Love and Union Recommended and Enforced 143 S E R M O N XL By the Reverend Laurence Sterne. The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus con- fidered 157 SERMON XII. By Archbifhop Tillotson. The Prefence of the MefliaSj the Glory of the Second Temple 169 SERMON XIII. By the Rev. James Foster. Of the Image of God in Man ; or the Excellency of Human Nature 189 SERMON CONTENTS, u\ SERMON XIV, By Bifliop Atterbury, On Religious Sincerity 203 SERMON XV. By the Reverend William Leechman, D. D, On the Nature, Reafonablenefs, and Advantages, y Archbifliop Tillotsonj The reputation of good men after death. Psalm cxii. 6* •'The righteous JI)all he in everlajling rememhrancei A S the defire and hope of immortality, which /^ is implanted in human nature, is feme evi- dence of the thing; fo likewife that natural defire which is in men, to have a good name perpetuated, and to be remembered, and mentioned with ho- nour, when they are dead and gone, is a fign, that there is in human nature fome prefage of a life after death 5 in which they hope, among other re- wards of well-doing, to meet with this alfo, to be well fpoken of to pofterity : and though probably we Ihould not know the good that is faid of us, when we are dead, yet it is an encouragement to virtue, to be fecured of it before-hand ; and to find by experience, that they who have done their part well in this life, go off with applaufe ; and that the memory of their good actions is preferved and tranfmitted to pofteritv. 'a z And 4 1'hs Reputation of Serm. I. And among the many advantages of piety and virtue, this is not altogether inconliderable, that it reflects an honour upon our memory after death ; which is a thing much more valuable, than to have our bodies prefcrved from putrefadiion : for that I think is the meaning of Solomon, when he prefers a good name before precious ointment. Eccl. vii. I . A good name is better than precious ointment. This they ufed in embalming of dead bodies, to pre- ferve them from noifomenefs and corruption : but a good name preferves a man's memory, and makes it grateful to poiierity ; which is a far greater be- nefit, than that of a precious ointment which fervcs only to keep a dead body from flench and rotten- nefs. I Ihall briefly explain the words, and then con- fider the matter contained in them ; the righteous JJjoll be In everlafilng remembrance. By the righteous is probably here meant the good man in general ; for though juftice and righteoufnefs are in fcripture frequently ufed for that particular virtue, whereby a man is difpofed to render to every man his own ; which is known by the name of juftice; yet it is Icfs frequently, and perhaps in this place, ufed in. a larger fcnfe, fo as to comprehend all piety and virtue. For fo the righteous man is defcribed at the beginning of this pfalm, bkjfcd is the man that fcareth the Lord, that dellghteth greatly in his command- ments : and he is oppofed to the wicked man, ver. lo. the zvlckedflmllfee It, and be grieved', that is, he Ihall be troubled to fee the profperity of the righte- ous ; the manifold bleffings of his life, and the oood name he lliall leave behind him at his death ; which is the meaning of his being in everlajiing remem- brance ; that is, long after he is dead, perhaps for many ages, he fhail be well fpoken of, and his name mentioned with honour, and his good deeds recorded and remembered to all poiierity. So Serm. I. ,:^- Good Men after Death. 5 So that the fenfe of the words amounts to tliis, that cmhiently good men, do commonly leave a good name behind them, and tranlmit a grateful memory of thcmfclves to after ages. I fay com- monly, for fo we are to underftand thefe kind of fayings ; not that they are ftriclly, and univerfally true, without exception ; but ufually, and for the mofl part. It is poflible, that a good man may foon be forgotten, by the malice of men, or through the partiality and iniquity of the age, may have hig name blemilhcd after death, and be mif-reprefent- ed to poilerity : but for the mofl part it is other- v>^ife ; and though the world be very wicked, yet it feldom deals fo hardly and unjullly with men of eminent goodnefs and virtue, as to defraud them of their due praife and commendation after death. It very frequently happens otherwife to good men, whilit they are alive ; nay they are then very fel- dom fo juflly treated, as to be generally efteemed and well fpoken of, and to be allowed their due praife and reputation : but after death, their good name is generally fecured and vindicated, and pof- terity does them that right, which perhaps the age wherein they lived denied them. Therefore in the profecution of this argument, I fhall enquire into thefe two things. I. Whence it comes to pafs, that good men are very often defrauded of their iuft praife and repu- tation whilft they arc alive; and, II. What fecurity they have of a good name after death r ,1, Whence it comes to pafs, that good men are fo frequently defrauded of their jufl praife and re- putation while they are alive ? And to give our- felves full fatisfadion in this matter two things are fit to be enquired into. J. From what caufe this proceeds ? 2. For ^ T'be Reputation of Serm. I. 2* For what reafon the providence of God doth often permit it ? From what caufe it proceeds, that good men have fo often the hard fate to be ill fpoken of, and to be feverely cenfured, and to have their worth much detracted from, while they are alive ? And this proceeds partly from good men them- felves ; and partly from others. Good men themfelves, are many times the caufe of it. For the belt men are imperfect ; and prefent and vifible imperfections do very much leflen and abate the reputation of a man's goodnefs. It can- not be otherwife, but that the lultre of a great piety and virtue lliould be fomewhat obfcured, by that mixture of human frailty, which does neceffarily attend this Itatc of imperfection : and though a man by great care and confideration, by great vigi- iancy and pains with himfelf, bd arrived to that de- gree and pitch of goodnefs, as to have but a very tew vifible failings, and thofe fmall, incomparifon ; yet when thefe come to be fcanned and commented upon, by envy, or ill will, they will be Itrangely inflamed and magnified, and made much greater, and more than in truth they are. But there are few perfons in the world of that excellent goodnefs, but befides the common and more pardonable frailties of humanity, they do now and then difcover fomething tvhich might perhaps jultly deferve a fevere cenfure, if fome amends were not made for it, by many and great virtues. Very good men are fubjeCl to confiderable impru- dences, and fudden paffions ; and efpecially to an affedted feverity and morofenefs of carriage ; which is very difguftful, and apt to beget diflike. And they are the more incident to thefe kind of imper- fediions ; becaufe out of a jult hatred of the vicious cuftoms and practices of the world, and to keep out of the way of temptation, they think it fafeft to retire Serm. I, Good Men after Death, 7 retire from the world as much as they can ; being loth to venture themfelves, more than needs, in i'o infcdtious an air. By this means, their fpirits are apt to be a little four, and they muft neceflarily be ignorant of many points of civility, and good hu- mour ; which are great ornaments of virtue, though not of the efTence of it. Now two or three faults in a good man, if an un» charitable man have but the handling and manag- ing of them, may eafily caft a coniiderable blemifh upon his reputation ; becaufe the better the man is, fo much the more confpicuous are his faults ; as fpots are foonefl difcovered, and moll taken notice of, in a pure and white garment, Befides that, in matters of ccnfure, mankind do much incline to the harder fide ; and but very few perfons are fo charitable and equal, as to conilrue things to the bcft fcnfe, and to confider a man all together ; and fairly to fet the good that is in him againfl his faults and imperfections. But, Though good men many times contribute too much to the leflening of their own reputation, with thofe among whom they live; yet the principal caufe of their fuffering in this kind is not from themfelves, but others ; and that upon thefe three accounts. Firft, From the hatred and oppofition of bad men to holinefs and virtue : and thefe are commonlvthe greateft number, and make the loudeft cry. They are declared enemies to goodnefs ; and then how can it be expedted, they Ihould have any great kindnefs for good men ? They want virtue themfelves ; and therefore they think themfelves upbraided by the good quality of others. This enmity of wicked men againfl the righteous and the true reafon of it, is very well exprefled in the wifdom of Solomon, chap. ii. 12. Let ns, fay they, lye in wait for the righteous I hecmife he is not for our 8 'The Reputation of , SeriM. I. our turn, and is clean contrary to our doings ; he uphraideth m with our offending the law, and he obje^eth, to our in- famy, the fins of our youth ', he zvas made to reprove our thoughts, therefore he is grievous unto us, even to behold; for his life is not like other men, he is quite of another fafijion ; we are ejlcemed of him as reprobate filver, he abfiainetb from ourzvays, as from filtkinefs. This is that which fiUeth the minds of wicked men with malice againft the righteous ; and malice will eafily invent ways to blafl any man's reputation. Good men do fome- times, as it is their duty, reprove thofe that are bad ; or if they do it not in word, yet they upbraid them in their actions, and contrary courfe of life ; and both thefe are grievous and provoking to them. Not but that wicked men are many times in their confcicnces convinced of the real goodnefs of thofe whom they fpeak againil ; but they will not own it, left in fo doing, they lliould condemn them- felves. ' Secondly, Another caufe of this is the envy of thofe, who perhaps have fome degree of goodnefs themfelves. For great virtue is apt to raife envy in thofe who fall fhort of it ; and this makes thofe who are but imperfe(flly good, to detradt from the emi- nent worth of others ; becaufe they are fenlible, they are outlhined by them, and that it occafions a difadvantageous comparifon, and makes their dc- fedls taken notice of. They can endure a man that is moderately good, and keeps pace with his neighbours ; but if he endeavours to outftrip them, they prefently com- bine againft him, and take all opportunities to undermine his reputation ; and will be very glad, either to find a blot in his efcutcheon, or to fix one there. Thirdly, There is fomething in the very prefence and nearnefs of goodnefs and virtue, which is apt to leffen it. In Serm. I. Good Men after Death. ' 9 In matters of fcnfc, the nearer the objcd: is, the bigger it appears ; and the farther diltant it is from us, the Icfs it feems to be : but here it is quite o- thervvife : men are not fo apt to value prefent worth when yet they will reverence it mightily at a dif- tancc. I know not whence it comes to pafs, but fo we certainly find it ; that men are more fenlible of the goodnefs and excellency of any thing, under the want of it, than while they enjoy it ; and do ufually value it more when it is gone, than they did whilfl it was prefent with them. Whilfl we live with good men, and converfe with them every day, we take but little notice of them ; but no fooner are they departed, but we admire them, and every man's mouth is open to celebrate their good qualities. Peihaps familiarity, and acquaintance, and conver- fationdocs infenfibly beget fomethingof contempt; but whatever the reafon of it be, we find the thing mofl certainly true in experience. 2. Let us confider in the next place, for what reafons the providence of God permits it thus to be ? I ihall mention but thefe two. Firft, To keep good men humble, and, as the cxpreffion is in Job, to hide pride from men, God's providence, in the difpofai and ordering of things in this world, feems rather to confult our fafety, than our fatisfadtion ; and the fecurity of our virtue, than the full reward of it. Now if good men fhould always meet with that clear efleem and reputation which their goodnefs defer ves, they would be in great danger of being puft up with a proud con- ceit of themfelves ; and pride is enough to fupplant the greateft virtue in the world ; fuch a dead fly, as this, were fufficient to fpoil a box of the moft pre- cious ointment. For man is an ambitious creature, and vain above all things ; fo vain, as not only to be covetous of praife, but even patient of flattery ; Vol. II. B and 10 The Reputation of Serm. I. and the befl of men lye too open, on this blhid fide of human nature ; and therefore God, who knows our frame, and how apt duft and afbes are to be proud, hath in his wife and merciful providence fo difpofed things, that good men are feldom expofed to the full force of fo flrong a temptation. And for this reafon, he lets loofe envious and malicious tongues, to detract from good men, for a check to the vanity of human nature, and to keep their vir- tue fafe under the protection of humility. And this is the way likewiie to fecure the reputa- tion which they have, and which otherwife would be in danger of being loll : for he that is once proud of the efleem he hath got, takes the readied way to fall into contempt ; and certainly it is better of the two, that our reputation fhould fuffer a little by the malice of others ; than be ruined by our own pride and Vanity. God does not envy good men the reputation of their goodnefs and virtue ; but he knows the weak- nefs of human nature, and zvlll not fuffer it to be tempt- ed, above what it is able. When good men are grown up to perfection, and able to bear it, as they will be when they come to Heaven, their good name fhall be fully vindicated, and they fhall have praife, not only from men, but from angels, and from God himfelf. Second, This life is not the proper feafon of re- ward, but of work and fervice. In this life, God is pleafed to give fome prefent encouragement to piety and virtue, but referves the main of our recompence, to be beitovv-ed upon us at the end of our work. When our courfe is finiflied, then and not before, we mult expedt our crown ; when our accounts are caft up, and Itated, and it appears what improvement we have made of our talents, then will come, the euge bone ferve, ^' well " done good and faithful fervant." In the mean time Serm. I. Good Men after Death. 1 1 time good men muft be content with fuch a portion of efteem, as an envious and ill-natured world will afford them. And thus I have done with the firft thing I pro- pofed to enquire into ; whence it comes to pafs, that good men are frequently defrauded of their due praife and reputation while alive ? I proceed to the II. Enquiry, namely, What fecurity good men have of a good name after death. And the true account of this is to be given, partly from the providence of God, and partly from the nature of the thing. I. From the providence of God: which is con- cerned herein upon a twofold account. In refpccl: of the equity of it. In regard of the example of it. In rcfpedt of the equity of it. God, who will not be behind hand with any man, concerns himfclf, to fecure to good men the proper reward of their piety and virtue. Now praife is one of the moft pro- per recompcnces of good and virtuous aftions ; this good men feldom meet with in this life, without a great deal of allay and abatement ;■ and therefore the providence of God hath fo ordered things, that it fliould come in the propereft feafon, when our work is done, and when we are out of the danger of the temptation of it. In regard of the example of it. It is a great ar- gument to virtue, and encouragement to men, to aft their part well, to fee good men applauded, when they go off the ftage. Every man that hath any fpark of generolity in him, is defirous of fame; and though men care not how foon it comes, yet they will be glad to have it after death, rather than not at all. Piety and virtue would be but very me- lancholv and uncomfortable things ; if they fliould always be fo unfortunate as never to m.eet with due cileem and approbation : but when men are affured B 2 that 12 I'he Reputation of Serm. I, that they ihall have this reward, one time or other, and obierve it to be fo in experience ; this is a great fpur and encouragement to do virtuoufly : and a great mind, that hath a juft fenfe of reputation and a good name, will be content to lay in for it before- hand ; and patiently to wait the time, which God knows fitteft for the beftowing of it. 2. The other part of the account of this truth, is to be given from the nature of the thing : becaufe death removes and takes away the chief obflacle of a good man's reputation. For then his defedts are out of fight, and men are contented that his imper- fedions lliould be buried in his grave with him. Death hath put him out of the reach of malice and envy, his worth and excellency does now no longer ftand in other men's light ; his great virtues are at a diftance, and not fo apt to be brought into compa- rifon, to the prejudice and difadvantage of the liv^ ing ; the example of the dead is no fo cutting a re^ proof to the vice of the living ; the good man is re^ moved out of the way, and his example, how bright foever, is not fo fcorching and troublefomc at a diftance; and therefore men are generally con- tented to give him his due character, Befides, that there is a certain civility in human nature, which will not lufTcr men to wrong the dead, and to deny them the juft commendation of their worth. Even the Scribes and Pharifees, as bad a fort of men as we can well imagine, though they were juft like their fathers in perfecuting and flaying the prophets while they were alive ; yet they had a mighty veneration for their piety and virtue after they were dead, and thought no honour too great to be done to them. They would be at the charge of raifmg monuments to the memory of thofe good men, whom their fathers had llain ; and whom they would certainly have ufed in the very fame manner, had they either lived in the days of thofe prophets. or Serm. I. Good Men after Death, 1 3 or thofe prophets had lived in their days, as our Sa- viour plainly told them. All that now remains is, to draw fome inferences from what hath been faid, by way of application ; and they fhall be thefe three. 1. To vindicate the honour and refpedt which the Chriftian church, for many ages, hath paid to the memory of the firft teachers and martyrs of our religion. 2. To encourage us to piety and goodnefs, from this confideration ; that the righteous JJ:all be in ever- lajVrng remembrance, 3. That when we pretend to honour the memory of good men, we would be careful to imitate their holinefs and virtue. I. To vindicate the honour which the Chriflian church hath for many ages done to the firft teachers and martyrs of our religion; I mean more efpecially to the holy apoftles of our Lord and Saviour ; to whofe honour, the Chriftian church hath thought lit to fet apart folemn times, for the commemoration of their piety and fuftering, and to ftir up others to the imitation of them. This certainly can vvith no good colour, cither from fcripture or reafon, be pretended to be un- lawful ; and when David here favs, the righteous jhall be in evcrlajling reniembrivue ', he cannot ccrrainly be thought to exclude the molt folemn way of com- memorating their piety and virtue. I do not pretend this cuftom can be derived from the very firft ages of Chriftianity ; but furely it is fufficient for the lawfulnefs of it, that it is no where forbidden; nay it is rather required here in the text; the bcft way to preferve the memory of good men, being thus to commemorate them. And it may be of great ufc to us, if it be not our own fault : the Ratting before our eyes the holy lives of excellent men. J 4 ^he Reputation of Serm. I. men, being in its own nature apt to excite us to the imitation of them. Beiides that I could tell you, that though this can- not be proved fo ancient, as fome vainly pretend ; yet it is of great antiquity in the church, and did begin in fome of the belt ages of Chriftianity. The meetings of Chriftians at the tombs of the martyrs was praciiliifed long before the degeneracy of the iveft- crn church ; and the Chriftians were wont at thofe meetings, folemnly to commemorate the faith and conftancy of thofe good men, and to encourage themfelves from their examples. I know very well, that this did in tim^e degenerate into grofs fuperftition, which afterward gave colour and occafion to that grofs and idolatrous practice in the church of Rome, of worfliipping faints. But this abufe is no fufficient reafon for us, to give over the celebrating of the memory of fuch holy men, as the apoflles and matyrs of Chrifl were ; and pro- pounding them to ourfelves for our patterns, w^e may itill lawfully give them their due honour; though the church of Rome hath fo over-done it, as to rob God of his. 2. Let this coniideration, that ike righteous jJdall he in everlnjiing remembrance, be an encouragement to us, to piety and goodnefs. This to a generous nature, that is fenfible of honour and reputation, is no fmall reward and encouragement. Before the happinefs of Heaven was clearly revealed, and life and im- mortality brought to light by the gofpel, one of the greateft motives to worthy and virtuous deeds, was the earneil defire which men had of leaving a good name behind them, and of perpetuating the fame and glory of their adiions to after ages. Upon this ground, chiefiv, many of the braveft fpirits, among the Heathen, vvcre animated to virtue, and, with the hazard of their lives, to do great and glorious ex- ploits for their country. And Serm. I. Gwd Men after Death. 15 And certainly, it is an argument of a great mind, to be moved by this conlidcration : and a fign of a low and baie fpirit, to ncgleft it. He that hath no regard to his fame, is loft to all purpofes of virtue and goodnefs ; when a man is once come to this, not to care what others fay of him, the next ftep is, to have no care what himfelf does, ^od confcientia eji apudDeum, id fafna ejl apud homines, what confcicnce is in refpcdl of God, that is fame in refpcdl of men. Next to a good confcience, a clear reputation ought to be to every man the deareft thing in the world. Men have generally a great value for riches ; and yet the fcripture pronounceth him the happier man, that leaves a good name, than him that leaves a great eftate behind him, Prov. xxii. i. A good name is rather to be chofen than great riches. If then we have any regard to a good name ; the beft way to fecure it to ourfcives, is by the holy and virtuous aftions of a good life. Do well, and thou Ihalt be well fpokcn of : if not now, yet by thofe who Ihall come after : the furcft way to glory, and honour, and immortality, is by a patient continuance in well doing. God hath engaged his promife to us to this purpofe, i Sam. ii. 30. T'hem that honour me, I will honour ; and they that defpife me,JJ:all be light- ly ejieemcd. The name of the wicked Jhall rot, fays Solo- mon, Prov. X. 7. But God doth ufually take a par- ticular care, to preferve and vindicate their memo- ry, who are careful to keep his covenant, and re- member his commandments to do them. 3. Whenever we pretend to do honour to the memory of good men, let us charge ourfelves with a ftrid: imitation of their holinefs and virtue. The greateft honour we can do to God, or good men, is to endeavour to be like them ; to exprefs their vir- tues, and reprefent them to the world in our lives. Upon thefe days, we fhould propound to ourfelves as our patterns, all thcfe holy and excellent perfons who 1 6 The Reputation of, &V. Serm. L who ha\^e gone before us ; the apoftles of our Lord and Saviour, and all thofe bleffed faints and martyrs who were faithful to the death, and have received a crown of life and immortality. We Ihould reprefent to ourfelves the piety of their actions, and the patience and conflancy of their fuf- ferings, that w^e may imitate their virtues, and be followers of them, who through faith and patience, have in* berited the prornifes ; and feeing we are compaffed about with fuch a cloud oj witnejfes, we iliould lay a/ide every weight, and run with patience the race that is fet before us. Let us imagine all thofe great examples of piety and virtue Handing about us in a throng, and fix- ing their eyes upon us. How ought we to demean ourfelves in fuch a prefence, and under the eye of fuch witneffcs ! and how fhould we be aihamed to do any thing, that is unworthy of fuch excellent patterns, and blufh to look upon our own lives, when we remember theirs ! Good God ! at what a diftance do the greateft part of Chriftians follow thofe ex- amples ! and while we honour them with our lips, how unlike are we to them in our lives ! Why do we thus reproach ourfelves with thefe glorious patterns ? Let us either refolve to imitate their virtues, or to make no mention of their names; for while we celebrate the examples of faints and holy men, and yet contradid: them in our lives, we cither mock them or upbraid ourfelves. SERMON SERMON II. By the Reverend John Evans, D. D, CHRISTIAN CONTENTMENT. P H I L 1 P P I A N S iv. I I . -I have learned in zvhatfoever ftate I am, there- 'With to be contents IT is a confiderable branch of the duty which wc owe to God and to ourfelves, to have our aifec- tion to prelent enjoyments fo moderated, that whe- ther we have them or want them, whether we have a larger or a lefs fhare in them, we may yet enjoy God and ourfelves. This is the contentment which the apollle could fay in the text that he had attained. And a great thing it was, even for an excellent faint to be able to fay fo. He let the Philippians know, in ver. lo. with what pleafure he received their kind contribution for the relief of his neceffities. But then he was careful to acquaint them, that he meant not by this to intimate, that he had been difcontented before at the llraitnefs of his circumflanccs, ver. ii. Not that I fpeak in refpeEl of zvant : I can undergo even that, and yet be tolerably cafy. For I have learned, hi zvhatfoever Jlate I am, therezvitb to be content. My Vol. II. C mind i8 Chrijl'um Contentnient. Serm. II. mind can be competently fuited to my condition, if my condition happen not in all relped:s to be fuited to my mind. This is a very eminent part of the Chriftian tem- per, wherein we fliould all afpire to be able to fay the fame thing with the blelTed apoftle. And in the profecution of the fubjedt I would, I. Explain this difpolition of mind. And, II. Shew how it may be learned. I. This difpofition of mind is to be explained : To be content in zvhatfoever Jlate zve are. I have already hinted, that the apollleonly means this with reference to any fort of outward condition for this world. That is the proper province for contentment. It would ill become a man to fay, " In whatever flate my foul is, whether it be un- '^ der the reign of fin or of grace, whether it be in *' a ftate of acceptance with God, or under his *' wrath, yet I am content." This is rcaily the temper of too many thoughtlefs finners : but it is very far from being commendable. All God's calls and warnings are defigned to awaken them out of this fecurity ; that they may never reft contented, till they are in a fafe ftate for eternity. Nor would it be much more proper for a good man to fay, " I am content with the degrees of conformity to " God, and of vidtory over my irregular inclina- *' tions, which are already obtained." It is certain St. Paul was of quite another frame, as he declares in this fame epiftle, chap. iii. 13, 14. Forgetting the things which are behind, and reaching forth unto thofe things which are before, I prefs towards the mark. He means no more in the text but this, that he was prepared to exercifc contentment whether he was in a high or a low condition in this world. But what is this contentment in every ftate ? The Greek word here ufed, which is ufed in a- nother place for contentment, ftrictly 4mports a felf- Serm. II. Chrijlian Contentment, 1 9 felf-fufficiency. Which can by no means be iinder- ftood, when applied to any creature, in reparation from God, in whom all onr fprings arc : but it im- ports a tranquility of mind, which does not abfo- lutely depend upon the things of the world ; but that whatever our outward condition is, our minds can have a foundation for refl and compofure. It would run too high for Chriftian contentment, to take a full fatisfacftion In any earthly eflate ; to take up our reft in it, though it Ihould be the bcft and moft advantageous to our outward man ; fo as to have no lively clefires after a better ftate ; but to be ready to fay, it is good to be here ; I would live here always, if I might have my option. The frame here recommended, is not to be content with any ftate upon earth as our portion. St. Paul in the third chapter of this epiftle, defcribes men of that charadler, who fo mind and affedt earthly tLyms, as enemies of the crofs ofChriJI ; and in oppofition to them, gives it as the charadlcr of himfelf and other Chrif- tians, Om- eonverjation is in Heaven^ ver. 19, 20. On the other hand, it is not inconfiftent with the grace of contentment, to have a fenfe of any thing- ungrateful or uneafy in our prefent lot. To be with- out that, would be ftupidity, and not contentment. Nor will every dcfirc, or regular endeavour to bet- ter our outward circumftances, be an argument of difcontent. Such defires are the foundation of di- ligence and induflry in men's callings, which ferves fo many good purpofesin the world ; and God him- felf encourages men, by temporal prorjiifes to dili- gence, to make the improvement of their worldly condition a fubordinate end of their labour. But true Chriftian contentment with our ftate and lot, comprehends in it fuch things as thefe : I. That our defires of worldly good are low and moderate. That we are not eager after much, nor fcek great things for ourfelves ; but that our de- C 2 fires 20 Chrlftian Contentment. Serm. II. fires be reduced within the bounds of neceffity and reafonable convenience, or at leaft are not hot and impetuous after more. To this the apoflle exhorts, I Tim, vi. 8. Having food and raiment, let us be there^ with content : that is, let us be able to acquiefce and be eafy, though we Ihould be allowed no more. We find Jacob forming his defires with fuch mO' deration, at his fetting out in the world ; and when he was to enter upon a journey of fome length and diHance from his father's houfe, he afked not rich- es and grandeur, but that God would give him bread to eat, and raiment to put on. Gen. xxviii. 20, And it will be the wifdom and happinefs of other young people to fct out in the world, without mounting their defires very high ; at leaft with a refolution to be eafy, though they fhould be able to compafs no more than a fubfiftencc. A man that cannot be ea- fy with that, knows not in truth what would make him eafy ; for covetoufnefs is infatiable. We fee people arriving at one enjoyment after another, which once feemed the top of their ambition ; and vet fo far from contentment, that their defires grow fafter than their fubftance ; and they are as eager to improve a good eftate when they are become mafters of it, as if they were ftill drudging for food and raiment. Chrift warns us arainil this fort of covetoufnefs, which confifls in infatiable defires, Luke xii. 15. 'lake heed and bezvare of covetoufnefs ; for man's life conjt/ieth not in the abundance of the things which he pojfeffeth. In the parable which immediately fuc- cceds this caution, the rich fool, whom Chrift de- fcribes and blames, is charged with no injuftices or evil practices, but only with infatiable defires of a- bundance, and toointenfe a concern to lay up goods for many years. The apoftle exhorts the Hebrews, Hcb. xiii. 15, Let your converfation be zvithout covetouf- nefs, and be content with fuch things as zve have. Till v.'e . arrive at fuch a temper, that we can be content and eafv Serm. II. Chriftian Contentment. 21 eafy with what we have at prcient, covetoufncfs is predominant ; and the fame principle will keep us luieafy in any future circumllanccs, when they may become prefeilt, 2. That, in all our views of bettering our world- ly condition, we indulge not immoderate cares. A prudent care of our affairs becomes us as reafon- able creatures and as Chriilians ; but a contented ' mind will not allow^ us to overdo herein. Aud we may overdo, either by engaging in a greater vari- ety of cares, than we can manage with compofurc of mind, and in conliftcnce with our other duties ; or by fuffering any particular cares to run out into anxiety. Some, from their eager deiire of gain, drowi; rtremfclves in fuch a variety and hurry of bufinefs, as is beyond their capacity and head to manage. Such a conduft generally defeats its own end, and iflues in difappointment and lofs for this world. But efpeciallv it is prejudicial to men's fouls ; eith- er not leaving them rcafonable time to attend to their better intercft ; or following them into their reading, and hearing, and praying, fo that they cannot perform them without great diftraCtion of thought ; or prefently wearing off'any good imprcf- fion made upon their fpirits. Our Saviour cautions his difciples againft this, as well as intemperance, Luke XX i. 34. Take heed to yourfehes, lejl at any time your hearts be o-verchargeJ zvlth jh/eiting and drirnkc/i/iejs, and eares of this life, and fo that day eonic upon ymi v.na- zvares. And if it concerns us to take heed left this fhould be the cafe at anv time, what muft be the mifchicf and danger of a perpetual hurry of world- ly bufinefs; when men launch out beyond their depth, and poflibly cannot retreat and difengage themfelves when they will. Others, though they may not enter upon an un- due multiplicity of bufinefs, yet are intcmperately folicitous 22 Chrijlian Contentment. Serm. II. folicitous about that in which they do engage : that is, about the ifTue and fuccefs of their projedts and' endeavours. They are not fatisfied with having adted the proper and prudent part incumbent on them, and then to leave the event to God ; but tor- mcMit and rack their minds about that which is not in their own power. This is the fort of taking thought for the morrow, againfl: which our Saviour cautions, Mat. vi. 34. And that finful carefulnefs from which the apoftle exhorts us, Phil. iv. 6. Be careful for nothing ; but in every thing by prayer and fup- pliaitio/!, zuith thankfgiviiig, kt^ your requejis he made known unto God. Anxiety is an evident mark of dil- content, and will be a certain hindrance to content- ment in any condition, as long as it is indulged. q. That whatever our prefent condition be, wc chcarfully fubmit to the providence of God in it, in oppoiition to all murmuring complaints of him, though our lot fliould be ftrait and uneafy. Chrif- tian contentm.ent eilcntially includes in it a refpecft to divine providence in all our circumftances, and a humble acquiefcence in the difpofals of it. If wc fret againit the Lord, becaufe things are not ac- cording to our mind, we fly in the face of the great governor of the world ; and inflcad of helping our- felves, fliall vaftly increafe our difficulty, by mak- ing him our enemy. But when v/e have uprightly done our part, whatever the event be, it becomes us to lav Avith EH, i Sam. iii. 18. It is the Lord, let him do what feemeth him good. If any comfort, which m.ay appear defireable in itfelf, is denied us, there fliould be a placid fubmiffion upon the foot of what Jacob told Rachael, when flie was difcontented for want of children. Gen. xxx. 2. God hath zvithheld from thee the fruit of the womb. It was a truth which became a better mouth than that of Balak, when he faid to Balaam, Numb. xxlv. 11. The Lord hath kept thee back from honour : and it iliould be a quiet- ing Serm. II. Chiijl'ian Contentment. 23 ing thought to good men, whenever they arc difap- pointed in fuch expedtations. If you have not that lucccfs by an induftrious application to buiinefs, as others around you have ; it Ihould be a thought pre- lent with you. The Lord maketh poor ^ mdmaketh rich; he bringeth lozVy and lifteth up, 1 Sam. ii. 7. Con- tentment, as a grace, includes in it this regard to God. 4. That we arc lb eafy with our own lot, as not to envy others who may be in more profperous cir- cumilances. Envy is an infallible mark of difcon- tcnt. Duty to God and charity to our neighbours would induce us to take pleafure in the welfare of others, whether we immediately fliare in it or not. A contented mind upon the principles of religion, would naturally fall into fuch reflcdlions as thefe, if we fee other men poffeffed of a larger affluence of comforts than we; " the love or hatred of God are " not known by fuch things as thefe. If our more " profperous neighbours fhould be bad men, their " riches may be to their hurt, and the proiperi- ** ty of fools may deflroy them. If they be good " men, God, who knows what is bcft for every " one, may know it fafcr for them to be entrufted " with fuch comforts, than it would be for us ; " that they may be great mercies to them, and yet " w ould prove too flrong temptations for us. Or, if " that fhould not be the cafe, yet Hiall not God do " what he will with his own ? oVyJI^all my eye be evil " againji my neighbour, becav.fe God is good to him P " Mat. XX. 15." As charity, lb contentment en- vieth not. 5. That we are lb far fatisfied with our prefcnt condition, whatever it be, that we will not ufe any unlawful means to better it. It is a certain fign that our minds are not brought down to the plea- fure of God in our lot, if we can allow ourfelvcs to go out of God's wav in anv inftance to change it. He 24 Ckrijlian Contentment. Serm. II. He that is pofleffed of the grace of contentment, will not allow himfelf, whatever inconveniences may accrue to his body, to venture upon the dif- pleafure of God, and the violation of his confcience to remove them. He cannot find in his heart to mend his circumftances by any adls of injultice, or fraud, or violence, or by making fliipwreck of faith and of a good confcience. The apoitle oppofes to contentment fuch a difpofition that men will be rich, I Tim. vi. 8, 9, 10. They will be fo at all adven- tures, whatever it cofls them, though they Ihould facrifice principle, and religion, and honour, to the obtaining of their end. We are told particular- ly the mifchievous effefts of fuch a refolute deter- mination in this cafe, '^hey that zvill be rich, fall into temptation, and a fnare, and into many fooliJJi and hurtful li'Jls, zvhich drown men in deJlruBion and perdition. For the love of money, fuch a love of money, or covetouf- nefs, is the root of all e-vil; zvhich while fome have covet- ed after, they have erred Jrom the faith, and have pierced themfehcs through zvith many forrozvs. When the Ro- man foidiers came to John the Baptift, among o- thers that were {truck with the novelty of his preaching and baptifm,' and afkcd him, Andzvhat Jhall we do ? John wifely addreffed to them fuitablc to their temptations, with thefe advices, Luke iii. 14. Do violence to no man, neither accufe any falfely, and be content zvith your wages. The foidiers were pinched with their narrow allowance, and too apt to injure other people to make up that defeft, either by uf- ing violence or falfe accufations, that they might reap the plunder of other men's goods : John there- fore particularly cautions them againft thefe ill ways of providing for themfelves ; and exhorts them to contentment with the allowance of their fta- tion, as an effectual prefervation againfl all fuch ir- regular courfes. 6. That Serm. II. CbiijVian Contentment, 25 6. That we make the bcft of our condition, what- ever it may be. Wc are too prone to call; our eye only upon the dark fide of our condition. But a contented man will impartially furvey all the cir- cumiliinces of his lot; and that will foon enable him to difcern many things fit to alleviate and ba- lance his uneafmcfs. He will rcflcdt in fuch a way as this : ■ — ^" If I have not fo large a fliare as " fome others, yet I have enough, to carry me ** through the world ? If I have not a large provi- ** fion made for time to come, yet hath not God " hitherto given me my daily bread, and what oc- ** cafion have I to diilrull him for the future ? If I " have not enough to gratify every random inclina- " tion, yet have I not fufficient to fupply real " wants ? If I iim denied fome things which I de- '* fire, yet is not this the cafe of the great and of '' the moft abounding ? If others profper in the ^^ world more than I, yet are not fome more dif- " trefled ? If I live more direttly upon providence, ** yet have not goodnefs and mercy followed me all " my pafl days ? and why fliould 1 doubt, but that in *' the way of duty they will follow Aie all the days " of my life ? If I have not every thing I wiih for, ** yet have I not unfpeakably ip.orethan I deferve ?'* A difpolition to contentment readily cheriflies it- felf with fuch confiderations. But it will be proper farther to fhevv, II. How fuch a frame is to be learned. The apoflle declares that he had learned this. In our prefent depraved Hate, it is not a temper to which we are naturally difpofed : Whether we look into our own hearts or obferve the Vv'orld about us, we may eafily perceive this. Whoever is poffefied of it, is a learner before he attains it. And with- out doubt the apoflle means, that he learned it in the fchool of Chrift; by laying to heart the princi- ples inculcated by Chriilianity, which were fuffici- Vpi.. II. D ' ent 26 Chriftian Contentment* Serm. II. cnt to animate fiTch a temper ; by improving every other advantage fit to form him to it; and by the gracious teaching of the divine fpirit, making all fuccefsfiil. Thus he learned it gradually, and became from time to time a better proficient. So may, fo ought we, to arrive at fuch a temper. I. Chriftianity fets in view the moll; folid prin- ciples of contentment, and the ftrongeft motives to it. Such as. The perfediions of the bleffed God, whofe pro- vidence difpofes our lot. Pie IS jufl and righteous in all his proceedings. As a pcrfedl Being, and the Judge of all the earth, he cannot bCit do right. If we firmly believe this, though we fliould not be a- ble to account for Ibme particular adminiftrations, yet we fhall readily impute that to our own igno- rance and narrow views, rather than call in queflion fo indifputable a principle. Whatever occurs, we iball afiribe rightcoufnefs to our Maker, Job. xxxvi. 3. His almighty power is another reafon to filence e- very murmur ; for what advantage can it be to re- pine at our lot, when we are entirely in his hand, who doth whatever pleafeth him in the armies of Heaven iwd among the inhabitants of the earth, Dan. iv. 2,5' Nor is this abfolute power in the hands of a malevolent -and unkind being, but one of infinite goodnefs, who loves his creatures, and confults their good ; and has unerring wifdom, to judge in every cafe and for every pcrfon what is teft for them. We know not what is good for ourfelves in this life ; we have often found already, that if we had had our own defires, it muft have been in anger, and to our real prejudice. What reafon therefore have we to be content, and even to rejoice, that our times are in God's hands ? Chrill, in his fermon upon the mount, ftrikes at the root of diftruilful and dif- contented cares, by reprefenting the bounty and the wifdom of providence : the bounty of it, as 5erm. II. Chrijllan Contentment, 27 as extending to the meancll creatures, to the fowls of the air. Mat. vi. 26. and the vvifdom of ic, in that ony Heavenly Father knows what we need, vcr. 32. The relaiiDns in which we ftand to God, Hill en- force the argument to contentment. As we are his creatures, we arc rightfully at his difpofe. IVoe to him that Jlrives zvith his A'faker. Let the potJJjerd Jirive with the potJJjerds of the earth ; Jhall the clay fay to him that fdfjioneth it, IVhat makeji thou f Ifa. xlv. 9. Wc forget our condition and original, if we acquiefcc not in the determinations of the Author of our be- ings. This coniideration, that all is derived from God, compofcd Job into a calm. Job i. 21. The Lard gave, and the Lord hath taken away, bleffcd be the name of the Lord. If we confider ourfelves farther as fuch who have offended him, and forfeited every benefit, even life itfclf : can there be any juft rea- fon for difcontent, becaufe wc enjoy not all the comforts we can think of ? It is grace that we have any left. But efpecially if we can jufllv hope that we are his children in the moft diftinguifhing fenfe ; this mav well reconcile us to any circlimilanccs of our lot here. If we are brought into his family by Chrift, fo that he is our Father, our Friend, and our God ; we have a fatisfying portion, how little foever we may enjoy of worldly good; and may juflly fay with Jacob, Gen. xxxiii. 1 1. I have enough ; or as it is in the Hcbre^v, / have ail things : for if God and Cbrift be ours, all flyings are ours, as far as God fees that they will conduce to our real intercft, I Cor. iii. 21. Dijrefs, or fcimine, or nakednefs, height or depth, Jhall not f par ate us froni the love of God which is in Chrijl Jefus our Lord. The fulnefs and extent of the divine promlfes is a conftant reafon for contentment. Thcfe are breafti of confolation, from which we may draw refrefh- ment in every Hate of life ; they are either particu- larly fyited to-our circumftances, or more general- D 2 ' ly 28 Chr'ijl'ian Contentment. Serm. II. ly comprehend them. That one promife of God's behig with us, might carry a Chriftian chearfully through life. Upon this principle the apoftle re- commends contentment, Heb. xiii. 5. Let your con- vey fat ion be zvitkout covetov.fnefs^ add he content iv'ith fuch things ds ye have ; for he hath f aid ^ I will never leave thee nor for fake thee. In the moft Iblitary or mean con- dition, ive cannot be alone, or deititute, if the Fa- ther is with us. The various mercies, which actually attend us in every Hate, if they be obferved, and ferioufly medi- tated upon, will ftrongly oblige to contentment. We are never in io low and uneafy circumftances in this world, that there are no mixtures of mercy and favour. If we have not abundance, vet have we not neceffaries ? Lack we any thing P If we lofe fome dear relation, yet are. not others left ? If we have met with dilappointmcnts, yet arc we flripped of our all ? Have we no inftances of a lower and llraiter condition than our own ? Certainly we mull be very ungrateful to God, to ovedook the advan- tageous part of our lot, becaufe of fome circum- ftances which we fhould not chufe. The fhortnefs of our time below, and the ap- proaches of death, loudly fpeak the rcafonablenefs of contentment with our prefent condition, A tra- veller will be contented on the road with the accom- modations he meets with, though they lliould not be the befl, upon the profped: that he is going- home, where he fhall have better; efpecially If he expefts to be foon at home : fo a Chriftian fliould be eafy with his lot in this fhort pilgrimage through this world ; which he knows is fnortcr compared with eternity, than tlie longeft journey he can under- take compared with the reit of his life on earth. And efpecially if we confide r that we can carry nothing home with us, which will be of fcrvice beyond the grave, more than the poorcft can. A confidcra- tion-. Serm. II. Chijlian Contentment, 29 tion, bv which the apoflle enforces contentment with a ihiall allowance by the way, i Tim. vi. 7, 8. IFe hm^ht nothing into this zvorld, and it is certain 'we can. curry rintbing vut. And, or therefore, having food and raiment y let us be therewith content. If we look into the eternal world before us, the argument will gather farther flrength. If we view the finilhed mifery of finners that have fhot the gulph, who have not fo much as a drop of water to cool their tongue : Wherefore J}:ould a living man com- plain F a man ftill among the living, and in the poffelllon of fome comforts, who yet is confcious that he deferves to have his lot with the other ? On the other hand, if w^e can entertain hope of Heaven as a ftate we are defigned for, where evcrv wnnt fliall be fupplied, and where perfedt unmixed hnppincfs is ready for us; how unbecoming fuch cxpcd^tants is ir, to fret at our circumftancc in the very ihort intervening paffage ? Finally, the folly and mifchicf of difcontcnt is fit to be reprefentcd to our minds, to fortify them againil: ir. Fretting and uneaiinefs is not the way to amend our circumilances : which is an argument fuggefled by our Saviour, Mat. vi. 27. IfLvch of you by taking thought, or anxious carefulnefs,. can add one cubit to his ftature F The word we tranllate ftature, lienifies indifferently cither ilature or aee ; and ac- cordingly we may underftand Chrifl: to intimate, that we cannot by carefulnefs add either to the growth of our bodies, or to the length of our lives ; and therefore we fliould, without anxious folicitude, rely upon God's providence in the way of ordinary induftry, for what he fees convenient for us. Dif- contcnt is not a likely way to obtain the favour of providence for bettering our condition, nor will it fit us to take the more proper Iteps on our part to- ward the accomplifhments of our defires. It rather provokes God to walk the more contrary to us, and dif- JO Chrijlian Contentment, Serm. II. difcompofes our own minds, fo as to render them lefs apt for any prudent endeavours. It increafes every uneafinefs inflead of lefTening it. It adds the weight of guilt to any burden. It obftrud:s our en- joyment of the mercies we have, and our thankful- jif"is for them ; and is often the parent of many ^ -it fins, which otherwife would be very remote fx. men's thoughts. And it is a great difparage- ment to our holy profeffion in the view of the v.orld. 2. Chriftianity furniflies ns wirh the brightefl* patterns of contentment, to enforce the precepts of it, and prevent our defpair of attaining it. Such a declaration as that in the text, is one of the mofl: pcrfuafive recommendations of the prac- tice. The apoflle had learned this, yet he was now in low and ftrait circumftances : he had learned to be content in any flare, and he could fay this, after he had pafi'ed through a great variety of difficul- ties, had been in wearhiefs and painfulnefs, in zuatcbings often, in hunger and thirjl, in fajiings often, in cold and nakednefs, i Cor. xi. 27. We are to confider this a- polHe of the Gentiles as fet forth herein, as well as in his obtaining mercy at firft, for a pattern to them which JJjould after believe. But efpecially the Lord Jefus is the great pattern of all his followers in this excellent grace. The Lord of glory ftoopcd to the loweft abatement : 'Though be zvas rich, yet for our fakes he became poor ; not only was found in fafhion as a man, but appeared in the world from his cradle to his grave in a ftate of meannefs, In Ixis younger years he paffed for a carpenter^s fon ; and when he came abroad into his public miniftry, had not a place of his own where to lay ]\is head. Yet through the whole of his courfe not one expreffion of difcontent was heard, laut his behaviour was perfedlly fuivable to one that coofidcrcd himfeif as come into the world to per- form Serm. II. Chnjlian Contentment. 31 form the work affigned him ; and that was ready to leave it as ibon as that was finiHied. We fhould '^U look upon ouri'^lvcs in inch a view, and look to Lie example of Jefus to excite us to be like minded. 3. Chriftianity diredts us to the moft effectual teacher, to make thele confiderations and helps fuc- cefsful for our adtual learning the leffon of content- ment : to imprcfs the motives of the gofpel upon eur hearts and confciences ; and while v/e are be- holding the amiablenefs of Chrift's pattern, to change us into the fame image. And this is the good Spirit of God. Who teaches like him ? Un- der his influences Paul became fuch a proficient : and he is equally ready to perform his kind offices for us, if we defire his aids, and are heartily will- ing to learn of him. hferences. i. The prefent ftate fhould be confi- dered by us as a ftate of learning. There are many important leflbns which we are all concerned to learn in Chrift's fchool ; this of contentment among the reft : and there \v\\\ be conftant room, while we are in the bodv, for learning every one of them better. The apoftle indeed in the text fays, that he had already learned to be content : but when he had declared in this very epiftle, that he had 'not al- ready attained, that is perfecftly ; w^e cannot under- ftand him, that he was become fuch a proficient in contentment, as to have no room left for further improvement; but only, that he had attained this fkill in a competent meafure. They are truly com- mendable, who have made a proficiency above o- thers, or above what they were themfelvcs former- Iv in any Chriftian excellence ; but they ftiould be ftill afpiring to the higheft form. 2. More depends upon our ov/n fpirits than upon our outward condition, in order to contentment. Paul could fay he had learned to be content, in whatfoever Jiate ks iViU. This was not, becaufe he could 32 ' Chrijlian ContentmenU " Serm. II. could chule his condition, but becaufe his Ipirit was fo regulated by the grace God, that he could be reconciled to any condition. Moft people judge otherwile : they imagine they could be contented and at reft, if they could obtain fuch a comfort which their hearts are now fet upon ; if they could arrive at an eftate of fuch a fize, as would fupply their prefent wifhes. Vain thought ! if they are gratified in their prefent deiire, a worldly mind un- mortified will outgrow their acquifitions ; new wants and new contrivances will ftart up, and they will be as far from fatisfadtion as at their fetting out. A low condition, confidered in itfelf, may feem to give the llrongeil temptations to difcontent ; but if w^e confult experience, we lliall find the rich and powerful as frequently Grangers to an eafy mind, as thofe in a mean-ftate of life. The reafon is, their irregular inclinations and unfatiable defires are en- larged vAxh. their fubftance; and therefore, all they have, pafles for nothing, becaufe their own dif- tempered appetites \\'\\\ not let them reil. We have a lively inflance of this in Haman : if his defires could have had any bounds, one would think he had in polTeffion all that heart could wifii for. See how he reckons it up himfelf to his friends ; Efth. v. 1 1, 12. He told them of the glory of his riches : he had amafled together vail treafures, and was enabled by that means to live in great fplendor. And the multitude of his children : many heap up riches, but have neither child nor brother to inherit them ; but Haman had a multitude of h's own defcendants, no lefs than ten fons, whatever other children he had ; fo that he might have hopes that his houfe fhould continue for ever, and his dwelling to all generations. And all the things where- in the king had promoted hitn : the feveral high offices, and ilations of truft and honour which he had con- ifcrred upon him. And how he had advanced him above the Serm. II. Chrijlian Contentment. 33 the princes and fervants of the king : he was prime mini- fter, took place of the greateft princes, who were natives of the country, and of the highell officers of the court, who all paid him the next honours to the fovcreign himfelf. 7''ea, fays he, Eft her t be queen let no man come in zvith the king unto ike banquet zvhiih JJx had prepared but myfelf; and to-morrotu am I invited unto her alfo with the king : he thought himfelf to fiand as high in the queen's favour as in the king's, and from the diftinguifhing marks of regard he had from both, and from the new invitation fent him for the next day, he had reafon to apprehend that he was crtablilhcd in his high dignity. But in all this a- grceable iituation of his affairs, is the man content- ed ? No, he immediately adds, ver. 13. Tet all this availeth me nothing, jo long as I fee Mordecai the Jezv fit- ting at the kings gate. Mordecai had denied him the relpedl and reverence which he expeftcd, and this fpoiled the enjoyment of all his delights. His haughty mind could not brook one man at court who w^ould not cringe to him, fo that he could not relifli the obeifance paid him by all the reft; his riches, his children, his power, his dignities, all a- valled him juil nothing. This ftrange, but very flriking inflance, is a full evidence, that the largeft collection and the greateft variety of worldly good will not produce contentment; that a fmall uneafinefs, the not hav- ing a fingle appetite or paffion gratilicd, will take away the reliHi of what is agreeable in life, if fuch an appetite or paffion is allowed to be head-ftrong : and therefore that no condition can make us happy, unlefs a foundation be laid for it in the due regu- lation of our ov\'n fpirits. 3. Let us therefore labour to have our minds fo formed, that they can be content and tolerably ea- fy in any ftate of life. Let us endeavour to carry fuch a temper along with us, that we can comport Vol, I. E with 24 Chr[llian Contentment. ' Serm. IL with any condition, and make the befl of it ; or elfe in truth there is no condition which will not furnilh occafions for difcontent. The apoftle goes on thus to explain his attainment, ver. 12. I know both how to he abafed, and I know how to abound ; every where and in all things I am injiru^edy both to be full and to be hung- rVy both to abound, and fuffer need. Now what is this univerfal furniture for contentment through all the changes of life? It muft conlift of thefe ingre- dients : a low opinion of this world, and mortified affeftions to the things of it ; a lively faith in the promifcd realities of the life to come ; comfortable hopes of our own title to the Heavenly inheritance ; and a hearty refignation to the difpofal of our Hea- venly Father for our circumftanccs by the way. By means of thefe we Ihall enjoy a happy calm through every ftate, and without thefe we may be ovcrfct in any. SERMON SERMON III. By Bifliop Attereury. ON THE INCARNATION OF OUR LORD. Matthew ix. 6* Blejfed is he zvhofocver JJ.'dl not be offended in me* AND can any man then be offended in thee, blefled Jelu ? who has undertaken, and done, and fuffered, lb much for all men ! who willingly emptiedft thylelf of all thy glory, lefteft Heaven and the bofoni of thy Father, for our fakes ; and, when thou tookeft upon thee to deliver man, didft not, as at this time, abhor the virgin's womb ! Can a defign of fo much goodnefs ever mifcarry by the folly of thofe, on whofe very account it was under- taken ! Can fuch a meflage of love, of a love afto- nilhing and infinite, be rejedlcd ! — Canft thou thy- felf, the great melTenger, be received any other- wife, than with the open arms and hearts of all thy creatures, for whofe redemption thou wert thus made flefli, and dweltft among us ! — Is it poffible tor any one of them to be any ways offended in thee! E 2 Yet 36 On the Luarnat'ton of our Lord. Serm. III. Yet fo it is, bleifed Lord ! tiiat from thy firft coming in the flelh to this time, there have been imrearonable men all along, that have taken of- fence at thee ! — And there will not fail, to be fuch within the pale of Chriftianiry itlclf, even till thy fecond coming to judge the world. — Thy dod:rines have been complained of, as laying too great a re- flraint on human nature, as hard and unpradlicable fayings ; — Thy myfleries have been doubted of, difputed againft, and ridiculed, by men of per- verfe and proud minds, who are refolved to believe nothing farther than they can thoroughly and clear- ly comprehend it ! — Thy perfon itlclf, the circum- llances and way of thy coming, have been an of- fence unto many ! — To the Jezus aJiumbUng block, and to the Greeks foolijhnefs ! i Cor. i. 23. A conflant oc- cafion of falling to all godlefs and finful men, whofe high minds arc not brought into captivity to the obedience of faith, nor made fit for the recep- tion of the truth, as it is in Jefus ! — But bleffed are all they, have thy holy lips pronounced, who, in none of thefe ways are offended in thee ! As to the two former ways of being offended in Chrifb, on the account of the difficulty of praftifing thofe duties he has enjoined, and believing thofe articles af faith he hath propofed, I fliall not at prefent enter into the confideration of them. The feftival we are now celebrating, (Chrijlmas) deter- mines me rather to point my refLed:ions on the of- fence which has been taken at the perfon of Chrift, the method and manner of his coming amongft us. —The objections of which kind I ftiall briefly pro- pofe, and anfwer ; that fo having rooted and ground- ed ourfelves in a firm belief of the dodlrine, we may, with the more aflurance, make thofe feveral im- provements of it, which will be profitable unta godlinefs. Serm. III. On the Incarnation of our Lord. 37 It hath formerly by Porphery and Celfus, and e- vcr fmce by their fucceflbrs, the open or hidden e- nemies of Chrillianity, been thus argued : That the doctrine of the incarnation of the Son of God is unreafonable and incredible ; inconfiilent with the clear notions we have of the unlimited pcr- fedlions of God, and the finite properties of man; between which there is fo wide and eternal a diffe- rence, as feems to render them incapable of being joined together in one and the fame perfon or fub- jed:. For how can wifdom, perfection, and hap- pinefs itfelf, be mixed with folly, infirmity, and mifery ! what union can there be between what is finite, and that which is infinite ? But were it conceivable, how the divine and hu- man nature could be united into one perfon ; yet is it not, fay they, reafonable to believe that fuch a method was adtualiy taken ? For furely there were other ways, befides this, of reftoring lapfed man to the favour of God, and that happinefs which he had forfeited, and of taking away the fins of the world : the unlimited mercy of the divine nature was of it- felf fufficient to compafs this end, and forgive this debt, without requiring any ranfom ; and unlefs a God incarnate were abfolutely and indifpenlably re- quifite to free mankind from the guilt and domini- on of their fins, it is no ways reafonable to think, that recourfe was had to fo extraordinary a remedy. Now, as to the firil: part of the objedtion, the impoffibility of an union between God and man in the fame perfon or fubjed:, it is a bold, and a pre- fumptuous plea. For who is he, among the reafon- ers of this world, that is able prccifely to deter- mine, in fuch obfcure points as thefe, what is pof- fible or impoffible to be accomplifiied by almighty wifdom and power ? Are our notions of thefe two beings, God and men, fo full every way, and dif- tindt and clear, as to fatisfy us, that fuch an union is 38 Oh the Incarnal'ton of our Lord* Serm* IIL is in itfclf repugnant, and altogether impoffible ? Would we impartially coniider, what palFes within our minds, when we employ them injiich nice dif- quilitions as theie, we iliould find, that all that paf- I'es there is darknefs and confufion ; and that we can dilccrn too little of either of thefe natures, to be a- ble to pronounce, with any alTurance, that it is impoffible for them to be joined together in one perfon. We have no juft idea indeed of the manaer, in which fuch an union may be efFedled ; but fo nei- ther have we of the manner of that union, which is between our fouls and bodies. An union, which we can as little explain, or comprehend, as even that of the Deity with the humanity ; and which vet we can no more doubt of, than we can of our own being and fubfiftence. Will the moft keen and piercing wit among the fons of men fay, that he perceives plainly, how a corporeal can be joined to an incorporeal being ; and what are thofe common ties and ligaments that hold them : how they adt upon each other ; move, and are moved by turns ; and what kind of contadt that is, by which fuch motions are mutually communicated ? No ; thefe are fccrets, which we can no ways, by any flrength of thought, fathom ; and which perhaps we fhould have been apt to imagine inconfiftent and impoffible fpeculations, had not experience taught us, that things are really fo, though we cannot poffibly find out how they fliould be fo. Had the fpirits of men been once unbodied, and had God revealed to them in that ftate of fepara- ration, that he defigned them for another ftation in a lower world ; and, in order to it, would clothe them with grofs and fenfible matter, and make them aft continually in concert with flefhly organs, and with dependence upon them, no doubt but one of thefe forward reafoners would have concluded im- mediately. Serm. III. On the Incarnation of our Lord. 39 mediately, that the thing propofed was unphilofo- phical and ablurd.— And therefore, that either the revelation did not really come from God, or that this could not be the fenfe of it. — For how could body and fpirit, things fo totally different, any ways meet together, and compofe one entire fub- jedt ? or how could they, when thus met, have any poffible influence on each other ? Thcfe therefore are immodcfl and unjuftiiiable ways of reafoning, which would perfuade us to re- jedl truths, on the account of fome fuppofed im- pofiibilitics, of which it is manifeflly impoflible that we fhould have any clear and adequate concep- tion. And therefore, in all fuch cafes, it becomes not us to fay, what can, or cannot be done, or what the nature of the things will, or will not admit of. The lliort and only fure point, upon which contro- verlies of this kind muft turn, is, to fee what God, in his holy word, has affured us concerning them. As to the fecond part of t>he objediion, That there were other ways of bringing about the pardon of fin, and the faivation of man ; far be it from us to prefcribe to God, or to fay — that infinite goodncfs and wifdom itfelf could have found out no other ex- pedient. But lince this, and no other, was made ufe of by God, we muft needs thmk it the molt proper of any, and the beft proportioned to thofc ends and purpofes, for which he deiigned it. And though it becomes us rather implicitly to adore the divine wifdom, than curioufiy to enquire into the reafons, and boldly to found the depths of it ; yet is there fome light afforded us in fcripture, where- by we may difcover a mighty fitnefs and congruity between the method that was ufcd, and the end that was brought about by it. Guiding ourfelves therefore by the difcoveries made to us on this head in holy writ, we may fufely venture to fay — it was fit and requifite, that our Redeemer 40 On the Incarnation of our Lord. Serm. Ill, Redeemer ftiould be God, that, by the infinite dig- nity of his perlbn, the value of the facrifice, which he made of himfelf in the flclh, might be fo far en- hanced, as to become a fufficient attonement for the fins of the whole world : that the laws, which he fi^ouid publifh, might carry in them the utmoil: obligation and force : that his dodtrine might have the higheft authority : that we, being affured of his abfolutely fecurity from fin, might look up to his example as to a perfed: pattern of holinefs : and in all things, without doubt or fear, implicitly fol- low his fteps. It was fit he ihould be God, that he might give an inilance of infinite condefcenfion and love to- wards us, and might from thence engage us to love and obey him alfo without bounds : that he might be enabled in our behalf to vapquifli fatan, and all the powers of hell, and ercd: a fpiritual kingdom in the hearts of men, by triumphing firft over all the ftrength, and cunning, and malice, of our fpiritual enemies. It was highly expedient alfo, that he Ihould be man, that our offences might be repaired in that nature which committed them : and as by one mans difobedience, many were made fwners ; Jo by the obedience of one man, many might be made righteous, Rom. v. 19. That he might be qualified from thence, to be a wercifid and faithful High H^ricjl in things pertaining to God', Heb. ii, 17, and a proper intercefibr with him for man, Vv'hofe infirmities he had tried, whole needs he had been fenfible of, and, having himfelf fufferedand been tempted, might be able ^x\(\. v^'illing to fuciour thofe that are tempted, vcr. 18. Lailly, That bv appearing in human form, he might make a difference between the rigorous and afionifiiing difpenfation of the law, and that milder one of grace : coming to us in the moil familiar and winning way : iniiruding us in our duty like one Serm. III. On the Incarnation of our Lord. 41 one of us ; and propofing to us a lively and full ex- ample of what he taught, in what he did and fuf- fered for us. Thefe are fome of the accounts which God has hinted to us in fcripture, why his infinite wifdom was pleafed to pitch upon this way, rather than a- ny other, of reconciling man to himfelf. And yet, after all the accounts we can give ourfelves of it, we cannot but confefs it to be an abyfs of mercy, which neither we nor angels are able to pry into ; and which God alone, who contrived it, can fully explain and comprehend. Let us forbear therefore to wade farther into the depth of this great myftery of God manifefted in the flefh ; and let us fatisfy ourfelves with believ- ing it, as God has revealed it, without indulging our curiofity in an unprofitable fearch after the rca- fons, which induced God to order the flupenduous work of our redemption in fo inconceivable a man- ner : and let us proceed to draw from thence thofe plain practical improvements, which may render it profitable unto godlinefs, and with which it will readily furnifh us. And the firft, and mofi: natural ufe we arc to make of it, is, to raife to ourfelves from thence matter of thankfulnefs and fpiritual joy. Behold I bringyou, faid the angel to the fhcpherds, o-ood tid- ings of great Joy which Jball be to all people : for imto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Chrifi the Lord. Luke \\. 10, 11. And thefe indeed are the beil tidings that ever God fent, or the world received : tidings of no lefs than freedom from the guilt and punifliment of fin; of a way o- pcned to repentance and the favour of God ; to peace of confcicnce in this world, and everlafting happinefs in the next. Before the coming of Chrifi, all the account we could have of thefe things from the light of nature. Vol. IL F went 42 Oil the Idcar nation of our Lord. Serm, III, went no farther than this. — That the breach of any of God's laws brought guilt along with it ; and that guilt made us liable to puniflimcnt, — Whether God, upon any confiderations, would ever remit this pu- nifhment, was more than mere reafon could poffib-r ly tell us. For the juftice of God certainly requir- ed, that fin Ihould be followed with punifhment : nor was this inconfiflent with the goodnefs of God, which was otherwife fufficiently manifeftcd to us. Under this kind of dark and uncomfortable reafon^ ings were we left, till Chrift the Son of righteouf- nefs arofc with healing in his wings, and publifh^ ed the gofpel of repentance and remiffion of fins. All thanks and praife therefore be given to him, that our tongues can poffibly exprefs, or our hearts conceive ! Abraham, at a mighty diftance, and up^ on a very dim and imperfedt view of it, rejoiced to fee this day : the angels, who themfelves had no intereft in this deliverance, yet were highly pleafed with the profped: of thofe bleffings it derived on their fellow creature, man ; and therefore fang that hymn on this occafion, which the evangelift has re- corded, Luke ii. 14, Glory be to God on high, on earth peace, good-zulll tozvards men. And fliall not we, for whofe fake this peace was fent on earth, and to whom all this good-will was meant, fliall not we alfo give glory to God on high, and rejoice before him with reverence ? Surely this is news, at which, as Ifaiah prcphefies of the miraculous effefts that fhould take place in the kingdom of the Mefiiah, I fa. XXXV. 6. The lame man jhould leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb JJjould Jtng. A fecond improvement that fliould be made of this dodirine, is, to raife our love to God from hence, to all the degrees of which it is capable. For love furely deferves returns of love ; and the highefi inftances of love the higheft returns of it. Now in this zvas mumifejted the love of God toivard us, becaufe §ERivi* III. On the incarnation of our Lord* 4^ becaufe that God fent his only begotten Son into the zvorld^ that we might live through'him, i John iv* 9, 10. Here- in is love, as St. John continues his argument, «o/ that we loved GoJ, that is, loved God firiT, and, by that means, drew down his love upon us, but that he lov- ed us, antecedently, freely, and fent his Son to be the propitiation for ourJinSi Had God fent the meaneft attendant in the court of Heaven, to publifli abroad the good tidings of his free and voluntary pardon of fins, fhould we not have entertained it as a meffage of unfpeakable love ! how much more, when he fends his Son, his only begotten Son on this errand ! when he fends him to partake of our nature, and of all the infir- mities, miferies, Ihame, and pain that attended it ; and at laft to be made a facrifice for our fins by the very hands of thofc men, for whofe fake he left Heaven ! This raifes the motive fo high, that our lips are fain zvhen zve fpeak of it ; and our heart melts away almofl under the fenfe of that exceffive bur- then of love which lies upon us. But how flrangcly is the force of this motive weakened by thofe who make Chrift a mere man, hot the eternal Son of God, fent out to us from the bofom of his Father I for at this rate the love of God towards us abates very much ; and then, I am afraid, ours tov/ard him will proportionably abate with it. For the higher apprehenfions we have oi God's antecedent love to man, the llronger will out endeavours flill be to raife our afFeftioils up to a pitch fome way fuitable to thofe apprehenfions. So that, whether thefe men have, by this expe- dient, lefTened the difficulties of their faith, or not, which is matter of difpute, fure we are, that they have evidently leffened the argument for their love by it. Another plain ufe we are to make of this dodlrine is, to give us an high fenfe of the dignity of our F 2 ' nature. 44 On the Incarnation of our Lord. Serm. III. nature, and an hearty difpleafure at thofe fins which debate and diflionour it. Behold now, as the apoftle to the Hebrews ar- gues, is that prophecy of the Pfahnill concerning man fulfilled in your ears. Heb. ii. 7. Thou hafi crowned him with glory and honour, and haji fet him over the zuorks of thine hands : thou haJi put all things in fub- jeElion under his feet ; that is, the human nature, by its affumption to the divine, is now advanced far above principalities and powers, and every created beinp^ : nay, it is, in the perfon of Chrift, become an objedt of adoration, even to fpirits of the firft rank and order. For, as the fame apoftle interprets another palfage of the Pfalmift, Heb. i. 6. fVhen God brought his firji begotten Son into the world, he faith, let . all the angels of God worJJjip him. Should not fuch a refledtion as this make us re- folve to do nothing beneath that nature, which God has fo highly honoured ? not to pollute it with vile affections and lulls : not to fet it upon mean and unworthy purfuits, and on minding earthly things; but to have our converfation in Heaven ; from whence al- fo we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jefus Chriji, who JJjall change our vile body, that it may be faJJfwned like un- to his glorious body. Phil. iii. 19, 20 21. A fenfe of birth and noble blood will often keep men from doing things beneath themfelves, when no other motive can reftrain them : and fhall it not be fufEcient to preferve us from every evil and de- filing w^ork, to confider our near alliance with God himfelf, by the intervention of the man Chrift Je- fus ? Surely fuch a confideration fhould engage us, after the moft powerful manner, to purify our na- tures, even as his is pure ; and to cleanfe our/elves from all flthincfs offeJJj andfpirit. 2 Cor. vii. i . And as God's alfuming our nature fiiould make us refledt often on the dignity and worth of it, and refolve not to defile that with bafe and brutifh en- joyments Serm. III. Ofi the Incarnation of our Lord. 45 joyments which Chriil hath thus ennobled and fanc- tified ; lb, on the other hand. The conucicenfion alfo of the Son of God, in this myllcrious work of our redemption, fhould in- fufe into us a fpirit of iiniverfal humility, fince he, who zvas the b)t be imagined ; and the fenfe of them is repeated in a very lively and emphatical manner, in that re- markable pafTage wherein our Lord not only de- clares his own judgment, but fecms to appeal to the confciences of all, as obliged by their own fe- Vol. IL H ' cilct 58 fbe Cafe of the Soul Serm. IV. cret conviCrlons to fubfcribe to the truth of it. Mat. xvi. 26. frbat is a mm profited^ if he gain the ivhole zvorldy and lofe his ozvn foul ; or zvhat JJ:all a man give in exchange for his foul f If it were once loft, what would he not be willing to give to redeem it ? But it depends not on the words of Chrift alone. Let his actions, his fufferings, his blood, his death fpeak what a value he fet on the fouls of men. Is it to be imagined, that he would have relinquifh- ed Heaven, that he would have dwelt upon earth, that he would have laboured by night and by day, and at laft have expired on the crofs, for a matter of light importance ? Or can we think that he, in whom dzvell all the treafures ofzvifdotn and knoztiedge, and all thefuhicfs of the Godhead bodily, was miftaken in judg- ment lb deliberately formed, and fo folemnly de* clared ? If after this there were room to mention human judgment, and teftimonies, how eafy would it be to produce a cloud of witnefles in fuch a caufe, and to Ihew that the wifeft and befl of men in all ages of the world have agreed in this poiftt, that amidft all the diversities of opinion and profeflion, which fuc- ceeding generations have produced, this has been the unanimous judgment, this the common and moft folicitous care of thofe, whofe charadters are moft truly valuable, to fecure the falVation of theif own fouls, and to promote the falvation of others. And let me befeech you ferioufly to refled:, what are the chara(fl:ers of thofe who have taken the liber- ty, moft boldly and freely to declare their judg- ment on the contrary fide ? The number of fuch is comparatively few ; and when you compare what you have obferved of their temper and conduct, I will not fay with what you read of holy men of old^ but with what you have yourfelves feen in the faith- ful, aftive, and zealous fervahts of Chrift, in thefe latter ages, with which you have converfcd, do you on Serm, IV, the one Thing needful. 59 on the whole find that the rejectors and dcrldcis of the gofpcl, are in other relpects, fo much more prudent and judicious, fo much wifer for them- felves, and for others that are influenced by them, 3S that you can in reafon be obliged to pay any great deference to the authority of a few fuch nj^mes as thefc, in oppofition to thofe to which they are here oppoled ? But you will fay, and you will fay it too truly, though but a few may venture in words to declare for the negledt of the foul and its eternal intereft, the greater part of mankind do it in their actions. But are the greater part of mankind fo wife and fo good, as implicitly to be followed in matters of the higheft importance ? And do not multitudes of thefe declare thcmfelves on the other fide, in their mofl ferious moments ? When the intoxications of worldly bufinefs and pleafures are over, and fomc languifhing f.cknefs forces men to folitudc and re- tirement ; what have you generally obferved to be the efiedt of fuch a circumftance .? Have they not then declared thcmfelves convinced of the truth we are now labouring to eflablifli ? Nay, do we not fometimes fee that a diflemper which feizes the mind with violence, yet does not utterly deilroy its reafoning faculties, fixes this convidtion on the foul in a few hours, nay fometimes in a few mo- ments ? Have you never fecn a gay, thoughtlefs creature, furprifed in the giddy round of pleafures and amufements, and prefently brought not on- ly to ferioufnefs, but to terror and trembling, by the near views of death ? Have you never feci) the man of bufinefs and care interrupted, like the rich fool in the parable, in the midfl of his fchemes for the prefent world ? And have you not heard one and the other of them owning the vanity of thofe plea- fures and cares, which but a few days ago were c- Ycry thing to them ? Confefling that religion wa$ H 2 the 6o ^he Care of the Soul Sf;RM, IV, the one thing medful, and recommending it to others with an earneftnefs, as if they hoped thereby to at-* tone for their own former negledt ? We that are minillers frequently are witnelles to fuch things as thefe, and I believe few of our hearers are entire flrangers to them. And once more, what if to the teflimony of the dying, we could add that of the dead ? What if God were to turn afide the veil which feparates between us and the inviiible world, and to permit the moft carelefs fmner in the aflembly to convcrfe for a few moments \vith the inhabitants of it ? If you were to apply yourfelf to a happy fpirit, that tj-od the moft thorny road to paradife, or palled through the moft fiery trial, and to afk him, " Was it worth your " while to labour lb much, and to endure fo much " for what you now poftefs ?" Surely if the blefted in Heaven were capable of indignation, it would move them to hear that it iliould be ipade a quef-. tion. And on the other hand, if you could enquire of one tormented in that flame below, thouQ;h he might once be clothed in purple and fine linen, and fare fumptuouily every day, if you could afk him, ** Whether his former enjoyments were any equi-r ^* valcnt for his prefent fufferings and defpair ?" What anfwer do you funpofe he v/ould return ? Perhaps an anfwer of fo much horror and rage, as you would not be able to much as to indure. Or if the malignity of his nature fhould prevent him from returning any anfwer at all, fufely there would be a language even in that filence, a language in the darknefs, and flames, and p-roans of that infernal prilbn, which would fpeak to your very foul what the word of God is with equal certainty, though Icfs forcible conviction, fpeaking to your ear, that one thing is needful. You fee it is fo in the judgment of God the Father, and the Lord Jefus Chrift, of the v;ifeft and beft of men, of many, who fecmed Serm. IV. the one 'Thing nccdfid. 6 1 to judge moll differently of it, when they come to more deliberate and fcrious thought, and not only of the dying, but of the dead too, of thofe who have experimentally known both worlds, and moll fuiely know what is to be preferred. But I will not rell the whole argument here, I add there- fore, 2. I appeal to the evident reafon of the cafe it- felf, as it mull appear to every unprejudiced mind, that the care of the foul is indeed the one thhiv . (in vceajid. I Hill confider myfelf as fpeaking not to athciUs, or to dcifts, but to thofe who not only believe the exi Hence and providence of God, and a future flare of happinefs and mifcry, but likewiie who credit the truth of the Chrillian revelation, as manv undoubt- edly do, who live in a fatal neglccfl of God and their own fouls. Now on thcfc principles a little reflec- tion may be fufHcient to convince you, that 'tis necdfuho the prefcnt repofe of your own mind ; iicedfid if ever you would fecure eternal happinefs ; if ever you would avoid eternal mifery, which will be ag- gravated rather than alleviated, by all your prefcnt enjovmcnts. Firll, The care of the foul is the one thing na'dfid, bccaufe, without it you cannot fecure the peace of vour own mind, nor avoid the upbraidings of your confcicnce. That noble faculty is, indeed, as you are often told, the vicegerent of God in the fonl. 'Tis fen- f.blc of the dignity and worth of an immortal fpi- rit, and will fometimes cry out of the violence that is offered to it, and cry fo loud, as to compel the linner to hear, whether he will or no. Do vou not fometimes find it yourfelves ? When vou labour mod to forget the concerns of your foul, do they not fome times force themfelves on your remem- brance ? You are afraid of the refledions of your own 62 '7'he Care of the Sod Serm. IV. own mind, but with all yonr artifice and all your reiblution, can you entirely avoid them ? Does not confcience follow you to your beds, even if denied the opportunity of meeting you in your clofets, and though with an unwelcome voice, there warn you, <* that your foul is neglcdted, and will quickly be *' loft :" does it not follow you to your {hops and your fields, when you are bufieft there ? Nay, \ will add, does it not fometimes follow you to the feaft, to the club, to the dance, and perhaps, a- midft all refiftance, to the theatre to ? Docs it not fometimes mingle your fweeteft draughts with wormwood, and your gayefl fcenes with horror ? So that you are like a tradefman, who, fufpefting his affairs to be in a bad pofture, lays by his books and his papers, yet fometimes they wall come acci-r dentally in his way. He hardly dares to look a- broad for fear of meeting a creditor or an arreit ; ai.d if he labours to forget his cares and his dan- gers, in a courfe of luxury at home, the remem- brance is fometimes awakened, and the alarm en^ creafed, by thofe very extravagances in which he is attempting to lofc it. Such, no doubt, is the cafe of fome of your minds, and 'tis a very painful ftate ; and while things are thus within, external circumftances can no more make you happy, than a fine drefs could relieve you under a violent fit of the ftone, Whereas if this great affair were fecur-r ed, you might delight in refleftion, as much as you now dread it ; and confcience, of your bittereft e-- nemy, would become a delightful friend, and the teftimony of it your greateft rejoicing. Secondly, The care of the foul is the one iJ:ing needful, bccaufe without it you cannot poffibly fe- cure your eternal happinefs. A crown of everlafting glory is not furely fuch a trifle as to be thrown away on a carelefs creature, that will not in good earneft purfuc ir. God doth not Serm. IV. the one f'hhig needful 63 not ordinarily deal thus, even with the bounties of his common providence which are comparatively ot little value. As to thcfe, the hand of the diligent generally makes rich, and he would be thought dil- traded, rather than prudent, who Ihould expea: to get an eftate merely by williing for it, or without fome refolutc and continued application to a pro- per courfe of adiion for that purpofc. Now, that we may not foolifhly dream of obtaining Heaven, in the midil of a courfe of indolence and (loth, we are exprefsly told in the word of God, that the king- Sm of Heaven fuffers violence, and the violent take it by Jorce, Mat« xi. 12. and are therefore exhorted to ftrive with the greateft intenfenefs, and eagcrnefs of mind, as the word properly fignifics, to enter in at the ilrait gate, for this great and important reafon, becaufe many Ihall another day feek to enter in, and Ihall not be able. Nay, when our Lord makes the moft gracious promifes to the humble petitioner, he does it in fuch a manner as to exclude the hopes of thofc who are carelefs and indifferent. Mat. vii. 7, JJk, and itJiMll k given you ; feek, and you jMl find ; block, and itJJoall be opened untoyoiu If therelore you do no aik, feek, and knock, the door of mercy will not be opened, and eternal happinefs will be iofl. , , , And furely if I could fay no more as to the tatal confcquences of your negka, than this, that eter- nal happinefs will be loft, I fhould fay enough to imprefs every mind that confidcrs what eternity means. To fall into a ftate of everlalting forget- fulnefs might indeed appear a refuge to a mind fil- led with the apprchenfion of future mifery. But, Oh how dreadful a refuge is it I Surely it is fuch a refuge, as a vaft precipice, from which a man tal- ling'\vould be dalhed to pieces in a moment, might appear to a perfon purfuedby the officers of juftice, that he might be brought out to a painful and ling- 6'4 '^'l-£ Care of the Soul Serm. IV. ering execution. If" an extravagant youth would have reafon to look round with anguifli oh fomc fair and ample paternal inheritance, which he had fold or forfeited merely for the riot of a few days : how much more melancholy would it be for a rational mind to think that its eternal happinefs is lofl for any earthly confideration whatever. Tormenting thought ! had I attended to that one thing which I have negledted, I might have been great and hap- py, beyond expreffion, beyond conception. Not merely for the little fpan of ten thoufand thoufand ages, but /or ever. So that the moment would have come, when, if it had been afked concerning me, how long has that glorious fpirit been an inhabitant of Heaven? How long has it been enjoying God and itfelf inthat ftate of perfection ? — the anfwer would have been fuch,that a line reaching even to the utter- moft ilar would not have been able to contain the number of ages, nor would millions of years have been fufficient to figure them down. This is eter- nity, but I have loft it, and am now on the verge of being. This lamp, which might have outlafted thofe of the firmament, will prefently be extinguilh- ed, and I blotted out from amongft the works of God, and cut oif from all the bounties of his hand. Would not this be a very miferable cafe, if this were all. And would in not be fufficient to prove this to be the better fart, which, as our Lord ob- fcrves, can never be taken ardjay. But God forbid that we ihould be fo unfaithful to him, and to the fouls of men, as to reft in fuch a reprefcntation alone, I therefore add once more. Third, The care of the foul is the one thing need^ ful, bccaufe, without it you cannot avoid a ftate of eternal mifery, which will be aggravated rather Fhan alleviated by all your prefent enjoyments. Nothing can be more evident from the word of the God of truth. If there plainly appears to be a deter- Serm. IV, the one thing needful 65 determined cafe, which leaves no room for a more favourable conjedlurc or hope. Pfal. ix. 17, The zvicked JJmU be turned into hell, even all the nations that for- get God. Mat. XXV. 46, They Jljall go away into evcr^ lajling pirnifiment, into a flate where they fhal) in vain feek death, and death fhall flee from them, Oh I Sirs, 'tis a certain, but an awful truth, that your fouls will be thinking and immortal beings, even in fpite of themfelves. They may indeed torment, but they cannot deftroy themfelves. They can no more fufpcnd their power of thought and perception, than a mirror its property of refledtingrays that fall on its furface. Do you fufpedt the contrary ? make the trial immediately. Command your minds to ceafe from thinking but for one quarter of an hour, or for half that time, and exclude every idea and every reflection. Can you fucceed in that attempt ? or rather, does not thought prcfs in with a more fenfible violence on that refiftance ; as an anxious defire to fleep, makes us fo much the more wake- ful. Thus will thought follow you beyond the grave, thus will it, as an unwelcome guefl:, force itfelf upon you, when it can ferve only to perplex and diifrefs the mind. It will for ever upbraid you, that notwithilanding all the kind cxpoflulations of God and man, notwithflanding all the keen remon- Ilrances of confcience, and the pleadings of the blood of Chrifl:, you have gone on in vour folly, till Heaven is loft, and damnation incurred ; and all for what ? for a fhadow and a dream. Oh think not, flnners, that the remembrance of your paft pleafures, of your fuccefs in your other cares, whilft that of the one thing needful was forgot- ten, think not that this will eafe your minds. It will rather torment them the more. Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedjl thy good things. Bitter remembrance ! Well might the Heathen poets re- prefent the unhappy fpirits in the fliadcs below, as Vol. I, X eagerly 66 I'be Care of the Soul Serm. IV. eagerly catching at the water of forgetful nefs, yet unable to reach it. Your prefent comforts will on- ly ferve, to give you a livelier fenfe of your mifcr ry, as having tafted fuch degrees of enjoyment; and to inflame the reckoning, as you have miiimproved thofe talents lodged in your hands, for better pur- pofes. Surely, if thefe things were believed, and ierioufly confidcred, the (inner would have no more heart to rejoice in his prefent profperity, than a man would have to amufe himfelf with the curiofi- ties of a fine garden, through which he was led to be broke upon the rack. But I will enlarge no farther on thefe things. Would to God that the unaccountable flupidity of men's minds, and their fatal attachment to the plear fures and cares of the prefent life, did not make it necefTary to infifl; on them fo frequently and fo copioufly ! IV. I proceed to the refiedlions which naturally arife from hence, and fliall only rnention two. I. Hovv^ much rcafon have we to lament the fol- ly of mankind in neglefting the one thing needful. If religion be indeed the trueft wifdom, then furely we have the jufteft reafon to fay with Solo- mon, Ecc. ix. 3, That folly and madnefs is in men^s hearts. Is it the one thing needful!^ Look on the con- dudl of the generality of mankind, and you would imagine they thought it the one thing needlefs : the vainell dream and the idlefl amufement of the mind. God is admonifliing them by ordinances, and pror •vidences, fometimes by fuch as are mofl awful, to lay it to heart ; he fpeaks once, yea twice, yea a multitude of times, but man regards not. They profefs perhaps to believe all that I have been fayr ing, but ad; as if the contrary were felf evident ; they will riik thefe fouls and this eternity, for a thing of nought, for that for the fake of which they v^fouid npt rifk fo much as a hand, or a finger, or a joint. Serm. IV. the one 1'b'mg needful 67 joint, no, nor perhaps a toy that adorns It. Sure- ly this is the wonder of angels, and perhaps of de- vils too, unlefs the obfervation of fo many ages may have rendered it familiar to both. And can we, my Chrirtian brethren, behold fuch a fccne with in- difference ? If fome epidemical madnefs had feized, our country, or the places where we live, fo that as we went from one place to another, we fliould every where meet with lunatics, and fee, among the reft, fome perhaps of the fineil: genius and im- provements, and in the mod eminent ftations of life, amufing themfelves with flraws and bubbles^ or wounding themfelves and others ; furely were we ever fo fecure from the danger of infection or af- fault, the fight would cut us to the heart. Surely a good natured man would hardly be able to go a- broad, or even be defirous to live, if it muft be a- mong fo many fad fped:acles. Yet thefe poor creatures might, notwirhdanding this, be the chil- dren of God, and the higher their frenzy rofe, the nearer might their compleat happinefs be. But a- las, the greater part of mankind are feized wdth a ■worfe kind of madnefs, in which they are ruining their fouls : and can we behold it with indifference 1 The Lord awuken our compaffion, our prayer, and our endeavours in dependance on divine grace, that we may be inftrumental in bringing them to their right mind, and making them wife indeed, that is^ wife to falvation. 2. How neccffary is it that we Ihould ferioully inquire how this one thing needful is regarded by us 1 Let me entreat you to remember your own con- cern in it, and inquire — Have I thought ferioufly of it ? — Have I feen the importance of it ? — Has it lain with a due and an abiding weight on my mind } -^Has it brought me to Chrill:, that I might lay the flrefs of thefe great eternal interefls on him ? — And am I ad:ing in the main of my life as one that I 2 has 68 The Care of the Soul Serm. IV* has thefe convid:ions ? — Am I willing in facl to give up other things, my interefls, my pleafures, my paflions to this ? — Am I converfing with God and with man as one that believes thefe things, as one that has deliberately chofen the better part, and is determined to abide by that choice ? Obferve the anfwer which confcience returns to thefe inquiries, and you will know your own part in that more particular application, with which I am to conclude my difcourfe. I. Let me addrefs thofe that are entirely uncon- cerned about the one thing needful. Sirs, I have been flating the cafe at large, and now I appeal to your confcienccs, are thefe things fo ? or are they not ? God and your own hearts bell know for what the care of your foul is negledred ; but be it what it will, the difference between one grain of fand, and another, is not great, when it comes to be weighed againft a talent of gold. Whatever it is, you had need to examine it care- fully. You had need to view that commodity on all fides, of which you do in effedt fay, for this will I fell my foul, for this will I give up Heaven and venture hell, be Heaven and hell whatever they may. In the name of God, Sirs, is this the part of a man, of a rational creature ? To go on with your eyes open towards a pit of eternal ruin, be- caufe there are a few gay flowers in the way. Or what if you Ihut 3^our eyes ? will that prevent your fall ? It fignifies little to fay, I will not think of thefe things, I will not confider them. God has faid, Jer. xxiii. 20. In the Iq/I days they fJoall conftder it perje^ly. The revels of a drunken malefadtor will not prevent, nor refpite his execution. Pardon my plainnefs ; if it were a fable, or a tale, I would en- deavour to amufe you with words, but I cannot do it where your fouls are at flake. 2. I Serm. IV. the one ^mg needful 69 2. I would apply to thofe who are convinced of the importance of their fouls, yet arc inclined to de- fer that care of them a little longer, which in the general they fee to be necelfary. I know, you that are young are under peculiar temptations to do this ; though 'tis ftran^e that the death of fo many of your companions Ihould not be an anfwer to feme of the molt fpecious and dange- rous of thofe temptations. Methinks if there were the leaft degree of uncertainty, the importance is too weighty to put matters to the venture. But here the uncertainty is great and apparent. You muft furely know that there are critical feafons of life for managing the concerns of it, which are of fuch a nature, that, if once loll, they may never return : here is a critical feafon. Nozv is the ac- cepted time, nozv is the day of fahation, 2 Cor. vi. 2, 7p day if you will hear his voice harden not your heart Sy Heb, iii. 7. 8. This language may not be f[:)oken to-morrow. Talk not of a more convenient lealbn, none can be more convenient ; and that to w hich you v/ould probably refer it is leaft of all fo. A dy- ing time. You would not chufe then to have any important bufinefs in hand ; and will you of choice refer the greateft bufinefs of all to that languifhing hurrying, amazing hour. If a friend were then to come to you with the balance of an intricate ac- count, or a view of a title to an eftate, you would Ihake your fainting head, and lift up your pale trembling hand, and fay perhaps with a feeble Voice, " Alas, is this a time for thefe things ?'* And is it a time for fo much greater things than thefe ? I wifh you knew, and would confider into what a ftrait we that are miniftcrs are fometimcs brought, when we are called to the dying beds of thofe who have fpent their lives in the negledt of the one thino- needful. On the one hand we fear, left if we palliate matters, and fpcak fmooth things, we . fhall yo I'he Care of the Soul Serm. IV. fhall betray and ruin their fouls ; and on the other,, that if we ufe a becoming plainnefs and ferioufnefs, in warning them of their danger, we lliall quite o- verwhehii them, and haflen the dying moment which is advancing by fuch fwift fleps. Oh let me entreat you for our fakes, and much more for your own, that you do not drive us to fuch fad extremi- ties : but that if you are convinced as I hope fome of you may now be, that the care of the foul is that needful thing we have reprefented, let the conviction work, let it drive you immediately to the throne of grace, that from thence you may derive that wif- dom and flrength which may diredt you in all the intricacies which entangle you, and animate you in the midft of difficulty and difcouragement. 3. I would in the laft place addrefs myfelf to thofe happy fouls who have in good earnefi attended to the one thing needful. I hope when you fee how commonly it is neglec- ted, negled:ed indeed by many, whofe natural ca- pacities, improvements, and circumllances in life, appear to you fuperior to your own, you will humb- ly acknowledge, that it was diftinguiihing grace that brought you into this happy ftate, and formed you to this moll neceflary care. Blefs the Lord therefore Vs^ho hath given you that counfel, in vir- tue of which you can fay that he is your portion. — Rejoice in the thought that the great concern is fe- cured ; as 'tis natural for us to do, when fome im- portant affair is difpatched Vv^hich has long lain be- fore us, and v/hich we have been inclined to put off from one day to another, but have at length ftrenuoufly and fuccefsfuUy attended. — Remember ftill to continue afting on thefe great principles which at firit determined your choice ; and feriouf- ly conlider, that thofe who delire their life may at laft be given them for a prey, muft continue on their guard, in ail ftages of their journey through a wilder- Serm. IV' the one 'thing needful, 71 wildernefs, where daily dangers are ftlll furround- ing them. Having fecured tlie great concern, make yoiirfelves eafy as to others of Imaller importance. You have chofen the kingdom of God and his righ- teoufnefs, other things therefore Ihall be added un- to you ; and if any which you defire fliould not be added, comfort yourfelves with this thought, that you have the good part zvhich can never be taken aivay. And, not to enlarge on thefe obvious hints, which muft fo often occur, be very folicitous that others may be brought to a care about the one thing needful. Jf it be needful for you, tis fo for your children, your friends, your fervants. Let them therefore fee your concern in this refpedt for them, as well as for yourfelves. Let parents, efpecially, attend to this exhortation, whole care for their offspring often exceeds in other refpedts, and fails in this. Remember that your children may never live to enjoy the effedls of your labour and concern, to get them eltates and portions. The charges of their funerals may perhaps be all their fhare of what you are fo anxioufly careful to lay up for them. And Oh ! think what a fword would pierce through your very heart, if you Ihould ftand by the corpfe of a beloved child with this refledtion, '* This poor " creature has done with life, before it learnt its *' great buiinefs in it, and is gone to eternity, '^ which I have feldom been warning it to prepare ** for,and which perhaps it learnt of me to forget." On the whole, may this grand care be awakened in thofe by whom it has been hitherto neglected ; may it be revived in each of our minds. And that you may be encouraged to purfue it with greater chearfulnefs, let me conclude with this comfort- able thought, that in proportion to the neceflity of the cafe, is the provifion which divine grace has made for our affiftance. If you are difpofed to fit down at Chrifl's feet, he will teach you by his word and 72 the Care of the Soul, ^c. Serm. IV, i\nd fpirit. If you commit this precious jewel, which is your etenial all, into his hand, he will prefervc it unto that day, and will then produce it richly adorned, and gloriouily im.proved to his own honour^ and to your everlafting joy. SERMON SERMON V. By the kev. Samuel Clarke, D. D. THE NATURE OF RELATIVE DUTIES* CoLLOSStANS iii. 20, 21, 22. Children f obey your parents in all things ; for this is well pleajing unto the Lord. Fathers, provoke 'not your children to anger , lejl they be difcouraged. Servants j obey in all things your majiers according to thejlejl.\ IT is the conftant method of St. Paul \h all his epiftles, firft to enlarge upon and explain dif- tindtly the particular point or queftion, which was the occaiion of his writing at that time to that pai- ticular church ; and then to add fuch general ex- hortations to the practice of all Chriilian duties and virtues, at might at all times be of ufe to all churches, and to every Chriflian in all ages and in every part of the world. Thefe general exhorta- tions are, in the main, the fame in all his epiflles ; eafy and plain, univerfal and unvaried, fuited to all capacities, and containing the moll important and fundamental principles of religion. The former part of the feveral epiftles ufually relates to fome par- VoL. II. K ticular 74 I'he Nature of Relative Duties Serm. V. ticular controverfy between the Jewifh and Gentile converts, which at that time gave trouble totheapof- tles : and thele parts of his writings cannot be right- ly iinderrtood any other v/ay, than by attending care- fully to the occafion and flate of the particular queflion which he is there determining. And there- fore it has been a great error in thefe latter ages of the world, and the caufe of many vain difputes a- mong ChrilVians, that, without attending to the deiign and and fcope of a difcourfe written in an ar- gumentative m.anncr, men have frequently picked out and applied to themfelves fingle paflages, which, in the courfe of the apofHe's argument, had plainly a view only to the ftate of the then Jewifh or Gen- tile church. From this one miftake, it is evident, have fprung all the vain controverfies concerning faith and works, concerning juftification and fandli- fication, concerning eleftion and reprobation, and the like : wherewith while the minds of men have been needlefsly diflradicd, they have been the lefs apt to attend to the great and weightier matters of the law, to the moral and general exhortations, re- peated and inculcated univerfally in every epiflle, as things by every Chriftian undifputably cafy to be underllood, and indifpenfably neceffary to be prac- tifed. The words of my text are part of the general ex- hortation, which concludes the epiftle to the Col- loffians. In the beginning of this chapter the a- pollle exhorts them to fet their affedfions on Hea- venly things, to mortify every vicious and inordi- nate appetite, to lay afide all malice and contenti- oufnefs among themfelves, and to live in the prac- tice of universal love, charity, and good-will : and in the latter part of the chapter he recommends to them the relative duties of life : the duties of huf- bands and wives, of children and parents, of maf- tcrs and fervants, of fuperiors and inferiors in all reJa- Serm. V. The Nature of Relative Duties, 75 relations. Children obey your parents in all tbi^.'^s : for this is well pleafing unto the Lord : fathers provoke not your children to anger lefl they be difcouraged : fervants, 0- bey in all things your majiers according to thejlejh. In difcourfing upon thelc words ; I Ihall, I. Diltindtly take notice of the feveral particulars contained in the text. And, II. I ihall thence deduce this general obfervation ; that the due performance of the relative duties of life, is a principal means of obtaining both the blef- fings of the prefent world, and the happincfs of that which is to come. I. That which flands firfl and moft obviouily ob- fervable in the text, is this precept; Children obey your parents. In his epiftle to the Ephofians, the fame apoftle expreffes this precept thus : Children, 0- bey your parents in the Lord, for this is right : honour thy father and mother, zvhich is the firjl commandment zvith promif, chap. vi. i. In which expreffion there is an allufion to the order or placing of the command- ments in the law of Mofes ; this being the iirft in the fecond table, the firft of thefe commandments which declare our duty towards men ; the fnft to which is annexed exprefslva particular reward ; the firll commandment with promife. The natural ob- fervation arifing from which particular, is, the rea- fonablenefs and goodnefs of the great command- ments of God both in the law and the gofpcl. God begins where nature itfelf does ; making the fame things to be the prime foundations of his law, which in the nature of things themfelves, without any law, were mod reafonable to be pradtifed. The gofpel carries indeed this and all other moral pre- cepts to a much higher degree of improvement, re- quiring us to extend our love towards all men, and our dciire of doing good even to enemies themfelves. But the prior obligation, is that of gratitude to be- nefadors; and of making juft returns, to thofe, K 2 from 76 The Nature of Relative Duties. Serm. V» from whom we have received the benefits of life. Neverthelefs, as clear as this obligation is, both in the nature of things and in the command of God ; yet, not irreligion and atheifm onl}'^, but fuperfti- tion alfo has found means to evade this, in like m.anner as it does all other moral and eternal obli- gations. God, fays our Savioiir, Mat, xv, 4. God commanded faying, honour thy father and mother : but ye fay, whofoever fjjall fay to his father or his mother, it is a gift by whatfoever thou mighteji be profited by me, that is, *tis given to the fervice of the temple, or to fome other of what they then called pious ufes, he fhall be free-, he ihall be difcharged from all obliga- tion to relieve his neceffitous parents. Thus, fays our Lord, ye have made the commandment of God of none effe^ by your tradition. Notions fornewhat of the farrie nar ture have, in all ages of the world, prevailed over fuperftitious and corrupt minds; teaching them to yalue things that promote outward pomp and fhow, and diilin£tions of men under party denominations, more than obedience to the eternal and unchange- able duties of God's moral law. 2. The next thing proper to be taken notice of in the text, is, that the particulars here mentioned of the duty of children and fervants, are only in-r fiances of the general exhortation, defigned to ex- tend proportionably to pcrfons in all relative fla- tions and circumftances of life whatfoever. As Rom. xiii. 7. Render to all, their dues ; tribute, to zvhom tribute is due ; cufiom, to whom cuflom ; fear, to zvhom jear ; honour, to whom honour. To magiilrates, there is due from the fubjedl obedience according to the laws of the country, in matters not oppofite to the law of God; peaceablenefs and quietnefs under government, and a willing contribution towards the fupport of it. To teachers, or fjnritual fuperiors, there is due from the people fuch refpedt, as to ftcwards of the myfteries of Qod, appointed to exhort men conti- nually Serm. V. ^ke Nature of Relathe Duties, 77 nually to the pradice of virtue, and to affift in all the adminiftrations of religion : towards thele, there ought to be in men a willingnefs to hear and be in- formed by them, and a readinefs to obfcrve and prafticc what they teach; not blindly and implicit- ly, which is the docflrine of Rome, but in all things which they can Ihow to be the dodtrine and com- mands of God. To maflers, there is due from fer- yants diligence and indultry, honcfty and fidelity, fubmiflion and obedience, according the direction in the text. Servants, obey — -your majiers according to the jieJJ) ; not with eye fervice, as men-pleafers, but in Jingle - nefs of hearty fearing God; and whatfoever ye do, do it heartily as to the Lord, and not unto men. In like manner, Eph. vi. 7, fVith good will, fays he, doing fervice, as to the Lord, and not to men ; knozving that whatfoever good thing any man does, the famcjhaU he rc^ ceive of the Lord, zvhethcr he be bond or free. The on- ly difference here to be obferved, is, that whereas the fervants mentioned by the apollle, were, in thofe days. Haves, under the abfolute power of their maflers, without any relief under the grcateft oppreffions ; for which reafon St. Peter exhorts fuch to be patient under the fevereft hardlhips, confider-r ing that // is thank-zvorthy, if a tnanfor confciencc tozvard God endure grief, fu^'ering wrongfully : whereas, I fa}', in the apoftles days the ftatc of fervants was abfolute flavery, it is now on the contrary always to be un- derftood, that the duty and obligation of thofe in the lowefl ftation towards their refpediive fupcriors in this kind, is fuch only as arifes from law and contradf, and is wholly limited by thofe meafurcs. And this concerning the feveral particular relative perfons, to whom the apoftle dcligned his exhorta- tion to extend. 3. The third particular obfervable in the text, is, the unbounded manner in which the apollle exprcf- fes the general duty of fubjedion to fupcriors, in e- vcry yS ^hc Nature of Relative Duties. Serm. V. very relative ftation of life : Children, obey your parents in all things : fervants, obey in all things your majiers ac- cording to thejieJJj. So elfewhere : Let the wives, fays he, be fubjeti to their own hujhands in every- thing: and Tit. ii.- 9. Exhort fervants to be obedient to their own maf- ters ; a'nd topleafe them zvell in all things. Reafon, and the nature of things, and the general ufage of all language, fhoweth, that in thefe and ail other the like expreffions, the phrafe, in every thing, and in all things, muft neceffarily be underftood to mean only, in all things jufl, in all things lawful, in all things that are honeft and fit to be done. In human writ- ings, thefe general manners of expreilion, ariiing from the known and vulgar ufe of language, arc never mifunderftood : and therefore to mifunder- ftand them in the facred books only, is mere per- verfenefs. The gofpel neither enlarges nor dimi- nifhes any fuperior's power ; it neither adds to, nor takes from the inferior's right. In thefe cafes, it only confirms and explains the obligations of nature ; and enforces the prad:ice of the refpedtive duties, with itronger and more powerful motives. As there- fore in all other writings, fo in fcripture like- wife; the true, the natural, and evident meaning of fuch phrafes as thefe, in all things, in every thing, and the like ; is not v^hat the word all fug- gefts in its fingle fignification ; but what the vulgar fenfe of it is, in fuch expreflSons and fentences. When we are taught that the commands of God, or the laws of truth and right, are to be obeyed in all things ; the nature of the thing, not the force of the fino;le words, fliows that the obedience is to be univerfil and without exception. In other cafes, where the very fame words are ufed ; as in the text, fervants, obey your nmfiers in all things; the nature of the thing there likewife no lefs plainly fhows, that this obedience in all things is to be limited, by its confiiUncy with the commands of any fuperior maf- tcr Serm. V. The Nattife of Relative Diifks, 79 ter either on earth or in Heaven. In all language, the iignification of every word neceffarily depends upon the other words with which it is conne^^led : and where no controverfy is concerned, or prejudice interpofes, it is always underftood, and cannot but be underftood to be lb, by all undcrflandings, and by all capacities equally, from the highefl to the meaneft. When the fcripture mentions the everlaft- ing God, it is not the force of the word everlafting, but the application of it to the firll; caufe and author of all things, that makes it denote a true and abfo- lute eternity : for when the fame fcripture mentions the everlafting mountains, it is underliood by all men both of the greatefl and of the fniallell under-* ^landings, that it there lignifies only fuch a dura- tion, as is proper to the fubjedt of which it is fpo- ken. Thefe things arc, in their own nature, ex- ceedingly evident : and yet where party, or intereft, or controverfy is concerned, it is wonderful to what a degree men have fometimes, even in fo plain a cafe, impofed upon the ignorant, and upon the learn- ed too. I fhall mention but one inftance, and leave others to be judged of by the fame proportion. In the queflion about tranfubftantiatlon, the writers of the church of Rome alledge with great confidence, that the natural, the literal, the firil and obvious fenfe of the words, this is my body, is plainly in fa- vour of their fide of the queflion. And yet in rea- lity, the very contrary to this is evidently true. For the natural, the literal, the firft and obvious fenfe of the phrafe, is not that which arifes from the fignification of the word body fingly, but that which arifes frqm its natural fignification in fuch an cxpreffion, wherein commemorative bread is affirm- ed to be the body of him who is commemorated thereby. When a pidture is fpoken of, as being the perfon it reprefents ; the natural, the literal, the iirft and obvious fenfe of the expreffion^ is not that So The l^ature of Relative ButieSi Serm. V^ that it is really, but that it is reprefentatively, that perfoRi When our Lord fays, / am the true vine ; the quellion is not what the word vine naturally iignifies in other cafes ; but what it there moft na- turally and obvioufly fignifies, wheii a teacher calls himfelf a vine, and his followers its branches* When wifdom declares concerning herfelf, Ecc* xxiv. 21, I'/jey that eat me , JJjall yet be hungry, and they that drink me/jJ)allyet be thirfiy ; the natural and obvi- ous, nay, the literal figniiication of the whole fen- tence, arifes from what the terms, eat and drink, do then moft naturally and obvioufly fignify, when a perfon is fpeaking, not concerning food, but a- bout imbibing and digefting a doftrine. But to re- turn from this digrcffion. 4.- The next particular obfervable in the text, is the reafon or motive annexed by the apoftle in or- der to inforce his exhortation : For this, fays he, is wellpleajlng unto the Lord. In his epiftle to the Ephe- lians, as I before obferved, after having laid down the fame exhortation as in the text ; inftead of in- forcing it, as he does here, with telling them that this is zvell pleafing unto the Lord ; he cites the words of the commandment itfelf. Honour thy father and thy mother ; and adds, by way of obfervation, that this is thefirjl commandment with promife, chap. vi. 2. The promife he means, is ; that thy days may be long, in the land which the Lord thy God hath given thee. By which promife, as delivered in the commandment to the Jews, God by a wife and fuitable difpofitioti of things, very aptly annexed the bleffing of long iife, to them that paid due regard to thofe who w^ere the means of giving them life. But then, e- ven under the law, very certainly, though not fa explicitly as in the revelation of the gofpel, it is al- ways to be underftood, that in all prom.ifes of this nature, there was a further reference to a future and i better life. Thus in the ilth to the Hebrews, the Serm. Vi The Nature of Relative Duties. 8i the apoftle affures, that Abraham underflood the promiled inheritance, to be laid up for him in that Heavenly city which has fou'/jdations, zvhofe builder and maker is God, Thus the prophetic tradition among the antient Jews, that Jerufalem Hiould be built up with faphirs, Tobit. xiii. i6 ; is by St. John made the defcription of that city of God, which cometh down from Heaven. Thus our Saviour's promife, that the meek Jhall inherit the earth. Mat. v. 5 ; may well have reference at lead, if it be not exprefsly applied by him in his firll; intention, to that nezv Heaven and new earth, wherein righteoufnefs is to dwell for ever. Thus, to mention but one inftance more, that expreffion of Ezekiel, chap. xiii. 9. they lliall not be in the ajfetnbly of my people, neither JJjall they be zvritten in the writing of the Houfe of Ifael, neither JJaall they enter into the land of Ifraeh, cannot be doubted but that it implicitly means the fame thing, as, in the New Teflament language, being not zvritten in the book of life. 5. And laftly. From the relative antlthefis in the refpe(5live parts of the text ; Children, obey your pa^ rents in all things ; and. Fathers, provoke not your children, to anger : It is obfervable, that as in nature, in the frame and conflrucflion of this material fabric of the univerfe, all operations of the parts of matter are mutual upon each other, for the fupport and pre- fervation of the whole ; fo in morality and religion, all duties are of reciprocal obligation. Wherever the duty of the inferior is mentioned, it is always to be underflood that the duty of the fuperior is proportionably fuppofed. Parents are to fupport, and be gentle towards their children ; bringing them up in the 72urture and admonition of the Lord, Eph. vi. 4. Mafters are to exadt fervice, not rigoroufly and Jf'- cruelly, but with mildnefs, and according to the terms contrafted for. Governors in the church are not to lord it over the heritage of God, nor to af- . Vol.il L fwme 82 fhe Nature of Rclathc Duties^ Serm. V, funic to tliemfelves dominion over the confciences of men ; but, as faithful Itewards of the myfteries of God, to affift men in underitanding the will of God, and to exhort them continually to pradtife it in peace and love. Magiftrates are to govern ac- cording to thofe inllrudtions of Job, chap. xxix. 14. / put on right eoufnefs, and it cloathed me ; my judgment was as a robe and a diadem. I zvas eyes to the blind, and feet zvas I to the lame. I zvas a father to the poor ; and thi caiife zvhich I knezju not I fearched out. Lallly, princes, or fuprcme civil governors, are to ufe power within file limits of law and reafon : confidcring the admo- nition of the author of the book of wifdom, chap. <'i. 2. Give ear, you that rule the peopAe, and that glory In the multitude of nations; for pozver is given you of the Lord, and fovereignty from the higheft ; z^hojlcall try your zuorks, and fearch out your counfels : — For he zvhich is Lord over all Jlkill fear no man's perfon, neither Jl:all he Jiand in azue of any man s greatnejs : for he hath made thi fmall and great, and careth for all alike. II. Having thus at large confidered the feveral diftindt particulars contained in the text : I Ihall now briefly from the whole, deduce this general ob- fervation ; that the due performance of the relative duties of life, is a principal means of obtaining b'oth the bleilings of the prefent world, and the bappinefs of that which is to come. As to the hap- pinels of the life to come ; the promife of that be- «njr annexed to the obfervance of all God's com- mandments in general, needs not here be particu- larly enlarged upon : it is fufHciently implied in thefe v;ords of my text, this is zvell pkaftng unto th^ Lord. But what in this cafe is peculiarly remark- able, is, that the bleiiings and happinefs of the pre- fent life, are not only by the promife of God an-' oexed to, but even in the nature of things do ef* fentially confill in, the due performance of thefe relative duties. As^in the natural body, the health Serm. V, ^be Ndtt'.re ofReLitive Duties* 83 and prefervation of the whole depends upon cven^ part's performing its proper office ; fo, in every political fociety, inferiors and fupcriors in all the various ftations of life depend mutually upon each other, and the welfare of the whole upon the duties of both. Superiors, in the confcientious perform- ance of their duty, are the prote(ftors and guardians of the rights and properties of thofe below them : and inferiors, adting under a fenfe of dutv, moved by love and reafon more than by compulfion and fear, are the mod folid fupport of the authority and peace and happinefs of thofe above them. The corruption and depravity of mankind makes it nc" ceflary, by the intervention of human laws, to com- pel men in fomc mcafure to perform thcfe refpec- tive duties : but a true fenfe of religion, and of the reafonablenefs and ufefulnefs and eflential obliga- tion of the duties themfelves, would oblige them by a much Ilronger and fecurer tie, to do all the fame things freely and willingly, heartily and fin- cerely, in public and in private; which the bcrt and wifeft laws can but compel thofe who want fuch a fenfe of religion, to do unwillingly, llightly and fuperficiallv, in public appearance only, and in the fight of men. Religion therefore and true virtue, if they prevailed in the world, would obtain the fame happy ends fully and effectually, which the beft and wifeft laws can do but in part ; and laws are made only to fupply, in the bell: manner they can, the want of true religion and virtue among men. The law is not made for a righteous tnan, hut for the lazvlefs and di [obedient, for the ungodly and furJinnerSf, for the unholy and theprophaue, i Tim. i. 9. Did men u-. niverfally, from a fenfe of the right and reafon of the thing itfelf, live in an uniform and confcicntiT ous performance of the relative duties of life ; the prophecies of that great happinefs which under ty- pical reprefentatio.ns is, foretold as coming in the \- 2 day* S4 ^'he Nature of Relative Duties. SER]Vf*V, days of the MciHas, would be literally fulfilled: If. ii. 4. 'They JJ^all beat their fivords into plough-J]:ares^ and their fpears into pruning-hooks ; nation JJjall not lift up fzvord againjl nation, neither JJjall they learn zvar any more : And chap. Ix. 18. Violence Jhall no more be heard in thy land, wafting nor deftruHion within thy borders ; but thou Jhalt call thy zvalls fahation, and thy gates praife : — thy people alfo JJoall be all righteous. But however, even as things now are ; would fuperiors in all times and places, who are the great example and direction to the world, endeavour, each, in their refpedtive ftations, to make ufe of that power wherewith God has entrulled them, always to the protection and fup- port of right ; the benefits which would thence ac-r crue to mankind, even in this prefent imperfedt and corrupt Hate would be inconceivably great. 2 Sam. xxiii. 3. He that ruleth over men mujl be jujl, ruling in the fear of God : and he Jhall be as the light of the morning , when the fun rifeth, even a morning zvithout clouds ; as the tender grafs fpringing out of the earth, by clear JIAning af- ter rain. And Pfal. Ixxii. 4. He jfJ:)all judge the people according unto right, and defend the poor, — and puniJJ^ the zvrong doer. — He JJjall come down like rain into a fleece of wool, even as the drops that zvater the earth : in his time Jljall the righteous four ijh, yeay and abundance of peace fn, hng as the moon cndureth. SERMON SERMON VI. By Blfliop Butler, UPON SELF-DECEIT. 2 Samuel xii, 7. And Nathan /aid to David, Thou art the Ma)U THESE words are the application of Nathan's parable to David, upon occafion of his adul- tery with Bathfheba, and the murder of Uriah her hufband. The parable, which is related in the moil beautiful fimplicity, is this : ver. i. There were two men in one city ; the one rich, and the other poor. The rich man had exceeding mafiy Jocks and herds : but the poor man had nothing, fave one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and nourifJjed up : and it grezv up together zvith him, and with his children ; // did eat of his own meat, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bofo'm, and was unto him as a daughter. And there came a traveller unto the rich man, and he fpared to take of his crwn jiock, and of his own herd, to drefs for the way-faring man that was come unto him, but took the poor man's latub, and drejjcd it for the man that was come to him. And David's anger was greatly kindled againjl the man, and he faid to Nathan, as t}:i Lord liveth, the man that hath done this thing JJjall furcly 86 Upon Self-Deceit. Serm. VJ. furely die. AndheJIjall rejlore the lamb four -fold, becaufe he did this thing, and becaufe he had no pity, David paf-. fes fentence, not only that there Ihould be four-fold reftitution made ; but he proceeds to the rigour of juftice, the man that hath done this thing f]:all die : and this judgment is pronounced with the utmolt indig- nation againfh fuch an adt of inhumanity ; as the Lord liveth, he [ImII furely die : and his anger zvas greatly kindled againjl the man. And the prophet anfwered, T'hou art the man. He had been guilty of much greater inhumanity, with the utmofl deliberation, thought and contrivance. Near a year mull have palTed, between the time of the commiflion of his crimes J and the time of the prophet's coming to him ; and it does not appear from the flory, that he had in all this while the lead remorfe or contrition. There is not any thing, relating to men and cha-v radters, more furprifing and unaccountable, than this partiality to thcmfelves, which is obfervable in many ; as there is nothing of more melancholy re- fledtion, refped^ing morality, virtue, and religion* Hence it is that many men feem perfedt ftrangers to their own characters. They think, and reafon, and judge quite differently upon any matter relating to themfelvcs, from what they do in cafes of others where they are not interefled. Hence it is one hears people expofing follies, which they themfelves are eminent for ; and talking with great feveritv againfl particular vices, which, if all the world be not miftaken, they themfelves are notorioufly guilty of. This felf-ignorance and felf-partiality may be in all different degrees. It is a lower degree of it, which David himfelf refers to in thefe words, who can tell how oft he offendeth f O cleanfe thou me from my fecret faults. This is the ground of that advice of Elihu to Job : furely it is meet to be faid unto Ood — 'J'bat zvhich I fee not, teach thou me ; if I have done iniquity, I will do no more. And Solomon faw this thing in a very rtrong Serm. VL Upon Self-Deceit, 87 ftrong light, when he faid, hi that truJJeth his ozi'fi heart is a fool. This likewife was the reafon why that precept, Kfiow tlyfelfy was fo frequently inculcated by philofophers of old. For if it were not for that partial and fond regard to ourlclves, it would cer- tainly be no great difficulty to know our own cha- radler, what pafles within the bent and bias of our mind ; much lefs would there be any difficulty in judging rightly of our own adtions. But from this partiality it frequently comes to pafs, that the ob- iervation of many men's being themfelves laft of all acquainted with what falls out in their own fami- lies, may be applied to a nearer home, to what paf- fes within their own breafts. There is plainly, in the generality of mankind, an abfence of doubt or diftruft, in a very great mea- fiire, as to their moral character and behaviour ; and Jikewife a difpofition to take for granted, that all is right and well with them in thefe refpe S E R M O iS' SERMON Vn. By the Revereiid Laurercb Ster\e. JOB'S ACCOimx OF THE SHORTNESS AND TROUBLES OF LIFE. Job xiv. i, 2, Man that h bom of a woman, is of few days, and full of trouble : — He comcth forth like a Jlozver, and is ad dawn ; hefeefb alfo as afJjadozv, and continue th not. '"T^HERE is fomething in this refledtion of holy j[^ Job's, upon the iliortnefs of life, and in- fiability of human affairs, fo beautiful and truly fublime; that one naight challenge the writings of t]ie moll: celebrated orators of antiquity, to pro- duce a fpecimen of eloquence, fo noble and tho* roughly affeding. Whether this effed: be owing in fome meafure to the pathetic nature of the fubt jcct reflected on; or to the eaftern manner of ex- prelTion, in a ftile more exalted and fuitable to fo great a fubjed:, or, which is the more likely ao count, becaufe they are properly the words of that Being, who firft infpired man with language, and taught his mouth to utter ; wljo opeaed the lips of the I02 Joh's Account of the Serm. VII. the dumb, and made the tongue of the infant elo- quent ; — to which of thefe we are to refer the beau- ty and fublmiit}^ of this, as well as that of number- iefs other paffages in holy writ, may not feem now material ; but furely without thefe helps, never man was better qualified to make juft and noble re- flecftions upon the Ihortnefs of life, and inftabi- lity of human affairs, than Job was, who had him^ ielf waded through fuch a fea of troubles, and in liis paffage had encountered many viciffitudes of ftorms and fun-lhine, and by turns had felt both the extremes, of all the happinefs, and all the wretchednefs that mortal man is heir to. The beginning of his days was crowned with e- very thing that anibition could wifh for; — he was the greatcfl of all the men of the Eaft — had large and unbounded poffeffions, and no doubt enjoyed all the comforts and advantages of life, which they could adminifter. — Perhaps you will fay, a wife man might not be inclined to give a full loofe to this kind of happinefs, without lome better fecuri- ty for the fupport of it, than the mere pofleflion of fuch goods of fortune, which often flip from under us, and fometimes unaccountably make themfelves wings and fly away. — But he had that fecurity too, • — for the hand of providence w^hich had thus far proftedled, was flill leading him forwards, and fccmed engaged in the prefervation and continu- ance of thefe bleflings ; — ^God had fet a hedge a- bout him, and about all that he had on every fide { he had blefled all the wofks of his hands, and his fubftance encreafed every day. Indeed, even with -this fecurity, riches to him that hath neither child or hroJher, as the wife man obferves, inftead of a com- fort, prove fometimes a fore travel and vexation. — The mind of man is not always fatisfied with the reafonable aflurance of its own enjoyments, but will look forwards, a« if it difcovers fome imaginary void. SerM. VII. Short fiefs of Human Life. 103 void, the want of fome beloved objcd: to fill his place after him, will often difquiet itfelf in vain, and fav — " For whom do I labour, and bereave *' mylelf of reft?" This bar to his happincfs God had likewifc taken away, in bleffing him with a numerous offspring of fons and daughters, the apparent inheritors of all his prefent happinefs. — Pleafingr efledtion ! to think the bleffings God has indulged one's felf in, Ihall be handed and continued down to a man's own feed ; how little does this differ from a fecond enjoyment of them, to an aflfecTtionate parent, who naturally looks forward with as ftrong an intereft upon his children, as if he was to live over again in his owr\ pofterity ! What could be wanting to finifh fuch a pid:ure pf a happy man ? — Surely nothing, except a virtuous difpoiition to give a reliffi to thefe bleffings, and diredt him to make a proper ufe of them. — He had that too, for he was a perfedt and upright man, one that feared God and efchewed evil. In the midft of all this profperity, which was as great as could well fall to the fliarc of one man ; — whilft all the world looked gay, and fmiled upon him, and every thing round him feemed to promife, if poflible, an increafe of happinefs, in one inftant, all is changed into forrow and utter dcfpair. It pleafed God for wife purpofes to biaft the for* tunes of his houfe, and cut off* the hopes of his. pofterity, and in one mournful day, to bring this great prince from his palace down to the dunghill. His flocks and herds, in which confiftcd the abun- dance of his wealth, were part confumed by a fire from Heaven, the remainder taken away by the fword of the enemy : his fons and daughters, whom 'tjs natural to imagine fo good a man had lo brought up in a fenfe of their duty, as to give him all rc'a- fonable hopes of muqh joy gnd pleafure in their fu- ture 104 Job's Account oj the SeriM. VII, ture lives — natural profpedt for a parent to look forward at, to recompenle him for the many cares and anxieties which their infancy had colt him ? thefe dear pledges of his future happinefs were all, all fnatched from him at one blow, juft at the time that one might imagine they were beginning to be the comfort and delight of his old age, which moft wanted fuch flaves to lean on ; — and as circumftan- ces add to an evil, fo they did to this ;— for it fell . out not only by a very calamitous accident, which was grievous enough in itfelf, but likewife upon the back of his other misfortunes, when he was ill prepared to bear fuch a fhock ; and what would dill add to it, it happened at an hour when he had lead reafon to expedt it, when he would naturally think his children fecure and out of the way of danger, " For whilft they were feafling and mak- *' ing merry in their elder brother's houfe, a great " wind out of the wildernefs fmote the four cor- •* ners of the houfe, and it fell upon them." Such a concurrence of misfortunes is not the com- mon lot of many : and yet there are inftances of fome who have undergone as fevere trials, and bravely ftruggled under them ; perhaps by natural force of fpirits, the advantages of health, and the cordial affiftance of a friend. And with thefe helps, what may not a man fuftain ? — But this was not Job's cafe; for fcarce had thefe evils fallen upon him, when he was not only borne down with a grie- vous diftemper which afflidled him from the crown of his head to the fole of his foot, but likewife his ♦three friends, in whofe kind confolations he might have found a medicine, — even the wife of his bo- fom, whofe duty it was with a gentle hand to have foftened all his forrows, inftead of doing this, they cruelly infuked and became the reproachers of his integrity. O God, what is man when thou thus jbruifeft him, and'makeil bis burden heavier as his llrength Serm. VII. S bar tftefs of Human Life. 105 ftrcngth grows lefs ? — Who, that had found him- fclf thus an example of the many changes and chances of this mortal life ; — when he confidcred himfelf now ftripped and left dclHtutc of fo many- valuable blcffings which the moment before thy providence had poured upon his head ; — when he rcfledled upon this gay dclightlbme ftrufture, in appearance fo ilrongly built, fo pleafingly furround- cd with every thing that could flatter his hopes and wifhcs, and behold it all levelled with the ground in one moment, and the whole profpcdt va" nifh with it like the defcription of an enchantment ; — who I fay that had feen and felt the fhock of fo fudden a revolution, would not have been furnifli- ed with juft and beautiful reflediions upon the occa- fion, and faid with Job in the words of the text, that Man that is born of a woman, is of frjo days, and fill of mifery — that he cometh forth like a flozuer^ and is cut down : he fieeth alfo as aJJ:adozv. and continueth not. The words of the text are an epitome of the na- tural and moral vanity of man, and contain two diftindl declarations concerning his Itate and condi^ tion in each refpeft. I. That he is a creature of few days* And II. That thofe days are full of trouble. I ihall make fome reflections upon each of thefe in their order, and conclude with a practical leflba from the whole. And, I. That he is of few days. The comparifon which Job makes ufe of, that man cometh forth like a flower, is extremely beautiful, and more to the purpofe than the mofl: elaborate proof, which in truth the fubjedt will not cafily admit of : — the fhortncfs of life being a point (o generally com- plained of in all ages fince the flood, and fo univer- lally felt and acknowledged by the whole fpccies as to require no evidence beyond a fimilitude ; the intent of which is not fo much to prove the fact as Vol. II. p to io6 JoFs Account of th^ Serm. VIL to illullrate and olace it in fuch a lio-ht as to ftrike ■I o US, and bring the iinpreffion home to ourfelves in a more affedting manner. Man comes forth, fays "Job, like a fiower, and is cut down ; — he is fent into the world the fairefl and noblefc part of God's works, — falhioned after the i- mage of his creator with refpedt to reafon and the great faculties of the mind ; he cometh forth glo- rious as the flower of the field; as it furpaiTes the vegetable v/orld in beauty, fo does he the animal world in the glory and excellencies of his nature. The one — if no untimely accident opprefs it, foon arrives at the full period of its peri'edtion, — is fuffered to triumph for a few moments, and is ■plucked up by the roots in the very pride and gayeil ftage of its being : — or if it happens to efcape the hands of violence, in a few days it necelTarily fick- ens of itfelf and dies away. Man likewife, though his progrefs is ilower, and his duration fom.ething longer, yet the periods of his growth and declenlion are nearly the fame both in the nature and manner of them. If he cfcapes the dangers which threaten his ten- derer years, he is foon got into the full maturity and flrength of life ; and if he is fo fortunate not to be hurried out of it then by accidents, by his own fol- ly and intemperance — if he efcapes thefe, he natu- rally decays of himfelf; — a period comes faft upon him, beyond which he was not made to lafl. — Like a flower or fruit which may be plucked up by force before the time of their maturity, yet cannot be made to outgrow the period when they are to fade and drop of themfelves : when that comes, the hand of nature then plucks them off, and no art of the botanift can uphold the one, or Ikill of the phy- lician preferve the other, beyond the periods to which their original frames and conflitutions were made to extend. As God has appointed and deter- mined Serm. VII. Shortnefs of Human Life. 107 mined the fcvcral growths and dccr.ys of the vege- table race, fo he feems as evidently to have pre- fcribed the fame laws to man, as well as all living creatures, in the firft rudiments of which there are contained the fpecific powers of their growth, dura- tion and extin^ftion ; and when the evolutions of rhofe animal powers r.rc exhaufled and run down, the creature expires and dies of itfelf, as ripe fruit falls from the tree, or a flower prcfcrved beyond its bloom droops and pcrilhes upon the ftalk. Thus much for this comparifon of Job's, which though it is very poetical, yet conveys a juit idea of the thing refered to. — That hefieeth dfo as ajl^adozv, and cont'miicth not — is no lefs a faithful and fine rp- prefentation of the fhortnefs and vanity of human life, of which one cannot give a better explanation, than by referring to the original from v,'hence the picture was taken.— With how quick a fucceiTion do days months and years pals over our heads : — how truly like a Ihadow that departeth do they flee away in- fenfibly, and fcarce leave an impreffion with us ?- — when we endeavour to call them back by reflec- tion, and confider in what manner they have gone, how unable are the beft of us to give a tolerable account ? — and were it not for fome of the more re- markable flages which have diftinguifhed a few pe- riods of this rapid progrefs — we Ihould look back upon it all as Nebuchadnezzar did upon his dream when he awoke in the morning ; — he was fenfible many things had pafled, and troubled him too, but had pafTed on fo quickly, they had left no foot- fleps behind, by which he could be enabled to trace them back.— Melancholy account of the life of man ! which generally runs on in fuch a man- ner, as fcarce to allow time to make refieiticns which Vs'ay it has gone. How many of our firft years flide by in the inno- cent fports of childhood, in which we are not able O 2 to io8 Job's Account of the Serm. VII. to make reflections upon them ! — how many more thoLightlefs years efcape us in our youth, when we are unwilling to do it, and are fo eager in the pur^ fuit of plea lure, as to have no time to fpare, to llop and consider them ! When graver and riper years come on, and we begin to think it time to reform and fet up for men of fenfe and condudt, then the bufniefs and per- plexing intereils of this world, and the endlefs plot- ting and contriving how to make the mofl of it, do fo wholly employ us, that we are too bufy to make reflections upon fo unprofitable a fubjed:. — As fami- lies and children increafe, fo do our afledtions, and with them are multiplied our cares and toils for their prefervation and eilablifliment ; — all which take up our thoughts fo clofely, and poflTefs them fp long, that we are often overtaken by grey hairs before we fee them, or have found leifure to confi- der how far we v/ere got, — what we have been do- ing— and for what purpofe God fent us into the v/orld. As man may juflly be faid to be of few days, confidered with refpedt to this hafly fuccef-, fion of things, which foon carries him into the de- cline of his life, fo may he likewife be faid to flee like a fliadow and continue not, when his duration is compared with other parts of God's works, and Cr vcn the works of his own hands, which outlaft him many generations ; — whilfl his — as Homer obfervcs, like leaves, one generation drops, and another fprings up to fall again and be forgotten. But when we farther confider his days in the light in which we ought chiefly to view them, as they appear in thy fight, O God ! with whom a fhoufand years are but as yefterday ; when we re- flect that this hand-breadth of life is all that is mea- fured out to man from that eternity for U'hich he is created, hovs^ does his Ihort fpan vanifli to nothing in the comparifon ! 'Tis true the greatefl: portion of time Serm. VII. Shortnefs of Human Life, 109 time will do the fame when compared with what is to come ; and therefore fo Ihort and tranfitory a one, as threefcore years and ten, beyond which all is de- clared to be labour and forrow, may the ealier be al- lowed : and yet how uncertain are we of that por- tion, fhort as it is ! Do not ten thoufand accidents break off the flender thread of human life, long be- fore it can be drawn out to that extent ? — The new' born babe falls down an cafy prey, and moulders back again into duft, like a tender bloifom put forth in an untimely hour. — The hopeful youth in the very pride and beauty of his life is cut off'; fome cruel diflemper or unthought of accident lays him proftrate upon the earth, to purfue Job's compari- fon, like a blooming flower fmit and ihrivclled up with a malignant blall — In this flage of life chan- ces multiply upon us, — the feeds of diforders are fown by intemperance or negled:, — infectious dif- tcmpcrs arc more eafily contracted, when contradt- cd they rage with greater violence, and the fuccefs in many cafes is more doubtful, in fo much that they who have excrcifed therafelves in computa- tions of this kind tell us, "That one half of the whole fpecics, which are born into the world, go out of it again, and are all dead in fo ihort a fpace of time as the firft feventeen years." Thefe refledlions mav be fulncicnt to illuftrate the firft part of Job's declaration. That -man is of fcli^ days. Let us examine the truth of the other, and fee, II. Whether he is not Yikevjife full of trouble. And here we muft not take our account from the flattering outlide of things, which are generally fer off" with a glittering appearance enough, efpecially in what is called higher life. — Nor can we fafely truft the evidence of fome of the more merry and thoughtlefs amongft us, who are fo fet upon the en- joyment of life ag feldom to reflect upon the trou- bles 110 Job's Account of the ' Serm. VIL bles of it ; — or who, perhaps, bccaufe they are not yet come to this portion ot their inheritance, ima- gine it is not their common lor. — Nor laftly, are we to form an idea of it, from the delulive ilories of a few of the moft profperons pafTengers, who have fortunately failed through and efcaped the rougher toils and diftrelTes. But we are to take our account from a clofe furvey of human life, and the real face of things, ilript of every thing that can palliate or gild it over. We mull hear the general complaint of all ages, and read the hiilories of mankind. If we look into them, and examine them to the bot- tom, what do they contain but the hiftory of fad and uncomfortable paffages, wmich a good natured man cannot read but with o})prefiion of fpirits ? — Ccnfider the dreadful fucceffion of wars in one part or other of the earth, perpetuated from one centu- ry to another with fo little intermiilion, that man- kind have fcarce had tirhe to breath from them, fince ambition lirft came into the world ; coniider the horrid efre<5ts of them in all thofe barbarous devaf- tations we. read of, wdiere whole nations have been put to the fword, or have been driven out to naked- nefs and famine to make room for new comiCrs. — Confider how great a part of our fpecies, in all ages down to this, have been trod under the feet of cru- el a'nd capricious tyrants, who would neither hear their cries, nor pity their diftrcffes — Confidcr Sla- very,— what it is, — hovy bitter a draught, and how many millions have been made to drink of it; — which if it can poifon all earthly happinefs when exercifed barely upon our bodies, what muit it be, VN^hen it comprehends both the flavery of body and mind ? — To conceive this, look into the hiftory of the Romiili church and her tyrants, or rather exe- cutioners, who feem to have taken pleafure in the pangs and convulfions of their fellow creatures — Examine the inquifition, hear the melancholy ■notes Serm. VII. Shorinefs of Hiwnm Life. 1 1 1 notes founded in every cell. — Coniider the anguilli of mock trials, and the exquifitc tortures confc- quent thereupon, mercilcfsly inflidtcd upon the unfortunate, where the racked and weary foul has fo often wiflied to take its leave, — but cruelly not fulfered to"^ depart. — Coniider how many of thefe helplcfs wretches have been hauled from thence in all periods of this tyrannic ufurpation, to undergo the maliacres and lianies to which a falfe and a bloody religion has condemned them. If this fad hiflory and detail of the more public caufes of the miferies of man are not fufF:clent, let us behold him in another liohr. with refpedl to the more private caufes of them, and fee Vv'hcther he is not full of trouble iikewife there, and al- moft borjn to it as naturally as the fparks fly up- wards, it we confider man as a creature full of wants and neccfiities, whether real or imaginary, which he is not able to fupply of himfelf, what a train of difappointments, vexations and dependen- cies arc to be feen, iiTuing from thence to perplex and make his being uneaiy ! How many jufl:- lings and hard ftrugglcs do w^e undergo, in mak- ing our way in the world! — How - barbarouily held back ! — How often and bafely overthrown, in aiming only at getting bread! — How many of us never attain it — at leail not comfortablv, — but from various unknown caufes, — eat it all our lives long in bitternefs ! If we fliift the fcene, and look upv/ards, to- wards thofe whofe fituation in life feems to placq them above the forrows of this kind, yet where are they exempt from others ? Do not all ranks and conditions of men meet with fad accidents and numberlefs calamities in many other refpedts, which often make them go heavily all their lives long ? How 112, Job's Account of iU Serm. VIL How many fall into chronical infirmities which render both their days and nights refllefs and in-* lupportable ? — How many of the higheft rank are tore np with ambition, or fonred with difappoint- ments, and how many more, from a thoufand fe- cret caufes of difqnier, pine away in (ilence, and owe their deaths to forrow and dejediion of heart ? — If we caft our eyes npon the loweft clafs and con- dition of life, — the fcene is more melancholy Hill. — Millions of our fellow creatures, born to no in- heritance but poverty and trouble, forced by the neceility of their lots to drudgery and painful em- ployments, and hard fet with that too, to get e- nough to keep themfelves and families alive. — So that upon the v/hole, vv^hen we have examined the true ftate and condition of human life, and have made fome allowances for a few fugacious, deceit- ful pleafures, there is fcarce any thing to be found which contradi(fi:s Job's defcription of it. — Which- ever way we look abroad, we fee fome legible cha- radrers of what God firft denounced againfl us, " That in forrow we fhould eat our bread, till we return to the ground from whence we were taken." But fome one will fay. Why are we thus to be put out of love Vvdth human life ? To what pur- pofe is it to expofe the dark fides of it to us, or enlarge upon the infirmities which are natural, and confequently out of our power to redrefs ? I anfwer, that the fubjecSt is neverthelefs of great importance, fince it is necelTary every creature fhould undcrfland his prefent ilate and condition^ to put him in mind of behaving fuitably to it.— Does not an impartial furvey of man — the holding up this glafs to fliew him his defedls and natural infirmities, naturally tend to cure his pride, and clothe him with humjlity, v/hich is a drefs that bell becomes a fhort lived and a wretched creature ?— Does not the confideration of the fhortnefs of our life Serm. VIL Shortnefs of Human Life. 113 life, convince us of the wifdom of dedicating fo fmall a portion to the great purpofes of eternity ? Laftly, When we reflca: that this fpan of life, ihort as it is, is chequered with fo many troubles, that there is nothing in this world fprings up, or can be enjoyed without a mixture of forrow, how infenfibly docs it incline us to turn our eyes and af- fections from fo gloomy a profped:, and fix them upon that happier country, where afflidtions cannot follow us, and where God will wipe away all tears from off our faces for ever and ever ? Amen. Vol. IL P SERMON SERMON VI. By the Reverend Samuel Price* PUBLIC WORSHIP IN ALL THE PARTS OF IT. Acts ii. 46. Continutng daily with one accord in the temple^ THAT God is to be worfhipped in his own ap- pointed way, has been proved. It Ihall be my work at prefent to difcourfe of the public wor- ihip we ought to pay to our great Creator. The pri- mitive Chrifllans dilcharged their duty in this re- fpedt, with great zeal and unanimity : it was for this purpofe they continued daily zvith one accord in ths temple : They did not fatisfy themfelves with wor- Hiipping God in fecret, or private, in their clofers or houfes ; but whenever they had an opportunity for it, they waited upon him in the moll public manner. I Hiall ihew, L That we ought to worihip God in public. II. Confider the ends of public worfliip. III. Confider the feveral parts of it. And, IV. Clofe with an application. I. Let me Ihew that it is incumbent upon us to worfhip God in public. P 2 t. It 1 16 Public fVorJJjip in Serm. VII L 1. It is obvious to the natural reafon of mankind, that this is a duty. The light of nature difcovers the reafonablenefs of men's meeting together to pay their joint homage to the divine Being : even thofe, whofe foolllh hearts was fo darkened, that they changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an i?nage, made like un- to corruptible creatures, were not fo blind, as not to fee the fitnefs of their honouring fuch things with public worfhip, which they accounted deities. The Heathens, who are covered with thick darknefs, have their temples, or places by what name foever they are diftinguifhed, to which they refort foy the celebration of lome rites, whereby they think their idols are honoured. Though men differ widely both as to the objedls and methods of worihip, yet the nations of the earth feem to agree that public worfhip is to be celebrated and maintained. God has formed our nature for fociety, and given it a flrong bias hereto; is it not then a didtate of nature, that we fhould aflbciate ourfelves for the mofl important purpofes of religion, as well as for the lelFer purpofes of the natural and civil life ? Our Creator has made us capable of fignifying to all about us the fenfe we have of his perfections, of pur dependance upon him, and the obligations to him : Ihould we not then employ our belt powers after that manner in his fervice, to which they are fo wifely fitted ? 'J'he Heavens declare the glory of the Lord; the firmament Jl:czveth his handy-zvork. How gxcellent is his name in all the earth ! And is it not fit that intelligent creatures Ihould fhew forth his glo- ries by the moll open acknowledgment of them ? ^he Law of God written in the hearts of men as the a- poftle expreffes it, Rom. ii. 15. obliges them to the performance of focial, public worfliip. 2. God has in his word given plain fignifications of his will,, that men ihould publicly worfhip him. There i$ great reafoo to think that public worfhip was , Serm. VIII. all the Paris of it, 1 1 7 was praftifed in the world long before we have any account in Icripture of its being rc(}uired by an cx- prefs command. The light of nature directed men to affcmble themfclvcs together for the worfl^ip ot God ; perhaps therefore he did not fee it needful exprefsly to reveal his mind relating to this affair, till their natural notions of religion were greatly corrupted bv idolatry. Then it pleafed the glori- ous fovereign of the univerfe to feparate the feed of Abraham from the re It of the nations, to be his pe- culiar people, to bear his name in the world ; to whom a law was given, according to which the worihip they performed was to be regulated. Jll f heir males were enjoined fo appear three times in the year before the Lord God, Exod. xxiii. 17. They were to repair from diftant parts to his houfe, where they worfhipped him together in a very folemn manner. But though the children of Ifrael Vv'ere to offer fa- crifices only at the tabernacle or temple ; yet all their worfliip of a public nature was not to be con- fined to thefe : they did meet together, at leaft, on the Sabbath days in other places, where they did engage in fome parts of divine vvorfliip. This ap- pears from the account given us in fcripture of fynagogues. It muft be confciTed, that we cannot find any exprefs command given to the Jews, where- by they were bound to ereft fynagogues and to af- fembie in them for the fervice of the Lord. But they might eafily infer from what is laid of the weekly Sabbath, Lev. xxiii. 3, that they ought then to meet together, and join in holy religious exercifes : for it is there filled an holy convoca- tion, which character is alfo given to thofe fcafts, iiKnitioned in the fequel of that chapter, when they were to afTcmble at the tabernacle, or temple : but, furely, they could not think, that God required them to re fort to thefe places every Sabbath day from the remoteft corners of the land of Canaan ; that 1 1 S ?:Mk JVorflolp in Serm. VIII. that hact been utterly impradticable. We are told that Mofes of old time had in every city them that preached him, being read in the Jynagogues every Sabbath day. Ad:s XV. 21. Jcliis Chrift, while he was here on earth, did not ■ only go to Jerufalem, whether the tribes of the Lord went up, to the tejiimony of Ifrael, to give thanks unto the name of the Lord, at the great fcafls, Pfal. cxxii. 4, but he alio attended conftantiy to the lerYice of the fynagogue on the Sabbath da}'-, Luke iv. 16. He came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and as his cujiom zvas, he zvent into the fynagogue on the Sabbath day. His example lays a ftrong obligation upon thole, who profefs to be his followers, to fhew a great re- gard to the public worfhip of God. The difciples of Jefus in the early days of Chrif- tianity, difcharged their duty in this matter with great diligence : but in procefs of time the love of fome began to cool, which appeared in their ne- gled: of the duties of public worfliip. To prevent the fpreading of this great evil, the apoftle admo- niflied them, Heb. x. 25, Not to forfake the affembling of thenifelves together, as the manner of fome was. Thus I have iiiewed that reafon and revelation oblige us to worfliip God in public. II. The ends of public worfhip are to be confi- dered. T. The great end of public worfhip is the glory of God. As he made all things for himfelf, it is highly reafonable we fhould principally defign the glorifying his name in all that we do. Indeed we can add no real glory to God by any of our fervic- es : he is infinitely above us. We are capable of honouring him, only by an acknowledgment of his glorious excellencies, and by a behaviour which expreffes that high regard to him which is due. Now when God is worfhipped by his creatures, the}>own his being, his all fufficiency, his infinite under- Serm. VIII. all the Parts of it. 1 1 9 nnderflancling, that to him bclongcth power and mercy ; and the more public their worfhip is, the more clearly they declare their efteem of the di- vine Majefty ; the more they fpread abroad the ho- nour of his name. The houfe of God where he was publicly worfhipped, is called tbe place where his honour dwelt, Pfal. xxvi. 8. and it may have this charafter given it, not only upon the account of the remarkable difplays he there made of his pow- er and glory ; but becaufe he was there honoured in an eminent manner by the focial worfliip of his peo- ple : for this reafon, as we may juitly fuppofe, the Lord is faid to love the gates of Sion more than all the dwellings of Jacob ^ Pfal. Ixxxvii. 2. The feed of Ja- cob called upon the nan:\e of the Lord in their ref- pedtive families, and he watched over them for good ; but he had a more tender concern for the gates of Sion, becaufe he received greater honour by the more public worfliip, which they paid him there. Suppoiing, as fome pcrfons are apt to think, that they may improve their time as ufefuUy in their own houfes, as in worfliipping affcmblies ; that they are wifer than their teachers ; or that they can read much better fermons, than they are like to hear ; yet will not this excufe their forfaking the alTembl- ing of themfelves together : for the chief end of di- vine worfhip is the glory of God ; and this cannot be fo well anfwered by fecret, or private devotions, as it' is- by thofe that are public. The honour of his name is more propagated in the congregation than it can be in the family. Though our Saviour far exceeded thofe in knowledge, who officiated in the Jewifli fynagogue, yet was he ftated in his attend- ance there ; for he knew that by fo doing, he glo- rified his Father. 2. Another end of public worfhip is our fpiritual benefit. God has conned:ed our advantage with his own glory : he difpenfes to us bleffings in that way, wherein I20 Public IForJJj'ip in Serm. VIII. wherein wc Iliew forth the honour of his name. He promifed his people of old, that in all places where he Ihould record his name, he would come unto them and blefs them, Exod. xx. 24. By God'^ re- cording his name in places, we are to underlland his pitching upon them, to be the feats of his pub- lic worfhip ; as appears from the direction given in the former part of the verfe, how to make the altar whereon he would have burnt-offerkigs, and peace- offerings to be facrificed : his coming to his wor- fhippers in thefe places, was with a gracious defign, it was to blefs them, to do them good. There is not fuch an appointment of any place under the gofpel, to which any a6ts of religious worfliip are to be confined, as there was under the Mofaic conftitution : but our Lord has faid, that where two or three are gathered together in his name, there he is in the midjl of them. Mat. xviii. 20. He appear- ed to John, Rev. i. 13, in the midfl of the golden can- dlejiicks, that is, of the churches ; and he is in the midfl of them, communicating his beneficent influ- ences to them. God delights to honour the ordinances of his public worfhip, by making them means of grace. It may be faid of thofe places where thefe are ob- ferved, as we are told it fliould be faid of Sion, Pfal. Ixxxvii. 5,. this and that man was born there. Mofl com.monly It is by the means of public infti- tutions of God's worfhip, that finners are awakened and converted; are made partakers of a fpiritual di- vine life ; it is hereby that the faints are for the moft part edified and com.forted. All the private in- ftruftions which the Pfalmifl enjoyed, were not ef- fectual to remove a very perplexing temptation, wherewith he was exercifed : but when he zvent into the fanEluary , fo much light was imparted to him there, as cleared his difiiculty : Pfal. Ixxiii. 17. Upon which he concludes in verfe 29, that it was good Serm. VIII. all the Tarts of it. 1 2 1 good for him to drazv near to God, that is, in the landiiary. David expcdted that the clearefl and moil engaging difcovcries of God would be made to him in his houfe, therefore he was very defirous of having his ftated abode there. Pfal. xxvii. 4, One thing- have I defired of the Lord, that will I feek af- ter : that I may dzvcll in the Houfe of the Lord all the days of yny life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple. Tiie title of the xcii. p(iilm informs us, that it was^ pfalm or fong for the Sabbath day; and towards the clofe of it, the great advantage ac- cruing to the righteous from their diligent attendance to the ordinances of public worlhip is elegantly let forth. Ver. 12, 13, 14, 'The righteous Jloaliflourijh liks the palm tree : he jhall grozv like a cedar in Lebanon^ Thoje that be planted in the houfe of the Lord, fmllfourifh in the courts of our God, they Jhall bring forth fruit in old age : they Jhall be fat andflouriJI:ing. 3. By public worfliip we fignify our communion with one another in the great concerns of religion. The fcripture reprefents believers as one in God and Chrift. John xvii. 20, 21, Neither pray I for ■thefc alone, faid our Saviour in his laft prayer for his difciples, but for them alfo which JJjall believe on me through their word : that they all may be one, as thou. Father, art in me, and I in thee ; that they alfo may be one in us. They are fpoken of as members one of ano- ther: Eph. iv. 25. They have one God and Fa- ther; the fame Mediator and Saviour; they are a- nimated by one Spirit ; they belong to the fame family, and they are travelling towards the fame Heavenly habitation. Now, when as many of them as conveniently can, aflemble together to par- take of the ordinances of the gofpel, they hereby denote their onenefs, their fellowfliip one with ano- ther. As their joining with ferioufnefs in folemn adts of divine worfhip tends to their mutual encou- ragement to purHie the ways of God, fo it has a, Vol. II. Q^ tendency til Public pyorjjyip in Serm. VIIL tendency to engage their hearts to each other, which is a duty much prefied under the Chriflian difpen- fation. So that thofe who enjoy a great deal of communion with God in their retirements, in their fecret devotions, Ihould yet frequent, as they have opportunity and ability, the v/orihipping aflemb- lies of his people; for hereby they profefs their communion with them, which is one conliderable end of public worlhip. So far as any withdraw from this, fo far they do in effecfl difown themfelves to be of the fociety of thofe, Vvho fear and ferve the Lord : the thoughts of which mud ftrike terror in- to every foul that has a fenfe of godlinefs. Having fpoken of public worfhip in general, I am, III. To confider diftindtly the feveral parts of it ; you'll find them mentioned in the context. I. Prayer is a very important part of public Worfhip. The houfe of God, where his people met together to worfhip him, is called the houfe of prayer. Mat. xxi. 13. We have all our common wants and weaknefTes ; is it not then proper we ftiould prefent our joint fupplications to God for fupplies and helps ? When an affair of great con- fequence and general concern is depending, it is ufual for fuch as are interefled therein to join in petitioning thofe, to whom the determination of it belongs ; apprehending that their union will add weight to the requefl : in allufion hereto our Savi- our fpeaks of the great efiicacy that fhould attend the united addreffes of his difciples. Mat. xviii. 19'. I fay unto you .^ that f two of you fl:all agree on earth, as touching any thing that theyJJjall ajk, it jl:all he done for them of my Father which is in Heaven. We may well fuppofe that this very gracious promife of our Lord did much encourage thofe, who received his zvord, to continue fiedfajlly in prayer, as we are told they did in 'the 42d ver. of the chapter where m.y text is. When we aifemble to offer up all our defires together unto God^ Serm. VIII. all the Parts of tt. 123 God, that he would bcftow upon us the various mercies our Tevcral cafes require, we do hereby magnify his rich goodnefs ; for this is a teftimony of our belief that his mercy is unbounded, that there is no danger of exhaufting it ; that the grant which he makes of his favours to fom.e, can be no hindrance to his fupplying the neccffiiics of others. Upon great and uncommon occafions, thole con- cerned fliould hold extraordinary afTemblics to im- plore the merciful regard of God. The relbnable- nefs of this courfe appeared to the king of Nine- veh, who commanded the inhabitants of that city, when threatened wiih a fpeedy overthrow, to cry mghtily unto God, to avert the impending defolation ; nor were their cries in vain. Jonah iii. God orders in a time of imminent danger, the trumpet to be blown in Zion, for the calling of a folemn a[femhly, the gathering of the elders and people, to beg of God that he would /pare them, and not give his heritage to reproach, Joel ii. 15, 16, 17, which pra(ftice is encouraged by a gra- cious promife, ver. 19, 20. When Peter was in prifon, and defigns were formed againft his life, the prefervation of which feemed to be of great confequence to the interell of Chriil, prayer zvas made zvithout ceafmgof the church unto God for him,^Ac!ts xii. 5. And he was refcued from the power of his enemies with a mighty hand. Whatfocver adt of worfliip the childten of men meet together to perform, it Ihould be accompa- nied with prayer ; for the aids of divine grace are needful to enable them to ferve God acceptably in every inftance of duty ; and is it not fit they Ihould befeech him to help them under their iniirm.ities, when they are engaging in any religious performan- ces ? Public prayers are to be expreffed or uttered by one perfon at a time, who Ihould be furnifhed with i'uch gifts aud graces of the Spirit, as render him 0^2 capa- 124 r Public PForfilp in Serm. VIII. capable of putting up with decency, requefls that are fuitable to the circumftances of the congrega- tion ; and the defires of all the people fliould go along with him that officiates ; they Ihould make every proper petition, that he prefents, their own, and fubjoin at leaft in their minds an hearty Amen. 2. The praifes of God are a part of public wor- Hiip. Great is the Lord, and greatly to bepraifed in the mountain of his holinefs. Pf^l. xlviii. i. His perfeftions infinitely tranfcend all the praifes of his creatures ; his glory is high above the Heavens : does it not then become his people here on earth to join toge- ther, and ailiit each other in praifing his name ? David calls upon his devout neighbours to concur with him in this bleffed work, that they might aid one another herein. Pfal. xxxiv. 3. 0 magnify the Lordzvith mc, and let us exalt his name together. So ar- dent was the Pfalmifl's defire that God might be praifed ; and he had fuch a fenfe of his own inabi- ty to render fufficient praifes to him, that he would fain ftir up the whole creation to fhew forth his glories ; this appears from the cxlviii. Pfalm. As we all receive from the hands of God particular be- nefits, for which we fhould offer unto him our par- ticular thanks ; fo he confers mercies which are of ^,w extenfive nature, of a general advantage ; and are we in fome refpedts com.mon fharers of thefe ? furely then we ought jointly to acknowledge our obligations to the giver of them. We are required to enter into the gates of God with thankfgiving, and into his courts with praife, Pfal. c. 4. And David fays, Pfal. Ixv. I . Praife waiteth for thee, O God, in Zion : the meaning of which exprcffion, I take to be this, that as God is rcadv to furnifli his faithful people with matter of praife ; fo they willingly embrace all opportunities to appear before him, in the place of public worlhip, with their thank-offerings. The Pfalmift did not fatisfy himfelf with praifing God in Serm. VIII. all the Parts of'ii. 125 his own houfe; but he rcfolvcd to praife him w'lth his zvhole heart hi the ajfembly of the upright , aiui the con- gregation, Pial. cxi. i. We are never In f'lch deflitntc circumftances here on earth, as not to be obliged to bleis the name of God ; therefore are we commanded to add thankigivings to our fup^)lici:tions. Phil. iv. 6. In every ihiw by prayer and fi'Spllcation Tvith thankfghing^ let your requejls be made knozvn unto God. i ThelV. v. 1 7, 18. Pray without ceajing : in every thing give thanks , for this is the zvlll of God in Chrlfc Jefus concerning you. The praifes of God iiiould no more be neglected than prayer to hiui in all our aflemblies for public worllilp. The difciples, of whom we read in the text, that x\\Qrf continued daily with one accord in the temple, are fpoken of in the next verfc, as praljing God. But when the Lord grants eminent favours, the benefit and comfort of which reach to many, is it not juil they iliould meet together to honour him with more than ordinary praife ? It is proper to coniider in this place, that parti- cular method of praifing God by finging, which is often mentioned in the fcripture. We may ob- ferve, that it is natural for the joy of men's hearts to break forth into fongs ; and is it not fit they fhould exprefs the delight they take in the perfec- tions and mercies of God, by finging his praifes ii Therefore faith the apoftle, James v. 13, Is any merry P let him Jtng Pfalms. The Heathens were dired:ed by the light of Nature to look upon this as a reafonable practice : they compofed and fung hymns to their Gods. Singing the praifes of God, was doubtlefs a part of his public worfhip under the legal difpenfation. David and other holy men v/cre moved by the Holy Ghoft to compile feveral pfiilms for the fer- vice of the fancluary. With what earnefi:nefs arc the people of God prcffed jn the book of Pfalms, To 126 Public worJlAp in Serm. VIII. ' 5l? fmg pralfes unto the Lord, which dzuelleth in Zion : to come before his prefence witb Jingiiig. And is it ro be fuppoledj that this ihould have no place in the public worfeip of the New Teftament ; when the golpel gives us fuch bright dilcoveries of the glo- ry and grace of God, and fo often bids thofe by whom it is embraced to rejoice in its rich privi- leges ? Do not thefe defcrve the nobleil:, the loud- eft fongs of pralfe ? It is with a view to the blef- fmgs of the gofiK?!, which Ihould be diffufed a- mong the Gentiles, that all kinds are required to make d joyful Koije unto God, to fmg forth the honour of his name I and make his praife glorious, Pfal. Ixvi. 1,2. For it is faid in the 4th verfe, '^hat all the earth JJkill tvorjhip God, flhillftug unto him ; they fhallfng unto his nanrs, Selah. This prophecy was not accompliflied while the law of Mofes was in force. Muft it not then have a i;efpect to the gofpel flate of the church ? To which therefore is it reafonable to refer the preceding words. Are not Chriftians exhorted by the apoflle to iing the praifes of God with united hearts and voices ? Eph. v. 19, 20, Speaking to yourfelves in pfalms^ hymns, and fpiritual fongs ; fimnng and making melody in your heart to the Lord. We have an exhortation much to the fame pui pofe, Col. iii. 16, Let the word of Chrifl dzvell in fou richly in all ivifdom, teaching and admonifJjing one a- nother in pfalms, hymns, and fpiritual fongs, ftnging zvith grace in your hearts to the Lord. Does not the apollle recommend iinging with the fpirit, and v/ith un- derftiinding alfo, to the Corinthians in their religi- ous aifcmblies ? i Cor. xiv. 14, 15. And are not thefe faithful followers of Jefus, who Ihall be victorious over the beaft, reprefented as finging the fong of Mofes, the fervant of God, and the fong of the Lamb? Rev. XV. 3. q. Ano!:iier ordinance of public worfliip is hear- ing the word of God. Under the Mofaic conftitu- tion Serm. VII. all the Parts of it. 127 tion, the prlell's lips were to keep knowledge, and the people were to feek the law at his mouth, JMal. ii, 7. Our Lord Jclus Chrifl is king of the Ciiurch, and he has appointed minifters, who are to give themfclves continually to prayer, and the miniilry of the word ; to be inftant in feafon, and our of feafon, in preaching of it. Therefore certainly it is the duty of Chriitians to be inllant in feafon and out of feafon in hearing the gofpel. Chriit has not only beftowcd gifts upon men to qualiA* them to be extraordinary minifters, as apoftles and prophets ; but he does by the ordinary influence of his fpirit, fit perfons to be Itnted olficers in the church, as pqflors and teachers', for the perfecting of the faints, for the work of the minifiry, for the edi- fying of the body of Chrijl ; till zve all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perject man, unto the meafure of thejlature of the fullnefs of Chrijl, Eph. iv. 11, 12, 13. Surely then it is in- cumbent upon all to attend to their miniilrations ; to endeavour to improve by their gifts, for the accom- plifliment of this bleflcd end. It was by hearing the gofpel preached, that the perfons mentioned in the text were converted; and we are told in the 42d verfe, that they continued fie d~ fajily in the apojlles dodrine : they remained very at- tentive to their inilrudiions, and held fall the truths delivered to them. Faith cometh by hearing, and it is by the word of truth that God fand:iiies his people ; therefore fliould they as rievj-born babes de- Jtre the Jincere milk of the word, that they may grozv there- by, I Pet. ii. 2. The minifters of Chrift fliould be very careful to teach men to obferve all things whatfoever he has com- manded them, Mat. xxviii. 20, to preach found doc- trine ; and it behoves their hearers to receive what they propofe to them, agreeable to the fcripture, not as the 'word of men, but as it is in truth the word of God, 128 Tuhllc JVorfSip hi Serm. VIII. God^ with ferious attention and reverence. As they Ihould take heed zvhat they hear, Mark iv. 24, fo they ought to be\vare of defpifing what is ipoken from the Lord. Great are the benefits communicated to the children of m.en by the means of the gofpel ; there- fore it is highly becoming that they fliould attend to it with diiigencf . Thus the apoftle argues from the confideration of one of thefc benefits, James i. 185 19. Of hh own will did God beget us with the word of truth : wherefore^ 7}iy beloved brethren, let every man hefcvift to hear. IV. The lall ordinance of public worfhip, I fhall now mention, is the Lord's Supper. Very probab- ly this is meant by brenl- ing of bread, wherein thofe who received the •. -ord, and were baptized, are faid to continue ftedfjiltiy, in the42d verfe ; that being put there in conjuniilion wich hearing and praying, it m.ay be reafonably fuppofcd to fignify the par- taking of the Lord's Supper : which, in the earli- eft days of Chriilianity, wasfeldom, if ever, omit- ted, when believers met together to hear the word, and to pray. This ordinance was firft inftituted by our Saviour, in an aliembly of his difciples, who received it toj^ether : hereby his follov/ers were re- quired to fhew forth his death till he com'es : their receiving it fignifies not only their fellowfhip with God and Chrifl, but with one another, i Cor. x. 16, 17, l!he ci'.p of blejfin<^ zvhich we blefs, is it ?iot the iommunion of the blood of Chift, f l^he bread zvhich zve break, is it not the cotnmunion of the body of Chriji P for zve be being many, are one bread and one body : for we are all partakers of that one bread. Is it not then mofl a- greeable to the inftitution and defign of the Lord's Supper, that it be adminillered to a congregation, 'and not to a fingle perfon ? What now remains is the Application. I. How thankful fhould we be for our liberty to worfliip God in public ! It appears from what has • been Serm. VIII. dl the Tarts of if. 129 been faid, thc.t this is a great privilege. It is in- deed fad to think that we have made no better im- provement of it ; but the confideration of our un- worthinefs lliould awaken in us a m.ore grateful fenfc of God's goodnefs, in continuino- fo long to us the peaceable enjoyment of our civil and religious rights ; that we may m.eet together to worfhip him according to the diftates of our confciences, none making us afraid. Had God dealt with us accord- ing to out defert, our teachers had been- driven in- to corners, we had been puniflied with a famine of hearing the word. How many of our proteftant brethren are forced to quit their native countries^ becaufe they cannot enjoy there the ordinances of public worihip, without popifh finful mixtures ? Let us blcfs God, that this is not our cafe ; and be- ware, lell by our continued unfruitfulnefs, we pro- voke him to deprive us of the unfpeakable advan- tage we enjoy in a free and undiflurbed accefs to his houfe. 2. It is matter of great lamentation, that there is fo much indifference among us to the public wor* ihip of God. This is wholly negle<5led by multi- tudes ; and it is but too feldom attended upon by many who make fomc pretences to religion. Our Fa- thers have told us that great difficulties and dano^ers from the feverity of penal laws, have not deterred them from joining with religious focieties to par- take of divine ordinances : but what flight matters do now confine perfons to their homes, and hinder their clofure with the opportunities w'hich arc of- fered them to wait upon God in public ? If the public worihip of God be of fuch importance, as you have heard, then certainly the great difreo-ard to it, that is ilicwn at prefent, is much to be la- mented. It is a hd inftance pf the great decay of godlincfs amongft us. Vol. II. R 3. L,^ 130- Viihlic worjhipy ^c, Serm. VIIL 3. Let us have a care of for faking the a^emhVing of ourfehes together, as the manner of fome is. One day in feven is appointed to be a feafon of reft from the biifinefs of this world, and it ought to be obferved as a day of holy convocation. We fhould careful- ly improve the opportunities we then have to feek the Lord, to ling his praifes, and to hear his word in the worfliipping aiibmblies of his people. In or- der to prefs you hereto, confider, Firft, That an indifference to the duties of pub- lic worlhip is a dangerous ftep towards apoftacy» When perfons begin to be remifs in their attend- ance upon the ordinances of God's houfe, they are in no fmall danger of throwing off all forms of god- linefs in procefs of time : as appears from fad and too frequent experience in our day. Now if you would avoid the dreadful ftate of apoftates, de- fcribed by the apoftle, Heb, x. 26, 27, let the cau- tion given by him in the 25th be regarded by you, not forfaking the affembling of y ourfehes together. Secondly, Perfons of the moft eminent piety have expreffed the greateft value for the public worfhip of God. What proficiency did David make in re- ligion ? and how did he lave the habitation of God's houfe ? He fadly bemoans his cafe when feparated from it ; and great was the joy of his foul, when he might appear there. Would we grow in knowledge and grace ? would we be prepared to v;?orfhip with an innumerable com- pany of angels, and in the general ajfembly of the firji-born above, than which nothing is more defirable ? let us with frequency and delight repair to the taber- nacles of God, the congregations of his people here on earthy for thefe are nurferies for Heaven. SERMON SERMON IX. By the Reverend Jeremiah Seed, M. A. DOMESTIC LOVE AND UNION RECOIM MENDED AND ENFORCED. Proverbs xv. 17. Better is a dinner of herbs , where love is^ ihiin a Jlalltil ox, and hatred therewith. IT is hard to form a true eftimate of any man''v happlnefs; becaufe happinefs depends molt up- on thofc things, which lie moll out of fight. Thofe joys, like thofe forrows, arc moll: real, deep anil llrong, which run on in a filent flream without making any noife : fuch arc the joys, which arife from eafy reflections, moderate defires, and calm content. We fee the falfe glare of grcatnefs, which fur- rounds fome men, and are apt to gaze at it with a fooliili face of wonder ; but we fee not thofe mife- ries, which fometimes lurk beneath thefe pompous appearances. What avails all the pomp and parade of life, which appears abroad ; if, when we Ihift the gaudy flattering fcer^c, the man is unhappy, where hap- ^incl? 1^2 Dorneflic Love and Union Serm. IX. pinefs muft begin at home ? Whatever ingredients of blifs providence may have poured into his cup, domeflic misfortunes will render the whole compo- fition diflaileful. Fortune and happinefs are two very diftintt ideas; however fome, who have a falfe idea of life and a wrongnefs of thinking, may con- found them. For Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a Jlalled ex, and hatred therewith. That is, it is better to have peace vv'ithout plenty, than plenty without peace : that, where there is but a ilender fubfiflence, yet an uninterrupted interchange of mutual endear- ments, among thofe of the fame family, imparts a more folid fatisfad:ion ; than to fare fumptuouHy eve'ry day, or to live in great and pompous build- ings, great and noble apartments, every thing great> but perhaps the owners themfelves. Thofe who are curious obfervcrs of mankind, love to coniider them in the mod familiar lights. When men are abroad they chufe to appear (what- ever they really are) to the beft advantage : but at home, their mJuids as well as their perfons are in a perfeft undrefs and defhabille. The world is the great theatre, on which they ac!l a part; but behind the fcenes, they may be fecn in their proper per- fons without any iludied appearances. Our domef- tic behaviour is therefore the main tefl of our vir- tue and good nature, In public we may carry a fair outfide ; our Iovq may be not without diffimulation, nor our hatred without difguife : but at home nliture left to itfelf Ihews its true and genuine face, with an unreferved opennefs ; and all the foul ftands forth to view, w^ithout any veil thrown over it. There we fee men in all the little and minute circumftances of life, v;^hich however they may be overlooked by common pbfervers, yet give a man of difcernment a truer opening into a man's real qh?.ra<5ter, than the more gk- Serm. IX. Recommended ivul Enforcid. 133 glaring: and important tranfatVions of it: bccauie, as to thefc, they are more iipon their guard : they act with more of caution and of an art, than of plain fniipic nature. In Ihort, our good or ill breeding is chicllv feen abroad, our irOoil or ill nature at home. It were to be wiflicd, that we had more family- pieces preferved and tranfmitted down to us. The good public magiftrate is an example of nfe to few only; but the prudent and affcdionate father of a family is of a more general and cxtenfive influence. For my part I more admire Cornelius the centurion for that fhort Iketch of his character in the Acts of the Apollles, viz. that he was a devout man and one that feared Godzvith all his boufe ; than if he had been reprefentcd as the moft vicftorious general, that had enlarged the bounds of the Roman empire : for we learn from it this ufeful Iclfon ; that the influence of a pious example, like the precious ointment from Aaron's head, defcends downwards from the head of the family, diflufes itfcif over the main body ; till - it reaches the very fkirts, the loweft members of it. Our bleflTcd Saviour had indeed no family to take care of ; the whole world was his family, and all mankind, that heard and kept his fayings were his mother, and brethren, and iifl:ers. Yet fome of his lad thoughts were emplovcd upon a fubjeCt, that will be fometimes rifing uppermoft in the minds of tender-hearted perfons in their lart moments, viz. What will become of my poor dcfencelefs rela- tions ? who will keep them unfpotted from the contagion, and prefervc them unhurt from the injuries of this world, after I am departed out of *^ it?" At the very inflant, that he exprefled an unexampled love to mankind in general by dying for them ; yet he exemplified a particular tcnder- nefs to his ncareft relation. IVben Jefus faw hh mo- they and th( difcipUy whom h loved, Jlanding by, be fait k unto 134 Domejlic Love and Union Serm. IX. unto his mother, zvonian, behold thy fon. I'hen faith hs to his difdple, behold thy mother, (whom you are hence- forth to treat and honour as your mother) and from that hour that difiple took her unto his own home. The pauis, that he fuftahied, the generous con- cern, that he felt for the world, could not fwallow up all his regards of a more private nature. As a man, he felt the fenlibility of a fon, and the foft and tender workings of nature within him; as a great and good man, he reftrained them within pro- per bounds, nor fuffered them, at that great crifis, to break out into any inordinate agitations of griet. He ihewed us, that thofe aifedions, which nature has implanted, may be innocently cherifhed ; till we are about to pay the laft debt to nature ; and even then exert themfeivcs, provided they do not wound the peace of the min(l, and Ihock the foul in her laft moments, when Ihe fhould be as much as poffible rid of all the incumbrances of this world, to take her journey, with more eafe and freedom, to an- other. Thcfe examples, as well as my text, point out, I. The reafonablenefsand advantages of domeftic love and union. Which Ihall be the firft head of my difcourfe. II. I iliall lay down fome rules to prevent dif- union. I. Then I am to ihew the reafonablenefs and ad- vantages of domeftic union. Quietnefs under one's own roof, and quietnefs in our own confciencc, are two fubftantial bleffings^ which, whoever barters for Ihew and pomp, will find himfelf a lofer by the exchange. Abroad, we muft more or lefs find tribulation ; yet as long as home is a fecure and peaceful retreat from all the .difappointments and cares, which we meet with in that great fcene of vexation the world, we may ftill be tolerable happy : but if that, v>'hich ihould be our Serm. XI. Recommended and Enforced. 135 our main fandtuary from uncafinefs, becomes our principal dlfquierude, how great muft our uncafi- nefs be! theic cannot be a greater curfe, than to have thofe of one's own houfliold one's greateft foes; when we neither can live happily with them, nor mull think of living apart from them. It was wife- ly ordained bv nature, that whereas, if our bene- volence fhould be equally flrong to all mankind a- like, it would be loll in a multiplicity of objeifls, and diilrad:ed in its choice; therefore our benevol- ence fl-jould be the Urongeil, where there are the clofell ties of relation. Our benevolence is like at- tradlion " which increafcs as the dillances dimi- " nifh; and then operates mod powerfully, when " bodies make the' neareft approaches to one an- " ther." It is the yoice of nature which calls with- in us, and reafon feconds that call, when all other circumftances are equal, to love our near relations better than our neighbours, and our neighbours than mere ilrangcrs. We then counteradl the defign of nature, and confequently of the author of nature, when we do not endeavour to contribute as much as in us lies to their eafe and happinefs, with which our own is often effentially interwoven. " Is it not ftrange, " (fays an ingenious writer) that fome fhould be fo ** delicate as not to bear a difagreeable pidture in *' the houfe, and yet force every face they fee about " them to wear a gloom of uneafinefs and difcon- *' tent ?" Yet this is no uncommon charadier. Nay, there fhall often be a certain fhynefs, coldnefs, and fullenefs in families, where there is no material ground of domcllic animofities : and thefe differen- ces fhall be often the mod lading. For when anger or uneafinefs immediately vents itfglf in words, the malignity of the pafiion is foon difcharged ; then it is mod fatal and pernicious, when the wound rankles and fellers within, when the mind preys upon 136 Doniefilc Love and Union Serm. IX. upon itfelf, without difclofing the fubjed; of its grievances. The affronts, that are put upon us by flrangers, make but feeble and languid impreffions in compa- rifon. But thole, that proceed from perfons endear- ed to us by the clofeft relation of blood and kindred wound us in the mod tender and fenlible part. There are two tilings, that affed: the heart of every ingenuous man molt deeply, viz. good-natured and generous offices from thofe, to whom we have been injurious ; and an ill-natured and unchriftian treat- ment-from thofe, to whom we have been very kind and affediionate. As for the former, we can make a fhift to bear their hatred, becaufe we have defer- ved it : but we cannot bear their love ; it quite confounds and overpowers us. q And, as to the lat- ter, it is certain, we can endure the utmoft rancour and malice of others, much better than theleaft coid- nefs and indifference from thofe, to whom we have made it our conftant endeavour to pleafe. Very beau- tiful in this light are the words of the Pfalmifl. For it is not an 'open enemy that hath done me this dijhonour : for then I could have borne it ; neither was it mine adver- fary that did magnify hlnifdf againjl me : for then per-ad- •venture I would have hid myfelffrom him. But it zvas even thou, my companion, my guide and mine own familiar friend. Love is a tender plant, it mull be kept alive by great delicacy, it muft be fenced from all incle- ment blafts : or it will foon droop its head and die. Indeed in general, we ought to be very tender, we can fcarce be too much fo, as to what may affeJ SERMON X. By the Reverend Jeremiah Seed, M. A. DOMESTIC LOVE AND UNION RECOM- MENDED AND ENFORCED. Proverbs xv. 1,7. Better is a dinner of herbs, where love is, than a Jlalkd ox, and hatred therewith. THAT is, a moderate fubfiflence, where love is among domeflics, imparts a more unallay- ed fatisfaftion, than all the high and genteel enjoy- ments of life without that material ingredient of happinefs. Senfual pleafures would be very flat and iniipid ; unlefs they were quickened by a mix- ture of iocial, friendly, and liberal pleafures, by the thoughts of imparting them to, and Iharing them with, thofe, whom we love and efteem. It is this, that takes off, or qualifies their groflTnefs,- and gives \.\\^.m their molt endearing charm. One can fcarce believe, that a rational man can love himfelf, without loving forpebody bcfides himfelf. For he could find nothing in himfelf worth loving, if he were of that unloving and un- lovely temper. He would defpife that little thing the 144 Dome flic Love and Union Serm. X. the heart, if it were entirely engrofled by felf, without a capacity to harbour any other gueft, how- ever deferving ; juft as he would a poor narrow cot- tage, wh-ich could barely accommodate its forry owner, but Avanted room to lodge and entertain a friend. He who feels within himfclf a dull indif- ference for all mankind; muil, one would imagine, have a thorough difrelifh of himfelf. In a former difcourfe I therefore Ihewed the rea- fonablenefs and great advantages of union, love and a friendly behaviour among domellics. And in purfuance of this defign, I fhall nv»w proceed to fuggeft fuch confide- rations as m.ay beget, preferve, and cultivate fuch an union. In the nrft place, do not delude yourfelves with any vifionary notions ef perfedlion. Confidcr men, as they really are, with all their numerous imper- fedtions ; and not as you could fondly willi them to be. The philofophers have rem^arked what a joylefs, unfightly figure, the material world would make, if it were divefled of all its adventitious orna- ments, of all it lights and colours, which are appear- ances only, and not the real properties of matter. I am apt to think the moral world would make as unlovely an appearance, if we could view it in a true light, flript of all difguifes ; and men Ihould appear naked and unveiled, juft what they are, v.-ith all their impcrfedions, all their little finiiler views, and their follies, which they induflrioully cait in ihades, expofed to public view. But God, who knows whereof we are jnade, and has ordered all things for the bcfV, has wifely ordained, that our minds fliould not be tranfparent, nor our thoughts viiible to each other : till we arrive at that place, where wc fhall have no paltry thoughts, no vain and feafelefs follies, nothing, that need poorly ikulk, and iliuii he light. The generality of men are Serm. X. Recommended and Enforced^ 14^ arc like the generality of books, which \vc mar often be obliged to have recoiirfe to, and conlult, upon particular occafions, but will not bear feveral views and reviews, and to be fc'anncd over minute- ly by a critical eye : there are few men^ as there arc few books, whom the more we look into, the more we Ihall admire; the more we ftudy them, the more graces and beauties, which efcaped us before, we fhall difcover in them. J-^ven thofc, whom na- ture has fliewn to the world as patterns of what it could produce, have yet fome certain failures that reduce them in fome things, to the common level. If they have feveral excellencies to fhew, they arc great men ; they have feveral defedts to fhew, they are but men. 'Tis vain to imagine, we may meet with a perfon, that Ihall pleafe us in every thing : but this we may do, we may find out fomething, that will pleafe us in every perfon. A man is not fit to live in the world, who does not fee feveral things, without fceming to fee them ; who does not fee through the little by-ends and felfilh views, which men may have ; againlt which he muft ufe all the reality of caution and diftruft, with as little appearances ot it as poffible. There are not many who can ftand the tcii of a clofe infpection. Their virtues fhine upon us at a diftance : it is upon a nearer approach that we de- fcry their failings. The diftant ground, which is adorned with variety of flowers, feems to be all in flower, and to grow with one continued and un- mixed luflre; but if we were upon the fpot, we fhould difcover feveral weeds interfperfed, amidft fuch a beautiful aflcmblage of colours. We may admire upon a flender acc^uaintance the faint, phi- lofopher, and hero : it is upon a clofer furvey we always difcover fome tindture of the mere man to fully the brightnefs of thcfe exalted charadters. And familiarity, though it does not beget con- VoL. II. T tempt, 146 Domcjlic Love and Union Serm. X. tempt, where there is true worth ; yet always takes off admiration : admiration and wonder, al- ways the property of raw unfurnifhed minds, unac- quainted with, and unpradtiled, in the world. Thole, who look into, and lee through things, find nothing wonderful, but one ; and that is he, who is great, wonderful, and holy : nothing is truly marvellous, but what he is, and what he doth. Nay, the follies of men are often fo ftrongjy interwoven with their virtues, that we cannot gather up the tares, without rooting up at the fame time, the wheat. lyCt us therefore, in the fecond place, learn to make proper allovvances, and to reprefent their failings with all the foftnefs of humanity. Thofe, that are continually complaining, that things run crofs, that the world is much worfe than it fliould be, have very great reafon to complain, that there is one individual perfon in it much worfe than he ihould be ; Xvho cannot bear the accidents of life with tolerable patience, nor look upon mankind with common charity. Men are uneafy in them- felves, and then Ihift the blame off from themfelves upon the perfons they converfe with, and the times and places they live in. Other men's follies and vices are always infup.- pprtable to thbfe, that are entirely devoted to their own. The fuller of imperfedtions any man is, the lefs able he is to bear with the imperfediions of his fellow creatures* True, regular, folid vir- tue is not eafily provoked; but when provoked, eafy to be intreated, knows how to connive at little follies, and to pardon even confiderable errors : whereas falfe virtue is peevifh, exceptious, magi- ilerlal, hating to be put out of its own way ; dif- concertcd with trifles^ and unhinged by folid mif- fortunes. Bsar Serm. X. Recommended and Enforced. 147 Bear then with the faults of thofc about you, as you expect they fliould bear with yours ; faults, which frail nature cannot well guard againft, und which therefore good-nature fhould overlook; be juft to their merits, charitable to their failings, and tender to their misfortunes. All other ornaments fade and decav, and forrow or age makes beauty con- fume away like as it zvere a moth fretting at a garment ; there is one only unfading beauty, one undccaying ornament, which is infinitely more worth than all the reft, and that is the ornament of <\ meek imd quiet fpirir. Which brings me to obferve thirdly, There is a particular tenderncfs due to pcrfons under any recent affliction, not only that we may not feem to vex tkem isuhum God bath ^vonndcd, and per - fecute them, zvhom he hath q^i^ed: but becaufe men are more fufceptiblc of ref^ntmcnt, in proportion to the greatnefs of th.eir diftrefs. Men of a mind involved in melancholy, like objetfts of a dark and black colour, are more apt to take fire, than any other. Their diftempered fouls take umbrage fomctimes, where none is given. All this we muft bear with and place to the account, not of their na- tural temper, but of their adverfity, which embit- ters their fpirit, and difcolours every objcd". Han- dle then gently a wounded mind, as you would do a wounded body, with all the tenderncfs you can : it will not bear too rough a hand. Remember that a good-natured man cannot give pain, without feeU ing, in fomc meafure, the pain which he gives. Nay, he cannot even fee a perfon in pain, though he does not give it, without feeling, in fomc de- gree, what he fees. As the ancients held thofc places facred, that were blafted with lightning ; we ought to pay a tender regard to thofe perfons, who are vilitcd with affliction : their perfons are in fome 2iKal\ire facred, they claim a kind of reverence from T 2 ui. 148 Domejlk Love and Union Serm. X. us, and arc to be privileged from any ludicrous, or inhuman deportment. The very fight of them lliould ftrikc us with a thoughtfuhiefs on the changes of fortune in general, and beget in us that delicate feeling of their own cafe in particular, which we would wifh for, if in the fame difadvan- tageous circumftances. A general civility is a debt to all mankind ; but an extraordinary humanity, and a peculiar delicacy of good-breeding is owing to the diftrelfed, that we may not add to their afflict tion by any feeming negled". The fcripture,which is very particular in recommending every inftance of fine humanitv, gives us to undcrftand how we are to behave to the unfortunate in the words of Job xvi. 4, 5. I alfo could [peak as you do, if your fnid zvere in my foiWsJlcad, I could heap up zvords again ft you, and Jhake mine head at you : But /, inftead of doing this, if you were affli^fled as I am, zvould Jlrengthen you with my mouth, and the moving of my lips Jhould qffuage your grief. In the fourth place, be fure to obferve and prac- tife the rules of good manners. By good manners T do not mean an infignificant pundruality, and a frivolous exad:nefs in the obfervance of little cere- monies ; I mean fomcthing of an higher nature, I mean an affemblage of moral virtues, exprefled in our outward demeanour; a combination of difcre- tion, circumfpcdiion, and civilitv, fubmiffion to our fuperiors, condefceniion to our inferiors, and affability to ?11 ! more efpecially a flrid: regard to decency in all our actions. For the rules of decency are the very outworks of refpedt, and when they are once broke through, the reft will foon be delivered up as an eafv prev : and affection is oftener loft by little violations of the rules of decorum, than by any fcandalous and enormous faults. The queen of Shcba it is obfervcd, was fo amazed at the great decorum of Solomon's table, at the order and oeconomy of his Serm. X. Reiommended and Enforced, 149 Icrvants, the attendance of his minifters and their app;ircl, and his cup-bearers ; that there was no more fpir'it lift in her. If you have any talent for laying keen and fatiri- cal things, be fuperior to the talent you polll'ls, by fliewing how little flrefs \ ou lay upon it, when it comes in competition with your good-nature. Have no recourfe to low llratagems, at =oncc to cover, and yet difchargc vour little fpite : which fome do after the following manner, To attack men in public, without any provocation, for grofs and palpable vices, is, what they care not to do ; becaufe their good-nature would be called in quef- tion, and their company fliunned : there is a more artful way at once to gratify their ill -nature, and to avoid the odk)us imputation of it; which is to dwell upon the indifcretions and unguarded follies of thofe thcv are converfant with, or to play upon fubjedits, that require a very delicate hand to touch them fo, as to give the party concerned no pain. And yet thefe arc the fubjedrs, which leave the moll lafting tting behind. For fuch is the nature of man : they had rather be thought vicious, than ridiculous. They can bear you ihould hate them for their vices : they cannot endure you iliould ridi- cule them for their follies. For you do not place in the moll infignificant light him, whom vou do not look upon as beneath ) our hatred ; then vou muft exafperate a man when you fcorn and make a jell: of him, as thinking him not of cqnfequence e- nough to be hated. The province of ridicule is very narrow, vice is the objcdl of our hatred ; natural folly of our pity : acquired or affected folly is the only objcd: of ridicule ; when not content with what we really are, we are ambitious of being thought what we are not, or afpire at what we cannot be. We lliould be out of humour with ourfelvcs, if we thoughr ■.150 Dome/lie Love and Union Serm. X. thought ourfelves infignificant and of no confe- qiience : and can it be wondered at, that we arc out of humour with others, when they give ns to- underftand by their behaviour, that we appear fuch to them ? Fifthly, Never make any reply to a pcrfon, till his paffion abates, and the ferment fubiides. For to what end Ihould you expoltulate with a mart in a pafEon ? That he may hear realbn ? But how can you expeft he can hear rcafon, as long as his paf- iion has got the better of his reafon ? How can you expedl he fhould hear the voice of that charmer, whom ano;cr has made deaf to all its remonflrances ? Wait but till reafon refumes its empire ; and then fpeak to him, in the fofter fcafons of addrefs : if there be any necefiity for it, if the affair be of fuch an importance as to require a fair hearing. Other- wife it is a matter of difcretion to drop it entirely, left his pafiioa fliould rekindle ; for reafon is often retained on the fide of paffion, and is fet at work in our cooler hours to find out fpecious pretences for what wc faid "or did in the heat and warmth of temper. Arid as you are not vb reprimand any pcrfon during the emotion of his paffion, fo neither are you not ta do it ditring the emotion of your own. What the philofopher faid alk)iit piiniffiing, you may apply hcte aixl fay, " I would chide you, if I were not ** angry." For you will be apt to carry things too far: or if you did not, yet what you fay- will have Icfs weight, as it will be looked upon as the refult of rage and fury, not the produdt of cool, fedatc reafon. Forearm yourfclf with this pcvfuafion, and keep it prcfent upon your mind ; that whatever any occa- lional fit of the fplccn fuggcfts, is either wholly or in fome meajfurc wrong; that what is really bad, it exhibits doubly bad, and what is not bad, it re- prefcnts fo ; that you no more fee things as they Serm. X. Recommended and Enforced. 151 are, in a fettled melancholy gloom, tlinn you do in a dazzling glare ; that it is very blind and undiilin-i guilhing, apt to difchargc itlelf upon friend or foe indircriminatcly. We then the lead fufpei^ our- felves or our caufe to be wrong, when our paflions are the warmeft : and yet then we ought to fufpect both the moil:. A probabilitythat \yq are in an error, ariles in proportion to the violence of thofc paffions which hinder us from dilcerning the truth. But: an apprehenfion or diftruft, that we are fo, lefTcns in the fame proportion. Nothing is more comm.on than to hear perfons, who have very material things to fay in their own behalf, injuring themfelves and their caufe by mixing trifles with them ; the rea- fon of which is, that, though they are trifles in themfelves, and appear fo to every indifferent per- fon ; yet the warmth of paflion in the party con- cerned, magnifies them into fubftantial injuries. Sixthly, Guard againft pride, from which Com- eth contention. Perfons of fenfe and virtue will fcldoni differ about things, that are plainly cflcntial to the happinefs of the family : the greateft danger is, that they iliould difagrce about trifles, where each \\'\\\ think they cannot give up the point, without yielding the other the fuperiority l and the difagreement is often the fharpelt where the differ- ence is the fmallefl:. Do not imagine that every pcrfon muff exactly adjufl: their temper to yours in every point, fo as to be your>exadt counterpart. If men recede in fome particulars from their own inclinations to comply with thole of others, there is fome profpedt that differences may beadjufl:ed, and a good underfl:anding kept up : like irregular flones that muff have their unevennefles filed off, and their rough corners fmoothed, before they can come to- gether, and join to make a compad: building, where there fhall be harmony and fymmetry of parts. There is but one Being, whofe will ■ xve ought; to fubmit 152 Domejiic Love and Union Serm. X« fubmit to intircly and unrefervedly ; and his will is pcrfcd: unallayed reafon, without the leaft mix- ture of caprice or humour. Vain is all ftrife for fuperioritv, where the only ftrife fhould be, which fhould oblige each other the moft : and the only power that fhould be lodged in any perfon, Ihould be, a greater power of doing good. Never flrive to gain an abfolute fway over any thing but your own paffions. Be not afhamed to confefs you have been in the wrong. It is but owning, what you need not be afhamed of; that you now have more fenfe, than you had before, to fee you error, more humility to acknowledge it, and more grace to correft it. We double the greatcfl part of our faults, by the ex- cufes which we make ufe of to juflify them : ex- cufes which are a kind of patches, when a rent is made; far more unfeemly and mifbecoming, than the rent itfelf. It is a fign, a man is generally in the right, who has the ingenuity to own himfelf fometimes in the wrong ; that he is one of thofe, whofe fund of reputation is fo great, he is not a- fraid of impoverifhing it, by taking or lofing a little from it : whereas thofe whofe flock of credit and efteem is very inconiiderable, care not to own any thing at the expence of it. Obferve, what lin mofl eafily befets you, whether it be morofcnefs, pride, paffion, covetoufnefs, &c. and place there the ftrongeft guard, where your nature is weakeft. Few perfons have more than one predominant great vice : nature has guarded them very well in other refpedts ; here they mult take care to guard them- fclves. Particularly guard againft any inequali- ty of temper : for no man can have a true fweetnefs of temper, without fteadinefs and a fedate way of thinking : they that feem to have it, have only, as one obferves, a certain eafmefs, that quickly turns peevifh and four. Yet, when our affedtions begin Serm. X* Recomynended and Enforced. 1 53 begin to fall off, and cool gradually and^ infcnfibly towards anv pcrlbn; we arc apt to imagine his are abating toward us. Juft as the land leems to vo)^ agers in a {hip to be retiring from them, when they are retiring from the land. Seventhly, Take care to dillinguilh between a per- fon's general {landing fentimcnts of you, when he is perfeiitly calm and undifturbcd; and his occafional fentiments, when fome crols accident may have foured his temper. Confider what he is for a conftancy to- wards you ; and not what he is now and then, when his fpirits are ruffled and overheated. Unkindly thoughts of us, which vent thcmfelvcs in unfriendly expref- fions, may be only occafional vifitants, which tarry but an hour ; whereas tender and endearing ideas may be the conftant inhabitants of his mind. You muft reflect that there is no fuch thing as maintaining a friendly intercourfe, without overlooking things of this nature. He who thinks he has difcharged e- very duty, without any failure in point of kindnefs, and friend line fs to his domeftics, has forgotten one duty refpcfting himfelf, that of felf-examinar tion. For the leaft reflection upon himfelf will ferve to fliew that he has fometime? faid things, that had better been left unfaid ; that he has been out of humour when there was not a fufficient rea- fon for his being fo ; and has gone too far when there was. A wife and a good man will therefore make proper allowances, and think, that as a ge- nerous enemy may fometimes through a flufh of good humour fay an handfomc thing in our behalf, and deviate into praife ; fo a firm friend through a fiwprize of ill-humour may let fall a difo- bliging expreflion. And whereas an hafly temper is immediately for proceeding to extremities; a prudent man goes more leifurely to work, and ad- vifes a friend, perhaps he has not faid v/h:it has been reported ; and if he have, that he fpeak it no Vol. II. U more. 154 Doniejlic Love and Union Serm. X. more. And indeed, without fuch a procedure, all friendlliips would be precarious ; they would lie at the mercy of thofe, who were malicious enough to do us an ill -office. But above all, Laftly, religion is abfolutely ne- ceilary to preferve domeftic union. For families are but little focietics, as focieties are larger fami- lies; and therefore religion, which is confeffedly the beft bond and cement of union in ftates and lar- ger communities, is likewife fo in little domeftic governments : and family prayer is as much a du- ty in this fmaller fphere of adlion as public worlhip is a national concern. It is therefore incumbent upon thofe, who prefide over a family, to imprefs a fenfe ot religion upon thofe who are beneath them : but to do that effediaally, they themfelves muft be firft affedled with a ferious and hearty fenfe of it. Their domeflics will every day be witnefTes of their ill- qualities, fuch as anger, impatience, &c. It were to be wifhed therefore, that they would let their good qualities, if they have any, fhine forth before them. It muft be with a very ill-grace they can complain of the difobedience of fervants to them, who let them fee, by their whole behaviour, that they are regardlefs of their great and common maf- ter, their mafter which is in Heaven. Why fhould they, whom much nobler motives have no influence upon, exped; that the fear of offending them fhould reltrain their dependants ? People may complain of the badnefs of fervants, the undutifuln^fs of chil- dren, and the univerfal depravation of morals ; but fuch complaints come better from any than from thofe, to whom that depravation is in a great mea- fure owing by their careleffnefs and unguarded le- vity of temper, to fay no worfe, Qot having the prudence to keep their follies to themfelves, but fcattering the infed:ion among their inferiors and attendants. Be Se R M. X . Recommended and Enforced. 1 5 5 Be then rcrioiiilv and folidly good yoiirfclf, :ind others, if they are furccptible of it, will learn goodnefs from you ; and obey \ 011 more out of a principle of love, than fear. Revere yourfelf, if you would have your inferiors revere you : — revere yourfelf — by exemplifying fuch a fleady and regu- lar pradlice of every branch of virtue, as will com- mand their inward homage, the homage of the mind ; and then outward marks of refpe^t will fol*- low of courfe without reluftance or conftraint. E- very one will reverence and acknowledge that worth, of which you feem infenfible ; and acknow- ledge and reverence it the more, becaufe you feem infenfible of ir. Wc infenfibly Hide into the man- ners of thofe, with whom we daily converfe, and conftantly live : wc catch the ilame of virtue from them, by being always near to them. P'or good- nefs does not only communicate favours and kind- nefles ; it even in fome meafurc communicates it- lelf. Juft as rhofe, who have been long among the mod fragrant objedts, not only are delighted with the odour that breathes from them; fome of the very fragrancy cleaves to, and remains wiih them : they become fragrant themfelves, by flaying long a- mong objcc^ts that are fo. Carry then their minds upwards from yourfelf, who are the head of a fmall family, to him, of whom the whole family in Heaven and earth is cal- led. Confider that the joint prayers of a family are as nccelTary to derive a bleffing upon, or avert any calamity from a family ; as public prayers are to deprecate the judgments, or conciliate the favour of the deity to a nation. So mav he, who maketh man to be of one mind in an houfe, prcferve vou from all the miferies that mufl fall upoi* a family embroiled, and a houfe divided againft irfclf ! Thus, when you have tindtured their minds and your own with religion, you will find that the u- U 2 nion 156 Domejlk Love and Union Serm. X. nion of fouls was but begun here ; it will be 'per- fected abpve, where love and charity never fail. And death, which diflblves the union of foul and body, cannot diffolve the inviolable union of vir- tuous hearts joined together in pure, unfullied friendfliip. Thofe, who were lovely and loving in their lives ; fhall not be, even by their deaths, di- vided for ever. Separated for a while, they Ihall meet again, where there fhall be no fecond fepa- ration, where they Ihall continue to be of one heart and of one mind. S E H M O N SERMON IX By the Rev. LAURi'iVcr. Stcrxf.. THE PARABI.E OF THE RICH MAN AND LAZARUS CONSIDERED. Lv K. E XVI. 31. And hefalil nnfo bim, if they bear not Mnfes and the Pro- phets, neither zvill they be perfuiidedy though one JIjouU rife from the dead. THESE words are the conclvifion of the parabk of the rich man and Lazarus ; the delign of which was tolhewiis the neccflity of conducting our- felves byfuch lights as God had been pleafcd to give VS : the fenfe and meaning of the patriarch's final de- termination in the text being this, that they wjjo will not be perfuaded to anfvver the great purpofes of their being, upon fuch arguments as are offered to them In fcripture, will never be perfuaded to it by any means, how extraordinary foever ; — If they hear not Mofes and the Prophets, neither will they be perfuaded^ though onefJ)Quld rife from the dead. — — Rife from the dead ! To what purpofe ? What could fuch a meffenger propofe or urge, which had not 150 "the ParaUe.ofthe Rich Man Serm. XI. not been propokd and urged already ? The novelty or furprize of luch a vifit might awaken the atten- tion of a curious unthinking people, who'fpent their time in nothing elfe but to hear or tell fome new thing ; but ere the wonder was well over, fome new wonder would ftart up in its room, and then the man might return to the dead from whence he came, and not a foul make one enquiry about him. — This, I fear, would be the conclufion of the affair. But to bring this matter ftill clofer to us, let us imagine, if there is nothing unwor- thy in it, that God, in compliance with a curi- ous^ world, — or from a better motive, — in compaf- fion to a linful one, fhonid vouchHife to fend one from the dead, to call home our confcience and make us better Chriflians, better citizens, better men, and better fervants to God than what vvc arc. Now bear with me, I befecch you, in framing fuch an addfefs, as I imagine, would be mofl like- ly to gain, our attention, and conciliate the heart to what he had to fay : the great channel to it, is inte- Tcft, and there he would fct out. He might tell us (after the rnofl indifputable credentials of whom he fervcd,) that he was come a meffenger from the great God of Heaven, with reiterated nropolals, whereby much was to be grant- ed us on his fide, — and fomcthing to be paTted with on ours : but that, nor to alarm us, — twas neither jioufcap^ nor land, nor polFeffions ; — 'twas neither wives, or children, or brethren, or iifters, which we had to forfake ;-— -no ofie rational pleafure to be o;iven up; — no natural. endearment to Ije torn from — — In a word he would tell us, we had nothing to part with — but what was not for our intererts to keep, — and that was our vices; which brought death and miferv to our doors. Me Serm. Xr. and LaziiriiS confidered. i^g He would go on, and prove it by a thoufand ar- guments, that to be temperate and chalte, and jull and peaceable, and charitable and kind to one ano- ther,— was only doing that for Chrill's lake, which was moil for our own; and that were we in a capa- city of capitulating with God, upon what terms we would fubmit to his government, — he would con- vince us, 'twould be impoffible for the wit of man to frame any propofals more for our prefent inte- refts, than to lead an imcorrupted life — to do the ibhr^ which is lawful and riohty and lay fuch reflraints upon our appetites as arc for the honour of human na- ture, and the refinement of human happinefs. When this point was made out, and the alarms from intereft got over — the fpcdtre might addrefs himfelf to the other paffions — in doing this, he could but give us the moll engaging ideas of the perfec- tions of God — or could he do more, than imprefs the mofl awful ones of his majeily and power : — he might remind us, that we are but creatures of a day, haftening to the place from whence we Ihall not return ; — that during our Itay we llood account- able to this Being, who, though rich in mercies, yet was terrible in his judgments ; — that he took notice of all our a(flions ; — that he was about our paths, and about our beds, and fpied out all our ways ; and was io pure in his nature, that he would punifh even the wicked imaginations of the heart, and had appointed a day wherein he would enter in- to this enquiry. — He might add But what } — ^^with all the eloquence of an infpir- ed tongue, what could he add or fay to us, which, has not been faid before ? The experiment has been tried a thoufand tim^s upon the hopes and fears, the realbns and paffions of men, by all the powders of nature — the application of which has been fo great, and the variety of addreilcs fo unaniwcrable, that i6o The Tar able of the Rich Man Serm. XL that there is not a greater paradox in the world, than that fo good a religion Ihould be no better re- commended by its profeflbrs. The fad: is, mankind are not always in a humour to be convinced, — and fo long as the pre-engagc- ment with our paffions fubiifts, it is not argumen- tation which can do the bufinefs ; — we may amufe ourfelves with the ceremony of the operation, but we reafon not with the proper faculty, when_we fee every thing in the fhapc and colouring in which the treach- ery of the fenfes paint it : and indeed, were we only to look into the world, and obferve how inclinable men are to defend evil, as well as to commit it,— - one would think at firft iight, they believed, that all difcourfes of religion and virtue were mere mat- ter of fpeculation, for men to entertain fome idle hours with ; and conclude very naturally, that we feemed to be agreed in no one thing, but fpeaking well, and ad:ing ill. But the trueft comment is in the text, — If they hear not Mofes and the Prophets, &c. If they are not brought over to the interefts of religion upon fuch difcoveries as God has made — or Ivis enabled them to m^ake, they will Hand out againft all evidence : — in vain fhall one rife for their conviftion ; — .was the earth to give up her dead — 'twould be the fame ; — every man would re- turn again to his courfe, and the fame bad paffions would produce the fame bad actions to the end of the world. This is the principal leflbn of the parable ; but I muft enlarge upon the whole of it- — becaufe it has. fome other ufefui lelTons, and they will befi: prefent themfelves to us as we go along. In this parable, which is one of the rpoft remark- able in the gofpel, our Saviour reprefents a fcene, in which, by a kind of contrail, two of the moll oppofite conditions, that could be brought toge- ther Serm. XI. and Lazarus c^iiftdered. i6i ther from liuman life, are pafled before our imagi- nations. The one, a man exalted above the level of man- kind, to the highcft pinnacle of profpcriry — to riches — to happincfs — I fay, happinefs, — in com- pliance with the world, and on a fuppofition that the poflcflion of riches mutl: make us happy, when the very purfuit of them fo warms cur imagination, that we itake both body and loul upon the event, as if they were things not to be purchafed at too dear a rate. They are the wages of wifdom,— as well as of folly. — Whatever was the cafe here, is beyond the purport of the parable — the fcripture is filent, and fo ll^ould we ; it marks only his out- ward condition, by the common appendages of it, in the two great articles of vanity and appetite : — to gratify the one, he was cloathcd in purple and fine linen : to fatisfy the other, fared fumptuoufly every day ; — and upon every thing too — we'll fup- pofe, that climates could furnifh — that luxury could invent, or the hand of fcience could torture. Clofe by his gates is reprefented an objedt whom providence might feem to have placed there, to cure the pride of man, and fhew him to what wretchednefs his condition might be brought : a creature in all the fhipwreck of nature, — helplefs, — undone — in w^ant of friends, in want of health — and in want of every thing with them which his diflrefles called for. In this ftate he is defcribed as defiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's ta- ble ; and though the cafe is not exprefsly pur, that he was refufed ; yet as the contrary is not affirmed in the hiftorical part of the parable, — or pleaded after by the other, that he Ihewed mercy to the mi- ferable, we may conclude his requeft was unfuc- cefsful — like too m;iny others in the world, either fo high lifted up in it, that they cannot look down Vol. II. X ai.ilindlv 1 62 fhe Parable of the Rich Man Serm. XI. dillindtly enough upon the fufferhigs of their fel- low creatures, — or by long furfeiting in a continual courfe of banqueting and good cheer, they forget there is fuch ^ diitempcr as hunger, in the cata- logue of human infirmities. Overcharge d with this, and perhaps a thoufand unpitied wants in a pilgrimage through an inhofpi- table world, the poor man finks filenily under his burden. — But, good God ! whence is this ? Why doft thou fufFer thefe hardfliips in a world which thou haft made ? Is it for thy honour, that one man ihould eat the bread of fulnefs, and fo many of his own ftock and lineage eat the bread of forrow ? — That this man fltould go clad in purple, and have all his paths ftrewed with rofebuds of delight, whilfi fo manv mournful paffengers go heavily along, aad pals by hi,s gates hanging down their heads ? Is it for thy glory, O God ! that fo large a fhade of mifcry fnould be fpread acrofs thy works ? — or, is it that we fee but a part of them ? When the great chain at length is let down, and all that has held the two worlds in harmony is fecn : — when the dawn of that day approaches, in which all the dif- trefsful incidents of this drama fhall be unravelled ; — when every man's cafe fhall be reconfidered, — then wilt thou be fully juftified in all thy ways, and every mouth fhall be ftopped. After a long day of mercy, mlfpent in riot and uncharitablenefs,the rich man died alfo : — the para- ble adds, — and was buried ; — buried no doubt in triumph, with all the ill-timed pride of funerals, and empty decorations, which worldly folly is apt to proftitute upon thofe occaiions. But this was the laft vain Ihow; the utter coa- clufion of all his epicurean grandeur; — the next is a fcene of horror, where he is reprefcnted by our Saviour, in a ftate of the utmoft mifery, from whence he is fuppofed to lift up his eyes towards Heaven, Serm. XL (liui Lazarus co/ifidered. 163 Heaven, and cry to the patriarch Abraham for mercy. And Abraham fa'id. Son, remember that thou in thy life time reccivedji th-y good things, — That he had received his good things, — 'twas from Heaven, — and could he no reproach : with what feverity foever the fcripturc fpcaks againd richeSj it does not appear, that the living or faring fumptuoufly e^ery day, was the crime ohjeiflcd to the rich man ; or that it is a real part of a vicious character ; the cafe might be then as now ; his quality and ftation in the world might be fuppofcd to be fuch, as not only to have juftified his doing this, but, in general, to have required it wirhour any imputation of tloing wrong ; for diftercnces of fta- tions there mufl be in the world, which mull be fupported by fuch marks of diftindiion as curtom im- pofes. The exceeding great plenty aiid magnificence in which Solomon is defcribed to have lived, who had ten fat oxen, and twenty oxen out of the pafturcs, and an hundred fhcep, bcfidcs harts and roebucks, and fallow deer, and fatted fowl, with thirt\ mcafures of fine fiour, and threc-feore meafures of meal, for the daily proviiion of his table; — all this is not laid . to him as a fin, but rather remarked as an inftaiice of God's bleffing to hiiii ; — and whenever thcfe things arc orherwife, 'tis from a wafteful and dlfiio- ncft perverfion of them to pernicious ends, — and oft- times, to the very oppofite ones for which they were granted, — to glad the heart, to open it, and render it more kind — And this feems to have been the fnare the rich man had fallen into — and pofHbly, had he fared lefs fumptuouflv, — he might have had more cool hours for reflection, and been better difpofed to have conceived an idea of want, and to have felt companion for it. X z And 164 '^he Payable of the Rich Man Serm. XI. Jnd Abraham f aid, Son, remember that thou in thy life time receivedfl thy good things, and likewife Lazarus evil things, — Remember, fad fubjed: of recollection! that a man has paficd through this world with all the blef- fings and advantages of it, on his fide, — favoured by God Almighty with riches — befriended by his fel- low creatures in the m.eans of acquiring them, — af- fifted every hour by the fociety of which he is a member, in the enjoyment of them — to remember, how much he has received, — how little he has be- ftoW'cd, — that he has been no man's friend, — no one's proteftor, — no one's benefactor, blelTed God!- Thus begging in vain for himfelf, he is repre- fcnted at lall as interceding for his brethren, that Lazarus niiight be fent to them tcJ give them warning and fave them from the ruin which he had fallen into; — 1'hey have Mofes and the Prophets, was the anfwer of the patriarch, — let them hear them ; but the unhappy man is reprefented as difcontented with it ; and Hill perfifling in his requefl, and urging, — 'Nay, father Abraham, hut if one zvent from the dead, they would repent. — He thought fo — but Abraham knew other- wife ; — and the grounds of the determination, I have explained already, — fo fhall proceed to draw fome other conclufions and lefTons from the para- ble. And firft, our Saviour might further intend to difcover to us by it, the dangers to which great riches naturally expofe mankind, agreeably to what is elfewhere declared, hovv hardly fl^all they who have them enter into the kingdom of Heaven. The truth is, they are often too dangerous a blcf- fmg for God to truft us with, or we to manage : they furround us at all times with eafe, with non- fenfe, with flattery, and falfe friends, with which thoufands and ten thoufands have perifhed : — they are apt to multiply our faults, and treachcroufly to con- ceal Serm. XI. and Lazarus confidered. 165 ceal them from us ; — they hourly adminiflcr to our temptations ; and neither allow us time to examine our faults, or humility to repent of them ; — nay, what is llrangc, do they not often tempt men even to Covetoufnefs ? and though amidfl all the ill of- fices which riches do us, one would laft fufpedt this vice, but rather think the one a cure for the other ; yet fo it is, that many a man contrad:s his fpirits upon the enlargement of his fortune, and is the more empty for being full. But there is lefs need to preach againfl this : we feem all to be haftening to the oppofite extreme of luxury and expence : we generallv content our- felves with the folution of it ; and fay, 'tis a natu- ral confequence of trade and riches — and there it ends. By the way, I afHrm, there is a miftake in the account ; and that it is not riches which are the caufe of luxury, — but the corrupt calculation of the world, in making riches the balance for honour, for virtue, and for every thing that is great and good, which goads fo many thoufands on with an affe Serm. XI. and Lazarus confidered. 167 kind, the humane, that I am now to tell the fad (lory of the fatherlefs, and of him who hath no helper, and befpeak )'oiir almfgiving in behalf of thofe, who know not how to alk it for themfelves. — What can I fay more ? — It is a fubjeft on which I cannot inform your judgment — and in fuch an audience, I would not prefume to pradtifc upon your paffions : let it fuffice to fay, that they whom God hath blelfed with the means, — and for whom he has done more, in blefling them likewife with a difpofition ; have abundant reafon to be thankful to him, as the author of every good gift, for the mea- fure he has beflowed to them of both : 'tis the re- fuge againft the Itormy wind and tempcft, which he has planted in our hearts ; and the conftant fluc- tuation of every thing in this world, force all the fons and daughters of Adam to feek Ihelter under it by turns. Guard it by entails and fettlements as we will, the moft affluent plenty may be ftripped, and find all its worldly comforts like fo many wi- thered leaves dropping from us ; — the crowns of princes may be fhaken ; and the greatell that ever awed the world, have looked back and moralized upon the turn of the wheel. That which has happened to one, — may happen to every man ; and therefore that excellent rule of our Saviour, in a(fts of benevolence, as well as eve- ry thing elfe, fhould govern us i—T'hat zvhatfoever ye zvould that menjliould do to you^ do ye alfoiinto thenu Haft thou ever laid upon the bed of languilhing, or laboured under a diftemper which threatened thy life ? Call to mind thy forrowful and penfive fpirit at that time, and fay, what it was that made the thoughts of death fo bitter : — if thou hadft children, — I aifirm it, the bitternefs of death lay thexe ! — if unbrought up, and unprovided for, What will be- come of them ? Where will they find a friend when I am 1 6 8 fhe Pa) -able of the Rich Man^ ^c. Se rm. XL , I am gone, who will ftand up for them, and plead their caufe againil the wicked ? — Bleiled God ! to thee, who art a father to the fatherlefs, and a hufoand to the widow, — I intruft jthem. Haft thou ever fuflained any confiderable fliock in thy fortune ? or, has the fcantinefs of thy con- dition hurried thee into great ftraits, and brought the almolt to diftradiion ? Confider what was it that fpread a table in that wildernels of thought, — who made thy cup to overflow ? Was it not a friend of confolauion who flepped in, — faw thee embarraffed with tender pledges of thy love, and the partner of thy cares, — took them under his protedlion ? — Hea- ven 1 thou wilt reward him for it ; and freed thee from all the terrifying apprehenfions of a parent's love. — Hafl thou — — But how^ fhall I afk a queftion which mufl bring tears into fo many eyes? — Haft thou ever been wounded in a more affe&ing manner flill, by the lofs of a moft obliging friend, — or been torn away from the embraces of a dear and promifmg child by the flroke of death ? bitter remembrance ! nature droops at it — but nature is the fame in all condi- tions and lots of life. — A child thruft forth in an evil hour, without food, without raimer.t, bereft of in- ftrucTtion, and the means of its falvation, is afubjcdt of more tender heartaches, and wall awaken every power of n^ature :— as w^e have felt for ourfelves, — let us feel for Chrift's fake — let us feel for theirs : and may, the: God of all comfort blefs you. Amen, SERMON SERMON XII. By Archbifliop Tillotson-. THE PRESENCE OF THE MESSIAS, THE GLORY OF THE SECOND TEMPLE. Haggai li. 6, 7, 8, 9. For thus faith the Lord of Hojls, yet oftce, it is a little while, iind I will fJmke the Heavens, and the earthy and the fea, and the dry kind : and I willJ1:ahe all na-r tions, and the dejire of all nations Jhall come, and I will fill this houfe with glory, faith the Lord of HoJls. The Jilver is mine, and the gold is mine, faith the Lord of Hojis. The glory of this latter houfe JJ:all be greater than of the former f faith the Lord ofHofs ; and in this place will I give peace, faith the Lord of HoJis, THE author of this prophecy was the firft of the three prophets, which God fent to- the people of Ifrael after the captivity ; and this pro- phecy contains feveral mefTagcs from God, to the princes, and elders, and people of Ifrael, in which he reproves their llacknefs and negligence in the building of the temple, atid encouragcth them Vol. II. Y thereto. 1 yo 'The Prejt'ftce of the Mejias, Serm. XIL thereto, by the promife of his affiftance ; and tells them, that however ui refpedt of the magnificence of the building, and the rich ornaments in it, it Ihould be incomparably Ihort of Solomon's temple, which ibme that were then alive had feen in its glo- ry, yet in other relpedts it fliould far excel it ; for the time would come, that this fecond temple Ihould be graced with the prefence of the Meflias, which would be a greater glory to it, than all the riches of Solomon's temple. And this is fully expreffed in the words which I have read unto you, thus faith the Lord of Hojls, yet once, it is a little while, and I zvilljlmke the Heavens, and the earth, and the fca, and the dry land : and I will jhaki all nations, and the defire of all nations JJ^all come, and I zvill fdl this houfe zvith glory faith the Lord of Hojis, Thejilver is mine, and the gold is mine, faith the Lord of Hojis. 'the glory of this latter houfe Jloall be greater than of the former, faith the Lord of HoJIs ; and in this plane will I give peace, Jdith the Lord of HoJIs. Now, that it is fome very great thing which is here foretold and promifed, for the honour of this fecond temple, no man can doubt, that confiders in what a folemn manner it is here expreffed ; this great and glorious title, the Lord of Hq/ls, being no lefs than five feveral times ufed within the compafs of thefe four verfes ; the like inftance v/hereto Is not, perhaps, in the whole bible ; thus faith the Lord of HoJIs, yet once, it is a little tuhile, and I will J/jake the Heavens and the earth,- ver. 6. jind I will Jill this houfe zvith glory, faith the Lord of HoJIs, ver. 7. The fivgr is mine, and the gold is mine, faith the Lord of HoJIs, ver. 8. And twice ver. 9. The glory of this latter houfe Jfjall be greater than of the former, faith the Lord of HoJIs ; and in this place will I give peace, faith the Lord ofHoJis, So that by the folemn manner of eXpreffing it, we may imagine, that it is fome very great thing which is fpoken of, and fuch as the. like had never Se*m. Xn. the Gloty of the fecond Temple. i yi never been before ; and fuch was the incarnation and coming of the Mcilias. I know that the modern Jews will by no means have this text to be iinderftood of the Meflias, and nor without canfc ; for he that is fpokcn of in the text, was to come into the fecond temple, which hath now been cleflroycd above 1600 \ ears ago; and they do not believe the Meflias to be yet come ; and therefore whatever ihift they make, they muft interpret this text, of fomc other p'Crfon than the Meflias ; but then it is plain for what rcafon thc.y do fo, it being evident from their own Talmud, that the ancient Jews did underhand it of the Meflias ; but being hardened in their unbelief, they pervert all thofe texts whereby they might be con- vinced, that Jefus our blefled Saviour was the true Meflias. And indeed, whoever carefully confiders the feve- ral exprcffions and circumfl:ances of this prediction, cannot underfl:and it of any other. To make this evident, I fhall explain the feveral expreflions in the text, thus faith the Lord of Hojis, yet once, it is a little while. *¥et a little while, fo it is in the He- brew,, yet once more, fo it is quoted in the New- Teftament, Heb. xii. 26, and this fenfe the He- brew word may likcwife bear, and our tranfla- tion of the text takes thern both in, yet oncf it is a little rvhile. If we take the words in the firfl: fenfe, yet a littk Tvhile^ they fignify, that God was then beginning thofe changes in the world, which were to precede and make way for the coming of the Meflias. This indeed was not till about four hundred years after { but a great while before that time God began thofe changes in the world, which were to prepare the way for his coming ; and confidering the long time which was pafl: from theflrft promife made to Abra- ham, four hundred years in comparifon of that may Y a fceit> iy2 I'he Frefcnce of the Mejfias, Serm. XIL feem but a little while. But I rather choofe the latter fcnfe of this phrafe, j;^/ once more ; becaufe the Hebrew v/ill bear it, and becaufe it is fo quoted in the New Teflament ; as if the prophet had faid, that God had before done a great thing in the world, and accompanied with great miracles, viz. the giving of the law by Mofes, which was attend- ed with great commotions, both in Egypt, by bringing the people of Ifrael out from thence with a mighty hand, and by dellroying the nations be- fore them, whofe land God gave them for a pof- feffion ; but now he would do one greater thing more, the fending of the Meffias, and the planting of his religion in the world ; in order whereunto there fhould be much greater, and more univcrfal commotions and changes in the world, and more and greater miracles wrought ; yet once more, and I will Jhake the Heavens ^ and the earthy and the fea, and the dry land, and I zvillJJjakc all nations. From which ^ words the apoille to the Hebrews argues the abolilh- ing the Jewifli difpenfation, and the bringing in of another that Ihould be unalterable, Heb. xii. 27. And this ivord, yet once more, fays the apoftle, Jignifies the removing of thofe things that are jl:aken, that thofe - things zvhich cannot be JJjaken may remain. And this I ihali have occafion to explain more fully in the fol- lowing parts of this difcourfe. Tet once more I zuill Jhake the Heavens arid the earth, bfc. For the underltauding whereof we are to con- fider, that the Hebrews have no one word where- by to exprefs the world, and therefore they do it by an cnumerarion of the principal parts of it. So Gen. i. when Mofes would exprefs the creation of the world, he fays, in the beginning God created the Heaven and the earlh. And fo St. Peter, when he would exprefs the revolution of all things, after the univerfal conflagration of the world, calls it a new Heaven and a new cartli, 2 Pet. iii. 13, AV- hV verthelefs Serm. XII. the Gbry of the fecond Temple. 173 -jerthelefs zve, according to his proffiijl', look for new Heavens f and a new earth ; that is, a new world, a quite other frame and (late of things, than that which wc now fee. And fo t-he prophet here in the text, to exprefs the great comniorions and changes that fhould be \n the world before the cominir of the Meflias, fays, that God, zvill Jhake the Heavens^ and the earth, andthefca, and the dry land i. that is, he would caufc great revolutions in the world ; there Ihould be great wars and confufions, and the em- pires of the world fhould pafs from one hand to a- nother. And thus we we find this expreflion inter- preted, ver. 21, 22, of this chapter, I zvill Jhake the Heavens and the earth, and I zvill overt hrou} ihi throne oj kin^doviSy and I zvill dcjlroy the jirength of the kingdoms of the Hat ions. And to flievv that by Jbaking the Heavens and the earth, is meant great changes in the world, and as it were an univerfal commotion of it, he adds in the text, by way of farther explication, nnd Izvilljhake allnatio?is. And then it follows, and the defire of all nations fjall come. This we, as the ancient Jews alfo did, take to be a plain character and dcfcription of the Mef- fias, he is the defire of all nations ; he whom all nations had reafon to defire, becaufe of thofe great blefllno-s and benefits which he was to brino; to the world. Thus interpreters generally underftand thefe words, and it is very true the Meflias was fo : but this does not feem to be the true importance of this phrafe ; for the Hebrew word fignines expec- tation as well as defire, and fo I ihould rather chufe to render it, the expcd:ation of all nations fhall come ; which fignlfies that about the time of the coming of the Meflias, not only the Jews, but o- ther nations, Ihould be in a general expetliation of fome great prince then to appear ; which was moft eminently accompliftied in our blcllcd Saviour, a^ I ihall fliew by and by. Jnd 174 ^he Trefehce of the Mejfias, Serm. XII. And I will Jill this houfe tvith glory, faith the Lord of HoJlSy fpeaking of the fecond temple, which was then in building, which though it fell very much ihort of Solomon's, in point of ftate and magnifi- cence ; yet by being honoured with the prefence of the Meffias, it fliould be much more glorious than Solomon's temple-. The fiher is mine, and the gold is wine, faith the Lord of Hojls ; not that God wanted the Command of gold and filver, to have made the fecond temple equal to Solomon's in outward glory and fplendor ; he could eafily have made it fo in that refpedt ; and Jofephus tells us, that not long' before the time of our Saviour's coming, Herod had built and beautified It to that degree, that in fome rcfpe6ls it excelled Solomon's ; and of this fonie underftand the next words, the glory of this lat- ter houfe f jail he greater than of the former ; namely, that this was accomplifhed in that beauty and magnifi- cence which was added to it, when it was re-edi^ fied by Herod the great : but however that be, this is certain, 'that it was much more glori- ous rn another^refpedt, namely, that it entertained the Meffias, the great expedtation ^nd blefling of all nations. And -in this pkee zvill I give peace, faith the Lord of Hfljis. Some undcrftand this, of that univerfal peace that 'A-as throughout the world, when our Sa- viour was born in the reign of Auguftus Qefar, Others with great probability interpret this of the Meflias hinifeif, who is called here by the name of peace ; and fo fome of the ancient Jews underftood it; in this place zvill I give peace, that is, the Meffias, For the Hebrew word fignifies all kind of happinefs, and fo it includes all thofc bleffings and benefits, that happinefs and falvation which the Meffiaa brought to the world. And this will appear very probable, if we confider, how frequently in fcrip- turc .this title is given to the Meffias. If, ix. 6, he is Serm. XII. the Glory of the fecond Temple. 175 is called the prmce of peace ; and Zach. ix. 10, it is laid of him, that he J]:ould fpeak pedce to the nationSy and the apoftle to the Hebrews parallels hini with Melchifedech in this particular, that he zvas king of Salem, that is, king of peace ; and which is very little different from this, he is frequently in fcrip- ture called falvation, which fignifics the happinefs of being refcucd and delivered from all kind of e- vil ; as peace fignlfies all kind of good, If. xlix. 6, / zvill aljo give the for a light to th gentiles , that thou tnayeji be my falvation to the end of the earth : and Luke ii. 30, when Simeon had our blcfled Saviour in his arms, when he was firfl brought into the temple, he calls him the falvation of God ; mine eyes, faith he to God, have feen thy falvation; and John iv. 22, falvation is of the Jezvs, that is, the Mcflias was to be of that nation. But which is more exprefs, Chrift is called our peace, Eph. ii. 14, nay, he is cxprefsly called peace, or the peace, Mic. v. 5, and this man, fpeaking of the Meflias, fi?allbe the peace, that is, one of his names or titles lliall be peace. So that I make little doubt, but that in this cxpreffion in the text, o^ giving peace, is meant, giving the Meffias; and that this is rendered as the reafon, why the glory of the fecond temple fhould be greater than of the firft, becaufe in that place the Meflias fhould appear, and remarkably fhew himfelf. God could have given this fecond temple, if he had thought fit, as much outward glory and beauty as that of Solomon's building : for filver and gold are his, and all the riches of the world are at his cpmmand, but he chofe to put a far greater honour i)pon it than that of filver and gpld, and to make it much more glorious in another refp^all come : and I doubt not but this character of the Meffias is taken out of that fa- mous prophecy concerning him. Gen. xlix. 10. The fceptre Jloall not depart from Judah till Sh'iloh come, and by Shiloh tb^e ancient Jews generally underflood the Meffias, and to hm Jloall the gathering of the people be; or as it is rendered by the feptuagint, and feve- ral other tranllations, and he Ihall be the expecta- tion of the nations; in allufion to which ancient pro- phecy concerning him, he is here in the text called the expedatlon of all nations; and fo by the prophet Ma- lachi, chap. iii. ver. i, and the Lordzvhom ye expetl, or look ioxjhallfuddenly come into his temple. Now this part of the prediftion in the text, was mofl eminently fulfilled in our blefled Saviour. For about the time of his coming, the Jews w^ere in a general exped:a- tion S E R M. XII. the Glory of thefecond 'Temple, 179 {.ion of him, as appears not only from that ancient and general tradition of theirs, from the fchool of Elias, " that at the end of the fccond two thoufand " years of the world, the Meflias fliould come ;" and our blelied Saviour's coming did accordingly happen at that time ; but likewifc from that parti- cular computation of the Jewifli dodfors, not long before our Saviour's coming, who, upon a folemo debate of the matter, did determine that the Mef- fias would come within fifty years. And this is fur- ther confirmed, from the gieat jealoufy which He- rod had concerning a king of the Jews, that was cxpecilcd to be born about this time ; and from that remarkable teftimony in Jofephus, who tells us, *' that the Jews rebelled againft the Romans, be- *' ing encouraged thereto by a famous prophecy ** in their fcripturcs, that about that time a great *' prince fliould be born among them, that fhould ** rule the world;" and Jofephus flattered Vefpafi- an fo far, as to make him believe that he was the man; and thereupon perfuaded him to dcftroy the line of David, out of which the tradition was, that the Meffias fliould fpring; as if the accomplifliment of a divine prediction could be hindered by any hu- man endeavour. And this was not only the general expedration of the Jews about that time, but of a great part of the world ; as appears from thefe two famous tefli- monies of two of the moft eminent Roman hiftori- ans, Suetonius and Tacitus. The words of Sueto- nius are thefe, Percrebuerat oriente toto vetus &f conjlans opinio, ejfe in faiis, ut Judca profe^i rerum potirentur : *' there was an ancient and general opinion, fa- " mous throughout all the eaftern parrs, that the *' fates had determined, that there fhould come *' out of Judea thofe that fhould govern the w^orld;" and he adds what I quoted before of Jofephus, idJudiU ad fe trahsntes rebellamnt; " that the Jews Z 2 *' taking i8o T'he Prefence of the Mejftas, Serm. XII. ** taking this to themfelves, did thereupon rebel." Now it is very remarkable, that the very words of this tradition leem to be a verbal tranflation of that prophecy in Micah, that out of JudaJJjall come the go- vernor. The other teflimony is out of Tacitus ; and his words are thefe, lib. 21, §. 13. Pluribus perfua/io inerat antlquis focerdotutn Ubris contineriy eo ipfo tempore fore^ ut valefceret oricns, projediqtte Judca rerum pot'ir en- ter : ** a great many, fays he, were poffelfed with *' a perfuafion that it was contained in the antient ** books of the priefts, that at that very time the '* eaft Ibould prevail, and that they who ihould go- ^* vern the world, were to come outof Judea." By the ancient books of the priefts, he In all probabi- lity means, the ancient prophecies of fcripture ; for the laft expreffion is the fame with that of Suetoni-- us taken out of the prophet Micah ; and the other, •^^ that the eaft fhould prevail,'* does plainly refer to that title given to the Meflias by the prophet Za- chary, chap. vi. 12, where he is called, the man whofe name is the Branch, as our tranflation hath it, but it might as well be rendered, the man whofe name is the eaft. Thus you fee this charadier of our Saviour in this prophecy moft literally fulfil- led, that he W2S the expe^ation oj all nations, I prO" ceed to the III. Circumftance of this predidtion, that he who is here foretold, Ihould come during the continu- ance of this fecond temple ; becaufe it was his pre- fence, that ftiould fill that houfe with glory ; and it was in that place that the Meflias, who is called the peace, is promifed to be given ; and in this place will I give peace, faith the Lord of Hojls, And this is like- wife moft cxprcfsly foretold by the prophet Mala- chi, chap. iii. i. Behold, I zvlll fend my meffeng^er, and heJJmll prepare the way before me : and the Lord, whom ye look for, JJ?all fuddenly come into his temple ; even the tncjfenger oj the covenant zvhomye delight in^ behold he JI)all come Serm. XII. the Glory of the fccondTempk, i8i rome^ faitk the Lord of Hojis : and accordingly Jcru"; our blelil'd Saviour came during the lecond temple ; he was prefcnted there by his parents, and owned by Simeon for the Meffias ; he difputed there, and taught frequently there, and by his prefence filled 4 bat hoiife zv'ith glory. For that the Son of God taught publicly there, was a greater honour to it, than all the filver and gold of Solomon's temple. And not long after his death, according to the exprefs prcdidtion, this fecond temple was deflroy- ed to the ground ; fo that not onejhnc of it zvas left up- on another. And when fome hundred years after, it was attempted to be rebuilt three feveral times, the laft whereof was by JtUian the apo(bite, in oppofi- tion to Chriftianity, and to our Saviour's predic- tion ; fire came out of the foundation, and deftroy- cd the workmen ; fo that they deiilled in great ter- ror, and durll never attempt it afterwards. And this not only the Chriflian writers of that age in great numbers do tellify, but Ammianus Marcelli- nus, a Heathen hiftorian who lived in that time, does alio give us a very particular account of this memorable matter. So that if by the cxpcciation of the nations be here meant the Mcllias, as I have plainly ihcwn, then he is long lincc come, and was no other than Jefus our blefled Saviour, who accord- ing to this prophecy, ct'^j to fill the fecond temple zuith glory ; which hath now been demolifhcd above one thoufand fix hundred years ago, and the rebuilding whereof hath been fo often and fo remarkably hin- dered from Heaven, The confideration of all which were fufficient to convince the Jews of their vain expeftation of a Meflias yet to come ; were they not fo obltinatcly rooted and fixed in their in- fidelity. There remains now the IV. And lall: circumftance of this prophecy, viz. that the coming of the Meffias was to be the laft difpenfation of God, for the fulvation of men ; and confe- 1 82 I'he Prefcnce of the AleJfiaSy Serm. XII. confequently was to be perpetual and unchangeable ; Tet once more, and I zuilljhake the Heavens , and the earth, and the fea, and the dry land : and I zvillJJjake all nations, and the expetiation of all nations JI'mU come. Yet once more ; from which words, the apoftle to the Hebrews argues the perpetuity of the gofpel, and that it was the difpenfation which fliould never be changed, Heb. xii. 27. And this zvord, yet once more, fignlfies, the removing of thofe things zvhich are p:aken, as of things that are made, that thofe things which cannot he Jhaken may remain. And then it follows, zvherefore zve re- ceiving a kingdom zvhich cannot be moved, &c. It was u- Uial with the Jews to delcribe the times of the gof^ pel, by the kingdom of the Meffias ; and accord- ly the apofhle here calls the difpenfation of the gof- pel, a kingdom zvhich cannot be moved : in opposition to the law, which was an imperfed: and alterable dif- penfcUion, For this is plainly the fcope of the a- poftle's reafoning ; namely, to convince the Jews, that they were now under a more gracious and per- feft difpenfation than that of the law, ver. 18. I'e are not come unto the mount, that might be touched, and that burned zvith fire ; meaning mount Sinai, which was a fenfible literal mountain, a mountain that might he touched', in oppoiition to the myilical and fpiri- tual mount Sion ; by which the difpenfation of the gof])el is defcribed ; which by the way prevents the objcd;ion of its being called the mountain that might he touched, when it was forbidden to be touched upon pain of death ; ye are not come to the mount that mught be touched; that is, I am not now fpeaking of a li- teral and fenfible mountain, fuch as was mount Si- nai, from whence the law was given ; but of that fpiritual and Heavenly difpenfation of the gofpel, which was typified by mount Sion and by Jerufa- lem ; but ye are come to 'mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the Heavenly Jerufalem, and to jfefus the Mediator of the nczv covefiant. And then he cautions them Serm. XII. the Glory of the fecond Temple. 183 them to take heed how they rejcdt him that came from Heaven, to make this lart revelation of God to the world ; which, becaufe of the clearnefs and perfection of it, fljould never need to receive any change, ver. 25. Sec that ye refujhwt him that fpeaketh ; for if they efcaped not, ivbo refufed him that fpake on earthy (viz. Moles, who delivered the law from Mount Sinai) much more Jhall not zve efiape, if we turn azvay from him that fpeaketh from Heaven : whofe voice then Jhok the earth, (alluding to the earthquake at the giving of the law) but no'jj he hath promifed, faying, yet once more, Ijhake not the earth only; but alfo Heaven ; "that is, " the whole world," in order to the com- ing of the Meffias, and the planting of the gofpel in the world ; and then he argues from the words once more, that the former difnenfation fliould be re- moved, to make way for that which Ihould perpe- tuallv remain. And indeed there is no need of any farther reve- lation after this ; nor of any change of that religion which was brought from Heaven by the Son of God ; becaufe of the perfedion of it, and its fitnefs to reform the world, and to recover mankind out of their lapfed and degenerate condition, and to bring them to happinefs ; both by the purity of its dodrine, and the power of its arguments to work upon the minds of men, by the clear difco- very ot the mighty rew^ards and punifhments of another world. And now the proper inferences from all this dif- courfe, is the very fame with that which the apoftle makes, from the confideration of the perfedlion and excellency of this revelation, which God hath made to the world by his Son. See that ye refufe tiot him that fpeaketh : for how jhall roe efcape, if zve turn azvay from him that fpeaketh from Heaven P And at the 28th verfe of that chi-.pter, Wherefore zve receiving a king- dom zuhich cannot be moved, let us have grace, zvhereby we 184 "^l'^ Prefence of the Me//ias, Serm. XII. we may fcr-ve God acceptably, zvith reverence and godly fear ; that is, let us live as becomes thofe to whom God hath made fo clear and perfect a revelation of his will. We have all the advantages of the divine revelation which the world ever had, and the lalt and moft perfect that the world ever ihall have : we have not only Mofes and the prophets, but that doctrine which the Son of God came down from Heaven on purpofe to declare to the world. God hath vouchfafed to us that clear and complete re- velation of his will, which h.t dtrntdi to many pro- phets and righteous men ; who dejired to fee the things which we fee, but could not fee them ; and to hear the things which zve hear, but could not hear them. There were good men in the world under thofe imperfe(ft revelations which God made to them ; but we have far greater advantages, and more powerful argu- ments to be good than ever they had. And as we ought thankfully to acknowledge thefe blefled ad- vantages ; fo ought we likewife, with the greateft care and diligence, to improve them. And now how does the ferious coniideratlon of this, condemn all impenitent finners under the gof- pel, who will not be reclaimed from their fms, and pcrfuaded to goodnefs, by all that God can do; by the mofl plain declaration of his will to the world, by the mofl perfedl precepts and dirediioos for a good life ; by the moft encouraging promifes to o- bedience, and by the mofl fevere threatenings of an eternal and unutterable ruin, in cafe of difobedi- ence ; by the zvrath of God revealed from Heaven, againjl all ungodimefs and unrighteoufnefs of men ; by the terrors of the great day, and the vengeance of eternal fire ; by the wonderful and amazing condefcenfion of the Son of God, appearing in our nature; by his mer- ciful undertaking for the redemption of loft and finful man ; by his cruel fuffcrings for our fms, and b.y the kindeft offers of pardon and reconciliation in his Serm. XII. the Glory of the fecondtv7nple. 185 his blood, and by the glorious hope of eternal life ! What could God have done more for us, than he hath done ? What greater concernment could he fhcw for our falvation, than to fend his (Evn Son, his only Son, to feek and fave us 'f And what greater de- monftration could he give of his love to us, than to give the Son of his love to die for us r" This is the laft effort that the divine mercy and goodnefs will make upon mankind. So the apoftle tells us in the be- ginning of this epirtle, chap. i. i. that God who at fundry times, and in divers manners, fpake in times paji unto the fathers, by the prophets, hath in thefe laft days, fpoken to us by his Son : and if wc will not hear him, he vvill fpeak no more ; after this it is not to be ex- pedted that he fliould make any farther attempts for our recovery, he can fend no greater and dearer perfon to us, than his own Son. If we defpife him; whom will we reverence ? If we rejedt him, and the great falvation which he brings and offers to us ; we have all the reafon in the world to believe that our cafe is defperate, and that we fhall die in ou.rftns. 'This was the condemnation of the Jews, that they did not receive and believe on him zvhom God hadfent* And if we who profefs to believe on him, and to receive his do<5trine, be found difobedient to it, in our lives, we have reafon to fear that our condem- nation Ihall be far heavier than theirs: for fince the appearance of the Son of God for the falvation of men, the wrath of God is revealed from Heaven againft all v.ngodlinefs and unrighteoufnefs of men, efpecially againft thofe who detain the truth of God in unrighteoufnefs ; that is, againft thofe who entertain the light of God's truth in their minds, but do not fuffer it to have its pro- per effedl and influence upon their hearts and lives ; and make that a prifoner, which would make them free. So our Lord tells us, that the truth jhall make us free ; but if after we have received the knowledge of the truth, we arc ftill the ferv ants of fm ; our condemna- VoL. II. A a tioa I S 6 fk Prefence of the MijfiaSy Serm. XM* tion is much worfc than if thef Son of God had never come : for the Chriftiari religion has done nothing; if it do not take men off from their fins, and teach them to live well. Efpcciall)- at this time when we are celebrating the coming of this Son of God, to deftroy the works of the devil, we flionld take great heed, that we be not found guiltv of any impietj^or wickcdnefs ; becaule this is dircftly contrary to the main defign of the grace of God, which brings fahation, and hath appeared to all men, '(and the appearance whereof we do at this time commemorate) for th-at teacheth men to deny un^ godlinefs and worldly lujls, and to live fob eriy and righte^ ot'Jly and godlily in this prefent iVorld : and we cannot gratify the devil more, than by Ihewing ourfelves more diligent than ordinary to uphold his works, at this *uery time, when the Son of God was manifejied on purpofe to dijjblve them; we cannot poflibly chufe a worfe, a more improper feafon to fin in, than when we are celebrating the birth of the blefled jefus, who came tofave us from our Jins, This is, as if a fick man, for joy that a famous phyfician is come to his houfe, fhould run into all manner of excefs, and fo do all he can to inflame his difeafc, and make his cafe defperate. Not but that our inward joy may lawfully be accompanied with all outward innocent exprcfiions of it • but we cannot be truly thankful, if we allow ourfelves at this time any thing contrary to the purity and fobriety of the gofpel. It is mat- ter of juft and fad complaint, being of great fcan- dal to our Saviour, and his holy religion, that fuch 'irregular and extravagant things are at this time commonly done by many, who call thcmfelves Chrif- tians ; and done under a pretence of doing honour to the memory of Chrift's birth ; as if, becaufe the Son of God was at this time made man, it were fit for men to make themfelves beatls. If- Serm. XII. the Glory of the fimid 'Temple, 187 If \vc would honour him indeed, we mull take care that our joy do not degenerate into fin and fenfuality, and that we do not exprefs it by lewdncls and luxurv, by intemperance and excefs, by pro- digal gaming and profufe waiting of our eftates, as the manner of fome is y as if we intended literally to requite our Saviour, zvho being rich, for our fakes be- came poor. This is the way oi parting wi/h l.oufis and land^ and becoming poor for his fake y for which he will never thank, nor reward us. This is not to com- memorate the coming of our Saviour, but to con- tradidt it, and openly to declare that we will up- hold the works of the devil, in defpite of !hc Son of God ivho came to dejiroy them. It is for all the world like that lewd and ienfelefs piece of loyalty, too much in fafhion fomc years ago, of being drunk for the king. Good God ! that ever it lliouid pafs for a piece of religion among Chriflians, to run into all manner of excels for twelve days together in honour of our Saviour ! A greater aggravation of fin can- not eafily be imagined, than to abufe the me- mory of the grcnrcft blefling that ever was, Chrifl coming into the world to take azvayfui, into an opportu- nity of committing it ,• this is to reprefeut the Son of God as a patron of fin and liccntioufnefs, and to treat him more contumeliouiily than the Jews did, who bowed the knee to him, and mocked him, and called him king, and fpit upon him ; and, under a pretence of rejoicing for his birth, to crucify to our- fehes afrej]}, the Lord of life and glory, and to put him to an open fhame, I will conclude all with the apoftle*s exhortation Rom, xiii, 12, 13, 14. Let us cafl off the works of dark- itefs, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk decently as in the day \ not in rioting and drunkcnnefs, not in chambering and zvantonnefs, not infirife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jefus Chrijl, and make not pravifionfov 'iheJeJJj to fulfil the litfi thereof, No-vi' 1 88 fke Frefence of the MeJiaSy Serm. XII. Now to our moft gracious and merciful God, the great friend and lover of fouls, who regarded us in our low and loft condition, and caft an eye of pity upon us, when we were in our blood, and no other eye pitied us, and when we had loft and ruined ourfelves, was pleafed in tender compaflion to mankind, to fend his only begotten Son into the world to feek andfcwe us, and by the purity of his doftrine, and the pattern of his life, and the facrifice of his death to purchafe eternal life for us, and to dired: and lead us in the way to it : and to him alfo the blcfled Saviour and Redeemer of mankind, who came down from Hea- VS'n, that he might carry us thither, and took hu- man nature upon him, that we thereby might be fnade partakers of a divine nature ; and humbled himfclf to death, even the death of the crofs, that he might exalt us to glory and honour, and whilft we were bitter enemies to him, gave fuch a demonftra- tion of his love to us, as never any man did to his beft friend : Unto him that Jitteth upon the throne, and to the lamb thfit zvasflain, to God, evefi our Father, and to our Lord Jefus Chrifl, the firji begotten from the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth, to him who hath loved us, and wafhed us from our Jins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priejls unto God and his Father, to him be glory and honour, dominion and power, now aftdfor n'cr* 4'fUen, SERMON SERMON XIII. By the Rev. James Foster. OF THE IMAGB OF GOD IN MAN ; OR THE EXCELLENCY OF HUMAN NATURE. Genesis u 7. So &od created man In his own image, in the ianage of God created he him. THERE is no part of knowledge more confider- ablc than a right knowledge of human nature : it is of the utmoft importance towards the regular condudt of life ; and all the errors of mankind in point of morality, i. e. the moft fatal errors that reafonable creatures can be guilty of, are certainly owing to their not underftanding, ot not ferioufly confidering, their own frame and conftitution : and yet it may well be wondered at, that men fhould be iiich great Grangers to the defign of their own na- ture, and of all the objedts of knowledge, know the leaft of themfelves ; of themfelves, I fay, whom they are fond of even to excefs, and whofe welfare they neceflarily defire, but while they continue in this flatc of ignorance cannot purfue : for unlefs we examine into our own make, and confider the powers and 1 90 Of the Image of God in Man : or Serm. XIII, and capacities vherewitli we are endued, and the ends which the great author of our being de- figned us for, 'tis impoffible wc fhould underftand our di^ty, or our happinefs. Indeed; human nature has been reprefented in foJbafe, difagreeable, and monftrous a form, that the contemplation of it muft needs be frightful and Shocking to a generous mind ; as having loft its noble powers of reafon and liberty, and being the feat of nothing but irregular, impure, and mifchiev- ous paffions ; as incapable of any thing that is good and virtuous, and prone to all manner of vice and wickednefs. — And if this were true, who could take any fatisfadtion in looking into himfeif, when be muft behold fuch a hideous picture of deformit)' ? — But thanks be to God, the honour of our naturQ may be eafily vindicated from fuch unjuft reproach- es, as will, I hope, evidently appear from the en^ luing difcourfe ; and, befides, fuch an account of it is, in its direct confequences, of the utmoft pre- judice to the inrerefts of religion and morality : for as, on the one hand, a right fenfe of the dignity of human nature infpires great dofigns, leads to the moft beneficent, generous, and Godlike actions, and is a ftrong prefervative from every thing th.fr. is vile and difhonourable ; fo, on the other, when it is defcribed as having nothing excellent or amiable in it, and as a complication of mean-fpiritednefs, ill-nature, ignorance and vice ; and when, upon this foundation, injuftice, cruelty, ingratitude, pride, revenge, and the worft of villanies are reprefented as natural to mankind ; this has a manifeft tenden- cy, to encourage their degenerate and licentious pradlices, and furnifh them with an excufe for their wickednefs, viz. the neceffary corruption and de- pravity of their nature. And finally, if this be a true pifture of human nature, what muft we think of the great original from whic^i it was copied I "•'""' muft Serm, XIll. the Excellency of Human Nature^ i 9 1 muil: not the giving fuch a charafter of it be high- ly difhonourable to the lupremc, and immutable perfection of its glorious author ? The confequcncci is plain and undeniable: for God crecited man in hh own inhigey in the image of God created he him. In dif- couriing farther on thefe words, I fhall I. Show, wherein the image of the Deity, in man, confiils ; and that not only the firft parents of the human race, but all mankind fmce, notvvith- rtanding the corrupt and degenerate ftate of the ivorld, were oric;inally formed after the image of God. And II. Conclude with fome proper and ufeful in- ferencss. 1. I am to fhow wherein the image of the Deity, in man, confills ; and that not only the firft parents of the human race, but all mankind fmce, notwith- ftanding the corrupt and degerate ftate of the world, were originally formed after the image of God. Some commentators have imagined, that by the image of God, in which he created our firft parents is meant a vifible fplendor, a glory that conftantly attended them, and.refembled, in fome degree, the Shechinah, which was the glorious fymbol of the divine prefence : but this is matter of mere conjec- ture, and of very little confcquence in itfelf. I Ihall therefore infift no longer upon it, but proceed to mention fome things that are more plain and cer- tain, and of general and evident importance. Man is a being partly fenfitive, and partly ratio- nal. There can be no refemblancc of his great creator in the fcnfuive part of his frame, becaufc he is a pure and infinite fpirit : and therefore when bodily parts, and fuch paflions as frail men expe- rience, are attributed to the great God in fcripture, W'e muft underftand fuch defcriptions, as ufed in condefccnfion to our weaknefs, and narrow irap^rfcdt conceptions of things ; and interpret them in fuch a man- 192 Of the hnage of God in Man : or Serm. XIII. a manner, as vvJll make them confident with plain paffages that aflert the fpirituality of the divine na- ture, and with the reafon and nature of things. It remains then, that man can bear the image of the Deity only in his intelligent nature. And, 1. He rcfembles his creator in his reafon, and underflanding ; whereby he is capable of making very coniiderable improvements in knowledge, and of difcovering all thofe truths which are neceffary to the right management of his condudt, and to fecure his perfedtion and happinefs : in that he is not impelled and determined by mere inftindl, but is capable of confidering and examining the nature and confequences of things, and of making a deliberate and wife choice : and this, very probably, is one of the principal things intended in the text. For God, having finifhed the inanimate and animal creation, is defcribed^ as proceeding to the making a being in his own image, after his likenefs, i. e. a reafon- able creature, who muft, confequently, refemble him the fupreme and moft perfedt reafon ; and the great priviledge defigned to be conferred upon this being was a dominion over the inferior creatures, in order to which reafon was abfolutely necefTaiy. And becaufe reafon is the moft eminent diftindtion and glory of the human nature, by which man, as lord of the lower world, is highly advanced above the other beings that inhabit it, 'tis not unlikely, that the hiftorian reprefents the Deity as proceeding to this part of his creation with peculiar ceremony, to do honour thereby to this excellent nature, and give us a becoming fenfe of its importance and dignity. But 2. The image of God, in man, has a refped:, farther, to the mor^.l redtitude in which he was created. The rational principle within him ftrong- ly directed to all the duties of piety ; to the prac- tice of juftice ; and the cxercifc of benevolence, one Se rm. XIII. the Kxcellemy ofUumon Nature. 1 93 one of the brightcll: characftcrs of the Deity, in all its branches ; to which h^it virtue he was alio ex* cited by peculiar inflintls, that it was impoflible for him entirely to lupprels without lofing huma- nity itl'clf. And as to his paflions, they were all in a regular itate, and fubjed: to the government of rcafon ; which was capable of keeping them within their proper bounds, that they might nor, at any time, be extravagant and diforderly. This was the firft happy ftate of man. And in confe- quence of his underltanding, the great compafs of his rational powers, his moral redtitude, and par- ticularly, the kind and benevolent afFedtions of his nature, (in which confifted his more immediate rcfemblance of his maker) he was appointed to ex- crcife dominion over the inferior creatures ; and fo to be the reprefentative of the great author and governor of nature in this lower world, and difpenfe his authority. I have given this Ihort and general account of the image of God in man, that I might have time to demontlrate, what is of the greateft importance, and the only thing that can make a difcourfe on this fubjedt ufeful to us, viz. That, in all thefe refpedts, not only the firft parents of mankind, but their defcendants, were originally formed after the divine image. None will deny that mankind are reafonable creatures, how much foever they may be inclined to diminifh the excellency, and weaken the force of human reafon : and, I think, it can, with as little juftice, be denied, that the reafon of man- kind is able, in all important inftances, to diftin- guifh between right and wrong, good and evil ; and that their intelledtual faculties are of very large extent, formed for making great and woinierful difcovcries, and capable of being, for ever, en- larged and improved ; fo that, as reafonable crea- tures, they ftill evidently retain the jimage of God- V9L. II. '.B b And 1 9 4 Of the Image of God in Man : or Se r M. XIIL And this, I believe, will be eafily allowed, and the only queftion will be, whether mankind, in their original formation, before they are perverted and corrupted by prejudices of education and cuf- tom, the influence of evil examples, and vitious habits wilfully contracted, ftill retain the image of God, with refpedt to m.oral re(5titude. Nour that this is really the cafe appears rrom. hence, that they have underftanding to diredt the impulfcs and affeftions of the animal nature, to confider when they are to be indulged, and when reftrained, to form juft notions of happinefs, and regulate the dclire of prefent fenfitive pleafure, that it may not interfere with the redtitude of their higher powers, and the exercife of benevolence towards their fellow-creatures ; that, having a prin- ciple of reafon and liberty, they mufl be capable of knowing, loving, and ferving God their creator, and fupreme governor, and of the pleafurcs of mu- tual benevolence and friendfliip, as well as of go- verning their animal paflions, by keeping them within due bounds, and controuling them when they grow licentious and extravagant ; and that this is the dircdt tendency of human nature, even in its prefent ftate. For human nature, even in its pre- fent conftitution, is a reafonable nature, and the reafonable nature of man has no evil tendency, but diredls to the purfuit of wifdom and virtue, and to fupprcfs all corrupt dcfires. For inftancc, is it not agreeable to human nature to reverence the great author and governor of the w^orld, and fecure his protedtion and favour, on whom v.e abfolutely depend, by an imitation of his perfections, and obedience to his commands ? does not nature teach us to be juft and charitable, to compaffionate the miferable, and relieve the diilrefs'd ? are not thcfe virtues fuitable to our ftrongeft affections and inftincts ? and the contrary vices. Se R M . X 1 1 1 . //^^ ExccllcKcx of Human Ndture. 1^5 vices, by the nnivcrfal conlcnr of mankind, brand- ed as inhuman and monllrous ? again, is it not natural to us to feck and endeavour to promote our own happincfs, and, confequently, to mortify all thofe evil appetites, which arc the fources of cor- ruption and milery ? Or does our nature dircdt us to rebel againrt the author of our being, to prey upon our own kind, to delight in opprcfTion and injuftice, and in the mifery of our fellow creatures, and to be agitated by wild and extravagant defires which fink us even below the condition of brutes ? Mankind may, indeed, degenerate into this mifer- able ftate, but ftill, all muil allow that this is not human nature, but a moll dreadful depravation ot it ; for our rcafonable nature teaches us to abhor thcfe things : lb that, according to Solomon's obfcr- vation, in all ages of the world, God 'made man i'.prl<;:^hi , but they have fought out mam Inventions, Ecci. vii. 29. For the original integrity of human nature does not con- iift in having no temptations to vice, but in bein^ able to fubdue and conquer fuch temptations : which it mult be capable of doing, as it has rcafon to dirc6t it to what is right and fit to be done, and u power of choofing freely, and confcquently of act- ing according to its right judgment of things. It mufl, after all, be confefTed, that there is a ficknefs and difordcr, in our mortal frame, intro- duced by the fall, which confidering the clofenefr-: and intimacy of their union, may be fuppofcd in fome meafure, to ai!'ect the mind : it may be a clog upon our reafoning powers, and flrengthen the ani- mal paffions : but this is entirely a natural, and not a moral defedl ; w hich can't arif6 in any inftancc, from bodily conftitution, but only from a perverfc- nefs and depravity of the will : and fuch natural diforders are only like external objed:s and circum- fiances, occafions of, and temptations to vice, and • B b 2 confc- 1^6 OftheImdgcofGodinAIan:or SeRxM. XIIL confequentl^)- of no weight againft any part of the preceding argument. The grand foundation of men's error, in judging of thefe things, has been this, either that they have taken their eilimate of human nature from the fen- fitive and brutal part of it, and not from the in- telligent and moral, and reprefented to their minds, as the original flate of it, fuch evil difpofitions and habits as are of their own creating; ; or elfe, that they have underllood particular paffagcs of fcrip- ture, which give the character of the moft profli- gate and abandoned finners, as dcfcribing the na- tural temper of all mankind ; and llrained ftrong figurative exprcllions, which are very frequent in the eaftern languages, to their highell fenfe, con- trary to the general deiign of the revelation, as well as the plain reafon of things : and, indeed, if per- fons Vv^ill proceed in fuch an undiftinguifhing way, it is no wonder they bring themfelves to believe any thing, however abfurd and in itfelf incredible. Let me only add, that as it is a plain and obvious truth, how much foever men's partial views of things, and mifapprehenfion of fome doubtful palFages of fcrip- ture may confound and darken it : that human na- ture, even in its prefent ftate, is a reafonable nature, and that to fuch a nature as this, vice and wicked- nefs of all kinds is necclTarily repugnant ; befides, I fay, that this is an obvious truth ; fuch a fenfe of things, which is lb much the honour of human na- ture, and of the great God, who formed ir to re- femble his own perfediions, mufl yield abundant fatisfaCtion to every pious and every generous mind. I fliall but juft mention, that man continues flill to bear the image of God, in rcfpedt of his domi- nion over the inferior creatures. The inanimate, vegetable, and animal w^orld are ufcful to him various ways ; fome by their labour ; others for food and cloathing ; and not only adminiftcr to his necef- Serm. XIII. the Excellency of Human Nature. 1 9^ neccffitics, but contribute jointly to the conveni- ence and ornament ot life : and it may be qucftion- ed, whether it would be poffible for him, in forac inllances, to exercife his dominion in the manner he now does, were it not for a kind of inftindt plant- ed in the nature of animals, to acknowledge him as their fuperior lord. But I difmifs this head, and proceed II. To make fome ufeful inferences from what has been faid. And, I. Let us be thankful to God for having fo dif- tinguifhed and honoured our nature, as to form it after his own image. Our rational and moral powers, by which we rcfemble the Deity, are the chief excellency and advantage of our nature : by thefe we are eminently advanced above the brute creatures, rendered capable of the pleafurcs of fo-^ cicty and friendfhip, and of improvements in know-' ledge and virtue : it is by the means of thcfc powers, that we alone, of the whole vifible world, are fitted to contemplate the great author of the u- niverfe, and celebrate the glory of his perfediions. Are we not then under the ilronffcft ties of g-rati- tude, by our united prailes, to excite m one ano- ther's minds, a warm and affedlionate fenfe of his goodnefs, and a generous ambition of imitating his moil: excellent character ? Shall we omit a dutv for which we are fo peculiarly formed, and the obliga- tion to which arifes, immediately from our very make and conftitution ? And as the noble faculties, with which he has adorned our minds, qualify us for paying him a voluntary homage and obedience, lliall we not teftify our fenfe of this high favour by the moft entire and chearful refignation, and devot* ecJncfs to his fervice ? All the laws, by which he governs us, are the refult of moft perfed: wifdom and goodnefs, and calculated to promote our fupremc perfection and felicitv 5 19^ Of the Image of God in Man : or Serm. XIII. felicity; and therefore, piety, juflice, charity, and temperance, or the regulating our afFedtions and defa-es, are effentfally our duty by the very frame of our nature : and if we ^are wilfully deficient in any one branch of it ; if we are thoughtlefs and in- confiderate, and negligent of our actions, we are unworthy the name of rcafonable creatures, and hig-hly affront the wife and bountiful author of our beings, who hath beftowed that excellent character upon us. 2. Let us maintain a juft {q\\(q of the worth and dignity of our nature, as we have the honour to be formed after the image of God : I mean, that we Ihould value it in fuch a degree, as is neceffary to enable us to fupport our characfter, and infpire fen- timents of gcneroiity and virtue. It is a laudable greatnefs of mind to preferve fuch an opinion of the excellency of our nature, as ihall reftrain from bafe and difgraceful aftions : and no thought will more efFcdiually anfwer this end, than that of our being made in the likenefs of the greateft and befl: of beings : fhall fuch a one diHionour himfclf fo far as to relinquifli the noble entertainments of the mind, which are peculiar to rational beings, for thofe grofs and fenfual gratifications, which he en- joys in common with inferior and irrational crea- tures ? and thereby from being exalted to a refem^ blance of the Deity, fink into the condition of a mere animal ? An ingenuous fpirit would reje upon rcfledrion, find himfelf thus refolved and qua- lified, he hath great reafon to be pleafed with his condition, and to conclude that it is well pleafing to God alfo : for there is no furer mark of inte- grity, than a courageous adherence to virtue, in the midft of a general and fcandalous apoftacy. Which is the reafon that Noah and Abraham, Lot and Daniel have fo high an encomium beftow- ed on them in fcripture, and are recommended as patterns of a ftrid:, uncomplying uprlghtnefs, to all fucceeding ages. Further, Sixthly, It is no flight token of our fincerity in religion, if we are apt to fufpcd it, on the account of little things ; which is often the cafe of very de- D d 2 YOUt 212 On Religious Sincerity. Serm. XIV. vout Chriftians, and who have really the leail oc- cafion to miftrull: themfelves of any men. Per- Ibns of a nice and tender confcience, very care- ful to pleafe God, and very fearful of of- fending him, are, for that very reafon, prone to imagine that they fall infinitely fhort of their duty, if they do not, in every refpecft, exaftly dif- charge it ; and to difquiet themfelves on this ac- count, with many groundlefs fcruples and terrors. Sometimes, the principle, from whence their re- pentance fprang, gives them great uneafmefs; for they remember, that the reformation of heart and life, in which they are now well advanced, began at firft, not from a true and ardent love of God ; but from the mere dread of punifhment. Some- times their unequal performance of religious du- ties deje6:s, and difpirits them ; they find them- felves cold and unmoved, when they are upon their knees ; in the mofl folemn and raifing parts of the fervice, and even at the reception of the bleffed fa- crament itfelf, they do not feel an holy warmth kindling in their hearts, nor their mind melting under the imprellions that are then made upon it : and they conclude therefore, that there is a vein of hypocrify running through all thefe performances, which makes them worthlefs and unacceptable. Now thefe, and fuch as thefe, I fay, are, for the moft part, the doubts and mifgivings of the fin- cercly good and pious ; for they are fuch as feldom trouble the confciences of men of a different cha- racter : and therefore, thofe very fcruples, which dillurb good Chriflians fo much, would, if rightly underftood, give them matter of found comfort and encouragement : their very doubts concerning the goodnefs of their flate, are, if they had but tlie heart to think fo, a fure reafon why they Ihould not doubt of It. Let not then the true faints and fervants of God perplex and a£Bi<^ themfelves with fuch Serm. XIV. Oft Religious Sincerity. 213 fuch difficulties; let them not give up their reli- gion, by their means, to the laughter and fcorn of profane men, who, from a few fuch inllanccs as thefe, take plcafure to reprcfcnt it, as reiiding on- ly in weak brains, as the employment of melan- choly and difeafed minds ; and who flick not, in the gaiety of their hearts, to fay, that a f>ri6l piety is good for nothing, but to make the owners of it troublefome to themfelves, and ufelefs to the reft of the world. O ! let not any one who wilhes well to goodnefs, dilferve the intereft of it more, by his unreafonable fcruples, than he promotes it, by his exemplary pradticc ! But let him refolve to fum- mon up all his reafoning powers, and to fet them in array againfl thefe infignificant phantafms and il- lufions, which would certainly retire before this iingle reflc^hy may we not declare our joy- ful expectations of being at lait poffelTed of them ? if we feel our fouls afcending to God in love, joy, and praifc, is It not reafonable that we ihould in- dulge thofe delightful fentimcnts, and, by repeats rd a(fts, confirm and improve them ? If thefe inward emotions of heart are jufl and na- tural, if we cannot but approve them, if we judge jhen% Serm. XV. On Trayer. 229 them worthy of behig cheriflied and (Irengthcncd ; wh}" may we not give full vent to them in all pro- per methods of outward expreffion ? and if our own experience, and the teftimony of the befl of man- kind, inform us, that the yielding up our fouls to the full influences of devout affecl:ions, and giving them full fcope in voice and language, cfpecially in addrcHes to God, are the moll clTcdlual methods of cncreafing that flrcngth and fervour, and of fpreading their happy cffedis through the whole of human life ; it furely muft be our trueft wifdom to employ all thefe means of cflablifhing and perfed:- ing them. 2. It is further objedted, <' that fin ce God is irk* " finite in goodnefs, he is always difpofcd to be- " flow on his creatures whatever is proper for " them; and fince he is infinite in wifdom, he " will always chufe the fitteft time and bell; man- '^ ner of bellowing it. To what purpofe then do ** we intreat him to do what he certainly will do, '^ without any folicitation or importunity ?'"' to this it may be anfwered, that as it is not the defign of prayer to give information to our Creator of things he was not acquainted with before ; fo neither is it the defign of it to move his affections, as good fpeakers move the hearts of their hearers by the pathetic arts of oratory, nor to raife his pity, as beggars by their importunities and tears work upon the compaffion of the by-danders. God is not fub- jeft to thofc fuddcn paffions and emotions of mind which we feel, nor to any change of his mealures and condudt by their influence : he is not wrought upon and changed by our prayers ; for, zfj'itb him there is no var'uibknefs, nor Jhadow of turning. Praver only works its efteft upon us ; as it contributes to change the temper of our minds; to beget or im- prove right difpofitions in them ; to lay them open to the impjeffioiis of fpiritual objedls, and thus qua- lify 23° On Prayer, Serm. XV lify us for receiving the favour and approbation of our Maker, and all thofe affiflances which he has prorntfed to thofe who call upon him in fincerity and in truth. The efficacy of prayer does not lie jn the mere afking, but in its being the means of producing that frame of mind which qualifies us to receive. If it is flill urged, " w^hy do we afk, if '* God does not grant merely for the afking ?" to this I reply, that if by alking be underftood the uttering of words, and ufing a voice and language, in which all the fymptoms of earneflnefs and im- portunity appear, this external part of afking, I own, lerves no purpofe with refpeft to God ; and the only ufe of it is to engage the attention, and raifc the devotion of our own minds, or thofe of others. But if by alking be underftood the inward delires and breathings of the foul after thofe Hea- venly difpofitions in which the perfe(^ion and hap- pinefs of our nature chiefly confift ; in this fenfe of it, I alTert, that thcfe are the beginnings of virtue: thefe are the means of improving it, both in the nature of things, and by the pofitive appointment of God ; thefe are infeparable from real virtue, as long as it is capable of improvement ; which may be for ever, for any thing we know to the contra- ry : thgfe defires, I fay, are altogether unavoida- ble, and mufl arife in the breafts of all who have any degree of real goodnefs. Whoever has had the leaft glimpfe of the beauty and excellence of real virtue, is not fatisfied with fuch views of it as he has- already attained, but pants after a clearer and flronger view of its everlafting worth and im- portance. Whoever has felt that pleafmg ferenity, that lively joy, and delightful liberty, wdiich arifes from any confiderable degree of fuperiority to worldly paflions, longs with ardour, nay, almoft, v^'ith impatience, to obtain an entire conqueft over them ; and whoever has tafted the' fublime, the divine Serm. XV. On Prayen 231 divine plealures of true devotion, breathes with the greateft fervour after the full and uninterrupted en- joyment of them. To thofe, then, who alk, why we cherilh the inward defires after the Heavenly graces, and fludy to cultivate them by prayer ? the anfwer is plain, that the doing fo is the neceflliry confequenee of real virtue, both in its firfl and feeblert, and in its higheft and moft perfect Hate, at leaft while in this world. But if it fhould be ftill urged, " that though we " muft have the defires, though we ought to en- " tertain and cultivate them ; yet this is no fufEci- *' ent reafon for our offering them up to God, and " intreating him to accomplifh them. Why may *' we not defire all the divine virtues, and frequent- *' ly repeat the defire in our minds with pleafure, *' and with ardour, without diredtly addrefling it *' to God, whofe infinite goodnefs inclines him to *' fulfil it .as foon as his unerring wifdom fees fit ?" To this I anfwer, that it is impoffible for the hu- man mind to flop at the defire : it feels a powerful impulfe, urging it forward to beg God to beftow what it wifhes for with vehemence : and this very argument, which is urged againfl the lifting up ■holy defires to God, (viz. that he is infinite in goodnefs, and willing to gratify them), is a prin- cipal motive for offering them up, and makes it impoffible for a well-difpofed mind to abflain from it. Since then there is a determination in our na- ture, leading us to pray ; fince there is a law of external revelation commanding us to pray ; fince our own minds, on the calmefl refledtion, approve of praying, as being an explicit and natural ac- knowledgement of our dependence on our Maker, and a declaration, that we will gratefully receive the blefl[ings we pray for, as the free gifts of his bounty ; and fince prayer is a mean of enlivening and ftrengthening the beft difpofitions in our fouls ; we may conclude, that it is not only an innocent and 23* On P reiver. Serivi. XVj and harrrilefs exercife, but that it is our indifpenfa- ble duty to be frequentl)'- employed in it. Further, we may add to the preceding reafon- ings, that it is highly probable it would be neither a wife nor kind condu£t in providence, to beftow Heavenly wifdom, worthy difpofitions, and the hap- pinefs that accompanies them, on thofe who neg- Icdt to own it, and who will not acknowledge their dependence upon it. Is it not highly credible, that the infinite wifdom and o-oodnefs of the great Creator or all thmgs, has eilablilhed a {landing law in the government of his rational fubjedls, that thofe difpofitions which qualify them for his approbation and favour, fliall be beftowed on none but thofe vs^ho fmcerely humb}e themfelves to afk them ? Nay, is it not folemnly declared in the revelation God hath given us, that this is in fadt the great law and rule of his conduct, that for thefe bleffings he mifji be fought after by the Houfe of Ifrael. Call upon Pie in the day of trouble ; I will deliver thee, and thou Jhalt glorify me, Pfal. 1. 15. The Lord is nigh unto them that call upon hiniy^ and he will fulfil the deftre of them that fear him ; he will hear their cry^ and fave them, Pfal. cxlv. 18. God refifieth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble, James iv. 6. The meek God will guide in judge- ment ; and the meek he will teach his way, Pfal. xxv. 9. Do not our own minds approve of it as a juft and rcafonable conftitution, that the fincere, the hum- ble, and pious petitioner, lliould obtain his re- quefts ; while the neglefter of God, the unthink- ing, the proud, and unfubmitting finner, Ihould be negledied, and continue to want what he will not humble himfelf to a& from the divine bounty ? Nay, muft it not be owned, that we can difcern wife and juft reafons why this fhould be an eftablilh- cd law of the divine government ? Is it not mani- feft, that fincerity, humility, and earneft defires after wifdom and virtue, are difpofitions previoufly neccf- Serm. XV. O/i Prajer. 233 ncccffary, in the nature of things, to prepare our minds for receiving Heavenly wifdom, and all the virtues which accompany it ? Is not a deep lenfe of our own ignorance, and carneit panting after the wifdom that comes from above, a fitter difpofition for attaining it, than a fond conceit of our own wifdom ? Is not a confcioufnefs of the manifold diforders of our hearts, a more proper fituatlon of mind for receiving that grace which muft rectify them, than a vain and foolifh imagination that ail is right within already ? Is not a forrowfui fcnfe of our great lofs, while we are void of thofe divine virtues which form the image of God in us, the moil natural preparation for being beautified with them ? If then this fincerity and humility, thefe ardent defires of fpiritual bleffings, and this deep fcnfe of our imperfediions, are naturally pre-requi- Ute to our receiving thefe divine favours ; is it fup- pofable, (where thefe previous qualifications are found in a juft degree, and withal a lively perfua- fion that it is from God alone we can obtain thefe folid bleffings, that the human heart can avoid flying to him for them, by the moft ardent invo- cations and prayers ? To fum up the whole argument : fince there Is an inward impulfe prompting us to pray ; fince there are frequent precepts of external revelation commanding us to pray; and fince it is the ef- tablifiied law of the righteous government of God over the intelligent world, that fpiritual bleffings iliall be bellowed on thofe only who humble them- felves to pray for them ; we may infer, that prayer is lb far from implying any jufl rcfledion upon the perfe(ft wifdom and goodnefs of the great gover- nor of all things, that is a jull compliance with that conflitution of things which he hath appointed, and an harmonifing (fo to fpeak) with the wife order of kis providence. Since prayer is appointed by God Vol. II. G g to 2^4 ^'^ Prayer, Serm. XV. to be the means of producing, preferving, and in- crcafing in us the bell: and worthiefl difpofitions, to pracflife it is nothing elle bnt a concurring with him in his great defign of eftablifhing the happinefs of his creation. Thirdly, It is further urged, " that there is no ** juft ground of expecting any immediate light or " aid from Heaven in confequence of the mofh fin- '' cere and fervent prayer ; for after the molt ac- ** curate inquiry that can be made into the work- " ings of the human mind, there is nothing to be *' perceived but what miay be the natural elfedl of *' proper motives and arguments." In an anfwer to this, let it be obferved^ that, even fuppofing there is no good difpoiition awakened in the human foul, where the proper confiderations and motives have not been laid before it ; yet there may be good reafons for believing, that there is fome fe- cret and imdifcernible aid of Heaven concurring with thofe confiderations and motives ; difplaying their whole importance and force to the mind; fix- ing the attention of it to conlider them ; and laying it open to feel their whole power and influence. This at leail mufl be allowed, that the fame mo- tives, laid before the minds of diiferent perfons, do not produce the fame efFedts. In two perfons who feem equally capable of difcerning the llrength and force of motives, who feem to have beflowed equal attention in weighing them, and whofe paf- fions feem to be equally capable of refifting them, the efFedts they produce are widely different. Be- iides, it deferves our mofl attentive confideration, that there is no infeparable conne(5tion betwixt the clearell and jufteft views of the excellence and im- portance of moral and fpiritual objed:s, and thofe feelings and affedtions of heart which correfpond to them : a man may have the juftcfl: and fublimeft ideas of all the human, Ibcial, and divine virtues, while Serm. XV. Oil Pi-a)'er. 23 j while he remauis in a great mcafiirc, or altogether, without anv feelins: of them in his heart. There are many inllances in the world, ot men, who have formed the purcil and moil exalted conceptions of the divine perfe^!:tions, who can fpeak of them with dignity, and are highly delighted with the theory and contemplation of them ; and yet feel almoil: nothing of that true devotion of heart which fhould be awakened by them. In like manner, a man may have his mind ftored with the moll: exatt and delightful fpeculations concerning the beauty and worth of temperance, integrity, Sincerity, benevo- lence, friendlhip, humility, and all the human and focial virtues ; may be capable of fpeaking and writing about them to admiration ; while he flill continues under the power of the lowefl fenfuality, and a felfilh malignant difpofition. On the other hand, it may be obferved, that thofe who are lefs acquainted with the delightful theories of virtue and religion, who have no fuch exadt and perfect notions of them, and who, from a necelfary atten- tion to other things, are feldom employed in think- ing on them ; yet are more uniformly governed in life, by the natural influence of the pious and vir- tuous difpofitions themfelves, than the greatcft phi- lofopher or divine, who fpends his days in con- templating the ideas of them, and thofe views of things which fliould excite them. Now, as it is the good difpofitions themfelves that conilitute the foul and effence of virtue ; as they only give tho true dignity to our minds, and beauty to our lives ; as they only can form the charadier which i-; wor- thy and acceptable in the fight of God ; fo they are always reprefented in fcripture as the fruits and cfFedts of the Holy Spirit : Gal. v. 22, 23. T/x fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-fufferingy gentlenefs, goodnefs, faith, meeknefs, tempevancc. From thefe obfervations, it plainly appears, that after wb G g 2 have ^^6 On Prayer. Serm. XV. have got the pureft and clearcft ideas of religion, and the fulleft view of thofe motives which Ihould engage us to the practice of it, there is Hill ground to pray, that God may blefs us with thofe divine affe(ftions of heart, which are the only real orna- ments to our fouls, the only lafling foundations of their peace and happinefs. Our ideas are but pic^r tures and im.ages of the things themfelves : and as the picfture of a feafl cannot fatisfy our hunger, nor the pidture of a fire warm and enlighten us ; fo the tineit ideas of virtue and religion cannot make us good and happy, without thofe difpofitions . of heart which Ihould be raifed and kept alive by them. It may be alfo obferved, as a thing of very confi- derable importance in the prefent argument, that the power of mankind over their own inward difpofiti-^ ons, or thofe of others, is not fo great as fome feem to imagine. No man will venture to boafl, that he can by any one effort, how vigorous focver, or even by repeated efforts, refolutions, and endea^ vours, raife the virtuous difpofitions in his own foul, to fuch a degree of ftrength, that they ihall uni- formly and conftantly prevail over all the paflions which may oppofe them : far lefs can any one pre- tend, that it is in his power to new-model the hearts of others, and change their difpofitions, from the worfl to the bcft, at his pleafure. Ex- cepting our Savioijir, an infallible teacher of virtue, or a mafter of the divine art of forming the no- bleft and worthieft difpofitions in the human mind, never yet appeared in the world. The wifeffc, the beft, and tendereft parent, cannot by all his art, and moll: afliduous endeavours, beitow true virtue on his deareft child : the moft learned, moft vir- tuous, and affecftionate tutor cannot form it in his beloved pupil. If an infallibly fuccefsful teacher of virtue could be found any where, what an in*- valuable Serm. XV. On Prayer. 237 valuable trcafurc would he be; and how worthy to be fouf^ht after hi the remotcft corners of the world ? no doubt, when one reads pious books, hears virtuous difcourfe, fees worthy examples, and has enjoyed the benefit of the finefl inflrudtions, he may, or, rather, he mufl be furniflied with the juftefl and mofl amiable ideas of the whole glorious train of virtues : but it will not follow hence, that he mufl have fuch a relifh for the virtues them- felves as Ihiail conftantly render him fuperior to the temptations of the world ; or even, on the whole, make him a man of a virtuous character. This doftrine of the inability of mankind to make them- felves virtuous and happy, and of the need of affift- ance from above, in this divine work has been fo deeply felt by the more thinking and confiderate part of them, that it extorted a confellion of it, e- ven from thofe whofc fpcculative principles fcemed to lead them to a denial of it. For we find that fed; of the Heathen philofophers, who laid the founda- tion of their fyftem in the diftincftion betwixt things in our power, and out of our power ; meaning, by' the former, our good difpolitions, refolutions, and ac- tions ; and, by the latter, the external enjovments of the world, which depend on a thoufand acci-^ dents, over which we have no command ; even thev, I fay, in oppofition to their favourite dif- tin(51:ion, inculcated the ufefulnefs and importance of prayer. To all thefe obfervatlons we may add, that there has always been a very general and ftrong prope^iii- ty in mankind to believe, that God makes impref- fions on the minds of men in an immediate manner. And of this it were eafy to bring numberlefs proofs from the poets, philofophers, orators, and hiitori- ans of former ages. I am very fenfible that it will be objedted, that few pretend that they thcmfclves have felt any foreign and divine influence, which they -23^ On Prayfr, ' Serm. XV, they could certainly diftinguifh from the natural and ordinary operations of their own minds. But to this one may reply, that it may be the peculiar excellence of the Deity's method of operation, that it is imperceptible in itfelf, and only difcernable by its etteds. Thus, though we do not feel the power of God upholding us in life, yet we do not know but it may be as really exerted every mo- ment, in fupporting our being, as it was at firft, in bringing us into it. Belides, it may be faid, that many good men, quite free of fuperflition, and re- markable for ftrength of mind, have declared that they have felt fecret and fudden influences, de- termining them to particular fteps of condud:, which had very remarkable effed:s, as to the happi- nefs and ufefulnefs of their after life ; and does not almoft every one feel thoughts, refolutions, and pro- jects, fpringing up within him, v,^hich he is not confcious he has been led to by any former courfe of his reading, converfation, or reafoning ! Nay, if there is any credit to be given to human tefti- mony, muft we not believe that intimations have been made to good men, of future events, which greatly concerned themfelves, or the fociety to Vv^hich they belonged ? To conclude : Thofe who will not allow any im- mediate influence of the Deity upon the hgman mind, but afcribe every thing there to the natural force of arguments and motives, ought to confl- der, that it is only going one ftep farther, and they come to God, and mull own him as the original author of all. It is God who has made the mind of man capable of perceiving motives, and of be- ing wrought upon by them : it is God, who, in the courfe of his providence, has prefented fuch a train of motives to any one's mind, as has engaged him to pradlife all the virtues of a holy life : to God, therefore, the praife of it is to be given. And ther« Serm. XV. On Prayer, 239 there ftill remains abundant reafon to pray to him, that he mr.y, in tlie unfcarchablc wifdom and good- nefs of his providence, continue to prefent fuch views of things to the mind, as may determine it always to chufe the virtuous and worthy part. Fourthly, But fhould any one objedt in this man- ner, (which I believe will fcarce be done by any confiderate man), waving the debate about the aids which may be obtained by prayer, yet allcdging that he has no need of it : '' what Ihould I pray for ? fhall I pray that God may enlighten my mind with the knowledge of my duty, and make me perceive the excellence and importance of piety, fincerity, truth, integrity, charity, and all thofe virtues which dignify the fouls of men, and beautify their lives and manners ? I know all thefe things already, and conduct my life by them." How much is it to be wiflied, that every one who thinks or fpeaks in this manner, would feri- oufly aik himfelf, — Have I already attained as clear and diftin(5t viev/s of the worth and importance of all the Heavenly virtues as are attainable by man- kind ? have they as fovereign and commanding an influence over my heart and life, as ever they had over any of the fons of men ? am I fure there is nothing farther to be feen, nothing higher to be felt ? what if human nature is capable of flronger and brighter views of the worth and majeily of the great virtues of the fpiritual life, than I have yet obtained ? nay, may I not fuppofe that many of the children of men have a ihall I not then afpire after the higheft fenfe, and 240 On Prayer. Serm. XV4 and ftrongeft imprefiion, of thofe things that my nature is capable of? is there a great Father of lights, the enlightner of all minds, the everlafting lover and friend of truth and righteoufnefs ? has he declared that he is ready and willing to enlighten thofe who afk wifdom from him ? has he affured us, that there is a difpenfation of grace and light carrying on in the world, by his Son and Holy Spirit, by which thofe bleffings are perpetually im- parted to all who fincerely afk them? has he al- ready enlightened, in a fuperior manner, thofe fouls which lay themfelves open to his influence ? and fhall I refufe to afk this heavenly wifdom, and live contented with a fmaller portion of it, when a great- er may be obtained ! Surely no true lover of virtue no one who has any real greatnefs of mind, can bear the thought. But, perhaps, the objedtor will reply, *' what though I have not the higheft and *' moil flriking fenfe of the everlafting worth and '^ beauty of thofe things ; yet I have as jufl and '' flrong a fenfe of them as is fufficient for all the '' purpofes of human life; as much as will enable " me to withltand the temptations of the world, *' and render me fuperior to them. I am fo "^ thoroughly perfuaded of the excellence and '' value of all the moral and divine virtues, that *' I am in no danger of being feduced into a for- •' getfulnefs of the duties which I owe to God, tp '' mankind, or to myfelf. I have fuch a perfed: *' abhorrence of every thing bafe and unworthy, *' of every thing that approaches to a departure '^ from what is jufl, becoming, and honefl, in *' human life, that it will be an everlafling fecuri- *' ty to my virtue : or, if it any time, through the *^ force of fome great and fudden temptations, I '* fliould be guilty of fome fmall failure, I have *' nothing more to do, but call up the ftrength '* and refolution of mv mind, and all things ihall "be Serm. XV. On Pmya\ 241 *' be right again.'" In anfwcr to all this, in the firft place, it m:iy be obferved, that luppofing all that true, which vain men reprelent to their own conceited minds ; though there fhould be no need for pra)cr ; yet I'urely there is the juileft ground for another part of devotion, thankfulnefs ar.d praile* Is it not reafonable, that thofe perfons fhould lift up their hearts and hands in gratitude to that God who has hitherto prefcrved them from the temptations of the world, and enabled them to lead a blamelefs life ? Is it not God who made them ca- pable of difcerning the honeft, the juil, and wor- thy part, and enabled them to follow it ? Is it nor God who planted the good difpofitions in their hearts, and has not fuftered them to be overcome by the contrary paffions ? Can any blcffing be greater, or afford juflcr ground for the mod fincere praife aad thankfulnefs ? Nay, can any thing be more reafonable, than that they lliould pray to Heaven with the greateft finceritv, for the conti- nuance of fuch an ineflimable bleiling ? Are we not alwavs depending on the providence of God for it ? To how many difeafes and accidents are we ex- pofed, which no human wifdom can forefee or pre- vent; by which the ftrength of our minds may be exceedingly impaired, our tempers fretted and four- cd, nay, our rational powers entirely deltroyed ? But, further, Allow me, in the fecond place, to exhort and befeech thofe, if there are any fuch, who imagine they have maintained their integrity invariably through the whole courfe of their lives, without ' the affiftance of prayer, or any adfs of truft and con- fidence in God, to take an attentive review of their whole paft condudt, and compare it impartial ly with the purity and perfedion of the divine law ; and then let them honeflly declare if they have dlf- ccrned nothing othcrwifc than it ought to have Vol. II. H h been. 242 On PraytY, Serm. XV. been. Will any one venture to affert, that, upon the ftridieft examhiation, he finds he has not de- parted from the great rule of what is worthy and good, and that in many inrtances ; or that he is not confcious to himfelf, of having neglected many things he ought to have done, might have done^ to render himfelf or others wifer, better, or happier^? Do not many things occur to him, in the furvey of his whole life, which he difapproves, which he would not chufe to be guilty of a fecond time, and which he would endeavour to amend, if he were to pals life over again ; I am inclined to believe, there is no man, who, upon looking back, will not be fenfible he has thought, laid, and done many things, which he w^ould not chufe to do over again, were he placed in the fame circumftances : that lie has omitted, fooliflily and criminally omitted, to do many things, which he would now joyfully em^ brace an opportunity of performing, if the like circumftances fhould prefent themfelves. May It not be further afked. How do you know, but that, if you had been fervent in prayer, and w4th true devotion had lifted up your defires to God for con- duct and direftion, you might have been preferved from thofe crimes, and thofe omiflions of duty, which you cannot now review without regret arid felf-condemnatlon ; and been led to the pradtice of many virtues, and the performance of many good offices, the opportunities of which can never be re- called ? May we not further inquire of thofe who have fuch complacencv and fatisfadtion in their own cha- rafters and condud:. Do you find nothing in the prefent temper and difpofition of your mind, which you have reafon to complain of, and which you de- iire to have rcdtified ? Are there no imperfections to be correfted, no virtuous afFecflions to be refined, confirmed, ftrengthcned, and perfected ? Are you already Serm. XV. Oh Pmyer. 243 already poiTelTcd of that degree of love to God, and true virtue, which pervades the whole foul, controuls the power of all the inferior paffions, e- llablifhes a perpetual ferenity within, and animates you with the utmoll joy and alacrity in prattifing all the virtues of a worthy life ? If ye imagine ye art' already raifed to the utmoft fummit of pcrfedtion, we may fafely venture to allcrt that ye arc miflak- en ; and that felf-love has blinded your eyes, and made you pafs too favourable a fentcnce upon yourfelves. This fond imagination that ye are al- ready perfect, is almoft a demonftration, that ye are yet at a very great diftance from it : ye have certainly fixed too low a flandard of religion : your intellectual eye is not quick and piercing enough to difcern the idea of perfection fet before you in the law of God, which ye ought perpetually to have in your view, and to be afpiring after with the utmoft ardour. There are but few to be found who have attained to the juftelt and higheft talte of the true fublime in heart and life: whoever has had a clear and diltinCt view of it, will not flatter himfelf that he has reached it ; nay, he will be fully fenfible, that he has not yet approached near it ; and who- ever fondly imagines that he is come up to it, has not difiincftly perceived it. That man muft have a low undcrltanding, and a vain heart, who is fa- tisfied with himfelf, and who fancies he has attain- ed to the truly great and perfed; in temper and con- dudt : and whoever is thus eafily fatisficd with him- felf, is commonly the only perfon who is fo ; or, at leafl, the number of thole will be few who pafs the fame judgment on him that he does on him- felf. The higher any one advances in religion, his views are proportionably opened and enlarged. That moment the virtuous man has gained the vic- tory over fome bad paffion he has been long ftrug- gling with, he fees fome other one not quite fub- H h 2 dued 244 ^'^ Prayef. Serm. XV. dued within him ; and that moment he reaches to fomc certain pitch of virtue he had in his view, he difcerns fome higher pitch of it at a great diftance from him. In this he refembles a traveller in a large champaign country ; who, at this hour, fees nothing beyond a fmall eminence, which termi- nates his view at a diftance ; the top of which he no fooner gains, than a new extent of country fills his eye, equal to that he has already palled. Since then, there is ftill fomething yet unattained in the fpiritual life, can v^^c rcllrain ourfelves from pray-- ing, that the God of grace, the author of every good and perfect gift, would enlighten our eyes to difcern it, and infpire us with the divine ambition of aiming and endeavouring to obtain it ? Is it not a joyful, nay, a triumphant confidcration, that, by the light and affiftance of the Holy Spirit of God, we may travel on, from perfediion to perfeftion, and approach nearer and nearer to our Maker, by hijjher deg^rees of refcmblance ? Further, may wc not defire thofe who imagine they have no need of prayer, to look forward to that part of life they may have yet to pafs through? Are they certain they fliall never meet with any temptation that may be an over-match for that vir- tue of theirs, which they flatter themfelves is fo firmly eftabliilied ? May there not be ten thoufand circumftances in life which may endanger their in- tegrity ? Every occurrence, every flate, every em- ployment, has its peculiar temptations, and may occafion a departure from the right path. What fecurity have we in ourfelves ? Are not we confcious that our reafon is weak, in many things clouded by ignorance, blinded by prejudices, feduced by ap- petites, and over-ruled by paflions, and unreafon-r able affeftions ? When we look abroad into the world, how many melancholy inftances may we mark out, Qf the feemingly firmefl virtue, foon fhakeii Serm. XV. On Prayer, 245 ihakcn and overcome ? Mull we not own, that wifer, greater, and better men than we can pretend to be, have yielded to the force of temptation ; and, in fome degree, and for fomc time, apoftatif- ed from the caufe of rightcoufncfs ? Have not they themfelves mournfully acknowledged it afterwards ? Can any then be lb infufferably vain and arrogant, as to imagine, that nothing can ever lead them a- ilray, or in any degree darken their underitandings, or corrupt their hearts ? Is it not moil: natural for c- vcry one who loves the good and virtuous part, and delights in the pradtice of it, to wifh that he may have the afliflance of a fuperior guide, to conduct him fafcly through all the fnares which may be fpread for him in a degenerate world ? In a word, every one who is thoroughly fenlible of his own wcaknefs, and of the innumerable dangers to which virtue is expofed in the prefent difordered ll:ate of things, will fee fufficienr reafon for lifting up his foul to God in thefe cmphatical prayers of the de- vout Pfalmift, Pfal. cxix. 33, 37. Teach mc, O Lord, the zvay of thy ftatutes, and I fixdl keep it imto the end. Give me uuderjlanding, and I jhall keep thy lazu ; yea, IJIjall obferve it with my whole heart. Make me to go in the path of thy command'tncnts ; for therein do I delight. Liiiine my heart unto thy tefiinionies, and not to covelouf- nefs. Turn azvay mine eyes from beholdi?ig vanity, and quicken thou me in thy zvav. To all which it may be added, that if ever any pcrfon appeared in the world who could plead that he had no need of prayer, Jefus might have done it. He felt a perpetual good-will to all mankind, and was animated by it to go about in an uniform and unwearied courfe of beneficence ; he was quite un- moved with the temptations of the world, and walked on in the execution of his great undertak- ing with an undaunted and victorious pace, in fpite of all oppofuion ,• and yet wc learn from the hillo- rv 246 On Prayer, Serm. XV. *ty of his life, that he was frequently employed in prayer, as well as recommended it to his follow- ers. Surely, then, no one elfe can pretend that he is above the need of prayer, and other adls of devotion. Again, it is objefted, '* That whatever ufe pray- er may be of, for diredlion and affiflance in the paths of virtue ; furely it can be of none, for the obtaining the pardon of fin, and deliverance from thofe punifhments which are threatened to be inflidied on finners in this and an eternal world : for if fin deferves punilhment, and if punilhment is neceflary to frighten us from con- tinuing in it ; how can prayers for forgivenefs fecure us from thofe fuiferings which are intend- ed by our kind Creator for our reformation and amendment ?" To this it may be anfwered. That a fenfe of our faults, humble confefiion of them, and earneft intreating the divine mercy to forgive them, are very proper means of promoting a peni- tent difpofition in us. They naturally anticipate the neceffity of punifhments deftined for our refor- mation ; by them we in a gentler manner attain to the end of fuch punifhments, without having fufFer- ed them. And thus prayers for the pardon of fin, may be of unfpeakable advantage, as they contri- bute to produce that temper of mind in us which leads to an alteration in our condudt, and confe- quently fecures us from thofe punifhments which mufl have enfucd either on our pad tranfgreffions, or our perfifting in the like courfe of iniquity. Before we finifh this head, it may be proper to obferve, that others argue againfl praying for the pardon of fin in another manner . " What occa- <* fion can there pofiTibly be," fay they, " for ^^ praying to God to forgive our fins ? Our fins are ** owing to the invincible force of tempations ; and '' fo are only the unavoidable frailties of our na- *' ture : Serm. XV. On Frayer. 247 *' ture ; and furely an infinitely good God can ne- *' ver call us to a fevere account for them." As this is an important matter, on which our higheft and eternal intcreft depends, it greatly concerns us to take care that we do not deceive ourfclves. Let us attend to the voice of revelation, and of reafon ; and we fhall find, that they jointly proclaim, with the higheft folemnity, that fin fliall not pafs unpu- nifhed. Hearken to that awful declaration of holy writ, Gal. vi. 7. Be not deceived ; God is not tnocked : for wbatfoever a man foweth, that jhall he alfo reap. For he that foweth to his jlefJj, J}:all of the jieJJ^ reap corrup- tion : but, he that foweth to the fpirity fl:all of the fpirit reap life everlajling. That is, our everlafting ftate hereafter depends upon our behaviour here. As furely as he who fows wheat or barley in the feed- time, fliall reap the fame kind of grain in the har- veft, and no other ; fo certainly fhall thofe who lead a wicked life here, be mifcrable hereafter. Is it not amazing, that mankind are not ftruck with this tremendous declaration ? The reafon of this muft be, that they do not in earneft believe it. Every- man believes, that if he fows the feeds of thiftles and thorns, he cannot reap wheat or barley : but, every one does not believe, that if he lives a vici' ous and impious life here, he cannot have happi- nefs hereafter. What is the reafon whv we believe the former, and doubt of the latter, fince they arc equally true ? The reafon is plainly this : that we have obferved the courfe of nature in the fre- quent returns of feed time and harveft ; and find, by undoubted experience, that it is an invariable law of the natural world, that whatever kind of grain is fown, the fame kind, and no other, is reaped in the harveft. But we have not yet feen one whole year, one full period of the government of the ra- tional world : we have only feen the feed time of human life ; the harveft is yet to come ; the great year 243 On Prayer, Serm. XV. year is not completed at leaft within our view : but as foon as we enter into the invilible world, we Ihall be convinced that it is an unalterable law of the mo- ral as well as of the natural world, that whatever a man fovvs, that he alio reaps. There we Ihall fee what dreadful mifery fprings out of vice, and what further punifhments are inflidted on it ; what un- fpeakable happinefs grows out of virtue, and with what additional joy it is crowned. But, further, let us conilder, that though we had not thofe fo- Icmn declarations of divine revelation, we Ihould have juft reafon to dread the confequences of crimi- nal indulgence, both in this, and in an after ftate. For when we attend to the conduct of divine provi- dence, we fee that vice is actually punifhed at pre- fent in a certain degree; which gives natural ground to fear that it may be punifhed in an higher degree hereafter. The natural deformity of vice, the pangs of remorfe which accompany it, the havock w^hich it makes of the beauty, the order, and peace of our minds, the direful effedls of it in the bodies, fortunes, families, and characters, of thofe who indulge themfelves in it without controul, plainly intimate, or rather loudly proclaim, that the go- vernor of the world is engaged againft it, and will not fufFer it to pafs unpunifhed. Now, has the great author of nature begun to chaftife and punilh {in here ; and what ground is there then to hope that he will favour it hereafter ? What fliadow of leafon is there for flattering ourfelves, that themea- fures and laws of divine conduct Ihall be alter- ed ? The other world is only a fucceeding period of the fame government, under the fame governor, in which we have all poffible reafon to believe the fame fundamental laws of rewarding virtue, and punifhing vice, flwll continue in full force. It cer- tainly then greatly concerns us, not to cherifh an indifference and fearlefTnefs with regard to what may Serm. XV. On Prayer* 249 may be hereafter, under the righteous government of God. To think or fpeak in a flight and uncon- cerned manner as to what may happen in any pe- riod of the divine government, is unfpeakable irre- verence, and manifeft impiety. Bat to live at ran- dom, without regarding the divine law, and the tremendous fanctions of it, is madncfs and impiety to fuch a pitch as mult ailonifh and ftrikc every thinking perfon with terror. Let us beware then of trufting to miiVaken notions of the boundlefs be- nignity and mercy of the great parent of all. Do we allow that it is confiilent with the moft perfedt goodnefs to inflift juft punifhmcnts on wickednefs here ? (and allow it we muft, for we fee that in fadt it is done) by what train of realbning, then, fliall we be able to fhow, that it is inconfiilent with the fame perfedl goodnefs, to punifli it with greater fever ity hereafter ? Fifthly, It is objeded, " That thofe who feem to delight in prayer, do not appear to be better, happier, or more fucccfsful, than thofe who ne- glett or contemn it. Where do we find God in- terpofing for the profperity of the pious, or where are thofe happy effe(fts of devotion we are taught to expedt ?" In anfwer to this it may be obferved, that there are different forts of perfons who pray from very different views and intentions. Some pray with no other nor higher view, than that they may gain a charafter as religious ; which may be of ufe to them in the profecution of fome worldly defign. Others ufe prayer as a kind of charm to render them acceptable to God, or as an atonement and compenfation to him, for thofe lufls of their hearts which they are unwilling to mortify, and thofe iniquities of their lives which they flill continue to commit. Now both thefe : forts of praying people are to be thrown out of the quef- tion ; and it is to be confined to thofe who pray Vol. II. I i with 250 On Traya: Serm. XV with fimpUcliy and fincerity of heart ; who have na other aim in praying but that they may become better men, that they may know the will of God more clearly, and may obey it with more conflancy and alacrity, and who truft in God, that he zvill be to them a fun andjhield, will give them grace and glory y and withhold no good thing from them, becaufe they zvalk uprightly. If it be afked, what the better are thefe perfons for their habitual courfe of prayer, and o- ther adts of devotion ? the anfwer is plain, that though they are not, perhaps diilinguifhed with outward profperity, yet they are rewarded with in- ward enjoyments of a higher and nobler kind. What though God has not beftowed houfes, lands, riches, pleafures, honour, ftrength, or beauty, upon the pious man ? Thefe are only outward good things, incapable of giving true happinefs to the poffeflbrs of them. But if he has given him great- er bleffings, wifdom, virtue, truth, integrity, tem- perance, humility, meeknefs, contentment, and contempt of the world, with all that inward peace, joy, confidence in himfelf, and hope of immortali- ty which accompanies them ; thefe are the true riches, the real treafures of the immortal foul ; thefe are fuch treafures, as calamity, danger, death can never rob it of. It is true, thefe inward plea- fures, thefe mental poflcffions, are not difcerned by fpeftators ; but thofe who feel and enjoy them can- not doubt of their fuperior worth and excellence. As it is well known, that many who put on an air of happinefs, and whofe outward fplendor and flourilh- ing circumftances create admiration and envy in ignorant beholders, carry about with them fecret pains, and inward ftings, which greatly diminifh, if not entirely deftroy their apparent happinefs and contentment ; fo it is as certain that the fincere worihippers of God, even when in the loweft ftate, and moil ftruggling circumftances, enjoy many fi- lent Serm. XV. On Prayer. ■ 251 lent pleafures, and fecret conlblations, which give them g^rcatcr happinefs than worldly men ever taitc amid ft*^ their greateft gaiety and abundance. He who is conlcious that he poiieflcs, in the main, that temper and difpofition of mind which is acceptable to God, and who maintains an afliired trull and confidence in the mercy and goodnefs of his Crea- tor, cnjovs an inward reft, and compofure of mind, which cannot be defer ibed. It is called, in holy fcripture, the peace of God, that pajjcth all trdder- landing : it is an inward calmnefs and tranquillity, 'like to that of the highcft Heavens. He that en- joys it, is cafy within himfelf, and pleafing lo thofc around him. He is free from thofe inward diftur- bances and anxieties which diiquiet the fouls of o- ther men. His converfation is plcaH^^nt, and hi? tranquillity appears in the chearful air of his;coun- tenancc, though filent : his mind is open to tafte, with full relilh, all thofe good things which provi- dence has provided for fweetening the journey of human life. But why do I call this happy ftate of life, tranquillity only'!— It is far beyond mere calm- nefs or tranciuillity. — There may be a perfether of good, and even to implore it from God. From ^11 thefe obfervations and reafonings, it is hoped we may conclude, that the neglcfting or contemning of prayer mufl be owing to prejudices cherillied and fortified with art and care ; and not to any didlate of reafon, or impartial enquiry into the ftate and tendency of the feveral workings of the human mind. But, after all that can be laid in i unification of prayer, we muft acknowledge, that it is rather by the pure and refined feelings of a well difpofed heart, that any one can be brought to a full conviction of the worth and importance of this part of religion, than by the force of argu- ment; which, at bett, can only extort the cold af- fent of the underftanding, or filence its vain rea- fonings. We proceed now III. To point out the advantages which arife from the fincere and ftedfaft performance of this important duty. And, I. When we take the mofi; general view of pray- er, we cannot help difcerning the iifefulnefs and importance of it. When we confider that mankind in their prefent flate, are deeply immerfed in the bufinefs or enjoyments of the world ; that external objects are perpetually ftriking upon their fenfes, playing before their imaginations, and making im- preffions upon their hearts ; it evidently appears to 'i>e an unfpeakable advantage to them, to have re- gular and flated feafons of recalling their minds fpora- the numberlefs avocations of a vain world, and Serm. XV. On Prayer. 257 and fixing them upon God, and fpiritual things. The fureli method of counterworking the imprel- fions made on the foul by that crowd of worldly- thoughts which pafs through it, is to banifh them entirely for forne time, and lay it open, by prayer and contemplation, to the impreffions of thofe Heavenly and eternal objects, which, by their greatnefs, importance, and excellence, will engage and command attention. And, indeed, without proper feafons allotted to retirement and devotion, and frequently recurring, we are in the greateft danger imaginable of being under the full and un- controuled power of thofe vain and perifliing ob- jed:s which furround us in the world j and which are perpetually engaging the attention of our minds, and foliciting the love and affcdtion of our hearts. Our Saviour, in the words of the text, takes notice of this, as the grand advantage of prayer, that it is a prefervative againft the temptations of the world. Prayj fays he, that ye enter not into temptation. Now prayer has a natural tendency, in a great variety of ways, to break the force of thofe temptations to which we are neceffarily expofed in life. It keeps alive in our minds an habitual fenfe of our danger ; difpofes us to keep a watchful eye on thofe things from which our danger arifcs ; and puts us in a proper pofture for refiftance and defence. — It turns away our attention (as has jull now been obferved) from thofe objedts which raife impure defires and guilty paffions in our bofoms. It calls up fuch a lively fenfe of the divine prefence, as mult check the firft rifings of irregular inclinations ; and fill us with dread and fliame of thinking, faying, or do- ing any thing unworthy of thofe who aim at the ap- probation and favour of the great Judge of all. It prefents the divine perfections to our view and in- fpires us with an abhorrence of every thing that would render us unlike to them. Whenever there- VoL. II. K k fore. 238. On Prayer. Serm. XV, fore, \\c are alTaulted with a temptation to gratify any impure and violent appetite or paflion, let us accuftom ourfelves to ftop, till we have lifted up our hearts to God, in lincere and fervent prayer, that he may affifl us in the conflift, and give us the vid:ory ; and we fliall foon feel the violence of the temptation abated, and that we are enabled to exert a hidden ftrength, and to obtain an entire maltery over it. 2. As prayer fortifies us againft temptations to fin ; fo it infpires us with the love, and animates us to the pra<5tice of every virtue. By offering up our molt earneft defires to God, that he may more and more beautify our fouls with all worthy and good dif- pofitions, our love to them is increafed ; and we are the more difpofed to employ every proper mean of eftablifhing and ftrengthening them in our hearts. When we pray that the venerable image of our Maker may be ilamped upon us, the divine perfections are neceflfarily prefented to our view and contemplation, our love and admiration of them is heightened, and we are fired with the noble ambition of drawing nearer and nearer to them by greater degrees of re- femblance. When we contemplate the deformity andmifery of vice, under the aftual fenfeof the pre- fence of God, and intreat him to preferve us from it, we cannot but look upon it with the higheft indienation, and form the moft Itedfait refolutions to abandon it. When we view the beauty of holi- nefs, as our Creator's glory, and lift up our fouls to him in ardent prayers, to adorn us with it, we muft feel our hearts warmed with the love of it, and lay ourfelves under the ftrongcit vows of adhering uni- formly and invariably to it through the whole courfe of our lives. When we give full vent to the ardent breathings of our fouls after the love of God, gratitude to him, and confidence in him ; chefe pious affections are immediately awakened, and ^EitM. X\'. On Prayer. 259 and llrengthcncd in fome degree, in our hearts : and when we indulge ourfelves in frequent and ar- dent prayers for the profperity and welfare of our fellow creatures ; this exercife of the kind and be- nevolent aife<^ions contributes greatly to enliven and invigorate them. Moreover, thofc views in which prayer prefents our brethren of mankind to our minds, tend greatly to foftcn our hearts, and heighten our goodnefs and tenderncfs for them : .when we confider them as a part of the fame great family of God with ourfelves; as partakers of the fame nature ; as liable to all the fame dangers and jdiftreffes ; as groaning under the fame darkncfs of underflanding, diforder of heart, and violence of paffion ; it will be impoffible for us not to love and pity them with the grcatclt tendernefs, and pray with the utmoft ardour, that they may be at laft e- ftablifhed in fome better and happier flate. 3. Prayer puts us into the bcfl frame and fituation of mind for receiving the influences of Heavenly light and grace. It promotes a certain foftncfs and tendernefs of heart, which renders the foul cafily fufceptible of the impreffions of fpiritual and divine objecls : the foul, when duly foftened and humbled by prayer, feels and fees in quite another manner, than when it is hardened and puffed up with pride and vanity. A deep fenfe of our ignorance, difpofes us to attend to, and follow, every ray of light, how fmall foever : Vvhereas pride of underftanding fhuts out the light, and turns away the attention from it. We fliould therefore confider prayer, and exercife ourfelves in it, as the great means appointed by God for drawing down that wifdom from above, which is neceffary to guide us to our higher coun- try, and to fettle us in eternal reft and happinefs in our Father's houfe. See, for the proof of this, ma- ny folemn paffages of holy fcripturc ; James iv. 6. Pfal. XXV. 9. If. Ixvi. 2. K k 2 4. True 26o On Pra)'er. Serm. XV 4. True devotion raifes the human foul to an un- common pitch of grandeur and elevation. The mind of man feems to adapt itfelf to the different nature of the objefts with which it is converfant ; it is contrad:ed and debafed, by being employed in little and low things ; and it is proportionably en^ larged and exalted, by the contemplation of thole things which are great and fublimc. The perfec- tions of the Deity, his univerfal and eternalprovi- dencc, the excellence of virtue, and of thofe ge- neral laws of God which are the foundation and fupport of the order, the beauty, and happinefs of his whole rational kingdom; the dignity and im^ mortality of the human foul, whereby it is capable of vafi: and endiefs improvements ; thefe are objects of fuch a ftriking and exalted nature, that they muft ennoble and enlarge the mind employed in contemplating them. All worldly and tranfitory things muft appear unworthy the love and purfuit of that foul which is raifed above all created things, and which afpires to and purfues that happinefs which arifes from the love, the refemblance, and enjoyment of the great Creator of all. There is no greatnefs of mind equal to that which fprings from the divine ambition of aiming at a refembling God ; and from the glorious hope of feeing him as he is, in fome future period of exiftcnce. Now are ive the fons of God, and it doth not yet appear what zveJJjall be : but zve know, that zvhen hejhall appear, we Jloall be like him ; for we Jhall fee him as he is ; i John iii. 2. 5. True devotion gives a wonderful ftrength and firrnnefs to the foul which is under the full power and influence of it. That man muft adhere with in- violable conftancy to whatever is great or good in life, who is -animated with the hope of the divine approbation, and v/ho relies with affured confidence pn the friendfhip, proteftion, and affiftance of the great Ruler of all things. No difficulties, no dan- gers Serm. XV. On Prayer. 26 1 gcrs can terrify him who has that great Being on his lidc, who can make or dellroy a world when he pleafes. No temptations of pleafure or profit can allure him who trufts in an almighty friend, who is able to make him happy,- in ten thoufand me- thods, beyond what he can conceive. Every worldly thing vaniflies at the prefence of him, be- fore zvhom the zvbole zvorld is as noth'mgy lefs than nothing, and vanity. Even death itfelf is ftript of all its ter^ rors to the pious man, when it is confidercd only as a removing that vail of flefli which interpofcs be- twixt him and the invifible world. Nay, death it- felf is defirable ; as it difclofes new fcenes of won- der and delight, and admits the devout foul to the more immediate prefence of its God, where there are rivers of pleafure s for everfuore. Since then prayer is a reafonable thing in itfelf; (incethere arc lb many, and fo great advantages a- riiing from the fincere and ftedfaft pra(fticc of it ; it mull be both our duty and our intereft to continue inflant in it. And that we may be animated with fer- vour and fincerity in the cxercife of this part of onr duty, let us frequently inculcate on ourfelves, that we are weak, indigent, and ignorant creatures ; and that we depend entirely on our Maker for all we poflefs at prefent, or hope to enjoy hereafter. The firfl and moll: obvious reflcdtion convinces us, that we are nothing of ourfelves; but that it is by the power of God we have our exiftence. No man was ever fo prefumptuous and abfurd, as to ima- gine or alTert, that he was author and original to himfelf; and that he felt a mighty power by which he' brought himfelf into being, and could continue himfelf in it as long as he plcafed. Eve^ ry one acknowledges, that he finds nothing in his own nature to warrant his fubfiftence in this world for one moment; and far lefs to cnfure it for ever in another, Nay, even fuppofing our exigence con- tinued 262 On Prayer. Serm. XV. tinued to us by that Almighty Being who gave it, we are confcious that we cannot condu(ft ourfelves ilirely to that ftate of perfection and happinefs which our natures are capable of, and for which they were defigned. When we have viewed our- felves on all fides, we find we are in the moft for- lorn and helplefs condition imaginable, without the friendfhip of a fuperior and almighty Being. In, order to reprefent our deplorable flate without a firm reliance on the all fullaining and all conduct- ing providence of our great Creator, let us fuppofe, that in a morning when we awake, we Ihould find ourfelves failing along with all our deareft rela- tions and deareft friends, in a wide, unconftant, and fecmingly boundlefs ocean ; where we fee ftorms and tempefts gathering around us, hovering over, and very foon to break upon us ; being ut- terly incapable ourfelves to fteer our velTel to any fafe harbour, and v>rithout any hope of affiftance either from men or invifible powers; fo that we could expect no relief, but muft be in perpetual dread of being tofled up and down at the pleafure of winds and waves, till we Ihould be ftarved to death, or until our veflel fplit upon fome unfeen rock, and we fhould fink to the bottom : would not our cafe be extremely lamentable ? Yet this is but a faint image of our ftate here in this world, without an afTured truft in the wifdom and goodnefs of an invifible and Almighty friend, who will lead ns fafely through this dangerous voyage of human life, and land us at laft on fome peaceful fhore. We find ourfelves placed here in a vaft, and, to our view, a boundlefs world, and in the midft of an incomprehenfible fcheme of things. We know not whence we came, or whither we are going. We behold an eternity before us ; but know not what fnall bcfal us while we continue here, at our departure hence, or in any period of that endlefs du- ration Serm. XV. On Prayer. 263 ration through which we may pafs. We fee other perfons around us of the fame nature, and in the fame circumftances with ourfclves ; they are as io-- norant and as weak we are, and can give us neither information nor affiflance. When we refleft on what pafles within our bofoms, we mufl: own, that our inward tranquillity is frequently diflurbcd and in- terrupted. Sometimes, indeed, plcafing defires, joyful hopes, and delightful affed:ions, enliven and gladden our hearts ; but, at other times, vain defircs, alarming fears, and guilty paffions, difquiet and torment them. It is not in our power to preferve uniformly the gentle emotions, and happy effetfts, oi the former ; or to banifh entirely the unquiet workings, and baneful influences of the latter. When we look back on that part of our life which is already pall, we cannot avoid being felf-con- demned for many inftances of fin and folly ; which fometimes awaken within us dire forebodings of a juft punifhment awaiting us in fome future period of our exiftence : and when w^e look forward to that part of life which lies before us, we find reafon to dread we Ihall be guilty of the fame, or the like departures from the paths of wifdom and righteouf- ncfs. Let any one retire from the noife and hurry of the world, and refle(ft ferioufly with himfelf up- on his prefcnt ftate, as a flate of trial, in which there is a certain path marked out to him by the great Author of his being; and that according as he walks in it, or departs from it, he Ihall be happy or miferable in this and in another life : and after he has imprinted on his mind a juft and awful fenfe of this interefting and important truth, that his e- ternal happinefs depends upon his behaviour, let him further confider, that, through the weak- nefs of his underftanding, the ftrcngth of his paf- fions, the ficklenefs of his beft refolutions, the numberlefs temptations of tlie world, he may be led 164 On Prayer* Serm. XV* led aftray from the path of life ; and he fliall find himfelf flruck with fuch a fenfc of his danger, as will force him to break out in thefe or fuch-like meditations, intermixed with prayers. '' O my foul ! how great is thy darknefs, how deep is thy corrup- tion, how manifold are the dangers to which thou art expofed in this thy paffage through this world! Thou knowell not where thy true happinefs lies ; thou art ignorant of the way that leads unto it ; thou haft frequently wandered in a vain purfuit of falfe appearances of it ; and thou art in the greateft danger of ftill wandering farther from it." " O Father of lights, open mine eyes to fee what my true happinefs is ; point out the road qlearly that leads unto it ; and never fuffer me to depart from it. Send forth thy light and thy truth; Let them lead me and bring me to that new Heaven, and new Earth wherein dwelleth righteoufnefs. Guide me with thy counfel while here, and after- ward receive me to glory." Further, let the fame perfon, continuing his re- tirement and meditation, furvey with ferioufnefs and attention the whole extent of his duty to God, to mankind, and to himfelf, and the manifold aw- ful obligations he lies under to fulfil it; and he lliall fcaree be able to contain himfelf from giving vent to the lively workings of his heart in thefe or fomc fuch mournful acknowledgments, and ardent petitions. " O my God, how faint and imperfect are my views of thy infinite perfection and glory ! How little do I feel of that adoration and praife, that love and confidence, Vv'hich are indifpenfably due unto thee ! Though thou haft prefented unto my view the univerfal frame of nature, which is a ftand- ing monument, a perpetual remembrancer, of thy creating power, thy marvellous wifdom, and eter- nal Godhead ; though thou haft made me capable of Serm. XV. Oh Prayer, 26^ of contemplating the wondrous fabric of the Hea- vens, whole aiiguil magnificence, immcafureable extent, andbeneficialinfluenccsonthis lower world, afford me at once a lively reprefcntation and convinc- ing evidence of thy infinite glory, thy boundlefs irnrn-nfity, and dllfafive benignity ; though thou haft placed me here in an apartment of thy world, where I fee thy inexhauftible power and munifi- cence perpetually employed, in raifing up, fupport- inp-, and providing for innumerable families of thy creatures around me ; though thou haft^ given me an organifed body, fearfully and wonderfully made, bearing the ftrongeft marks of divine wifdom, and kind intention, in the contrivance of every part and member of it ; though thou haft placed a noble in- habitant within, whofe faculties and difpofitions, with a capacity of endlefs improvement in knowledge and virtue, are the fureft proof and trueft image of thy infinite wifdom and perfed goodnefs ;^ nay, though thou haft favoured me with a revelation of thy \vill, containing the cleareft and moft exprefs difcoveries of thy perfedions, and of what adora- tion, praife, and confidence. are due to them: yet, alas ! all thefe various and ftriking manifeftations thou haft given me of thyfelf, make but very fee- ble and tranfient impreflions upon my heart. How maa'feft is the diforder of all the powers of my foul ! The infignificant and tranfitory pleafures, ri- ches, and honours of this vain world, employ my underftimding, ftrike upon my imagination, and captivate my heart ; while thy perfed: excellence, thy unbounded goodnefs, and eternal providence, are either entirely difregarded by me, or thought upon with a ftupid coldnefs and indifference. O Heavenly Father, author of every good and pcrfed: gift, reftify all the diforders of my foul ! reftore all my faculties to their original and wor- thieft employment ! May it henceforth be my Vol, IL L 1 chiet 266 On Prayer. Serm. XV. chief delight to contemplate thee, in all the difco- vcries thou haft made of thyfelf, in thy wondrous works, and in the revelations of thy will I Give me fuch clear and afie<5ting views of thy fupreme glory and excellence, as ihall kindle that flame of love to thee, in my breaft, which fhall never be extinguilhed, but burn ftronger and ftronger every day ! Penetrate my heart with fuch a deep fenfe of all thy mercies to me, and of thy conftant bounty to thy whole creation, as iliall ftir up all that is within me to blefs and praife thy name for ever and ever ! Efcablifli my foul in fuch a firm perfuafion of the infinite goodnefs and wifdora of thy univer- fal and evcrlafting providence, as fnall engage m^e to throw myfelf, and all my great interefts upon it, with a boundlefs confidence ! O Lord of Hoils, bleffed is the man that trufteth in thee \ I ihall be kept in perfe7^ unto J ejus, the author and .the jinijhcr of our faith. Hcb. xii. \, ' • Vol. II, V p -SERMON SERMON XVIII. By the Reverend Mr. JE^f^•I^fG8. TEMPORAL BLESSINGS, AN® SANCTIFIED AFFLICTIONS. E Timothy iv. 8. Godlinefs is profitable unto all things, having promife of the life that now is, and of that which is to come* ONE of the moil common prejudices which a carnal world has received againft religion, is, that it Ipoils the pleafure of the prefcnt life, and is very ill calculated for men's temporal intereft. As for the happinefs which it propofes hereafter, every man would be glad of it : who does not wifh to die the death of the righteous, and to have his laji end like his P But the mortifications and felf-denials that re- ligion requires, the fuiferings and troubles which it is fuppofed to expofe men to, while they live in this world, are what many perfons can by no means brook : and hence it is, partly, that they are for putting off religion to the end of their lives ; they propofe to devote a few of their laft days to it, and by that means they hope to obtain eternal happi- nefs, without foregoing the pleafures of this prefent P p 2 life. •5 00 Temporal BlefmgSf and Serm. XVltl life. But now our text affurcs us, that this is all a miilaken notion, and that there is no manner of reafon tor this vulgar prejudice againft godlinefs ; for in reality it is lb far from Ipoiling the pleafure of life, and hurting men's temporal intereft, that it tends to promote both. -Godlinefs is profitable unto all things, having promife of the life that nozv is, as well as of that zvbiih is to come. The word, godlinefs, is Ibmctimes ufed in fcrip- ture in a more limited, and fomctimes in a larger fenfe. It fometimes fignifies our duty to God, as diftinguilhed from the duty we owe to our neigh- bour, and to ourfelves : as Titus ii. 12. The grace of God teacheth us that we jJooidd live foberly, righteovjly, and godly in this prefent zvorld. Soberly as to our- felves, righteoully towards our neighbour, and godly towards God. But fometimes the word, god- linefs, includes all thefe, and whatever belongs to our religious faith and pradfice ; as when St. Paul fpeaks of pevfons profejing godlinefs, 2 Tim. ii. 10. and when we read of the things that pertain unto life and godlinejs, 2 Pet. i. 3. And I make no doubt but the word fhould be taken in the fame lati- tude here in our text, godlinefs, or religion, is prO' jitable unto all things, and has promife of both worlds. The topic which I am to treat of in this fermoii is, concerning the temporal bleffings of the gofpel. I am to Ihew you what the profit of godlinefs is like to be for the life that now is ; and how the iincere and confcientious practice of it will tend to propote even our temporal intereft. It is profitable unto all things, fays our text ; yet perhaps this all muft be taken v;ith fome fort of re- llridiion : for who can fay but God could have an- nexed yet mightier bleffings to godlinefs, if he had fo pleafed, than he has done } But by all things we are to underftand, all that, upon the whole, and all things confidcred, God, who is infinitely wife and good. Serm. XVIII. SmBifed Affirms, 301 good, fees arc bell for us. Now all thefe things, fo far as they refpeft the life that now is, may be fummed up m three articles ; and the prefent pro- fits of goulinefs may be made to nppear, I. For obtaining all temporal good things that we rtand in need of. II. For fupporting us under troubles whenever they befal us. III. For fecuring to us a fanftified ufe of afflic- tions, as well as a happy illue of them. I. Godlinefs is profitable for the obtaining of all temporal good things that we lland in need of. In that catalogue of the ChriiVian's pofleffions and treafures, which St. Paul has drawn up, i Cor. iii. 22. I find the zvorld and life, and things prefent, as well as tbin might have an opportunity of manifeiling his divine power in opening his eyes by a miracle, ver. 3. So God may have many wife and gracious defigns and views in the prefent afflivflions of the godly, which they can know nothing of, nor ever will until all the dark fcenes of providence come to be laid open in that life and world which is to come. Now the ufe we Ihould make of this fubjett is fo natural and plain, that I need but hint it in two or three particulars. 1. From hence let us learn to vindicate the good- nefs of God, in all his dealings with good men. For though he afflidts them in this life, as well as others, and fometimes fuffers them to be perfecuted as others are not ; yet it is always with fome wife and kind defign. He has provided for them prefent fupports and comforts, which other men are unacquainted with : and he will turn all their afflictions into blcfiings in the end. Never then let us think hard- ly of God, as if he dealt hardly and unkindly with us, or with any of his children. Let us learn to blefs a taking, as well as a giving God ; and adore his goodnefs and love through all the difpenfations of his providence towards us. 2. Let this quiet our minds under afflifllon. How ever dark the providence may be at prefent, and however grievous the afflidlions that lies upon us ; yet who knows to what good purpofes it may be de- (igned ? And what happinefs may afterwards iffue out of it ? Let us endeavour to perfuade ourfelves into a more firm belief of this comfortable truth, tha-t God does all things wifely and well; and that all things /ball work together for good unto them that love and fear him. Let our firft and great care be, to make this God our friend, through faith in Chrilt, his Son^ Serm. XVIII. Sduclificd AffliElions, 315 Son ; and then, we maj' depend npon it, that all {hall be well with us, and happy for us. 3. Let me upon the whole, exhort thole who arc ftrangers to a lite of godlincfs, to make trial of it. You will find that not one half of the advantages and profits, the comforts and bleffings of it has yet been told you, To live godly in Chrift Jefus, is the way to riches, honours and pleafures : it is the way to make you moft truly comfortable in this life, and moll com])lctely happy for ever. Happy will you be when you are once in fuch a cafe, happy wijl you be when ypur God is the Lord, SERMON SERMON XIX. By the Reverend Jo Ht* Evans, D, D. CHRISTIAN PRUDENCE, Matthew x. i6. Behold, I fend you forth asJJ^cep in the mid(l of zvohcs it be ye therefore wife asferpents, and hormlefs ai doves. OUR blefled Saviour obferves, that the children of this world are wifer in their generation than the chil- dren oj light, Luke xvi. 8. that is, it is too commonly true, that thofe who have chofen their portion in this life, ufe more prudence to gain their end, thap people who have had the wifdom to determine up- on a better happinefs, do in purfuit of their nobler end. This is too often fadl, but at the fame time is no fmall reproach upon Chrirtians : they Ihould ufe as much wifdom in the profecution of their end, as they did in the choice of it ; and have need of wifdom in the management of the chriftian life, in which they are engaged, as much as worldly men have to compafs their aims below. The following difcourfe is to be upon this argument of chriflian prudence, for which the words of the text may be ^ proper foundation. They jiS Chrtjlian Prudence, Serm. XIX. Th?Y arc a part of Ch nil's inftrudions to his apoities, when he fent them out only upon a Ipe- cial commifiion in Jiidea : but feveral of the in- flruftions feem much more to point forward to events, that fhould beral them in the execution of a more general commiffion, which they were to re- ceive after ChrJit's afcenfion. Thus particulj.rly, the warning he gives them' of difficulties, dangers iind pcriecutions that awaited them, and the direc- tions for their coriduft in them^ are to be under^. itood. Thefe begin in the texu Wherein Chriit firft reprefents the dangerous ftate they would be in. / find you forth us Jheep in the mid/i of wolves. They would find the generality of the World about them like wolves, ready to devour and make -a prey ; and they would be as flieep in the midlt of thcfe wolves, very unable of themfelves to refill •their rage, and of fo contrary a nature and difpofi- tion to them, that for that reafon they might ex- pc(3: to be the more violently hated by them. In fvch circumflances Chrift gives them a double advice. Be zvlfe asferpents^ and harmlefs as doves. It is faid in Gen. iii. i. that the ferpent was w'lfer than any beaji of the field. Though that is principally meant of the old ferpent, yet an allufion feems in- tended to the fagacity of the animal icfelf, of which naturalifts have obferved feveral inltances : and from thence our Saviour feems to ufe the wif' dom of the ferpent as a proverbial phrafe. On the other hand, the dove is noted for one of the moll: harmlefs birds, as the Iheep is among the bealls. Chrift dirc(ft5 his difciples to unite thefe two things in their condudl, wifdom or prudence, and in^ nocence. The lot of rrood men in all aees bears fome rc^ femblancc to the cafe of the apoftles as defcribed here ; and therefore the diredion may be confider- ed as of general ufe. We find another very like it laid Serm. XIX. CbyJfiian Vnuknce, 31^ laid down by tjic apoftic, i Cor. xiv. 20 Ere thy en, be not dnldrcn in underjland'nt'y : bowbeit in rmdke^ ot e-viif be ye children , but in underjlcmding be men. Upon this head, 1 would, I. Briciiy explain the double direction given us. II. Point ar iome prineipal inflanees wherein we fliall find chriilian prudence, in conjunction with innocence, very neceffary and ierviceable. And, III. Intorce the exhortation from the defcription given of our {late in this world. I. I would briefly explain the double direction gi- ven us. And I chufe to begin with the lall, becaufe the wifdom, to which we are directed, cannot well be explained without firfl: confidering the other. I. We are required to be harmlefs. We find the original word onlv twice beiides in the New Tefta- ment : in Rom. xvi. 19. Where it is rendered, fimple concerning e-vil : and in Phil. ii. 15. Where it is tranf- lated as here, harmlefs. Several accounts are given of the derivation of the word ; but I appre- hend the mofl probable to be, that it is a metaphor taken from unruly beafts that pufli with their horns. The dcfign of it is well exprcffed by our tranfla- tion, harmlefs. This Ihould be the firft care of every Chriflian that he be inoffenfive in his whole conJuilit, or, as St. Paul fays, may keep a confcience void of offence both toziwds God and towards men ; and I may add, towards ourfelves alfo. It fliould be our care with refpcdt to God, that we wrong not him of his rights, by negledting any part of the homage and allegiance that we owe him. A finncr is reprefented by Eliphaz in a phrafe not unfuitable to that in the text, as running upon God, even on his neck, upon the thick boffes of his buckler. Job XV. 26. He is indeed altogether above receiving any real prejudice from us : but fm is adting a- gainft him, as much as it is in our power to do ; it is J20 Chri/iicm Prudence, Serm. XIX* is a wrdng and injuftice offered him. Here there- fore wc Ihould lUidy to be inoffeniive. With rcfpedt to our neighbour, we Ihould be careful that we give no juft ground of offence; by denying him any of his juft clainis from us, or de- priving him of his rights, either in his perfon, or fubftance, or reputation. Thy wkkednefs may hurt a yuan as thou art, in the llridteit fenfe. Job xxxv. Z- Being harmlefs in common acceptation, principally relates to our neighbour* But befides this, We have a farther concern in relation to ourfelves; that whatever we do, we wrong not our own fouls, but are true to their interefts, to their prefent peace and purity, and their everlafling happinefs. And that a due provilion be made for our temporal well- being as far as may confifl with our fuperior en- gagements. This is the harmlefihefs or innocence which we fhould make it our bufinefs to maintain ; that our duty to all in the feveral relations wherein we fland, may be confcientiouHy and inviolably obferved* And now it will be eafy to difcern what is intended ' by the other part of the diredtion. 2. We are required to be zv'ife as ferpents* And as this {lands in coni>edtion with the former particular, we may plainly collect two things for explaining it. Firft, That no rules of policy are to be obferved, which arc inconfiftcnt with innocence and a good confcience. The mofl prudential methods can be thought of to compafs a bad end, or thofe v/hich may bear the mofl: promifing afpedt of fuccefs in order to obtain a good end, if they are known to be unlawful, are alike abomination to God, and Ihould be io to every good man ; for in both there is the wifdom of the fcrpcnt without the innocence of the dove. Trick and fallhood, cunning crafti- ftefs, as the Scripture calls it, is a very different thing from chriftian prudence. It is the zvifdom of this Serm. XIX. CbriJIicm Pr/uk/ice 321 fbis zvorld, which is fooli/bnefs with Go J, i Cor. ill. 19. F-ie/hly zvifdom, which Ibnds oppofcd to fimpUcily and Godly ftncerity, 2 Cor. i. 12. or the zo'ijdom which Si. James pronounces to be earthly^ Jhifual, devili/l', James iii. 15. Not the laudable wildom of the lerpent, but the wicked craft of the old ferpent. Known duty is a line beyond which we muft not fuftcr ourfelves to go upon any pretence of conve- nience or prudence. Secondly, The wifdom to which we are direifled, is that by which we may moil effcdually be enabled to difcern and difchargc our duty. It pre-fuppofes a confcientious regard to duty, a hearty deiire to know and praftifc it. And the province of Chrifllan prudence is only to fecond this defign, to facilitate and improve the performance : when we have fixed a right end, to find out the moft fuitable means for attaining it : to judge of the proper times and fea- fons of things, as every thing is beautiful in its feafon, and that one branch of duty may not inter- fere with another ; to confider the circumflances of providence from time to time, and fo to difcern our prefent duty, and bear fruit in feafon : to weigh the circum fiances of cafes as they occur, which may Ibmetimes make it difficult to difcovcr on which fide of a quellion duty lies ; and fo to dircdl and guide our pratlice. The Scripture fpcaks of fome, Jcr. iv. 22. who were zvife to do evil, but to do good thty had no kno'jj- ledge : they fhewed a great deal of art and cunning in the management of their wicked practices, but were moft unfiirniibcd and unexpert for the per- formance of any thing truly commendable. In op- pofition to fuch a character, the apoftle expreiles his wiihes for the Romans, Rom. xvi. 19. I would have you zvife to that zvhich is good, and Jimple concerning evil. Which is a good expofition of our Saviour's dirediion in the text. 'The zvijdoni of the prudent is to Vol. II. S s under- ^22 Chr'ijlian Prudence. Serm. XIX. imderjland his wa)\ Prov. xiv. 8. Firft and princi- pally to learn the way to Heaven, which is pre- Icribed to all ; and then the way of particular duty, according to our fpecial and diftinguifliing circum- ftances : and to underftand the belt manner of per- forming our duty, in order to reach the end pro- poled in it ; as it is faid, EccL viii. 5. A wife wait's heart difcerneth both time and judgment. This is a general view of the wifdom or pru- dence recommended. II. I would now confider fome principal inflances wherein we fhall find Chriftian prudence, in con- junction with innocence, very neceflary and fer- viceable. And we may take a Ihort view of the three great branches of our duty to this purpofe. I. Prudence, as well as confcientioufnefs, is ne- ceflary in the exercife of godlinefs, or our dired: duty to God himfelf. An honeft upright heart, truly devoted to God, though it is the principal thing, yet will need the aids of prudence to facili- tate the practice of piety, to promote the pleafure and the luftre of it. We mult not omit any branch of real piety, or of the due homage which God requires from us, to avoid the reproaches of profane people ; nor make it our main end in any religious exercifes to be fecn of men : that would be carnal policy. But it is Chriftian prudence to avoid any fuch indecen- cies in our outward behaviour in facred exercifes, as may unneceffarily give men offence, or a handle for reproach and cenfure. By this means we are moft: likely to honour God, and recommend his ways to men. Wifdom is alfo profitable to diredt to the proper fcafons for the exercife of the feveral holy difpo- fitions of which piety confifts : that God may have the acknowledgments from us, which his provi- dences and our condition from time to time re- quire Serm. XIX. Chrtjlian Prudence, 323 quire. There is a peculiar feafonablenefs and pro- priety in the exerciic of Ibmc gracious difpoli- tions, and in Tome branches of worfhip, at fpccial times and under particular circumftances : and it is a part ol prudence to obferve thcfe, and judge a- righr of them, and to direct the frame and ad:ions accordingly. We are diredted hi the chiy ofprofperity to be joyful, and in the day of advcrftfy to conjider, Eccl. vii. 14. And God blames Ifrael for the unfuita- bicncfs of their behaviour to their circumftances, Ifai. jcxii. 12, 13. In that day did the Lord God of Hafts call to zveeping and to mourning, and to haldnefs, tind to girding zvith fackcloth : and behold joy and gladnefsy Jlaying oxen, and killing jloeep, eating jiejl: and drinking wine. There is a time to weep, and a time to mourn ; and graces and duties eminently fuited to both conditions. We arc efpecially called to awful fear when God's judgments are abroad ; to humble ourfelves under his mightv hand, when it is laid upon us ; to pradtifc fubmiflion and patience under his corred:ions ; and trull in him in dark and diftreffing circumftances : on the other hand the fmiles of his providence, and the light of his countenance fhould fummon up the lively a^llings of joy and gratitude, of love and delight. Some feafons efpecially call for pray- er, and others for praifc : James v. 13. Is any man among you afflicted ? let him pray. Is any merry f let him jlng pfalms. Every pious affcdtion and exereife is mofi amiable in itfelf, and moft acceptable to God, when it is feafonable and fuitable to mcn*s prefent cafe. And it is a confiderable part of Chrif- tian prudence carefully to attend to this. And it is alfo of ufe for regulating the time, and manner, and length of our devotions, fo as may beft anfwer the end of them, the promotion of real piety in ourfelves or others. There is no Hated and prefcribcd rule for thefe things ; nor can S s 2 anv «24 Chrijlian Prudence, Serm. XIX. any particular direcflion be given which will fuitall. The determination of it mufl be left to prudence, animated by a lively zeal to fecure the great end. Thus, in fecret devotions, the general rule for all is, that Chriftians manage them fo as may be moft for the benefit of their own fouls. Prudence, un- der the condudt of a heart truly devoted to God, muil diredt how it is moft likely that this end may be anfwered, according to a man's conftitution and circumftances in the world. For the time, it muft be a rule of prudence ordinarily to be obferved, that for duties which are ftatedly to return, a ftated time in the morning and the evening, fliould be pitched upon as that which we intend commonly to employ this way, farther than extraordinary occa- iions may make an exception ; and this fuch a time, wherein upon the knowledge of our own conftitu- tions and buiinefs, we may expeft to be moft lively and lea ft interrupted ; for a truly pious man will not content himfclf commonly to put God and his foul off with the dregs of his tinie and fpirits. For the manner, prudence, aiming at the great end of piety, muft ftill be our guide. As fuppofe, for the pofture ufed, whether proftation, or kneeling, or ftanding ; we ftiould chufe that wherein our minds arc moft free and leaft liable to difcompo- kirc. By tlie fame meafure we fhould be conduct- ed, cither to ufe the voice, when privacy will ad- mit of it, or to forbear it : and I mav add alio, cither wholly to addrefs to God in fuch thoughts and cxprellions as our own hearts fuggeft, or at fome- times to ufe the affiftance of pious forms or hints prepared by others, when our own minds may not be in the beft. frame. For the length of them pru- dence muft dired: too : and I believe moft people will ilnd It ordin;)rily expedient, that their devo- tions fhould rather be frequent than long; that at leaft the length of iheQi ftiould be proportioned to the Serm. XIX. Chriftian Prudence. 325 the fervour and devotion of the fpirlt. In the fo- cial duties of religion, we are concerned to mind the good of others as well as of our own fouls ; and therefore Chriftian prudence muft confult that. We fhould adjuft the time of our family devotions as may beft comport with the general edification of the members of it ! if poffible, when they can be all prefent, and when they arc likely to be lead fluggifh and indifpoTed. The matter of our addreffes Ihould be things of the moft common concern to all, and fuitable to the circumflances of the family as fuch. Care Ihould be taken in the manner and expreflions, that, as far as poffible, it may not be juflly ex- ceptionable. And here cfpecially, in the daily fer- vice of God in our families, tedioufnefs is carcfullv to be avoided ; for want of prudence in which, I doubt many children and fervants in pious families have been led to difguil religion more than they otherwife w^ould have done. 2. Prudence is equally neceflfary to accompany zeal and goodnefs, in performing our duty to our- felves. In the firft and fundamental part of it, the imme- diate care of our fouls. This cannot well be done without Chriftian prudence. To bcconic well ac- quainted with the biafs of our conftitutions and na- tural tempers, which belongs to prudence,'will give us the principal light to difccrn the fins that moft eafily befet us, and the beft methods of efcaping them ; and to difcover the graces and virtues wherein we have the beft profpeft of fliining. The more w^e difcern the devices of Satan, we ftiall be the better prepared to obviate them : for if we are ig- norant of them, he is like to gain an advantage over us, 2 Cor. II. Prudence muft point us to the happy and advantageous feafons, the promifijig minutes, which may be moft fuccefsfuUy improved, for ftrengthening our good habits, and mortifying the feveral ^26 Chriftian PrvJence. Sf.rm. XIX. feveral irregular difpofitions that attend us. Pru- dence defcrics the temptations which are apt to excite our irregular appetites, and diredis us to a- void them : whereas if without it we ralhly enter into temptation, how difficult is it to preferve our innocence ? In making the interefls of foul and body con- fiftent, as far as poffible, prudence is of vaft fer- vice. We muft not negled: the care of our bodies, while we fojourn in them ; but endeavour, as far as is pradticable, to make the welfare of foul and body to comport together. And this end might in many cafes be obtained by the exercife of Chriftian prudence, far more than fome good men reach it, or than worldly men think pradticable. By a pru- dent obfervation and improvement of the proper times and feafons for both, there would be room in the ordinary ftate of things for all the diligence in men's worldly bulinefs that can be reafonably defired, and yet their better interefts not be neglected. If men would but obferve God's rule for the ftridt obfer- vation of the Lord's day, they would not find that to interfere with a clofe application to their fecular bufinefs on other days, nor to their fuccefs in it ; and yet they might be able to preferve the ftrongeft af- fedlion for things above. Nor would it be diffi- cult with a little prudent forecaft, or the ordering of their affairs with difcretion, fo to manage them that convenient time might be found on every day for the worlhip of God in private, and in their families, and fometimes occafionally in public worfhip, with-, out any detriment to their outward intereft. Expe- rience fhews this daily in many inftances of people who carry on their trades and worldly bufinefs with the greateft fuccefs ; and yet are very diligent for their fouls too, in feafon and out of feafon. Thus, by innocent prudence we may often avoid temporal inconveniencies for our profeflion j which we Serm. XIX. Chrijlian Prudence, 317 we fhould endeavour to do as far as may be done without intrenching upon a good conlcience. This is the particular cafe referred to in the text, the e- fcaping of pcrfecution, as far as it may be lawfully avoided. Sometimes it is impoffible to be ftaved off without making fliipwreck of faith and a good confclencc ; and then all regards to the body mult give place to the everlafting intereils of our fouls. So Chrift exhorts in this chapter, ver. 28. Fear not ibem zuhich kill the body, but are not able to kill the foul; but rather fear him zvhich is able to dejiroy both foul and body in hell. But fometimes we may avoid fuffering in a time of perfecution without violating duty, and we are diredled to ufe any wifdom of the ferpent for that purpofe confident with integrity ; particularly if we can efcape it by flight, ver. 23. fVhen they perfecute you in this city, Jiee ye into another. To the fame purpofe, Prov. xxii. 3. J prudent man forefeeth the evil, and hideth himfelf This is an ordinarv rule, though it may admit of exceptions, as Nehcmiah laid, Shoidd fucb a man as I fee ^ Neh. vi. II. Being the lupreme magiltrate at Jerufa- lem, by whole influence and encouragement the Jews were chieflv animated in their work, and fore- ieeing that if he forfook them, they would quit their work and fly too ; in this cafe he refolved to run all rifques. The f.tiv.e may be the cafe of fome of a public character in time of perfecution; they may be fo circumflanced that it may not confifl: with duty to flv. But prudence, upon an impartial weighing of the particular circumftances, mufl: di- rect in this matter. Prudence, at Icafl will contribute one way very much to our fafety from many fuflcrings. As far as we are governed by it, we fhall not expofe ourfelves to fufferings by mere imprudences ; wdiieh indeed give rife to many inftances of unkind ufiige. Chrif- tian prudence will take away the occaflons of ill- treatment n±S Chrtjlian Prudence, Serm. XI1C« treatment on any other account than as Chriftians ; it will not allow us to fuffer as bufy bodies, or up- on account of nccdlcfs provocations. And I doubt good men too often heighten the ill-will of others a- galnft them by fuch means. 3. Prudence is yet farther neceflary to the re- gular and fuccefsful difcharge of our duty to our neighbours. Innumerable inftances might be pro- duced on this head ; I Ihall only lingle out a few. Prudence fliould attend our fincere endeavours to do good to the fouls of men. Mofl men are fo indifferent about their befl interefts, and fo ready to mifinterpret the mofl honefl methods taken for that purpofe, chat fome policy and prudence muft be ufed to make fucli charitable endeavours to go down. He who would hope to fucceed in inltrudling of the ignorant, or convincing of gainfayers, or reforming the vicious, muft take fome pains to render him- felf acceptable, as far as that may be done with- out finful compliances. "The preacher muft feek to find out acceptable words; only he muft be careful, that they be upright, even words of truth, Eccl. xii. 10. He muft be content out of a defire of doing good, to imitate St. Paul's example, i Cor. ix. 20, 21, 22. U'dto the Jezvs, I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews : to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law : to them that are zvithout law, as without lazVf (being not without lazv to God, but under the law to Chriji \) that I might gain them that are without law : to the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the zveak : / am made all things to all men, that I might by all means fiave fome. That is, he was ready to condefcend to the capacities, humours and pre- poflcffions of all with whom he had a concern, as far as his duty to his mafter would allow, in order to be a fuccefsful inftrument for their good : and SerxM. XIX. Chrijl'ian Prudence^ 329' and fo muil: every faithful miniftcr be content to do, who has the fervice of Chrill and fouls at heart. And Chriftians in a private ftation ihould ftudy to pkafe their fieigbhu/ for bis good I0 edifua- ■tion, Rom. xv. 2. To accommodate themfelves bv all cafuicfs of behaviour^ and prudent addrefs to other people, that they may be the more capable of ferving them in their everlailing intereils* . There is one inftancc of ufcfulnels to others^ which is made a general duty upon Chrillians, re- proving them for -their fms'y but poinbiy there is not more prudence rcquifite in the difcharge of any one part of religion. A reproof may be thrown away where it will do more hurt than good; Prov. ix. 7, 8. He that reprovcth a fiorner gets to- kirn fc If Jhame ; and he that rcbuketh a tvicked man, gets to him- felf a blot : 7'^prove not a fcovncr, kji he hate thee ; re- buke a wife man, and he zvill love thee. If )'ou fee a man defperate in fin fo as to mock at reproof, it is a vain thing to reprove him any longer ; you would but provoke him to add fin to fin, and expofe your- felf to needlefs trouble, without ferving any good end by it. But there may be fome hope of fuc- cefs in reproving a wife m.an ; one who has yet fome commendable modefty remaining, and will patiently give you the hearing. Prudence muil make a proper diftinftion of pcrfons ; and it muf!: dired: to the fitteft opportunities : as, to reprove in private for more private offences ; and to ob- ferve people's moft ferious and tender minutes, to take the advantage of convicttions, or awaken- ing providences ; and, in like manner, to' fuit a reproof to men's different tempers, capacities, and flations. A zvord fitly fpoken, is like apples of gold ifi piSiures of Jilver, As an ear-ring of gold, and an orna- ment of fine gold, fo is a wife reprover upon an obedieftt ear. Prov. XXV. II, 12, Vol. IL T z There n^o Chrijlian Prudence. Serm. XIX. There is need of prudence to the exercife of •mercy and charity to the bodies of men. Not on*- ly for the management of our outward affairs with difcretion, that zve may have to give to hhn that needeth, Eph.iv. 285 but to diftinguifh the moft proper objedts of charity, fince we cannot reach all cafes; and to proportion the meafures of our bounty to the ex- tent and importance of occaiions : and in many cafes to judge of the beft methods effedlually to reach the good ends we propofe. Prudence is of equal ufe in the management of common convcrfation. To judge w^hen it is fit to fpeak, and when to keep filence ; to confider the different tempers, expecftations and views of thofe with whom we converfe, that we may avoid of- fence : and for dircd:ing us in other incidents of fociety without number. One inllance muft not be omitted, when we are fpeaking of Chriftian pru- dence. We are commanded that ottr difcourfe be good to the v.fc of edifying, Eph.iv. 29. This plainly inti- mates, not only that we fhould alwavs be careful Icil any thing pafs from us in convcrfation, which may tend to corrupt the minds of others ; but alfo, that rclioious difcourfc, or that which diredlly tends to their Ipiritual good, fhould frequently be our theme in convcrfation. But wifdom is needful to direft in this matter. We fhould not caji our pearls be- fore fti^inc, Mat. vii. 6. nor fpcak in the ears of a fool, who will defpife the zvifdom of our words, Prov. xxiii. 9. That will only furnifh very loofe people with a fubjcfl of mockery. There is alfo a happy dexte- rity to be ufcd in accommodating; ferious difcourfe to different perfons and feafons, if we would reach a good purpofc by it ; and a propriety to the difTe- rent occafions to be obferved. The apoflle gives us a direction of general fervice in this matter, Col. iv. 6. Serm. XIX. Chrijlian Prudence, 531 iv. 6. Let your fpeech be always with grace, in the molt grateful and acceptable manner you can ; feafoied zuith fdt, the fait of wifdom and prudence, which may make it plcafant and beneficial to the hearers ; that ye may know hcrjo to anjwer every man, that your an- fwers may be well fuited to the variety ot perfons and occasions, which are to be confidered in them. The like obfervations of the ufe of prudence might be carried into all the branches of duty, and the various ftations and relations of life. But I fhall enter no farther into particulars, rather chufing, III. To offer fomething to enforce this exhorta- tion from the defcription given in the text of the flate of Chriftians in this world ; that they are as Jheep in the miJJi of wolves. The devil as a roaring lion feeks to devour ; and as an old ferpcnt to le- duce ; and we lliould ad with all the caution and wifdom we can to defeat him. But the danger fug- gefled here, is principally from men. Indeed good men are fo imperfedt in their good- nefs now, that w^e are not out of danger from them. Their fociety and example may have much enfnar- ing in it, which requires precaution for our own fafety. But efpecially the number of bad men even in the beft of times calls for much prudence to car' ry thofe who are truly good, fecurely and creditably through their courfe of obedience. Such admoni- tions are always feafonable, Eph. v, 15, 16. See that ye zualkcircumjpeniy, not as fools, but as wije, redeeming the time, becaufe the days are evil. Col. \v. ^. ff'^alk in wif- dom toward thofe that are without, redeeming the time. Phil. ii. 15. Be harmlefs and blamelefs, ihcfons of God, •without rebuke, in the midfi of a crooked and pervcrfe nation, among whom youfhine as lights in the world. Many ill men are obferving us, ever ready to triumph in the leafl advantage they can gain againft us, and to re- proach our profeffion upon that account. If they can find any thing to impeach our moral character, that T t 2 v.ouU 332. Chrijiian Prudence, Serm. XIX would make ns their reproach and their jelt. The Pfahnift elpecially deprecates this, Pfal. xxxix. 8, Deliver me from all yny tr'anfgrelJionSy make me not the re- proach of the fooliJI:). " Lord, fuffer me not to become *' their reproach by any real and notoiious crimes But in dcfed: of them, they will gladly lay hold of imprudencies to reproach religion and thofe who pretend to it ; and therefore we ihould endeavour, as far as poffible, to prevent their ill-natured fatis^ faction that way. Let us then, laying afide all the deceitful arts which are inconfiftent with godly fincerity, cultivate the wifdom that is from above ; all that may help forward the comfortable aud fuccefsful performance of our duty, and recommend our holy profeffion. In matters of importance, and' which admit of prcT meditation, let us deliberately confult not only the matter of our duty, but the moft acceptable and a- miabie manner of performing it ; aiid endeavour to become mafters of an habitual furniture of pru- dence, to dired: us upon ludden emergencies : that it may be our charadier with the wife man, to have our eyes in our head, A growing acquaintance v^^ith the holy fcriptures will be of Angular ufe to our improvement in pru- dent conduifl by the way, as well as to our becom- ing wife unto falvation. The precepts, the hifto- ries contained in thofe Heavenly oracles, carefully attended to, will be in this refpedt a light to our feet, and a lamp to our paths. The proverbs of Solomon, and the pattern of Chrifl, Ihould efpecially be llu- died to this purpofe. The bleffed Jefus was not only a pattern of fpotlefs innocence, but a model of confummate prudence ; as in him zvere hid all the ireafures of^vifdom and knozvledge. He chofe the fitteft means in all cafes to reach his ends ; and took ad- vantage of all occurrences to convey a word in fea- fon to thofe with whom he converfed, in the manner and Serm. XIX. Cbrijhin Prudence, 333 and at the times wherein his inrtrudilions were nioft apt to make impreffion. When he flicwcd his cha- rity to their bodies in healing their difeales, or in fome other inftances of compaffion, he laid hold on fuch happy opportunities to be a monitor for their better interells. There are many inftances in the gofpel hiiiory of his prudent condudt for avoiding dangers, and the effects of his enemies malice, till his time was come ; and of his wary anfwers to cap- tious and enfnaring queftions, whereby he cither foftned the rage of his adverfaries, or evaded their wicked intentions. His followers may derive great light from a diligent obfervation of his behaviour attended with the various circumftances. The lives of wife and good men, of which there are many written for our ufe, may furnifli us with feveral profitable hints to make us wifer as well as better. And efpecially experience will enable us to make a luccefsful progrefs in this needful ikill, if we ire but careful obfcrvers of men and things around us, and principally of ourfelves and our own conduct: then days zvill fpeak and grcnvlng years zvill teach ivifkm ; if we ufe ourfelves to recoUedt, where we have taken a vvrong flep, that it may not be re- peated ; and where we have fucceeded well, that we may be in a readinefs to conduct ourfelves in a like manner, if the fame occafions occur again. And along with our own care, from a fenfc of the many imprudencies to which we are liable, and of the various unforefcen trials which we can hardly be provided for by any precautions of our own, let us daily ajk wifdom of God, who give th liberally and upbraid- eth not. The conflant guidance and condudl of the all wife and holy God, will be our bell fecurity through a dangerous world, and will bring us to glory at the end of life. SERMON SERMON By the Reverend Jeremiah Seed, M. A. THE NATURE, POSSIBILITY AND TRUTH^ OF A PARTICULAR PROVIDENCE. Psalm cxiii. 5. IVho is like unto the Lord our God, who hath his dwells hig fo high ; and yet humbleth himfelf to behold the things that are in Heaven and Earth P IT is one great recommendation of the facred writings, that they have exprefled themfelves with more juftnefs of thought concerning the na- ture of God, than any other compofitions whatever. What the vanity of fcience, falfely fo called, has afcribed to nature, or to fecond caufes, exclusively of the firft, is by them refolved into the immediate will and providence of God. This is the trueft philofophy, as well as the beft divinity. For what is nature ? Is it an underflanding Being ? Or is it not ? If it be not, how can an undefigning Being produce plain notices of contrivance and defign ? If it be an underflanding Being, who adts through- out the univerfe ; then it is that great Being, whom wc 33^ the Nature, FflJfibH'ifyandTruthy Serm. XX we call God. For nature, ncceffity, and chance, mere phantoms, which have no reafon, wirdom, or power, cannot adt, with the utmoft exadtnefs of wifdom, powerfully, inceffantly, and every where. And here I would obferve, that no words are more undetermined in their lignification, than thofe, which pais current in common converfation. We never queilion, but that we clearly underftand terms, which are daily in ufe, and familiar to us : whereas thofe words are often mere founds, without fenfe or any fettled fignification. Thus few feem to know (though it is the only clear and determi- nate meaning of it) that nature in this cafe means nothing, but the conftant and flated operation of God upon matter. We have no lefs reafon to beg our daily bread of Almighty God, than the Ifraelites had to pray for their fuilenance, when they were fed with manna from Heaven. For that a handful of corn Ihould multiply to a prodigious degree, and that the fields fnould' fland fo thick. Vv'ith corn, that they fliould laugh and fing, muft be afcribed to God ; as well as that the food of angels was given from above to the Ilraelites : becaufe a regular, conftant and uni- form effe(ft, in which there are evident traces of v^'ifdom and benevolence, flands as much in need of the operation of a wife and benevolent Being, equal to the effed:, to produce it conilantly at fee times and feafons ; as an occafional, infrequent, and extraordinary phenomenon does to produce it now and then, when an extraordinary occafion offers. The generation of a human body in the ordinary way is no more to be accounted for by the laws of mechanifm, than the raifmg of a dead body from the grave : and the only aflignable motive, why we attribute the latter to the immediate agency of God, and not the former, is, that the latter is an unufual operation of the Deity. If we faw bodies' commonly Serm. XX. of a particular Providence* 337 commonly rife from the grave, as we do corn from feed fovvn in the earth ; we flioiild endeavour to explain this eftodt, juft as we do the other, from philofophical caufes exclufive of the firit. No beings, but what have life and fenfe, can, in propriety of fpeech, be termed caufes : all other things, being dead and unactive, are only like tools in the hand of a workman : and whatever we afcribe to matter of a paflive being, mud be refolv- ed into his will, who ufeth matter as an inilrumenr. Can matter, which rcfifts every change of date, cfledt what it refifts, not only move itfelf, but change its motion from a ftraight to a circular one, and give itfelf a new direction ; as the planets mud do to defcribe their orbits round the fun ? But I need not infift upon this point anv longer. For to denv a providence in general, is, in eiied", to deny a God. If there be a God inverted v\ itli the attributes of infinite power, wifdom and good- nefs ; providence is nothing but the exercife of thofe attributes, viz. his wifdom, power, and good- nefs on the creation in general. It cannot be fup- pofed, that he will let thofe attributes lie dormant in him in a Hate of inaction, without exerting them at all. A general providence then muft be granted : but a particular providence is clogged with fome diffi- culties. I fliall therefore, to remove them, I. State the dodtrine of a particular providence, II. Shew the poffibility of it. III. I Ihall prove the certainty and truth of it. IV. Subjoin and conclude with fome pradlical refledtions. I. Then, I am to flate the doftrine of a particu- lar providence. I. We muft not expedt, that God's particular providence would interpofe, where our own endea- VoL. II. U u vours 3 3 S the Nature, Poffihility and truth Serm. XX» vours are fufHcient. For that would be to encourage floth and idlenefs, inftead of countenanclne and fupportmg virtue. Nor ought we to expedt to be relieved from difficulties and diftreffes into which our own mifmanagement and criminal conduct have plunged us. But when without any fault of ours, our affairs are fo perplexed and intangled, that human affiftance will be of no avail ; then we muft have recourfe to God, that he Vv^ould give us wif- dom to conduct us through all the labyrinths and in- tricacies of life, refolurion to grapple with difficul- ties, and flrength to overcome them. In this light the prayer, which Jofephus puts into the mouth of Mofes, juil before his paffage through the Red Sea, isveryjuftand beautiful. UnpalFable rocks bar- red his efcape one way, the numerous hofl of the Egyptians blocked up others : before him flood the Red Sea. In this iituation, Mofes, jufh upon the brink of ruin, applies himfelf thus to God : *' Lord, '' thou knowefl that no ftrength, wifdom, or con- "^ trivance of ours can here be of any iignificancy. *' It is in thy power alone to find out a way for the •' deliverance of this people, who by thy com- *' mand, and under thy condud: have left Egypt. *' Defpairing of all other ways, we flee to thee ** alone for fuccour ; Lord, let it come fpeedily ; <* give us a full proof of thy almighty power and ♦' veracity. We are in great fcraits, great and un- "^ furmountable bv us ; but to thee flight and in- «' confiderable. The fea is thine, and it obfi:rutl:s <« our progrefs : the mountains that fhut us up, are *' thine too. Thou canft divide this fea, or turn <« its waves into firm land, or make us find a fafe <« paffage through the deep.** Here was a knot too hard for any but the Deity to untie ; and therefore the Deity defcended upon the fcene to unravel the perplexing difficulty. But in common cafes the befl way is to rely upon pro- vidence^ f»E R M. X X. of a particular Providence, 339 vidcnce, as If all human endeavours and refourccs were ufclefs, as intlecd they are, without it ; and yet to exert our e;ideavours as vigoroufly as if pro- vidence would not intcrpofe at all. F'or God will not prolVitute his power to fupcrfede our endea- vours as to what we can do : he will only fupply what we cannot do. 2. We muft not expedt that providence would fo far confult our private intcrell, as to counter- work that of the whole. Thofe general laws, which are calculated for the good of the whole, mav, in Ibme cafes, be detrimental to fome few perfons : but, in the main, are beneficial even to them. For if God ihould, upon no extraordinary emergency, for no propellent good, deviate from his laws ; the utmoft reach and compafs of thought would avail no more, than childhood and igno- rance : all human induftry and forefight would be at a Hand, which depend on things going generally on in a ftated track. For there could be no room for counfel, deliberation and forecait, where there was no orderly conftitution, no fettled courfe of na- ture. It would not fignify to till the ground, that we might reap the fruits of the earth in due fca- fon : there would be no dependance upon the ebb- ing and flowing of the waters at let times, and fo in'a thoufand other cafes. It is for the intereft even of that man, who is uneafy becaufe the fettlcment of nature is not changed in compliance with his wifhes ; that God has given things a lazv, zvhicb Jhall not be broken upon every frivolous occafion. For if the Deity (hould depart from his uniform manner of a(fling upon his application in any material point ; why Ihould he not do fo to gratify the im- portunity of otber perfons ? The confequcncQ of which would be, we fliould live in an irregu- lar dif-Jointed world, where there would Ix no harmony, no order, no law; but all would be con-, U u 2 fufiop 340 'the Nature, Toffib'dity and 1'ruth Serm. XX. fufioii and anarchy. God can and does govern the rational world, without lubvcrting and unhinging the frame of the natural. 3. We are not to expedt that providence upon our repeated requefts would grant what we imagine a blefiing ; there being feveral things which we think to be bleffings, that are not fo upon the whole, or not fo to us. And providence is not like an over indulgent parent who deftroys the fu- ture happinefs of his children, by complying with their importunate petitions, and removing their prefcnt uneafinefs. We muft diftinguifh likewife between natural and fantaftic wants. Providence has generally made ample pr-oviiion for the former, but not for the latter. Beiides thofe dcfires, which are inborn there are feveral, which are inbred in us, by early cuftom and by a neglc<5f of reafon : fuch are thofe of high and fumptuous food, of honours, and all the pride of life. Now every regular inclination, every plant which our Heavenly Father hath planted, he will take care, in concurrence with our own endea- vours, to feed and nourifli. But we ourfelves, if we will not part with them, muft maintain thofe fpurious and illegitimate defires, which we have be- got in ourfelves. There would be as exadt an ad- juilment of the means of fubfiftence to the refpec- ■tive wants of the rational creation, as there is to thofe of the animal world ; if men unfatisiied with rieceffaries and conveniencies had not made life mi- ferable by acquired uneafmeires and cravings. In fliort, we are got into a world, in fome meafure, as it were of our own modelling, inftead of having it, as it cam.e originally from God. We have in- troduced much mifcry and diforder by luxury, pride, ambition, and by unnatural defires. 4. Nor muft wc hope, that providence will pre- vent every calamity that may befal good men. All that Serm. XX. of a particular Providencf. 341 that the aflcrters of 2 particular providence con- tend for, is that, it he docs not think fit to prevent it, he will either fupport them under it, or refcue them from it ; or make all things, at the laft u'ind- ing up of the drama, u'ork together for good to them who love him. To annex worldly hap]>inefs conftantly and univerfally to virtue, and Vv'orldly mifcry to vice, would lay too great a biafs and re- ftraint upon our inclinations ; it would over-rule the will, and neceffitate it to be virtuous. This life would be no ftate of probation and trinl : there would be no temptation to vice, when all the ad- vantages lay on the fide of virtue. Having fiated the dodlrine of a particular provi- dence, I proceed, II. To prove the poffibility of it. We muil diltinguilli between the grand and fun- damental laws of nature ; and thofe of. an inferior and fubordinate nature. The o^conomy pf nature may be in a great meafure unalterable, as to the grand and fundamental laws, bv which the univerfe is fleered : fuch are thofe refpecting the revolution of the Heavenly bodies, the fucccffion of day and night, and the round of the feafons. But there are fubordinate and Interior laws, which God may alter without any feeming or vifible alteration. And to recede from them, under proper limitations, occa- fionally, at the inllance ot particular perfons, may be no detriment to the univerfe, and yet of great importance to them. Such nrc the laws relating to the courfe of infedtious and peflilential vapours, the Hate of the atmofphere, &c. Nay, with whatever decifive airs men may talk of God's government by general laws ; yet, as to fome of thefe points, fe- veral matters of fad: are not to be accounted for upon that fcheme. Thus for inftance, according to general laws, the greater quantity of rain has fal- len, the greater quantity Ihould flill continue to fall; becaufe 34^ '^^^^ Nature, Pojftbility and "truth Serm. XX. bccaufe the more the water refted upon the ground, and fwellcd the rivers ; the greater quantity of va- pours muft be attracted by the fun, and defcend again in fho-.vers. And yet this is contrary to expe- rience. On the contrary, the longer any drought has continued ; the longer, without the interpofi- tion of providence, it iliould ftili continue : be- caufe the ground being parched, and the rivers ei- ther dried up or much funk; the number of va- pours, which are exhaled from thence, mull: be very inconfiderable. All pretended foiutions of this appearance do but Ihift oif the difficulty one remove, without fullv obviating it; except we call in the divine providence, which give th the former and the latter rain, to our aid. God undoubtedly can abate or quicken the force of winds, ftorms and lightning ; can retard and weak- en, or increafe and accelerate their inifluence, without reverfing the fettled courfc of nature in a manner per- ceptible to us ; fo as to bring about what he fees fit, and prevent what he does not think fo. We ourfelves very often, within the limited fphere of our adlivi- ty, flop or haften the motion of bodies, or change their diredlion. And fhall we deny the exertion of that power to the great Creator, which the mean- eft of his creatures is inverted with r May he not clog or quicken the wheels, and diredt the fprings of natural caufes, fo that wind and ftorm may ful- fil his word ? The Deity muft proportion his care to the intrin- fic worth of the objedf. Now one being, who is ennobled with the diftinguifhing perfecftions of rea- fon and liberty, is of more value, than the whole mafs of m.atter, how vaft foever in extent. He will therefore have a greater regard for rational beings in proportion to the fuj)erior excellency of their nature. God made the material world entire- ly for the fpiritual ; and confequentiy will govern it Serm. XX. of a particular Provl chief, 343 it with regard to the latter : the material world be- ing but the mere fliell, which was formed and beau- tihcd tor the fake of its inhabitants. This would incline one to think, that God is not fo tied up to general laws, as to have no rcfcrve of power left to himfelf, to provide for particular exigencies. But fuppoiing he feldom or never fwervs from his ftated method of atting, yet the particular occurrences of each man's life, may be diredted by a power delegated to angels, and that too confidently with the eftablifhed courfe of nature. This fuppofition is confirmed by feveral texts of fcripture. Thus we read in the fecc-nd, book of Chronicles xvi. 9. 1'he eyes of the Lord rttn to and fro' throughout the whole earth, to jhew himfelf^ (it fliould be rendered themfelvcs)7?;w/o- In the be- half of them zvhofe heart is perfect towards him. That by the eyes of the Lor,d is here meant the angels of God, is plain from St. John, who mentions Revelations v. 6. the feven eyes which are the feven fpirits or angels of God feut forth into all the earth. The Pfalmifl exprcfsly fays, I'he angel of the Lord eneamp- eth about them that fear him, and delivereth them. We fee, that as the fcale of beings defcends (downwards from man to brutes, from brutes to infedls, from infects to plants ; the higher be- ings in each link of the chain have fomc kind of dominion and vifible authority over their immedi- ate inferiors : man for inftanc^ o\*er animals, and animals over plants. And from that harmony which runs through all God's works, we may con- clude, that as the fcale afcends upwards from man to angels ; they too have fome povver and influence over us ; as we have over brutes, and brutes over thofe of a lower fpccics. If it be alked, whv in punifbing the wricked ; in curbing and over-ruling their ad:ions, fo that they ihall not be able to go beyond the will of God to do iefs 3 44 ^^'^ Nature, Poffibility and Truth Se rm . XX* lefs or more ; and in protedting, chaftifing or trying the ^ood, God does not always adt immediatelv ,* it may be fufficient to aniwer,that as God does not exert a fuper-natural power, where an human is fufficient ; fo he may never put forth his omnipotence, where an angelical power is equal to the effect to be pro- duced ; or in other words, he may never ufe more power or greater means, than was rcquifite. The angels of God are minijhing fpirits, fent forth to minijler for them, who jl^all he heirs offahation. Let us fuppofe that a perfon, whom God defigns to be the inftrument of promoting the happincfs of the world before he dies, has an intention to go fome way, where ailaffins lay in wait for him, or to pafs by a building, which is ruinous and ready to fall. It is not neceffary, that God Ihould abfolutely deflroy the liberty of free agents, or fufpend the force of gravitation : he may, by the miniilry of angels, lay feveral impediments in his way, give him a different turn of thinking, fuggeft feveral reafons, why it may be proper to de- fer his intended journey, or put him upon taking a different road, or over-rule his intentions. A thou- fand impreflions may be made upon him, in this or any other cafe, when imminent danger threatens him, to alter his purpofe. However fixed and de- termined fome may fuppofe the laws, by which the material world is governed, to be ; the mind of man at leall: is changeable and capable of new de- terminations : and God, in whofe hand the heart of man is, as the rivers of water, and who turneth it whi- therfoever he lifleth, may change it by fecret influ- ences, and by making things appear in another light than they did. Or he may render the hand of the rufiian unperforming, by flriking a terror in- to his heart, at the inflant that he meditates the blow. Or there may be feveral ways above our underftanding, by which God may fuit his provi- dence Serm. XX. of a particular Providctue. 34;; cicnce to private cafes, where the courfc of things goes on in a regular channel without overflowing. This is certain, that though feveral things may feem accidental to us, who are ignorant of their true cafes ; yet nothing is accidental to the Deity, to whofe view, ever\'- caufe, how niinute focver, that lies hid in the depth of futurity, is unlocked and cxpofed. And what we mifeal chance, fate, or fortune, in our language here below ; thev, who fpeak another language above, more agreeable to the truth and reaibn of things, call the wife difpen- fations of an all dire(fi:ing providence. Fortune and chance arc but words to fignify our ignorance : the fcripture teachcth us a more jui1: manner of expref- ling ourfelves, as for inftance : The lot is cajl info the lap ; bid the zvholc difpojing thereof is of the Lord. W'hat appears a cafualty to us. Is here referred to the difpo- fal of the fupreme difpenfcr of good and evil. And again, when the eleven apoftlcs were to chufe ano- ther in the room of Judas by lot, they afcribe the diredfion of the affair to God's unerring providence, though it was managed by cafting of lots : Thcu, Lord, zvho knoTV']j\ the hearts of all men, JJ:ew, whether of thefe two thou hajl chofen. Whatever is feemingly effetfied by the miniftry of fecond caufes, God fo lays, directs and condufts the train of events, as to ferve his own beneficial purpofes. The fcripture very fully and exprcfsly afferts a particular provi- dence : God holdeth our ford in life : he is a very pre fent help in trouble : the very hairs of our head are all number- ed : not a fparrozv falls to the j^ round without the Deity : nothing being fo fmall and inconfiderable as to e- fcape his infinite knowledge : nothing fo great or unwieldy, as to encumber his almighty power. Still this objedlion may be advanced : we may fuppofe two men equally good, equally the care of providence, begging at the fame time, the one for an eaftcrn wind, the other for a wcilern, as moft Vol. II. X X cpjn- 346 1'he Nature, FoJJibiUiy and^ruih Serm. XX. commodious for his voyage. How can God's pro- vidence gratify both, when their reqnefls are con- trary ? To which I anfvver, that though God can- not gratify both by granting their particular re- quefts, which interfere, becaufe he cannot do what implies a contradidtion ; yet he may confult the in- tereft and advajitage of both : he may be equally gracious in what he withholds from the one, as in what he vouchfafeth to the other. He may make an incident, however contrary to his wifhes, turn out upon the whole to his benefit, by an unex- pefted train of occurrences, by fecret and unfuf- pedfcd methods. In the cafe of two contrary and clafhing petitions, God will do what is for the good of the whole ; but fo, as that the particular good of each individual, who prays aifedtionately, means well and ad:s up to that meaning, iliall coincide with the general plan. Nay, if the ftormy wind, which he deprecates, ihould arife and fink him in the deep ; yet it may bring him to a far more va- luable haven, the haven where he would be, the land of everlafting reft. But can God, you will fay, behold the things that are in Heaven and in earthy and with one com- prehcnfive view command the whole compafs of the univerfe ? Yes, He, that made the eye, Jkall he not fee; and he, that made the ear, jJmll he not hear f Or he that teacheth man knozvledge, Jhall he not know ? Confidcr that he invefled you with the faculty of knowing and thinking : and can you ftupidly ima- gine, that what you know and think by and from him, can efcape his thoughts and knowledge ? Look upon that glorious luminary the fun : its light flies fwift as thought from one part of the u- niverfe to the other ; it penetrates into every cor- ner, and nothing is hid from the heat thereof. And can you think, that the knowledge of the De- ity does not extend much farther, and penetrate deeper. Serm. XX. of a particular Frovidence. 347 deeper, than the light of that body, which is the work ot his hands ? It is as certain that God fccth us and all our actions, as that he givcth us the power of feeing. Fain would we imagine him far trom us ; though even fpontancous motion be a proof of his immediate prefcncc. The foul wills the morion of the hand and foot, and they imme- diately move obedient to its orders. Yet the foul has no more a power, independently of its Maker, to move its limbs by a mere thought ; than it has a power to move the fun, moon, and ftars, by merely willing it : and he, who has made the for- mer confequent upon our volition, might have made the latter fo too by his almighty power. The Jews, as we learn from Maimonides, waved their facrifice upwards and downwards, north and fouth, caft and weft ward, to intimate that the Be- ing, to whom they confecrated their facrifice, was every where a Being, whom no place could confine, and none exclude. Let us then leave it to him, who alone is equal to the mighty province, to adjuft in fuch a manner the various interfering interefts of mankind in ge- neral, and to confult the private cafes of each in- dividual ; that every man who makes it his bufinefs to recommend himfelf to God, may find his hap- pinefs over-balance his mifcry. But this brings me, III. To prove the truth and certainty of a par- ticular providence. 1. Thar the Deity fhould not grant every parti- cular good man, what is really for his good upon the whole, and no ways inconfiftent with that of the public ; muft either argue, that he is unwilling, or that he is unable to grant it. Infinite goodncfs cannot but be willing to communicate happincfs to every individual, who is not wanting to himfelf; X X 2 and 34S "the Nature, PqlJihility and Truth Serm. XX. and infinite power cannot but be able to bring a- bout, whatever his goodnefs wills. Let us fiippofe a man combating with fome un- common diftrefs, to which his ftrcngth is greatly- unequal ; let us luppole, that this man, who has regarded God during the main tenor of his life, according to the beft of his abilities, now implores him with all the energ}' of devotion, as his laft, his only refuge. Can we imagine, that the Father of comforts and the God of mercy will ftand look- ing upon his trouble; without cither vouchfafing to him any outward affiilance, v/hlch he can ealily do in an unperceivcd manner, to whom all nature is fubfervient ; or communicating to him any inward confolation, though he knows each avenue to the foul ? He may not think fit entirely to remove his misfortune ; but he will either lelTen or abate it, fo that he ihail not be tempted above what he is able ; or he will adjuft his fuccour to his cxigencv. 2. God will refpecfl and treat every man agree- bly to what he is ; and therefore there can be no irrefpc£tive courfe of things. Matter and motion are very undiRinguiLiiing : they make no difference between him that ferveth God, and him that ferveth him not : but God doth : for no good man, I be- lieve, ever prayed conilantly and affetftionately to his Maker^ without having an experience, that God has anfwcred his prayers at fome nice and critical conjuncture. If all things huppen accord- ing to the laws of mechanifm, by a fixed chain of natural caufes, without any act of a refpeclive pro-. vidence, without any fupcrintcndency and direclion of events ; then we live, to all appearance, in a fa- therlefs world, liable to a thoufand dangers, ca- fualties an>.i difireires, which no forefight can pre- vent, no {kill elude, no power fence off. It is an impeachment oi" jGrod's goodnefs to fuppofe, that as ioon as he has made any man, he difmifTes him im- mediately Serm. XX. of a pcvticidar Frovidcncc. 349 mediately out of his hands, and abandons him, without a dcfign to anfwcr his prayers, or take any- farther notice of him in his palfage through this world, or to accommodate the diipenfations of pro- vidence to his wants and deportment. 3. Inltind: is a proof, that providence extends itfeif to every particular brute; inflintt being the immediate energy of the Deity atlliing upon each of the brute creation. For it operates, as foon as animals are born : as foon as they make their en- trance upon this new fcene, the world, they do not a(fl as mere itrangers : they feem to be acquainted with the food that is beneficial to them, and to fhun what is dangerous. A defencelcfs brood, when danger threatens, take flieltcr under the wings of their parent ; while another brood, though hatched under the fame fowl, runs to the water, regard- lefs of the affeiflionaLC cries and tender yearnings of their fofter-mother, which would call them away from an element, which it thinks dcflrudiive to them. Now, what wc call inftind; cannot be the rcfult of mere matter and motion : for undirected matter and motion cannot fhun danger, and purfue what is advantageous. It cannot be the cftedt of reafon in the creatures themfelves : for reafon is an acquifition, and men ripen into rational beings bv a progrefiive opening and unfolding of the mind. Reafon is an improveable faculty, in its nonage for feveral years ; and our fouls, as well as bodies, come naked into the world and unfurniihcd. InilinCt muft be then, as I faid before, the divine ener- gy acting immediately upon the animal creation : it muft be his power, zvho giveih fodder to the cattle, and feedeth the youn<^ ravens that call upon him. Befidcs, every fpecics of brutes obferve a pecu- liar track : they go on in a line without deviating from it ; inftinCt does that bv one unvarying me- thod, which reafon does by feveral : they obferve the 5 50 '^he Nature, Pojibility and 'Truth Se rm. XX. the fame plan in the ftrudiure of their nells, even thofe, which had never feen one before : whereas if they had reafon, they would vary as much in their fchemcs, as we do : they would project new plans and improve old ones. And whereas rational creatures can corred: the reports of the fenfes, and over-rule their felicitations ; brutes are entirely go- verned by natural impuifes, and by the prompting of the fenlitive appetites. Now if providence condeicends to regard every individual in the brute creation fo far, as to aft con- llantlv in it and upon it ; lliali he not much more extend his care to every particular perfon in the ra- tional world, and adapt his difpenfations to the ne- ceilities of each fingle perfon in it : Conjider the fowls of the air ; for they fow not, neither do they reap, nor ga- ther into barns, yet your Heavenly Father fee deth them : Are ye not much better than they ? He, whofe over- flowing bounty has fupplied the birds of the air, and the bealls of the field with whatever is fuitable to their nature; will provide for mankind in a way fuitcd to the condition of the rational nature. He openeth his hand, andfilkth all things living zvith plente- Qufnefs : and fhall he not anfwer the various occa- sions and circumftances of man, the mafter-piece of the vifibie creation ? 4. Thofe who admit a general providence, but deny a particular one, feem to forget that generals are nothing but a colleftion of particulars ; they are nothing but the fum total of individuals. And confequently as generals rnciude particulars ; a ge- neral providence muil imply a particular one. If the whole of worldly affairs and concerns t^e the univerfal chain of providence ; then each man's private concerns are one link of that chain, which is affixed to the throne and directed by the Un- erring hand of God. Whatever other laws, by which the world is governed, there may be ; the fupremLG Serm. XX, of a particular Providence. 351 fupreme law, to which all the reft muft give way, is the intereft of the whole : and the intcrcft of the whole cannot be promoted without a conftant re- gard to the parts, of which the whole is compofed. Now if a fixed, determined, and unchangeable courfe of nature could be made to correfpond to the various interefts and exigencies of free and mutable agents ; there would be no occafion for any interpofition of the Deity, who may have made provifion for particular cafes in his original confti- tution of things. But if this be, as perhaps it is, impoflible, if many beneficial events of the high- eft importance may be brought about, and much needlefs mifery fometimes prevented by a particu- lar direction of matter, which cannor, of itfelf, change its line of diredtion ; it is derogatorv, one would think, to God's goodnefs to imagine, that he would, merely for the fake of atling fimply and uniformly, without any other end in view, make mankind, or any part of mankind, undefervedly and unneceflarily unhappy ; or, that he, who can order matters fo, that his footfteps Ihall not be known, fhould never go out of the common road of his providence to avert evil and produce fome con- fiderable good, which could not otherwife be pro- duced. There mult be then an adjuftment of the ftate of the natural world to that of the rational and intelligent creation. All the arguments, which prove that God governs the world in general in a manner which fuits beft with reafon, prove like- wife that he takes care of particular cafes in the fame manner. For God can no more aft contrary to reafon in any particular cafe, than he can in ge- neral do fo. The time, the manner and condition of each man's exiftence muft be determined by him, upon whom each man's exiftence depends ; which cannot be done without defcending to particulars. 5. The. ^j2 'The Nature, PqfjwiUty and Truth Se rm. X X* 5.. The furprifing difcovcries of murder, the fall of the wicked into the pit, which they made for others ; the ftrange and judicial infatuation of men wife at all other times, when fome great event was to be brought about, which can only be refolved into his power, who maketh the knowledge of the wife foollih, and turneth their counfel backwards ; the indifcretion of others fucceeding, when w^ell concerted plots have failed ; the difproportion of the vifible means to the efFeft ; thefe are fo many arguments to prove a particular providence at the helm, who has a perfed: view of all things, whether great or fmall, at all times, and in all places, with infinitely more eafe, than we can attend to one thing at once. There is great reafon to think, that God often breaks the fine fpun threads of human policy, and brings the moft unpromifing projedts to bear. Were the foul divellied of the body ; flie might find herfelf as much miitaken about feveral turns of af- fairs, as the Trojan hero was, who was enraged at the Grecians, whom he thought the fole authors of his country's ruin : but when the miit was removed which dimmed his mortal fight, he faw the deflruc- tion of the city, in which he thought human agents were only concerned, was caufcd by beings of a milch fuperior nature. We have a pregnant indance in fcripture, that God vouchfafed to fit at the helm of the Jewifli flate. . For when all the males three times a year were obliged to go to the temple at Jerufalem, and confequcntly left the frontiers of their country un- guarded ; what could hinder their enemies, (and no nation had more enemies) who ufed to defy the armies of the living G6d, from making a defcent upon a naked and defencelefs country ? What, but he, who, in the language of fcripture, boweth the hearts of a whole nation, as the heart of one man P When God SerM. XX. of a particular Providence* 3^3 God has fome great defign In view, he glveth one imiverfal bent ol' Inclination to a whole people with the fame eafe, with whicji a guft of wind, inclines all the tops of corn in a waving field the fame wav. This you will fay, is only a proof of a national providence; it facilitates, however, our belief of a providence extending to each individual. What follows, dire(flly proves it, as to the better part of us, our fouls. God is every where prefcnt ; and ro fuppofc that an infinitely good being can be invifibly prefent to the foul, without awi-ikening in it pure and virtuous notices, p.isd exciting it to the purfuitof piety, not indeed by irrciiflible force, but by rational motives, would be to entertain a worfe notion of an all-gracious God, than we do of a pious man. For any good man, who is con- tinually prefcnt with us, will be fuggefting ad- vantageous rules for the condud: of life, if he hath onr eternal intereft at heart. The philofophy now in vogue allows, that God continually adts upon matter, and that whatever morion there is in the great bodies of the univcrfe, is owing to his immediate operation. But if God adts continually and immedic'.tely upon matter ; it will be hard to affign any fufficient reafon, why he fnould iiot adt upon, what is much nobler than matter, the fpiri- tual world. There are very few, who have not, fome time or other, juft as they were upon the point of perpe- trating a bad aCtion, felt a fudden check or re- ftraint upon them, which has rendered their de- lign abortive. Something, they know not what, at that very crifis, when, if they had gone a ftep farther, it had been too late to retreat, hath with- held them from finning. A chill fearfulnefs and trembling hath come upon them that were Grangers Vol. II. Y y to 354 ^^^^ Nature, Tqlfihillty and 'fruth Serm. XX« to fear ; and an unufual damp hath ovcrcaft the foul which had been inured to hardy attenipts. When any good fuggeftion, without any antecedent train of ideas arifeth in our minds, we know not how or from what quarter, we ought to look upon it as a beam of light, darting in upon our minds from the great Father of lights; and let us improve, cultivate and ripen it, till it breaks forth into cor- refpondent adtions. IV. I Ihall make two or three refledlions, and fo conclude. I. Let us learn from hence to form the moft auguft ideas of the divine nature, of which ours is capable. Look how wide and fpacious this earth is, on which we live : yet this earth is as it were but one petty province of God's univerfal empire, one. lit- tle wheel of the vafl machine, the whole world. How aftonifhingly great then is that Being who fets each wheel in motion, and regulates the whole circumference of the creation ; where there are diveriities of adminiftrations, but the lame God, which worketh all in all ? It is his power, which wields fo many maffy bodies, and bids the planers go their ever-lafling round ; it is his wifdom, which adjufts fuch variety of movements with- out the leaft confufion ; it is goodnefs, which has enriched the univerfe with fuch a profufion of good, beautified it with fuch order and har- mony, and ennobled it with fuch magnificence and grandeur. Yet this earth, all thefe worlds, which move above us, far more, than the naked eye, than glafles, than the imagination can reach, are but be- fore him (in the language of the prophet Ifaiah) as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the fmall diijl of tbe b-alance : behold he taketh up the jfles as a very lit' tie Se R M. X X . of a parlicifiar Trovidatce, 355 tie ib'm^. That is, the iflcs, and indeed the whole iinivcri'e, are in his hands, what a light inlignifi- cant weight is in ours, which we rake up and ma- nage at our cafe, without being in the leaft en- cumbered by it. What is your fpirit amidil fuch a multitude of fpirits, as probably inhabit thefc worlds } No more than a drop aniidft the vaft colle(ftion and aflemblage of waters. — Yet you arc as much the care of the o:reat Author of all thefc worlds, and Father of all thefe fpirits, as if there were no creature for him to protect and love but you. No pcrfon, howfoever little or infignificant, uho regards him, can be unregarded by him, •who, with one glance of thought can know every thing, wirhout rtudy and painful refearches ; and with one morion of his will, can do every thing, without toil, or laborious efforts. He hath pre- ferved your going out, and your coming in, com- forting you in troubles, directing you in difficulties, faving you from feveral dangers which you know nothing of, and conducting you through this maze of life. 2. Inftead of fearing yourfelf with melancholy views, and letting your heart fail you for fear, and for looking after thofe things, that are to come upon the earth when wickedncfs and irreli- gion prevail ; let it be a matter of joy and com- fort to you, that amidft all the confuiion and mad* nefs of the world, men cannot fafler perplex and entan^ijle things, than God can unravel them ; or embroil the world, than he can bring order out of confuiion ; that the wicked are under the fe- cret conrroul of his providence ; that the Lord is K'ng, be the people never fo impatient ; he fit- terh between the cherubims, be the earth never fo unquiet ; tliat he can make the machinations of wicked men an accidental occafion of good, Y y 2 and ^^6 The Nature, Pojfibility and Truth Serm. XX, and ferve his gracious defigns, in oppofition to •their own. Laftiy, let us never do any thing to throw our- felves out of his protection. Let us confider how vain all fchemes of happinefs arc, out of which he, the fountain head of happinefs, is left, who can dafh the joys of profperity with fuch unpalat- able ingredients, as render them no joys at all ; and qualify the bitternefs of poverty with fuch in- fuiions of joy and gladnefs, as ihall make it eafy and tolerable. And perhaps, he, who made the, foul, can alone make it thoroughly happy or miferable ; he can pierce it through and through " with forrow and pain, and make it, when incorri- gibly bad, irretrievably wretched ; or he can per- vade it and fill the whole capacity of it with UU' conceivable blifs. Then, and not till then, we are entirely undone, when God has cafl out our foul, caft it from his prefence, from the comforts of his prefence. For his prefence is every where : but it is to the good and the wicked, jufl what it was to the Ifrcalities and Egyptians before the Red Sea : to the former a pillar of light to brighten up every thing around them ; to the latter a cloud and darknefs to trouble and difquiet them. While we enjoy the light of the divine countenance, we need not be dcjedted at the frowns of the whole world. For if God be for us, it will in a fliort time fignify little or nothing, who was againft us : but if he be againft us, what will it fignify, who was for us ; our communication and intercourfe with our ncareft and deareft relations may be in- tercepted by our misfortunes ; but our inter- course with the neareft objedt of all, even him, in whom we live, and move, and have our Toeing, cannot be intercepted but by our vices. He who never failcth them that feek him, will never forfake us. Serm. XX. of a particular Providence. 357 us, till we forfake him and virtue. He is, accords ing to the expreflive defcription of St. John, Light and love ; pure unclouded light, without any mix- ture of darknefs and ignorance ; and pure unallay- ed love, without any tind:ure of malice and hatred : he knows what is really good for us ; and will do whatever in his unerring judgment is moft effec- tually conducive to our good, making every dif- aftrous incident finally terminate in pur benefit. SERMON SERMON XXr. By ArcJiblQiop Leighto>-. THE WRATH OF MAN WORKING THE i'RAISE OF GOD. Psalms IxxvL lo. Surely the zvrath ofnmnJJoallpraife thee : the remahidcr of wrath JJjalt thou rejlrain. '\'\ THAT ninn is this, faid the paiTcngcrs in the Y \ fiiipj that even the winds and the lea obey him ? Chrifl fuddenlv turns a great tempeil: into a greater calm. Surely thofe are no ordinary words of command, that fwelling waves and boiilcrous winds, in the midll of their rage are forced to hear, and taught to underftand and obey them. There- fore the holdino- of the feas in the hollow of his hand, the bridling of the wind, and riding up- on the wings of it, we find peculiarly attributed to the Almighty. But no lefs, if not more wonderful is another of his prerogatives, to wit, his fovereign- ty over all mankind, over the divers and ftrange motions of the heart of man. Admirable is it to govern thofe, both in rcfpedt of their multitude and irregularity. Confider we what millions of men dwell 360 I'he IVrath of Man working Serm. XXL dwell at once upon the face of the earth ; and a* gaui, what troops of feveral imaginations will pafs through the fancy of any one man, within the com- pafs of one day. It is much to keep eye upon them, and to behold them all at once, but far more to command and controul them all ; yet if they were all loyal and willingly obedient, were they tradtable and eafily curbed, it were more eafy fof us to conceive how they might be governed. But to bound and over-rule the unruly hearts of men, the moil of whom continually are either plotting or afting rebellion againft their Lord, to make them all concur and meet at lalt in one end, cannot be done but by a power and a wifdom that are both infinite. That God, whofe name we often men-' tion, but feldom think on his excellency, is alone the abfolute monarch of men*s hearts, and the ruler of all their motions. He hath them limited while they feem moft free, and works his own glory out of their attempts, while they ftrive moft to dif- honour him. Surely the wrath of man Jhall praife thee, &c. The Pfalm is made up of thefe two different forts of thoughts, the one arifing out of particular experience, and the other out of a general doftrine. Thefe drawn from experience are fet down in the verfes preceding the text, and in it. With thofe that follow is the doctrine, with a duty annexed to it ; which two are faith's main fupporters. Bypafl particulars verify the dodlrine, and the generality of the do. j->ofed to the wrath of the world in all ages, flands iirm and cannot be removed. There is a common emblem of the winds blowing from Serm. XXI, the Praife of God, 365 from all o^narters, and upon the p^lobe of the caith, being in the middle of them, is ^^'rli:ten 'nnmouiUs, This filly refembles the church. Why ? it feems to be the Iport of all the winds, but is indeed fo efcab- lillicd, that all of them, yea the very gates of hell cannot prevail againll it, Now, the more the church's enemies labour and n:oil thcm.fclvcs to un- do her, the more dorh their v>'eakncfs and the pow- er of her Lord appear ; fo that thus the wrath of man doth praife him. When was the church free from the world's wrath ; To fay nothing of the church of the Jews, did not thofe wicked emperors of Rome think to have made the Chriftian church ftcrt lived, to have drowned her, newly born, in flcods of her ov/n blood ? And in latter ages, who knows not the cruelties that have been pradlifed by the Turk in the Eaft, and the proud prelate of Rome in the V/eO: ? by which fhe hath fometim.cs been brought to fo obfcure and low a point, that if you can follow her in hillory, it is by the tradl of her blood ; and if you would fee her, it is by the light of thofe fires in which her martyrs have been burnt. Yet hath fhe ftill come through, and furvivcd all that wrath, and flill lliall, till Ihe be made pcrfcd:- ly triumphant. Further : man's wrath tends to God's praife in this, " that God giving way to it, does fo ma- '* nagc it by his fublimc providence, that it of- '^ ten dircdfly croffes their own ends, and con- " duces manifellly to his." Pharaoh thought that his dealing more cruelly with the Jews in their tafks and burdens was wifdom : let us work wifely, fays he. But whereas their ordinary fer- vility was become familiar to them, and they were tamed to it, that fame acce/Tjon of new tvrannv did prepare and difjiofe the Ifraelites for a dcfire of departure, and their departure made way for Pharaoh's ^66 The H'^rath of Man ziwkwg Serm. XXI^ Pharaoli's dellrudtion. Undigeftible infolency and rage, haflening to be great, makes kingdoms call them off, which would have been far longer troubled with their wickednefs, had it been more moderate. Surely then the wrath of men com^ mends the wifdom of God, when he makes him by that contrive and afford the means of his own dov/nfal. Job xviii. 7. 1'he Jieps of kh Jlrength JJjall he flraitoisd, and his own counfel JJjall cafi hm down, fays Bildad. And that is a fad fall ; as that eagle that w^as Ihot with an arrow trimmed with her own feathers. But to clofe this point. It is out of all qucftion, that the deferved punifhment of man's unjuft wrath, doth always glorify the juflice of God, and the more he gives way to their wrath, the more notable iliall be both their punifhment and the juflice of it. And though God feems negleftive of his people and of his "praife, while man's wrath prevails, yet the truth is, he never comes too late to vindicate his care of both ; and when he defers longcfl, the enemy pays dear intereft for the time of forbear- ance. In his eternal decree, he refolved to permit the courfe of man's wrath for his own glory, and when the period which he had fixed is come, he flops man's wrath, and gives courfe unto the juflice of his own. Nor is there then any poflibility of c- fcaping ; he will right himfelf, and be known by executing judgment. Surely the wrath of manJJjall pra'ife thee. And that is the third thing propounded, the in- fallibility of the event. The author of nature governs all his creatures, each in a fuitable way to the nature he hath given them. He maintains in fome things a natural ne- ceflity of working, contingency in others, and in others liberty. But all of them are fubjedl to this neceffity of effecting inevitably his eternal purpof- es ; Serm. XXI. the Pra'ife of God. 367 esj and this neceffity 13 no way repugnant to the due liberty of man's will. Some entertain and maintain the truth : ibme plot, others adt and exe- cute againft it; fome pleale themfelves in a wile neutrality, and will appear fo inditferent, that it would feem they might be accepted of all fides for judges of controv-erfies. And all thefe find no lefs liberty to wind and turn themfelves whither they plcafe, than if no higher hand had the wind- ing of them. Shall not only the zeal of the god- ly, but even the vi^rath of the enemy, and the cold difcretion of the neutral, all tend to his praife, whofe fupreme will hath a fecret, but a fure and infallible fway in all their actions ? Whllft fome paflengers fit, fome walk one way, fome another, Ibme have their faces towards their journey's end, fome their back turned upon it, this wife pilot does mofi: fkilfuUy guide the fhip to arrive with them all, at his own glory. Happy they that pro- pound and intend his glory as he himfelf does, for in them fliall the riches of his mercy be glori- fied. They that oppofe him, lofe their happinefs, but he is fure not to lofe his glory for all that, to wit, the glory of his jufticc. His right hand fiiall find out all his enemies; furely the wrath of man flmll praife thee. The confideration of this truth, thus in fome meafure unfolded, may ferve to juflify the truly wife difpenfation of God againfl our imaginary vvifdom. Were the matter referred to our model- ling, we would afiign the church conftant peace and profperity for her portion, and not confent that the lead air of trouble fhould come near her. We would have no enemies to moleft her, nor ftir againft her, or if they did ftir, we Vv'ould have them to be prefcntly repreft, and thefe, in our judg- ment, would be the faireft and moft glorious to- kens of his love and power, whofe fpoufe ihe is. But 368 I'ke IVrath of Man working Serm. XXI. But this carnal vvifdom is enmit^^ againfl God, and to the glory of God, which riies ^o often out of the wrath of his enemies. Had God caufed Pha- raoh to yield at the very firft, to the releafe of his people, where had been the fame of thofe miracu- lous judgments in Egypt, and mercies on the Ifra- elites, the one fetting out and illuftrating the o- ther ? Where had been that name and honour that God fajs he would gain to himfelf, and that he did gain out of Pharaoh's final deftru<5tion, making that ftony hearted King, and his troops, fink like a {tone in the waters, as Mofes fings ? Obferve his proud boaftings immediately foregoing his ruin, I will purfue, fays he, I will overtake y I will divide the fpo'tl, my li(fi Jhall be fatisfied on them ; I will draw my fzvord, and my hand JJmU dejlroy them ; foon after the fea quenches all this heat. Commonly big threatenings are unhappy prefages of very ill fuc- cefs. That hiflorian (Herodotus) fays well of God, ** God fufiers no other to think highly of himfelf, " but himfelf alone." And indeed, as he abhors thefe boaftings, {o he delights in the abafing of the lofty heart whence they flow, and it is his preroga- tive to gain praife to himfelf out of their wrath. Hajl thou an arm like God, fays the Lord to Job, then look upon the proud and bring them lozu. Job xl. 9, 11. When Sennacherib cam_e up againft Jcrufiilem, his blafphem.ies and boaftings were no lefs vaft and monftruous than the number of his men and cha- riots ; good Hezekiah turned over the matter un- to God, fpreading the letter of blafphemies before him ; God undertook the war, and afilired Heze- kiah that the Aftyrian Ihould not fo much as ftioot an arrow againft the city, but return the fame way he came, 2 Kings xix. And the deliverance there promifcd and effefted, is conceived to have been the occafion of penning this very pfalm. Surely when an angel did in one night flay one hundred and Serm. XXI. the Traife of God. 369 and eightv five thoufiind in their camps, that wrath and thole threats, tended exceedingly to the praife of the God of Ifracl. The hook that he put into Sennacherib's noftrils, as the hiftory fpeaks, to pull him back again, was more remark- able than the fetters would have been, if he had tied him at home, or hindered his march with his army. Who is he then that will be impatient bccaufe of God's patience, and judge him flack in judo-- ment, while the rage of the wicked prevails a while? Know that he is more careful of his own glory than we can be, and the greater heigth man's wrath arifes to, the more honour fliall arifc to him out of it. Did not his omnipotency Ihinc brighter in the flames of that furnace into which the children v/ere cafl, than if the King's wrath had been at firfl cooled ! Certainly, the more both it and the furnace had their heat auo;mented, the more was God glorified. IVbo is that God, faid he blafphemoully and proudly, that can deliver you out of my hands ? A queftion indeed highly diihonourio^- the almighty, but (lay till the real anfwer come, and not only ihall that v»Tath praife him, but that verv fame tongue, though innured to blaf{>1v-t-nv fliall be taught to hear a main part in the confeflion of thefe praifes. Let that apoftate Emperor (Jid'hw) go taunting the hc.id and tormenting the members of that mvllical body, his clofing with " thou haft " overcome, O Galilean," meaning Chrift, fh.^ll help to verify that. M'herhcr its courfe be ihcrter or longer, man's wrath ends always in Go(^ praife. In like manner, the clofing of the lion*s mouth fpake louder to his praife that i^opt them, H than if he had ftopt Daniel's eneir.ies in the begin- ning of their wicked defign. So hot was their rage, that the King's favourable inclination to Daniel, of which, in other cafes, courtiers ufed 3 ^ t» 370 '7'be PFrath of Man zvorklng Serm. XXI. to be fo devout obfervers, yea, his conteiling and pleading for him did profit him nothing, but they hurried their King to the execution of their un- juil malice, .though themfelves were convinced, that nothing could be found againil him, but on- ly concerning the law of his God. Dan. vi. ^^4. It is faid, J/e fit his heart upQ7i hhn to deliver bim,'^and Jaboured to do it till the going dczvn of the fun, and then !P:hole%pufellors, and counfels of darknefs over- came Kim". But upon this black night of their prevailing wrath, follovv'ed immediately a bright morning of praiies to Daniel's God. When the lions that were fo quiet company all night to Da- niel, made fo quick a breakfafl of thole accurfed courtiers that had malicioully accufed him. £- ven fp let thine enemies perifj, O Lord, and let thofe that love thee, be as the fun zvhen he goes forth in his might. The other propofition concerns the limiting of this wrath. - The remainder of wrath thou zvilt re- Jlrain, ^^ , To take no notice, for the prefcnt, of divers o- th# readings of thefe words, the fenie of them, as ■ they are here very well rendered, may be briefly this, that whereas the wrath of man, to Vv'hich God gives way, fliall praife him, the reft fhall be curbed and bound up, as the word is, no more of it fliali break forth than fhall contribute to his glory. Here fliould be confidered divers ways and means, by which God ufeth to Hop the heady courfe of man's wrath, and hinder its proceeding any further. But only. Let us take out of it this leffon, " That the " moft compendious way to be fafe from the vio- '* Icnce of men, is to be in terms of friendfhip ^^ with God." Is it not an incomparable priyilcge to be in the favour, and under the protedtion of one, whofe power is fo tranfccndant, that no enc- Serm. XXI. the Pnvfe of God. ;, 7 1 my can fo much as ftir without his leave ? Be pcr- fiiaded then, Chriilians, in thelc dangers that arc now ib near us, every one to draw near to him ; remove what may provoke him; let, no reigning fin be found either in your cities or irt your villa- ges^ for he is a holy God. Is it a time to multi- plv provocations now, or is it not rather high time to be hurtiblcd for the former? What fliamelefs. impiety is it, to be now licentious or intempe- rate ? To be proud, to opprefs or extort ? To pro- fane God's day, and blafpheme his name ? All thefe fins, and many others, abound amongfl us, and that avowedly. Without abundance of repen- tance for thefe we fliall fmart, and the wrath of our enemies, though unjuft in them, iliall praife God in our jull puniiliment ; though doubtlefs, he will own his church, and be praifed likcwife in the final puniiliment of their wrath, that rife againft it. There is a remarkable exprcfiion in the xcix pfalm, of God's dealing with his people, be zvasfa- voiirable to thenl, though he took vengeance on their in- •venfions. A good caufe and a covenant with God, will not fhelter an impenitent people from iliarp- er corredtion. It is a fad word God fpeaks by his prophet to his own people, I myfelf, fays he, zvill fight againjl you. A dreadful enemy ! And none in- deed truly dreadful but he. O prevent his anger and you are fafe enough. If perverfe finners will not hear, yet let thofe that are indeed ChriiHans moUrn in fecrct, not only for' their own fins, but let them bellow fonie tears likewife upon the fins of others. Labour to appeafe the w^rath of God, and he will either' appeafe man's wrath, or howfo- ever, will turn it jointly to our benefit and his -pwn glory. Let the fear of the moft high God, ho -hath no lefs power over the ftrongeft of his e- nemies, than over the: meancfl; of his fervants ; let his fear, 1 fay, pofTefs all our hearts, and it will 3 A 2 certainly C 37^ 5"/?^ ^rcith of Man working Serm. XXI. certainly expel that ignoble and bafe fear of the "wrath of man. See how the prophet oppofes them in the viii. chapter of Ifaiah, Fear not their fear, fays he, nor be afraid, but fanclify the Lord, and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread ; fear not, but fear. This holy fear begets the bell: courage ; the breail that is mofl filled with it, abounds moil , . in true magnanimity. Fear thus, that you may be confident, not in yourfelves, though 5^our policy and ftrength were great, curfed is the man that truji- eth in man, and maketh fejh his arm, but confident in that God, who is too wife and vigilant to be fur- prifcd, too mighty to be foiled, and too rich to be out-fpcnt in provifion ; who can fufter his ene- my to come to the highcft point of apparent ad- vantage, without any inconvenience, yea, with more renown in his conqueft. And fo a Chriftian who is made once fure of this, as eafily he may, is little careful about the reft, his love to God pre- vailing over all his aftedtions, makes him very in- different what becomes of himfelf or his deareft friends, fo God may be glorified. What though many fall in the quarrel, which God avert, yet it is fufiicient that truth in the end fliall be vid:orious. Have not the faints in all ages been content to con- vey pure religion to pofterity, in ftreams of their own blood, not of others ! Well, hold faft by this conclufion, that God can limit and bind up the moil violent wrath of man, that though it fwell it will not break forth. The ftiffeft heart, as the cur- rent of the moft impetuous rivers, is in his hand, to appoint its channels, and turn it as he pleaf- eth. Yea, it is he that hath fhut up the very fea with bars and doors, and faid, hitherto JJmU thou come and no further, here Jhall thy proud waves be flayed. Job xxxviii. lo, II. To fee the furges of a rough fea come in towards the lliore, a man would think that they were haflening to fwallow up the land, but they Se RM . X X I . the Fra'ife of God. 373 they know their limits, and arc beaten back into foam. Though the waves thereof tofs themfclves as angry at their reftraint, yet the fmall fund is a check to the great lea, yet can they not prevail^ though they roar, yet can they not pafs over it, fays Jeremiah V. 22. The fum is this : what God permits his church's enemies to do, is for their own further glory ; and referving this, there is not any wrath of man fo great, but he will either fweetly calm it, or flrong- ly reftrain it. To him be praifi, &r. SERMON ^ 'i&- SERMON XXII. By the Rev. Samuel Ci.arkk, D. D. OF THE WISDOM OF BEING RELIGIOUS, P R O VI-: R B s ix, 10. II. ^be fear of the Lord is the beginnmg of wlfdomf and the knozvkdgs of the holy is underjlanding ; for by me thy daysJJ:all be multiplied, and thy years Jloall be iricreafed. THERE is no dcfire which God has fo deeply- fixed and implanted in our nature, as that of preferving and prolonging our life. Life and health, are the foundation of all other enjoy orients ; and are..Hherefore of grealer value, than all other polfeilions put together, becanfe they are necelTary in order to the enjoyment of thofc poff ffions ; and without thefc, all other things that are the obj^edis of men's hopes and dcfircs in the world, ha\*'e with regard to us, no being, no fubfiftcncc. For, zvhat Jhall it profit a man, if 7j^0ain the whole zvorld, and lof^ hisozvn life / Or,'zvhiit^Jmll a man give in exchange for his life f The principal point of wifdom therefore in the conduct of human life, is fo to ufe the en- joyments of this prefcnt world, as that they may not themfclves lliorten that period, wherein 'tis allowed 576 Of the IVifdom Serm. XXIL- allowed us to enjoy them. And if any part of knowledge deferves a fteadier attention, than other, and has of all others the jufteft pretence to be ef- tcemed invaluable ; 'tis unqueftionable that know- ledge, by which, as the wife man here exprcffes it, our days may be nudtiplicd, and the years of our life may be increafd. Let us eat and drink, for to morrow we die; .was the reafoning of the epicure, mentioned by St. Paul, I Cor. XV. 32. But it was very falfe reafoning, to make the melancholy confideration of the fhortnefs of life an argument for debauchery, when that very debauchery is evidently the caufe of making man's life ftill fhorter. Tem.pcrance and fobriety, the re- gular government of our appetites and paffions, the promoting peace and good order in the world, arc, even v/ithout regard to any arguments of religion, the greatefi: inftances of human wifdom; becaufe they are the moft cffed:ual m.eans of preferving our being, and well-being in the world ; of prolonging the period, and enlarging the comforts and enjoy- ments of life. Religion, has added flrength to thefe confiderations ; and, by annexing the pro- mife of God's immediate bleffing, to the natural tendency and confequences of things, has made the wifdom of chooiing virtue, infinitely more confpi- cuous ; and the folly of vice, more apparently ab- furd. Length of days upon earth, is in the Old Teflament frequently promifed to the righteous ; and the principal intent of that promife, was to be an emblem, or fignification of a longer life, even of eternity, more exprefsly promifed in the New. The land of Canaan was a type of Heaven, the true land of promife ; and the days of the righte- ous being long in the land zvhich the Lord their God had ^iven them, was a figurative prefignification of that future and more complete flate of happinefs, where- in their daysjlould be multiplied without number and ihe Serm. XXIL of being Religious, 377 the ye.'vs of thdr life Jl.vuld be i/icreafcd Toithout end. This is a dcmonftration indeed, of the vvii'dom of being religious ; and of the happy efFedls of hav- ing al\va\ s before our eyes the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of 'ii'ifdom, and the knowledge of the holy is tmderflanding'i for by me thy days Jlxdl be multiplied, and the years of thy life fhall be in- ireafcd. The fear of the Lord, and the knowledge of the holy, are two fynonymous expreffions, each of which fignifies in fcripture phrafe, the praftife of virtue and true religion. For fo it is very ufual in all good authors, to exprefs the whole by fome jirincipal part. Thus, when 'tis faid, the foul that linncth, it fiiall die; becaufe the foul is the prin- cipal and mod excellent part of man, 'tis of the fame import, as if it had been expreiTed, the man that linncrh fhall die; and Gen. xlvi. 27. All the Ibuls of the houfe of Jacob zvhich came into Egypt ; that is, all the perfons, were threefcore and ten. In like manner, becaufe the fear or love of God, the knowledge or ftudy of his will, faith or truft in him, the remembrance of him, or frequent medi- tating upon his laws, are principal parts of religi- on ; and fuch as are apt to have fo great an influ- ence upon men, that one of thefe virtues can hard- ly be fuppofed to be found any w here feparate from the refl, or without producing its true and genuine effcdls in the general courfe of a religious and holy life ; therefore each of thefe are frequently put fingly in fcripture for the whole of religion, and to exprefs the pracftice of virtue in general. Thus, to remember our Creator in the days of our youth, is the wife man's defcription of an early piety ; and with the wicked that fhall be turned into hell, in the Pfaimift's language, are joined all the nations that forget God. In like manner beliq^ers, or they that have faith in God, fignines always in the Vol. II. 3 B New 3/8 OftheJVifdom Serm. XXII. New Tcflament good chriftians, or fiich as are en- dued with all virtues and graces of the Ipirit ; and on the contrary every kind of wickednels, as well as infidelity, is reprcfented under the charad:er of unbelief. The love of God, is by St. John and • by our Saviour himfelf, defined to be this, that tve keep kis coninmmbnents, i Joh. v. 3 ; and Joh. xiv. 15, The knowledge of God, is in the writings of the fame apoille explained by the very fame phrafe of keeping his commandment s ^ i Joh. ii. 3, 4: and they that know not God, are bv St. Paul defcribed as perfons nothing differing from thofe that obey not the gofpcl, 2 Th. i. 8. Laftly, bccaufc fear is of all other paflions the motl; deeply rooted in our nature: and is more apt to be ftrongly moved by apprehcn- fions of the divine difpleafure, than the milder paf- fions of defire and hope are to be worked upon by reprcfentations of the excellency of virtue and of the j^reatnefs of its reward ; therefore the fear of God is the mod frequently of all thefe figurative expreffions, put in fcripture for the whole of reli- gion ; and perfons of univerfal piety and remarka- ble holincfs, are by no character more ufually def- cribed than by this, that they fear the Lord, or have the fear of God before their eyes. And be- caufe each one of thefe phrafes fingly, fignifies thus, properly enough, the fum of religion, there- fore any two of them may likewife be ufed, as fy- nonymcus to each other ; as, in the text, the /J jr and the knowledge of the Lord : 'The fear of the Lord is the beginning of zvifdom^ and the knowledge of the, holy is ttnderjlanding : for by me thy daysfJxdl be midtiplied^ and the years of thy ifeJJ:all be increafcd. In the words we may obferve, I. that the pradice of religion, is in general man's trueft wifdom : the fear oj the Lord is the begin- ning of zvifdom ; and the knowledge of the holy is under- Jianding. II. That Sf.rm. XXII. of being Religious^ 379 II. That the practice of religion is in particular wife in this refpcift, that it tends to prolong our lite and lengthen our days : for by me thy days Jhall ke multiplied J and the years of thy life Jhall be r/ureafcd. And III. It may be reafonable to inquire, how far this bleffing of long life promifcd to obedience un- der the Old Teftanient, is proper to be delircd by Chriftians under the gofpel-rtate. I. The words contain this univerfal propofition ; that the praftice of religion, is in general man's trueji zvifdom : the fear of the Lord is the beginning of zuifdom, and the knowledge of the holy is underfandiiig. And here, the whole tenor of fcripture, in conjunc- tion with the reafon of things, concurs In fctting forth the wifdom of beino: virtuous and religious. The books of Solomon efpecially, whofe human judgment was fuperior to all others, even feparate from his knowledge in things divine, are fo full of this notion ; that, throughout all his writings, the words feem never to be ufed in any other figni- fication, but that wifdom is always put for true vir- tue and piety, and folly or madnefs for the habit of fin. As if there were no other folly in the world, but that of wickednefs ; nor any true wifdom, but that of religion ; becaufe, in the comparative fenfe, no other things fo eminently deferve thofe names. And indeed, if wifdom conlifts in lludying thofe things, which are of the greateft ufe and neceffity for us to know ; if it be wife to employ our thoughts about things in their own nature the moft excellent, and, in their relation to us, of the ut- moft importance ; if it be wife to purfue the noblcft ends, and in the purfult thereof to ufe the bell and properefl means ; if it be wife to confult our own real happinefs ; and to be more concerned for the improvement of our minds in pradlical knowledge, then for amufing them. with vain and empty fpecu- 3 B 2 lations ; 380 OfthelVifcbm Serm. XXII. lations ; if eternity be of more importance than t me, and a ncvcr-ceaiing duration than a tr.'.nfito- ry moment ; if the favour of God be infinitely more valuable, than the fricndlhip of the world ; and it be more advifeable to pleafe an Almighty benefactor, than mortal men whole breath is in their noftrils ; if joy and fatisfad:ion of mind be truly more dcfirable, than endlefs anxiety, horror and defpair ; if peace and love, charity and univer- ial good-will, be more eligible than wars, confu- (ions and defolations ; and it be wdfer to promote the happinefs of the world, than that men fhould make each other miferable without caufe and Vv^ith- out end ; in a word ; if wifdom confiils in knowing and diflinguilhing, in choofing and in adhering to, vvhatfoever things are true, — honefl, — juft, — pure, lovely, — of good report ; things that promote the health of our bodies, and fecure the peace and quiet of our minds ; things that eflablilli the order of the world, and make other men happy as well as ourfelves ; things that make our prefent enjoy- ments, eafy, and the remembrance of what is pafl, comJortable ; and the hopes and expeftations of what is to come, fecure ; if the choofing thefe things, be the part of a wife man ; then is religion evidently man's trueft wifdom. For, where are thefe things, to be found, but in the pradiice of virtue and true religion ? There is a wifdom in the underflanding of arts and ufeful fciences ; which are beneficial to man- kind in this prefent ftate ; and are in fcripture af- cribed to the infpiration of the Almighty : but this is a wifdom confined to particular perfons, and its ufefulnefs limited to a very fhort duration. There is a wifdom, which men place in being able to over-reach and defraud each other, confifling in the fkill and cunning craftinefs of them that lye in w^ait to deceive : but this is a wifdom falfely fo called ; and. Serm. XXII. of king Religious. 381 • and the end of it appears always to be the cxtrem- eft folly. There is a wifdom, of thofe who by po- litical Ikili manage fccrctly the great affairs of the "world, and by deep councils bring about unex- pevliicd changes in the Hates and kingdoms of the feaxth ; but this wifdom is often a great fnare, and a dangerous temptation to men's virtue ; giving extraordinary opportunities indeed to the brighter virtue of fome very few heroick f])irits, to Ihinc forth illuflrioufly to the glory of religion in fingu- lar adts of moderation and juftice, of piety and great goodnefs, for the public peace and fecurity of mankind ; but much more ufually joined with great wickednefs, and fcldom mentioned in fcrip- ture, but with the marks of an evil or fufpicious charadter. There is a wdfdom, in words, and art- ful reprefentations of things ; called by St. Paul the enticing words of man's wifdom : but this alfo in fcripture, is always fpoken of with an ill charac- ter ; being that philofophy and vain deceit, that art of confounding truth and fallliood, which St. Paul warns us againlt ; and which vain pretence to wif- dom, God -chofe the weak things of the world, the plain unaffe(fted fimplicity of the dodtrine of the gofpel, on purpofe to confound. Laftly, there ia a wifdom in fearching out the fecrets of nature, and underflanding the variety of the works of God : and this indeed, fo far as 'tis pradiical, and leads to the knowledge of the author of nature, is an ex- cellent wifdom, and worthy of great commendati- on ; but where 'tis merely fpeculative, 'tis of more difficulty than ufe, and lies level to the capacity of but few men's underftandings. The only wifdom, that all men are capable of, and that all men are indifpenfably obliged to attain, is the practical wifdom of being truly religious ; the wifdom of underftanding and of (leadily purfuing, their own true temporal and eternal intereft. The compari- fon 3 8 2 0/ the Hlfdom Se r m. X X 1 1 . foil between fpeculativeand thispradlical vviruom,\is moil: elegantly made by Job, in his tvventy-eigthth chapter; Surely y fays he, there is a vein for the Jilver, and a place for gold where they fine it, ver. i . "There is a path zuhich no fo~vl knoweth, and which the vulture's eye has not feen ; the lion's whelps have not trodden it, not the fierce lion pa [Jed by it ; ver, 7. But where foall wif- doni be found, and where is the place of underjlanding ? ver. 12. Man knoweth not the price thereof, neither is it found in the land of the living ; the depth faith, it is not in me ; and the fea faith, it is not zuith me; it cannot be gotten for gold, neither Jkall filver be weighed for the price thereof, ver. 15. Whence then comet h wifdom f and where is the place of underfianding ? ver. 20. The re- ply follows ; God, faith he, underjlandeth the way thereof, and he knozveth the place thereof; for he looketh to the ends of the earth, and feeth under the whole Heaven, ver. 23. But unto man he faid; Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is his wifdom, and to depart from evil, that is bis underflanding, ver. 28. His meaning is, the fe- crets of nature, God only knoweth perfectly ; but the knowledge of religion is the proper wifdom of man. The fecret things belong imto the Lord our God i but the things that are revealed^ belong unto us and to our children for ever; that zve may do all the zvorks of the lazv, Deut. xxix. 29. This is very affedtionately exprefled likewife by Moles in his exhortation to the Ifraelites, Deut. iv. 6. Behold, I have taught you Jlatutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God com- manded me ; — Keep therefore and do them ; for this is your wifdoin and underjlanding in thejight of the nations. This is that which can make men truly great, truly admi- rable and praifeworthv ; The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wifdom ; a good underjlanding have all they that do thereafter, the praife of it, indureth for ever, Ffal. cxi. 10. I conclude this head, that the practice of religion is in general man's trueft wif- dom, with the excellent w'ords of the wife author Serm. XXIL of being Religious, 383 of the book of Eccluf. To feiir the Lord is the begin- '/ting ofzvifdom ; and it zvas erected zvith the faithful in the womb: to fear the Lord, is fulnefs of zvifdom ; and fillet h men zvith her fruits : if thou dejtre zvifdom, keep the com- mandments ; and the Lordjhall <(vve her unto thee ; for the fear of the Lord, is zvifdom and inftruttion ; and jaith and meebnfs are his delight. II. The practice of religion, as it is man's trucft wifclom in general, fo in particular the text allures us it is wife in this rcfpcct, that it tends to prolong our life and lengthen our days ; the fear of the Lord is the beginning of zvifdom ; and the knowledge of the holy is underflanding ; for by me thy days f]:all be multiplied y and the years of thy life Jhall be increafed. There is no- thing in the Old Teflament more frequent, than promiies of health and life, of a longer and more comfortable fubliftence, to them that live in obe- dience to the commands of God. In the delivery of the law, God himfelf annexes to the fifth com- mandment, a promife that the days, of thofc that obferved it, Ihould be long in the land zvhich the Lord their God had given them: and St. Paul takes notice of it as the firit, and indeed the only command- ment, with an exprcfs and particular promife an- nexed. Solomon, in his book of Proverbs, a- mong a great variety of arguments to perfuadc men to the practice of virtue, always mentions length of days, as a principal morive propofcd by God in the perfon of wifdom ; My fon, forget not my lazv, but let thine heart keep my commandments ; for length of days, and long life ^ and peace Jhall they add v.nto thee, Prov. iii. i. They Jhall be life unto thy foul, ver. 22. And ver. 13. Hazipy is the man that findeth zvifdom, and the man that getteth underfianding ; for length of days art in her right hand, and in her left hand riches and honour , ver. 16. i'^nd accordingly the Pfalmiil: in his exhor- tation to obedience, cited by St. Peter in his firfte- piflle ; Come ye children y fays he, hearken unto me, I zuill 384 Of the Wifdom Serm. XXII. will teach you the fear of the Lord \ zvhat man is he that dejireth life, and loveth many daysy that he may fee good f" Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips that they fpeak no guile; dipart from evil, and do good, Pfal. xxxiv. 11. And in the prophetical defcription of the final hap- py reftoratlon ot Jerufalem, among other bleflings, it is added, Ifa. Ixv. 20. There fl)all not he in it an old man that has not filed his days. On the contrary, among; the various threatnintrs denounced in the Old Teftament againft finners, it is very ufual to make this declaration, that their days fhall be Shor- tened. Prov. X. 27. The fear of the Lord prolongeth days ; but the years of the wicked fJjall be fl:onened. And Job XV. 3 1 . Let not him that is deceived, trvfl in va- nity ; for vanity fhall he his reccmpenfe. It fmll be ac- compl'ifhcd before his time^ and his branch fhall not he green. He fimll fJoake off his unripe grape as the vine, and flkdl cajl off his flozuer as the olive. The applica- tion of which obfervation is made by the wife man, Eccl. vii. 17. Be not over-much wicked, neither be thou foolifo ; why fJmddefl thou die before thy time P There is fomething in the nature of things, that tends to verify this doClrine ; and there is more in the po- fitive appointm.ent and conftitution of providence. In the nature of things, men deftroy themfelves and fhorten their days by many kinds of wicked- nefs : by wars and defolations they depopulate whole countries ; by private quarrels they bring each other to untimely ends; by capital crimes they bring themfelves to be cut off by the hands of juftice; by luxury and intemperance they deftroy their bodies; the riotous and unclean perfon going (as Solomon very elegantly expreffes it) like as art ox goeth to the ^(laughter, or as a fool to the correHion of the /locks ; *till a dart frike through his liver ; as a bird hqfieth to the fnai e, and hiozveth not that it is for his life, Prov. vii. 22. By envy and mi^lice they confume themfelveS;^ and pine avv-ay in the midft of their iniquity ; Serm. XXII. ofbehigReligJous. 385 iniquity ; this alfo is elegantly exprcflcd by Solo- mon, Prov. xiv. 30. A found heart is the life of the fieff}, but envy the rottennejs of the bones. La 111 y, by the terrors of their own minds are they eaten up, and knawed upon by the worm of confcience till they are confumed : Pfal. xxxix. ii. IFhen thou with rebukes dojl chaflcn man for fin, thou niakefl his beauty to confume azvay, like as it were a moth fretting-^ a garment. In like manner on the other hand, according to the fame natural tendency of things, by peace and cha- rity are men preferred from deilrudlion ; by tempe- rance are their bodies maintained in health ; by quiet of confcience and fatisfadiion of mind, is anew life added to their fpirits ; Prov. iii. 7. Fear the Lord, and depart from evil ; it JJjall be health to thy navel, nnd marrow to ihy bones. Which notion is Ifill more fully exprell by the author of the book of Eecle- fiafticus, eh. i. ver. 11, 12, 20. The fear of the Lord is honour, and glory, and glaJ.nefs, and a crown of rejoic.~ ing ; the fear of the Lord maketh a merry' heart, and gi- •vethjoy and gladnefs, and a long life; the root oj wifioni is to fear the Lord, and the branches thereof are long Ife. And this, in the natural order and tendency of things. In the pofitive appointment and conftitution of providence, there was yet more alTurance of the doctrine : God, under the Old Teflanient, wherein thefe promifes were made, ufually preferying the righteous by a fingular care and proteftion ; (lb that Job's friends could appeal to experience, Who- ever periJJjed being innocent f or when zvere the righteous cut off '^ Job iv. 7.) and on the contrary, the fame providence generally cutting off the wicked, by ex- traordinary judgments, in the prelVnt life. Even of thofe w'ho profpercd longeft, lb that it was hard for the Pfalmift to underftand the reafon of it, and reconcile it with providence, Pfal. Ixxiii. 16 ; yet even of thefe at length he obfervcd upon better Vol. II. 3 C confide- 38(5 Of the IVifdom Serm. XX!L. coniideration, Surely thou didjl fet them in Jlippery places, thou cdftcdjl them dozvn into deftruSiioni how are they bt ought into defolation as in a rnomcnt ! they are utterly confumed zvith terrors, ver. i8. 19. But moil fre- quently evil doers were cut off iooner, and deftroy- ed Suddenly in the midil: of their career. Haji thou marked the old zvay, zvhich wicked men have trodden P- zvhich zvcre cut dozvn out of time, zvhofe foundation zvas overflozvn zvlth a flood r' Job xxii. 15. Bloody and de- ceitful men, JJmU not live out half their days, Pfal. Iv. 23. Upon account of the profanenefs of Eli's family, God threatens him, i Sam. ii. 32. There Jhall not be an old -man in thy houfe for ever. And the Pfalmift, as beino; fenfible what the ufual effedt of wickednefs was, prays thus, Pfal. cii. 24. O my God take me not azvay in the midjl of my days. Indeed, in the whole book of Pfalms the wicked are perpetually threat- ened with being cut off before their time : and that threatening is paraphrafed with great variety and elegancy of cxpreffion, in the book of Job ; The flag, zvhllft it Is yet in its greennefs, and not cut dozvn, it zvlthereth before any other herb ; fo are the paths of all that forget God, and the hypocrites hope fljall perl pi, ch. viii. ver. 12. 7ea the light of the wicked fljall be put out ; and the fpark of his fire fJjallnotfljlne, ch. xviii. ver. 5. His roots fjall be dried up beneath, and above JJjall his branch be cut off, ver. 1 6. They are exalted for a little zvhlle, but are gone and brought lozv, — and cut off as the tops of the ears of oom, ch. xxiv. ver. 24. Nevcrthclcfs, after all this ; forafmuch as general threatnings are not executed always without excep- tion ; neither were the wicked conftantly cut off, e- ven under the times of the Old Teftament ; but fometimes profpered for a long time ; and fudden cutting ofFw^as not itfelf always a judgment, but fometimes a taking away from the evils to come ; and righteous perfons thcmfelves were not always preferved from every deflrudtion; but in fome cafes, God Serm. XXII. of being Religious. 387 God threatened to cut off the righteous zv'ith the zvkked; and prefervation itfelf, or length of days, was not always a mercy; but only when it wasproniifcd and granted as an emblem or prefignificatlon of a longer, even of an eternal life; and the temporal promifes of the Old Tcftament cannot now be applied with anv certainty under the New ; where eternal life is fo much more clearly revealed : for thefe reafons, III. It may be worthy our enquiry, how far this bleflingof long life promifed to obedience under the Old Teftament, is proper to be dcfired by Chriftians, under the gofpel ftate. And here it is certain the gofpcl gives us fo mean a notion of the prefcnt life, and fo glorious a reprefcntation of the happinefs of that ro come ; that no man who firmly believes the fcriptures, and has lived fo religioully as to have fccured to himfelf a good foundation againft the time to come, but mult needs wilh*rathcr, (whenever he ferioufly meditates upon thefe things) to be deli- vered from the mifcries of this finful world, and to be prefent with the Lord, which is far better. But alas ! there are few, extremely few, whole lives have either been fo innocent, or their repentance and a- mcndment fo complete, as not to have rcafon to wifh for more years, wherein to root out more per- fecftly theif former ill habits, or to improve the good difpolitions they have already in fome meafure at- tained. And it were verv well, if even vcars and experience could, in thefe latter degenerate ages of the world, produce but the fame cffed: which the belief of the gofpel, in the primitive and pureft times, accompliihed frequently as it were in a mo- ment. But if the generality of Chriftians were fo perfe(ft, as not to need todefire longer (pace of time for their own amendment and improvement; vet at leaft for the fake of others, with whom they are concerned either in private friendfliips, or in natural relation, or in public affairs, it is rcafonable men 3 C 2 flioukl 3 S.8 Of the m/dom Serm. XXII. Hiould delire for themfelves, and others for them, the bleffing of length of days. For none of us livetb to himfclf] rind no man dieth to hlmfelf, Rom. xiv. 7 ; and St. Paul, though for his own part he defired ra- ther to be prefent with the Lord ; yet, becaufe for him to live was Chrifl, that is, was needful for the propagation of the gofpel, and more beneficial to the pcrfons he had converted \ therefore he defired rather to continue with them ; and this he calls the fruit of his labour, Phil. i. 22. Further; fince God placed us in this world, for ends and purpofes of his all-wife providence ; and we know not before- hand what duties he intends to call us to ; and he has implanted in us a natural and neceffary defire of life, in order to accom.plilli his wife defigns in the government of the world ; it is therefore natural and •reafonable for us to look upon length of days as a bleffing; and that the hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be found in the way of righteoufnefs. But when any pcrfon through difcontent defires not to continue in the world, nor to fulfil that duty which God has appointed him here ; it is like defir- ing that he had never come into it; which is mur* muring and finding fault with God's creation, and repining at God for making us fuch creatures as he has been pleafed to make us. However, the very longelt life here, is but a moment in comparifon of eternity ; and the greateft length of days is then on- ly really a bleffing, (as I before obfciwed,) when it is a type or emblem of a happy eternity, of God's giving men indeed a long life, even, for ever and ever, Pfal, xxi. 4,- We ought therefore to make it the main care of our lives, to fecure our eternal happinefs hereafter ; and then length of days here, will be a bleffing not only upon 'their own account, but much more fo upon account of their affording us oppor- tunity, of preparing ourfelves by ftill greater care and watchfulncfs, and continual improvement of- ourfelves Serm. XXII. of being Rel'tg'ious. 389 o.urfelves in the pra«fticc of all virtues, for a more p,erfed: and complete degree of happinefs in the life to coQic. If this be not done, length of days, will, like all other bleffings be turned into a curie ; and become only a tlronger evidence againft us, of our incorrigible impenitency. If we be not fo taught to number our days, as to apply our hearts unto wifdom ; if, as our years pafs on, we think not more and more intcnfely on the preparations for eternity ; but defer our repentance from day to day, and put off our defi2;ns of beine: relio-ious from one vear to another; it will nothing profit us, (nay, on the con- trary, it will be a great aggravation of our mifcry) that our days have been multiplied, andtJmt the years of our life have been incrccifed, Forzvhen all thefe things are pa f- fcd azvay as aj}:adoiv, and as a pojl that hajleth by ; which is the cafe even of the longefl life here upon earth ; then fuddcn and fo much heavier deftrucTtion will come upon us unawares, even as pain upon a wo- man in travail, and we fliall not efcapc. Then the ejipedtations of the delaying finncr fhall appear thin as the fpidcr's web ; and his hopes as the light chaff which the wind fcattereth away from the face of the earth.'' Then they who fpend the day in riot and debauchery, and fay, to-morrow ihall be as this day and much more abundant, fhall have their foul required of them in a moment ; and the fervant that Jays in his heart, my lord dclaycth his coming ; andf}:all be- gin to beat the men fervants and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken ; the Lord of that fervant zvill come in a day zvhen he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is notazvare, andzinllcut him in funder, and zvill appoint him his portion zvith the unbelievers ; and how much focver the mailer's delay, i. e. how long foc- ver that wicked fervant's life be, vet his deftrudtion when it comes, furprizx^s him unprovided as in a moment. But he, on the other han^i, who in a fhort life makes fpeedy provifion for eternity ; though he be 59® Of the mjdom Serm. XXII. be prevented with early death, ^ tv^ being made per- feB in a JJoort time ; he fulfilleth a long time ; as the fon of Sirach excellently expreffes It; For honour <}hle age is not that which Jlandeth in length of time ^ nor that is mea- fured by numbers of years ; hut zvifdom is the gray hair uff- to men, and an wifpottedlife is old age. SERMON SERMON XXIII. By Archbifliop Tillotson. DOING GOOD, A SECURITY AGAINST INJURIES FROM WEN. I Peter iii. 13. And who is ke that zvill harm you, if je he followers of that zvhich is good. THE apoftle in this and the former chapter, earneftly prefleth Chriftians to an holy and \inblameable converfation, that the Heathen might have no occaiion, from the ill lives of Chriftians, to reproach chriftianity : particularly he cautions them againft that abufe of Chriftian liberty, which, it feems, too many were guilty of, cafting off obe- dience to their fupetiors under that pretence ; tell- ing them, that nothing could be a greater fcandal to their religion, nor raife a more juil: prejudice in the minds of men againft it : and therefore he ftridly chargeth them with the duty of obedience in their feveral relations ; as of fubjeifts to theii go- vernors, of fervants to their mafters, of wives to their hivfbands; and in ihort, to praftife all thofe ■virtues both among themfeives and to.Vards others, which 39^ I^ohig good, aficwity Serm. XXIII. which are apt to reconcile and gain the aifections of men to them ; to be charitable and compaffion- ate, courteous and peaceable one towards another, and towards all men; not only to abilain from in- jury and provocation, but from revenge by word or deed ; and inrtead thereof, to blefs and do good, and by all poffible means to preferve and purfue peace. Ver. 8. 9. Finally, he ye all oj one mind, hav- ing coynpajjion one of another ; love as brethren, he pitiful, he courteous, not re'ndmm- evil for evil, or railing for railing, but contraryzvife blejUing ; knozv/ng that ye are thereunto called, thatyejhoidd inherit a bltjing" And to encourage them to the practice of thefe virtues, he tells them, that they could by no other means more effedtually confult the fafety and com- fort ot their lives, ver. 10. For he that zvill love life, and fee good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they fpeak no guile ; let him efchezv evil, and do good ; let him feek peace and enfue it. And this was the v/ay to gain the favour of God, and to engage his providence for our proted:ion, ver. 12. For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers : but the face of the Lord is againjl them that do evil. And that this would alfo be the beft way to re- concile men to us, and to gain their good-will, and to prevent injuries and affronts from them, ver. 13. and zvho is he that zvill harm you f &c. In thefe words we have, I. K vy\'&\\%.zzx\ovii\x'^'^o{^d>., if ye he followers of that zvhich is good. II. The benefit and advantage we may rea- fonably expect from it, viz. fecurity from the ill ufage and injuries of men. IFho is he that zvill barm you f I. The qualification fuppofed is, that we be follozx)ers of that zvhich is good. But what is that ? The apollle takes it for granted, that every body knows Serm. XXIII. a^abfl Injuries from Mc/u 393 knows it, and he had given inftances of it before. He does not go about to define or explain it, but appeals to every n:ian's mind and confcience, to tell him what it is. It is not any thing that is dif- puted and controverted, which fome men call good, and others evil ; but that which all arc agreed in, and which is univerfally approved and commended by Heathens as well as Chriltians; that which is fubrtantially good, and Jthat which is unqiicftion- bly fo. It is not zeal for Icller things, about the ritual and ceremonial part of religion, and a great llridtnefs about the external parts of it, and much, nicety and fcrupuloufnefs about things of no mo- ment, as the Pharifecs tything of mint, &c. about meats and drinks, and the obfervation of days and the like ; but a purfuit of the weightier things of the law, a care of the great duties of religion, mercy, and juftice, and fidelity, thofe things where- in the kingdom of God confills, righteoufnefs and peace. Such as thefe the apoflle had inftanced in, as fubftantial and unqueiHonable parts of goodncfs, things which admit of no difpute, but do approve themfelves to the reafon and confcience of all m.an- kind; and the pradiice of thefe he Q2.\h following of that zvhicb is good. Be ye follozvers of thjt zvbich is good :" in one copy It is, Ifje be zealous of that which is good. And this is not amifs. Zeal about lefler and difputable things is very unfuitable and mifbccoming : but we cannot be too earneft and zealous in the purfuit of things which are fubflantially and unquellionably good ; it is good, and will become us to be zealoufly aflTcdted about fuch things. Some things will not bear much zeal, and the more earneft we are about them, the lefs we recommend ourfelves to the approbation of fober and confiderate men. Great zeal about little and doubtful things, is an ar- gument of a weak mind infatuated by fupcrftition. Vol. II. 3D or 394 Doing good, afecurhy Serm. XXIII. or over-heated by enthufiafni ; but nothing more be- comes a v,'ifc man, than the Icrious and earneft pur- luit of thole things which are agreed on all hands to be good, and have an vmivcrfal approbation among ail parties and profeffions of men, how wide foever their differences may be in other matters. This for the qualification fuppofed, If ye be follozvers of that which is good. I proceed II. To the benefit and advantage which may be reafonably expected from it, and that is, fecurity from the ill ufage and injuries of men. IFho is he that will harm you r" &c. The apoftle doth not abfolutely fay none will do it : but he fpcaks of it as a thing fo very unreafonable, and upon all ac- counts fo unlikely and improbable, that we may rea- fonably prcfume, that it will not ordinarily and of- ten happen. Not but that good men are liable to be affronted and perfecuted, and no man's virtues, how bright and unblemilhed foever, will at all times, and in all cafes, exempt him from all man- ner of injury and ill-treatment : but the follozving of that which is good {2iS \ have explained it) doth in it's own nature tend to fecure us from the malice and mifchief of men, and very frequently does it, and, all things confidered, is a much more effectual means to this end, than any other courfe we can take ; and this the apoille means when he fays, IVho is he that will harm you /* &c. And this will appear, whether we confider the nature of virtue and goodnefs ; or the nature of man, even when it is very much depraved and cor- rupted ; or the providence of God. I. If we confider the nature of virtue and good- nefs, which is apt to gain upon the affedtions of men, and fecretly to win their love and efteem. True goodnefs is inwardly efteemed by bad men, and many times had in very great efteem and admi- ration, even by thofe who are very far from the practice Serm. XXIII. againjl Injuries jrom Men, 395 practice of it ; it carries an awe and majcily with it; fo that bad men are very often with-hcld and reftained from harming the good, by that fccret and inward reverence which they bear to goodnefs. There are feveral virtues, which are apt in their own nature to prevent injuries and affronts from o- thers. Humility takes away all occafion of inlb- lence from the proud and haughty ; it baffles pride and puts it out of countenance. Meekncfs pacifies wrath, and blunts the edge of injury and violence. Suffering evil for good is apt to allay and extin- gulfh enmity, to fubdue the roughefi: difpofitions, and to conquer even malice itfelf. And there are other' virtues, which are apt in their own nature to oblige men, and gain their good-will, and make them our friends, and to tie their affedtions flrongly to us ; as courtefy and charity, kindnefs and compaf- fion, and a readinefs to do all good offices to all men : and the friendfhip and good-will of others is a powerful defence againfl injuries. Every man will cry fliame of thofe who fhall fall foul upon him that hurts no body. He that obligcth many ihall have many to take his part when he isaffault- cd, to rife up in his defence and refcue, and to in- terpofe between him and danger. For a good nuvi, fays the apoftle, fome would even dare to die. Befidcs, it is very confiderable, that none of thefe virtues expofe men to any danger and trouble from huiiian laws. When Chriftianity was perfecuted, becaufe it differed from, and oppofed the received religion and fupcrllition of the world, it w-as com- monly acknovvlegcd by the Heathen (as Tertullian tells us) that the Chriftians wTrc very good men in all other things, faving that they wTre Chriftians, When the laws were moft fevere againft Chriftians for their meetings, w^hich they called fcditious, and for their refufal to comply with the received fuperftition of the world, which they called contempt ; D 2 of 3 96 t)o'mggood, afecurity Serm. XXIII. of the gods, yet there were all this while no laws made againft modefty, and humility, and mccknefs, and kindnefs,and charity, and peaceablcnefSyandforglve- nefs of injuries. Thefe virtues are in their nature of fo unalterable goodnefs, they could not pofliblybe made matter of accufation; no government evei had the face to make laws againft them. And this the a- poftle takes notice of, as a lingular comniendation and great teflimony to the immutable goodnefs of thefe things, that in the experience of all ages and nations,there was never anv fuch inconvenience found in any of them, as to give occafion to a law againft them. Gal. v. 22, 23. But the fruit of the fp'irit is love, joy, peace, long-fuffering, gcnttcnej}, fidelity, meeknepy tem-t perance. Againji Juch things there is no lazv. So that goodnefs from its own nature hath this fecurity, that it brings men under the d.uiger of no law. 2. It we conlider the nature of man, even where it is very much depraved and corrupted. There is fomcthing that is apt to reftrain bad men from inr juring thofe that are remarkably good ; a reverence for goodnefs, and the inward convictions of their own mind, that thofe whom they are going about to injure, are better and more righteous than them- feives ; the fear of God, and of bringing down his vengeance upon their heads, by their ill-treatment of his friends and followers; and many times the fear of men, who though they may not be good themfelves, yet have an eftecm for thofe that are fo, and cannot endure to fee them wronged and op- prefled, efpecially if they have been obliged by them, and have found the real eifedis of their good- nefs in good offices done by them to themfelves, Befidcs that bad men are feldom bad for nought, without any caufe given, without any manner of temptation and provocation to be fo. Who will hurt a harmlefs man, and injure the innocent ? For what caufe, or for what end lliould he do it? Hemuft love mif- Serm. XXIII. againjl Injuries jrom Men. o^gj mifchief for itfelf, that will do it tothofc who never offered him any occaiion and provocation, 3. If we confidcr the providence of God, which is particularly concerned for the protection of inno- cency and goodnefs. For the rigbieous Lord loveib righteoi'.fih'fs^ and his countenance zuill behold the upright. This the apoiUe takes notice of, in the verfe before the text as the great fecurity of good men againll violence and injury ; The eyes of the Lord arc over the righteous, and his ears open to their prayer. So that if bad men were never fo ill difpofed toward the good, and bent to do them all the injury and mifchief they could devife, the providence of God hath a thou- sand ways to prevent it; and if he pleafes to inter- pofe between them and danger, who can harm them if they would ? He axnfnare the zvicked in the zvorks of their own hands, and make the mifchief which they devifed again ft good men, to return upon their crjun heads ; he can weaken their hands, and infatuate their coun- fels, fo that they Ihall not be able to bring their wick- ed cnterprifes to pafs ; he can change their hearts, and turn the fiierccnefs and rage of men againft us into a iit of love and kindncfs, as he did the heart of K- fau towards his brother Jacob : and their bittcrclT enmity againft truth and goodnefs, into a mighty zeal for it, as he did in St. Paul, who when he came to Damafcus, fell a preaching up that way, which he came thither on purpofe to perfecute. And this God hath promifed to do for good men, w^ho are careful to pleafe him. IVhen a man's zvavs pleafe the Lord, he zvill make his enemies to be at peace zvith him. So that confidcring the nature of goodnefs, and the nature of man, and the providence of God, fp^ho is like to harm us, if we be folbwers of that zuhich is good? None can reafonably do it, and he muft be a very bad man that can find in his heart to do it, when there is no caufe, no temptation or provocation to it; 398 Doing good, ^TTft-w//); Serm. XXIII. it ; and the providence of God, who hath the hearts of men in his hands , and can fway and incline them as he plcajcth, is parcicuiaiiy concerned to prefer ve good men from harm and mifchief. And yet we are not to underftand this faying of the apoftle, as declaring to us the conftant and cer- tain event of things, without any exception to the contrary. For good men to appearance, nay thofe that are really fo, and the very belt of men, are fometim.es expofed to great injuries and futfer- ings ; ot which I iball give you an account in thefe following particulars. Firil, borne that icem to be good are not fincere- ly fo ; and ^vhen they by the juil judgment of God, are punifned for their hypocrify, in the opinion of many goodncfs feems to fuller. Sorne, under a great profeffion and colour of religion, have done very bad things, and when they juitly fufFer for great crimes, they call puniihm.ent perfecution, and the partv and church which they are of, call them faints and martyrs. Secondly, Some that are really good, are very imperfectly lo, have many flaws and defecifts, which do very much blemifn and obfcure their goodnefs ; they 'SiXQ. followers of that which is good, but they have an equal zeal for things which have no goodncfs in them, or fo little that it is not worth all that flir and buftle which they make about them ; and will contend as carneftly for a doubtful, and it may be for a falfe opinion, as for the articles of the creed, and for the faith which was once delivered to the faints ; and will oppofe a little ceremony with as much heat as the greateil immorality. In thcie cafes, it is not men's goodnefs which raifeth enmity againft them, but their imprudent zeal and other infirmities which attend it : but however, bad men are glad to lay hold of thofe occafions and pretences of enmity, which their indifcretion offers. Good men may be, and Serm. XXIII. agalnjl Injuries from Men, 399 and frequently arc miftaken in tluir opinions and apprchcnfions of things; but it is a great miftake to have an equal zeal for little and doubtful things, as for the great and indifpenfablc duties of the Chrif- tian life, and yet many times fo as to neglcft thofe to a great degree ; and men mufl: blame themfelves for the inconveniencies that happen to them for their own indifcretion; for neither will the nature of the thing bear them out alike, nor will the provi- dence of God be equally concerned to protect men in the following of that, Vv'hich they through grofs miftake, and a heady conceit of their^own knowledge in religion, think to be good, as in the following of that which is really and unqueftionably good. Thirdly, The enmity of fome men againft good- nefs is fo violent and implacable, that no innocen- cy, no excellency of goodnefs, how great foe.ver, can reftrain their malice towards good men, or hin- der the effects of it, when it comes in their way, and they have power to do them mifchief. Againll thefe the providence of God is our bed fafe-guard; and it is wifdom, as much as poffible, to keep out of their way, and to pray with St. Paul, that we may be delivered from wicked and unrcafonable men ; men of fo abfurd a malice againft goodnefs, that it is not to be prevented by any innocency 01: prudence : and fo implacable, that there is no way to gain and reconcile them, nor .perhaps is it much defirable; their good word would be no credit to us, and their friendfhip would be pernicious, when it cannot be had upon other terms, than of conniving at their faults, and being concerned in their quar- rels, and at laft quarrelling and breaking with them, unlefs we will run with them to the fame ex- ccfs of riot. The friendship of fuch men is more terrible than their enmity, and their malice much lefs to be dreaded than their kindnefs. Fourthly, 4.00 Do'ing go'od, a fecurttj Serm. XXIII. Fourthly, The lall and chief exception is that of the crofs, when the fufferings and pcrfecutions of good men are necetfary for the great ends of God's glory, for the advancement of religion, and the ex- ample and falvation of others. And with this ex- ception all the declarations of fcripture concerning the temporal profpcrity and fafety of good men, and all the promifes of the New Teftament are to be un- derftood. And this exception our Saviour himfelf exprefsly makes, Mark x. 29, 30. Verily, I J ay unto you, there h no man that hath left houfe, or brethren or fijlers, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my fake and the gofpei^s, but hejhall receive an hundred fold now in this time, houfes, and brethren, and fijlers, and mothers, and children, and lands, with perfecution ; and in the world to come eternal life ; that is, fo far as a ftatc of perfecution would admit, all thefe loffes ihould be made up to them in this prefent time; as they were to the apoililes in a remarkable manner, when they who had but little to part with for the gofpel, had the ellates of Chriftians laid at their feet and committed to their difpofal, for the noblert pur- pofes of charity and common fupport of Chriftians, which was as much to them as if they had been mafters of the greateft eftates ; and whatever was wanting to any of them in the accomplilhment of this promife, was abundantly made up to them in the unfpeakable and eternal happinefs of the world to come. And this exception the apoftle St. Peter is careful to mention exprefsly, immediately after the text ; for after he had faid, PVho is he that will harm you, if ye be follozuers of that which is good P he immediately adds, But, andifyefufferforrightcoufnefs fake, happy are ye ; and be not afraid of their terror, nei- ther be troubled, but fantiify the Lord God in your hearts ; that is, in this cafe, fear God more than men ; and he ready akvm'S to give an anfwer to every man that ajketh y.ou a reafon of the hope that is in you ', that is, if ye be queftioned Serm. XXIII. againjl Injuries from Men, 401 queflioned for being Chriflians, be ready to own your profcffion, and to give a reafon of it : fo that the apoftle fuppofeth, that notwithflanding what he had faid, that ordinarily it is not in the nature of men to perfecute men for truegoodnefs, yet they muft not exped: to be exempted from perfecution, which was neceflary for the eflabliihment of the Chriflian religion. In thefe cafes God permits the devil to infligate and exafpctate evil men againfl thofe that are good, to adt beyond their ufual temper. Thus God, when he defigned an illuftrious example of patience for all ages of the world, he lets loofe the devil, not only to llir up his inftruments the Chaldeans and Sabeans againft Job, but to afflidf him immediately himfelf with bodily pains and difcafes. In thefe and the like cafes, the beft men arc expofed to the greateft fufferings. Thus God permitted Socrates, that great light among the Gentiles, and the glory of philofophy, to be cruelly treated and put to death for an example of virtue, and a teilimony againft their impious and abominable idolatry. And thus likewife when it was neceflary for the common falvation of men, and to give the world an example beyond all exception of the greatcit innocency, en- during the greateft indignities and fufterings with the grcatcil: patience that one ihould fuffer for all mankind, he permitted the beft man that ever was, God and goodnefs incarnate, by zvicked hands to be cru- cified and Jlain; and afterwards when it was neceflary for the propagation and eftablifliment of Chriftiani- ty in the world, that the truth of it ftiouid be fealed by the death of fo many matyrs, God was pleafed to fuffer the rage of bad men to break out into all manner of violence and cruelty. But yet notwithftanding thefe exceptions, thofe who make it their bufincfs to do good, and to excel in thofe virtues which are apt to win and oblige Vol. II 3 E mankind. 402 Dol^ig good, afecurity Stt&i, XXIlL mankind, may iii ordinary cafes and times expert great fafety and protedtron agsiiift the injuries of the world, from an exemplary pif^tt', attd inhocv-^ncy, and gjodnefs ; for theft^ layings m che New. Tefui- nient,- that through mMy tribuimms tm- m^jl ^er^ into the k'n'yd'jm ofGc.i; and ibat whoever tvill live go'dly in Ckrijl fefus, mull fiiffzr p-erficuiion, are notfqualiy :obe extend-- ^ \o a).* pl.^ce^ -^-nd thives ; but mote p-^ciili- arly to be underftood of the firil tim.es of Cbriftiani- ty, wiicn ttie pi-ovide.ice of God thought fit to ella- bliih the Chrillian religion, upon the innocent lives ^nd patient fulfv:r*ng«. oTthe firft proff^lfors of it. The refult from ail this difcourfe is, that we fnould not be Weary of well doing, but mind and follow the things which are fubftant^nlly ?.nd unqueftiona- bly good ; not doubting, but b'.:fides the infinite reward of it in the other world, it will ordinarily turn to our a;reat fecuricv and advantas-e in this life, and fave us harmlefs from a great many mifchiefs and inconveniencies which others are expofed to. If we endeavour to excel in rhofe Chriftiaii virtues which the apoftle mentions before the text, and which he means by our being^ foU(ywers of that which is good, we ihall undoubtedly find the comfort of it, in thofe temporal beiicfito that vvill redound to us : for the fcripture hath not laid in vain, Trujl in the Lord and do good, fojhalt -thou dzve.ll in the land, and verily thouJJmlt be fed : bklJed a^'e the meek, for they Jhall inherit the earth : glory, and honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good : that the fruit of j ighteouf- nef: is fozvn in peace of them that work peace : that iy well doing we jhsdl put to fiknce the ignorance of fooUfh men : tliPt the k'/-:nhm of God is not meat and drink, but right e^ oufnefs, and joy in the Holy Ghoft ; and that he that in thefe things ferveth Chrifl, is accepted of God, and approv- ed of men. But if we miftake religion, and place it in thofe things wherein it doth not really confift , in airy no- tions. Serm. XXIII. ^^ainjl Injuries from Men. 403 tii)ns, and dor/otful opiniorij. In fuperftitioiis con- c -its and practices, and in a ficrv and furious zeal for things of no weight and fubltance, of no real virtue and goodncfs ; if wc be dttcclive in the great virtues or mecknefs and humility, or peaceablenefs and charity, ct kindnefs and. coiirrefy, of forbear- ance and forg'.vcnefs, of rendering good for evil, and overconi'.ng evil with good, qualities which will univerfalU endear us and recou.mend us to the favour and protettlon of God, and to the cfteem and good will of men; and if inftead of thefe we abound in malice and envy, be proud and conceited, cen- forious and uncharitable, contentious and unpcace- able, rude and uncivil, impatient and implacable; we mufl not think it flrange, if we be ill treated in this world, not for our goodnefs, but for our want of it : and we have no reafon to wonder^ if at eve- ry turn we meet with the inconveniencies of our our own heat and indifcretion, of our peevifh and morofe temper, of our factious and turbulent dif- pofition. For this is an eternal rule of truth, as we fozv, foJJjdl we reap, every man fhall h^t fdled with hb 9Wfi wavs, and eat t be fruit of his own doings. SERMON SERMON XXIV. By the Rev. John F/iRqjjhar, M. A. CHRIST'S DYING WORDS. John xix. 30. IVIjcn Jefus therefore had received the vinegar, he faidy It isfmiJJxd, and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghoji. A MONG the infinitely various charadters of T\^ men, there are few who are attentive to whatever feems to be ferions and important ; there are many to whofe reafon we fpeak in vain, if we cannot intereft thtir hearts; there are fome of fo foft a mold, that whatever has the leaft degree of tendernefs melts and affcvcrld prQpofe to them- felves various ends ; and Vvc unavoidably confider thofe S-RM. XXIV. Cby'ili's dfing Words. 4©? thoiV env\X as a lamb is led to the jiaughter , and as a fhcep before herjl)ear- irs is dumb, Jo opened he not his mouth, If. liii. 7. Pa- tiently did he bear every contumely, indignity, and torment, till the whole will of God, and all the defigns of his miraculous difpenfation were ac- complilhed. Then by a like voluntary at^ which had occafioned his aiTumption of the human frame, he greatly refigned it. It has been juftly obfcrved, that the Vvords which wc tranflate he gave up the ghojl, would be more properly and literally tranf- lated, he refigncd, or he difmilTed his fpirir. And it is remarkable, that when the centurion heard him cry out with a loud voice before this happen- ed, and obfervcd that the force of his natural vi- gour Vv'as not abated, he immediately concluded that there was fomething miraculous in the manner of his death. For, faith the avangelift Mark, zvhen th centurion which ^flvod over againjl him, fazv that he fo tried out, and gave up the ghojl, he [aid, truly this man was the Son of God, Mark x v. 39. It is impoiTible to difcover the condud: and cha- radier of Chrift in a more intgrefting point of view, than that in which this exhibits him to us. In how faint a light does the virtue of patriots and he- roes, of all thejuil, and good, and great appear, when contrafted with the virtue and magnanimity of Jefus ! By an eledition properly his own, he fub- jnitted to mifery. Though feniible of all its feve- jity, and able to avoid its itroke, yet he never ihrunk from the combat, or rcjc(fted the bittereft draught that was prcfcnted to him. The Jews went out againft him with fwords and ftavcs, as a- gain,{l a niuri.lercr : the apparatus of his death, and the 4 1 6 Chrifs dying ^ords, Se r m . X XI V. the circumdnnces which attended his execution, were difpiriting and Shocking ; fuch as would have dilarmcd mere humanity of its fortitude. The ex- tenfion ot his body, the piercing of his hands and feet, the cruel and unrelenting malice of his ene- mies, doubtlefs produced a degree of pain that was excruciating. But with what meeknefs, compo- lure and refignation does he bear it, though we cannot doubt but he might have avoided it ? Could not he have quitted that manfion in which his fpot- lefs foul was lodged, and would not Heaven have immediately opened to receive its prifline, imma- culate inhabitant ? If he required it, would not the earth have heard the voice of its form.er mafter, and fwal lowed up his mercilefs tormentors ? The fage of ancient Greece would not violate the law of his country, nor defert the prifon where he was confined : a ftriking, but unequal reprefentation of the magnanimity of our Saviour. He knew that the operation of poifon would foon terminate a life that had been devoted to the fervice of his fellow- citizens ; and rather than tranfgrefs the laws, under whofe influence he had adted fuch a diftinguiflied parr, he fubmitted to death ; and with true intre- pidity met his fate. But our Saviour, unreflrained by any law, unfubjedied to any neceffity, fuffered a thoufand pangs, and though defpifed and infulted by a whole nation, dcferted by his own difciples, deprived of everv thing, to all human appearance, that can difarm death of its terrors, yet llill refuted to quit the prifon in which his celeftial fpirit was lodged, 'till the whole purpofes of Heaven were fulfilled. " Yes," fays a writer whofe faith is not ftable, but whofe heart is open to the fenti- inents of greatnefs, of worth, and of humanity, when he confidcrs merely the external circum- flances which attended the death of the Athenian, und of our Saviour, " if the life and death of So- " crates Serm. XXIV. Chiifl's dybig M^'^ords, 417 ** crates are thofc of a iagc, the life and death of ** Jefus arc thofe of a God." " No perfon," fays the antlcnt maxim, " can " be called great or happy before his death." It is this which crowns the moft illiiftrious life, and fcts the fcal upon the faireft charadter. Eflimate our Saviour's chara(5tcr by this rule. To depart out of life with protcftations of injured innocence, gives no unfavourable impreflion ; but to fuft'er the life and actions to fpcak for themfelves, and to re- main unfhakcn under a load of infamy and injuf- ticc, as confcious of fuperior dignity, affords fen- fations far more pleaiing and powerful. To for- give one's accufcrs, to pardon the mort undefcrved ill-treatment, is truly great ; but to return condcf- cenfion for malice, to Ihow the moft generous piety, and to pour forth the moft fervent prayers for one's bittcrcft foes, is a pitch of glory that is tranfcendent. To be folicitous about one's future ftate, and to fupport one's mind under unjuft fuffcr- ings u'ith the profpcdt of after felicity, is becom- ing and manlv ; but to be folcly intent at the hour of death, upon the execution of a plan undertaken to promote the welfare and happinefs of others, is truly divine. That the foul upon the immediate profpedt of its feparation from the body, Ihould heiitate and flutter, and leave its ancient recepta- cle with fomc rclu(5tance, is natural to humanity ; but to difcover the precife moment, when the purpofes of Heaven are accomplilhcd, to make a voluntary refignation of the foul, to quit the body by a proper exertion of inherent power, are action? becoming a deity. Vol. II. 5 G SERMON SERMON XXV. By Bifliop Fleetwood. PILATE'S DECLARATION OF CHRIST'* INNOCENCE. Matthew xxvii. 24, 25. IVhen 'Pilate faw that he could prevail nothing, hut that rather a tumult zvas made, he took zvater, and zvqfl^ed his hands before the multitude, faying, I am innocent of the blood of thisjujl perfon ; fee ye to it. Then anfzvered all the people, andfaid, his blood be on uSy and on our children. IT appears from thefe words, and from the other evangelifts, that Pilate had really taken fome pains, and ufed fome art, to deliver Jefus from the perfecution of the priefts, and the rage of the peo- ple, who fought, he knew not why, his death ; or at leafl to acquit his hands of him. He heard his accufation, and found it frivolous, and therefore bade them — take hi'm, and judge him, according to their ozun lazv, John 18, 31. He examined himfclf this dangerous criminal, and yet declared — he found no fault in him, even after he had owned he was a king, .^ G z Luke 420 PiLite^s Declaration Serm. XXV* Luke xxili. 4. He put them in mind himfelf of the cuftom the)'- had, to have a prilbner, whomfo- ever they defired, delivered to them at the feaft of the pafTovcr, and would have had them chofen this Jefus, King of the Jews, to be the man, John xviii. 39. He puts Barabbus in nomination with him, one that was a murderer and a robber, in hopes, it is likely, to determine them, by fuch an odious and abhorred comparifon, to pitch on Jefus. There were, no queftion, many malcfacflors in their pri- fons ; Barabbus had many accomplices that lay bound with him (Mark xv. 7.) for infurrcdtion; but he alone had committed murder in that infurred:ion^; this villain, above all, he fixes on, to fee if thit could move them to prefer Jefus of Nazareth to him, for the prifoner that he muft deliver. Fie took occa- fion offending him to Herod, from hearing he vv^as a Galilean, to rid his hands of him ; and- when that W'ould not do, he again bcfpeaks the rulers and the people, Luke xxiii. 14. Tou have brought this man unto me as ofie that perverteth the people ; and behold, I having examined him, before you, have found no fault in him, touching thofe things whereof ye accv.fe him : no, nor yet Herod; for I fent you to him, and lo, iwthing zvorthy of death is done unto him ; / zvill therefore chajlife him and releafe him. No judge could fhew more marks of a difpolition to acquit a prifoner, than Pilate here fhew- cd ; one may fee him almoft partial in the matter, not againft juftice (for he knew there was no caufe of death found in him, and knew befides they had delivered him for envy) but againft the outrageous clamours of the priefts and multitude. It is not unlikely, that his very fcourging him w^as with a merciful intention of fparing his life : he would proceed to fuch a punifhment, to countenance their accufation, or to appeafe their prefent rage; ;hinking, it may be, they would now be fatisfied, nnd in fgme little fpace of time relent, and fall from SerM. XXV. of Chr'tjVs Innocence. 421 from their violent rcfolutio.i of having him cruci- fied. He fuffcrcd him to uc crowned 'A'iih thorns, and cxpofed in 1 purple robe, and with a reed For a fccptrc, and to be treated with all the fcorn and infolence, and cruel contempt, that a pretender to thofe honours nii[>;ht expect from a mad multirade, and common fokiiers, encouraged to it by their governors and leaders. This ulage, and this fight, he thought might fat'atf their ill-nature, and move fome pity in them ; and when he found it would not operate that wav, bui that they cried out the loud- er, Crucify ; he faid, what he fliould have remem- bered, "Take ye him, and crucify him, for I find no fault in him : but then they were more inftant than be- fore, and cried our, Let bi-m be crucifi'd. When Pilate fdzv that he could prevail nothing-, but that rather a tumult zuas made ; when he fa Vv', that all the artful pains which he had taken, all the excufes he had made, the arguments he had ufed, the diver- fions and delays he had fouo-ht out, and the dow^n- right denials he had given them ; when he faw that nothing of all this would do, but that the multitude was more incenfed, and that inllcad of barkening to him, and remitting fomewhat of their claim, they were rather like to force him from his hands, and fall into fedition, and fet the city in an uproar, he fubmittcd to thole fears, that fometimes fall, in fome degree, upon a brave and conftant man, that has to deal with multitudes, he yielded to the fad neceffity of giving up the life of a private per- fon, to the tranquillity and fafcty, as he imagined, of the public : but, that he might do it with the better grace, he took water, and ivajloed his hands before the multitude, faying, I am innocent of the blood of this juji perfon, fee ye to it. He vvould intimate hereby, that as that water cleanfed his hands from any foul- nefs they might have contrafted ; fo fhould the pro- teHatioji of the force and fear he was under, de- clare 42 2 Pilate's Declarallon Serm. XXV. clarc him innocent, and acquit his confcience of whatever guilt might be contradied by the death of that juft man, who flood before him, and whofe blood they refolved to have. He, for his part, de* clared him innocent, and was willing to let him go : they by their clamours, dreadful and impor- tunate, and threatening tumult and confufion, would not let him adi, as reafon and juflice bid he fhould ; let it therefore lie on them ; let them, who by their mutinous rage obftrudted juflice, anfwer for it ; See ye to it. There is therefore in thefe words, I. A declaration of Chrifl's innocence, and of his own ; and a throwing the guilt of his condemna- tion on the priefls and the people, / am innocent oj the blood of this jiijl perfon ; fee ye to it. II. The prielts and people take this guilt upon themfelves. His blood be on us, and on our children. I. Pilate here acknowledges ChriiVs innocence in calling him a jufl perfon. Judas, who had at- tended on him during his public miniftry, came and acknowledged he had finned, in betraying the innocent blood. Pilate's wife had fent to him, when fitting in judgment, to warn him from hav- ing any hand in punifhing that jufl man ; and now himfelf declares he was a juft perfon. Thus St. Peter reminds the Jews, that they denied the holy one a^id the JNJl, and defired a murderer to be granted to thc?n, A<-ts, iii. 14. Thus St. Stephen tells them, they hadf.ain them, zvhich fJoewed before of the coming of the jujl one, ofzvhom they had been the betrayers and murder" efs, Adts vii. ^2. And thus faith Ananias to Saul, 'TJ:e God of our fathers hath c ho fen thee, that thoujlmddji know his zuill, and fee that jifl one, audjhouldfl hear the vojce of his mouth, ch. xxii. ver. 14. Pilate, it is Ukely, by juft perfon, underftood no more, than a man that was innocent of the crimes of which he was accufed ; but his wife muft ufe that word pro- videntially, and furely, by divine appointment, fince Serm. XXV. of Chr'tjl^s Iniwcence. 423 fince you fee, the fcripture writers ufc it fo remark- ably, and with i)articuhir diftinc^liion, as inchuling the whole character of Chriil. And thus Sr. Peter; Chrijl bath, once fuffered forjins, the jujl for the i THE DIFFICULTY OF KNOWING? ONE'S SELF, I Kings vlii. 13. And Hazaeljliidy But what, is thyjervant a dog, that pe Jlmdd do this great thing ? WE have a very lignal iiiflance of the deccit- fulncfs of the heart reprelentcd to us in the perfon of Hazael ; who was fent to the prophet Elifha, to inquire of the Lord, concerning his mailer the King of Svria's recovery. For the man of God having told him that the King might reco- ver from the diforder he was then labouring under, began to fet and faften his countenance upon him of a fudden, and to break out into the moft violent ^xprcffions of forrow, and a deep concern for it : whereupon, when Hazael, full of fhame and con- fufion, afked, zvhyweepeth my Lord P he anfwered, becaufe I know the evil that thou wilt do unto the children of Ifrael : their Jlrong holds wilt thou fct on fire ^ and their young men wilt thou Jlay with the jword, and wilt daJJj .their 43^ 'I'be Difficulty of Serm. XXVI. their children, and rip up their zvomen with child. Thus much did the man of God fay and know of him, b}^ a light darted into his mind from Heaven. But Haza'el, not knowing himfelf fo well as the other did, was flartled and amazed at the relation, and would not believe it poflible, that a man of his temper could ever run out into fuch enormous in- Hances of cruelty and inhumanity : zvhat, lays he, is thy fervant a dog, that hejloould do this great thing f And yet, for all this, it is highly probable, that he was then that very man he could not imagine himfelf to be: for we find him, on the very next day, after his return, in a very treacherous and dif- loyal manner, murdering his own mafter, and u- furping his kingdom ; which was but a prologue to the fad tragedy which he afterwards adied upon the people of Ifrael. And now the cafe is but very little better with moll men than it was with Hazael. However, it cometh to pafs, they are wonderfully unacquainted with their own temper and difpofition, and know very little of what pafleth within them : for of fo many proud, ambitious, revengeful, envying, and ill-natured perfons that are in the world, where, is there one of them, who, although he hath all the fymptoms of the vice appearing upon every occafion, can look with fuch an impartial eye upon himfelf, as to believe that the imputation thrown upon him is not altogether groundlefs and unfair ? who, if he were told by men of a difcerning fpirit and a ilrong conjedVure, of all the evil and abfurd things which that falfe heart of his would at one time or other betray hirn into, would not believe as little^ and wonder as much as Hazael did before him ? Thus, for inftance, tell an angry perfon that he is weak and impotent, and of no confiftcncy of mind ; tell him that fuch or fuch a little accident, which he may then defpife, and think much below a paffion, ihall Serm. XXVI. Knozving One's Self, 43^ ihall hereafter make him fay and do fcveral abfurd, indifcrcct, and mifbccoming things : he may per- haps own, that he hath a fpirit of refentmcnt with- in him, that will not let him be impofed on ; but he fondly imagines, that he can lay a becoming re- Itraint upon it when he pleafes, although it is e- ver running away with him into fome indecency or other. Therefore, to bring down the words of my text to our prefcnt occafion, I fliall endeavour, in a fur- ther profecution of them, to evince the great ne- ceflity of a nice and curious infpedtion into the fe- veral reccffcs of the heart; that beins; the fureltand the Ihortell: method that a wicked man can take to reform himfelf. For let us but flop the fountain, and the ftreams will fpend and wafte rhemfcives away in a very little time ; but if wc go about, like children, to raife a bank, and to ftop the cur- rent, not taking notice all the while of the fpring which continually feedeth it ; when the next flood of a temptation rifeth, and breakcth in upon it, then we ihall find, that we have begun at the wTong end of our duty, and that wt are very little more the better for it, than if we had fat ilill and made no advances at all. But, in order to a clearer explanation of the point, I Ihall fpeak to thcfe following particulars. I. By endeavouring to prove, from particular in- ftanccs, that man is generally the moil ignorant creature in the world of himfelf. II. By enquiring into the grounds and reafons of t"hls ignorance. III. By propofing feveral advantages that do moll affuredly attend a due improvement in the knowledge of ourfel^ves. I. To prove that man is generally the moft ig- norant creature in the world of himfelf: To 440 ^he Difficulty of Serm. XXVI. To piirfuc the heart of man through all the In- flances of life, in all its feveral windings and turn- ings, and under that infinite variety of Ihapes and ap- pearances which it putteth on,would be a difficult and almoft impoffible undertaking: fo that I fhall confine myfclf to fuch as have a nearer reference to the pre- fent occafion, an<,l do, upon a clofer view, llievv themfelves through the whole bufinefs of repentance. For we all know what it is to repent ; but whether he repenteth him truly of his fins or not, who can know it ? Now, the great duty of repentance is chiefly made up of thefe two parts ; a hearty forrovv for the follies and mifcarriages of the time paft : and a full purpofe and refolution of amendment for the time to come. And now, to fhew the falfenefs of the heart in both thefe parts of repentance. And, As to a hearty forrow for the fins and mifcarriages of the time paft : is there a more ufual thing than for a man to impofe uponhimfelf, by putting on a grave and demure countenance, by calling a fcvere look into his paft condud:, and making fome few pi- ous and devout reflections upon it, and then to be- lieve that he hath repented to an excellent purpofe, without ever letting it ftep forth into practice, and fliew itfelf in a holy converfation ? Nay, fome perfons do carry the deceit a little higher ; who, if they can but bring themfelves to weep for their fins, are then full of an ill-grounded confidence and fecurity; never confidering that all this may prove to be no more than the very garb and outward drefs of a contrite heart, which another heart, as hard as the pether milftone, may as well put on. For tears and fighs, however in fome perfons they may be de- cent and commendable cxpreffions of a godly forrovv, are neither neceflary, nor infallible figns of a true and unfeigned repentance ; not neceflary, becaufe i6inctimcs, and in ibme perfons, the inward grief and an- Serm. XXVI. Knozvhig One's Self. 441 anguifh of the mind may be too big to be exprcfled by io little a thing as a tear ; and then it turncth its edge inwards upon the mind ; and, like thole wounds of the body v\ hich bleed inwardly, it gcner^dly proves the moll: fatal and dangerous to the whole body of fin : not infallible, bccaufe a very fmall portion of Ibrrow may make fome tender difpofitions melt, and break out into tears ; or a man may perhaps weep at parting with his fins, as he would to bid the lafl: farewel to an old friend, that he was fure never to fee again. But there is a ftill more pleafant cheat in this af- fair, that when we find a dcadnefs, and a ftrange kind of unaptnefs and indifpofition to all impreffions of religion, and that we cannot be as truly forry for our fins as we fhould be, we then pretend to be for- ry that we are not more forry for them ; which is not lefs abfurd and irrational, than that a man Ihould pretend to be angry at a thing, becaufe he did not know how to be angry at all. But after all, what is wanting in this part of repen- tance, we expedt to make it up in the next ; and to that purpofe we put on a refolution of amendment, which we take to be as firm as a houfe built upon a rock; fo that let the floods arife, and the winds blow, and the ftrcams beat vehemently upon it, nothino- fhall fhake it into ruin and diforder. We doubt not, upon the ilrength of this reiblve, to Hand fall and unmoved amidfh the florm of a temptation ; and do firmly believe, at the time we make ufe of it, that nothing in the world will ever be able to make us commit thofe fins over again, which we have fo firmly refolved againft. Thus many a time have we come to the facra- ment of the Lord's fupper, with a full purpofe of amendment, and with as full a perfuafion of put- ing that fame purpofe into praftice ; and yet have we not all as often broke that good purpofe, and Vol. II. 3 K falfified 442 ne Difficulty of Serm. XXVI. falfified that fame perfuaiion, by ilarring aficic, iUvC a broken bow, into thofe very fins which we then fo P:)lemnly and fo confidently declared againft ? Whereas, had but any other peribn entered with iis into a vow lb folcmn, that he had taken the ho- ly facrament upon it, I believe, had he but once deceived us by breaking in upon the vow, we fhouid hardly ever after be prevailed upon to trull that man again, although we ftill continue to trull our own hearts, againfl reaibn, and againll experience. This indeed is a dangerous deceit enough ; and will of courfe betray all thofe well-meaning perfons into fin and folly, who are apt to take religion for a much eafier thing than it is. But this is not the only millake we are apt to run into : we do not on- ly think fometimes that Vv^e can do more than we can do, but fometimes that we are incapable of do- ing lefs : an error of another kind indeed, but pot lefs dangerous, arifing from a diffidence and falfe humility, for how much a v/ickcd man can do in the bufinefs of religion, if he would but do his beil, is \'ery often more than he can tell. Thus nothing is more common, than to fee a wicked man running headlong into fin and follv, againil his rcafon, againft his religion, and againft his God. Tell him, that what he is going to do, will be an infinite difparagement to his underfland- ing, which at another time he fctteth no fmail va- lue upon ; tell him that it will blacken hi-s reputa- tion, which he had rather die for than lofe ; tell him that the pleafure of fin is Ihort and tranfient, and leavcth a vexatious kind of llirig behind it, v/hich will very hardly be drav^n forth ; tell him, that this is one of thofe things for which God will mod furely bring him to judgment, which he pre- tendeth to believe with a full affurance and perfua- fion ; and yet, for all this, he ihutteth his eyes a- gainft all convi^ion, and rufhcrh into the fin, like a Serm. XXVI. Knozvhi^ One's Self. 443 a horfe into the battle ; as it he had nothing left to do, but like a filly child, to wink hard, and to think to cfcapc a certain and infinite mifchicf, only by endeavouring not to fee it. ^ And now to ihew that the heart hath given In a falfe report of the temptation, we may learn from this, that the fame weak man would rcfiit and maf- ter the fame powerful temptation, upon confidera- tions of infinitely lefs value than thofe which reli- gion ofiereth, nay, fuch vile confidcrations, that the grace of God cannot, without blafphemy, te fuppofed to add any manner of force and efficacy to them. Thus, for inftance, it would be a hard matter to drefs up fin in fuch foft and tempting cir- cumilances, that a truly covetous man would not refill: them for a confiderable fum of money ; when neither the hopes of Heaven, nor the fears of hell could make an impreffion upon him before. But can any thing be a furer indication of the deceitful- nefs of the heart, than thus to fhew more courage, refolution, and adivity, in an ill caufe, than it doth in a good one ? and to exert itfelf to better pur- pofe, when it is to fcrve its own pride, or lulf, or revenge, or any other paflion, than when it is to ferve God upon the motives of the gofpel, and up- on all the arguments that ever have been made ufe of to bring men over to religion and a good life ? And having' thus ihewn that a man is wonderfully apt to deceive and impofe upon himfclf, in paffino- through the fevcral ftages of this great duty repen- tance, I proceed, II. To inquire into the grounds and rcafons of this ignorance, and to fhew whence it cometh to pafs, that a man, the only creature in the world that can reiic