Which two principles will secure us in all our actions, I. As true. The folly of a sinner presuming upon God's mercy, or relying upon a future repentance. 11. As only probable. No man, in most tempo- ral concerns, acts upon surer grounds than of pro- III. As false. Under this supposition, the virtu- Hence we may perceive the folly of atheistical "Henceforth I call you not servants; for the ser- vant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard The superlative love of Christ appears in the 1. That a servant is, for the most part, 1. Unac- - II. That a friend is blessed with many privi- In every one of which particulars, the excellency "Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth; therefore let thy words be few."- ECCLES. v. 2. Solomon, having been spoken to by God himself, and so the fittest to teach us how to speak to God, here observes to us, that when we are in God's house, we are more especially in his presence; that this ought to create a reverence in our addresses to him, and that this reverence consists in the prepa- ration of our thoughts and the government of our The first is premeditation of thought. The second is, ordering of our words by perti- nence and brevity of expression. Because prayer prevails upon God, not as it does with men, by way of information, persuasion, impor- tunity,- -an objection to this last answered. But as it is the fulfilling of that condition upon which God dispenseth his blessings to mankind,- an ob- jection to this removed. As it is most properly an act of dependence upon God; a dependence not natural, but moral, for else it would belong indiffe- rently to the wicked as well as to the just. I. Premeditation ought to respect, 1. The object of our prayers,- God, and his divine perfections; 2. The matter of our prayers, either things of ab- solute necessity, as the virtues of a pious life; or of unquestionable charity, as the innocent comforts of it; 3. The order and disposition of our prayers, by excluding every thing which may seem irreverent, incoherent, and impertinent; absurd and irrational; Therefore all Christian churches have governed their public worship by a liturgy, or set form of To pray by the Spirit; that is, with the heart, not Not to stint, but help and enlarge the spirit of Whereas, on the contrary, Extempore prayers stint the spirit, by calling off They are prone to encourage pride and ostenta- - II. Brevity of expression, the greatest perfection of speech; authorized by both divine and human examples; suited best to the modesty, discretion, and respect required in all suppliants; is still farther enforced in our addresses to God by these argu- ments, 1. That all the reasons for prolixity of speech with men, cease to be so, when we pray to God; 2. That there are but few things necessary to be prayed for; 3. That the person who prays can- not keep up the same fervour and attention in a long as in a short prayer; 4. That shortness of speech is the most natural and lively way of express- ing the utmost agonies of the soul; 5. That we have examples in Scripture, both of brevity and prolixity of speech in prayer; as of brevity in the Lord's Prayer; the practice of it in our Saviour himself; the success of it in several instances, - leper, of the blind man, and of the publican; whereas - By these rules we may judge, 1. Of our church's excellent Liturgy; for its brevity and fulness, for the frequent opportunity of mentioning the name and some great attribute of God; for its alternate responses, which thing properly denominates it a "Book of Common-Prayer," for appointing even a form of prayer before sermons. 2. Of the dissenters' Liturgy the greatest treasure of rational devotion ; "Who, knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, The sin of taking pleasure in other men's sins is not only distinct from, but also much greater than all those others mentioned in the foregoing catalogue. To arrive at which pitch of sinning there is a con- siderable difficulty, because every man has naturally a distinguishing sense of good and evil, and an in- ward satisfaction or dissatisfaction after the doing of either, and cannot quickly or easily extinguish this principle, but by another inferior principle gratified with objects contrary to the former. And conse- quently, no man is quickly or easily brought to take pleasure in his own, much less in other men's sins. I. The causes are, 1. The commission of the same sins in one's own person; 2. The commission of them against the full conviction of conscience; 3. The con- tinuance in them; 4. The inseparable poor-spirited- ness of guilt, which is less uneasy in company; 5. A peculiar unaccountable malignity of nature. II. The reasons why the guilt of that sin is so great, are, 1. That there is naturally no motive to tempt men to it; 2. That the nature of this sin is --- III. The persons guilty of that sin are generally such as draw others to it, particularly, 1. Who Lastly, the effects of this sin are, 1. Upon parti- SERMON XIX.-P. 153. The apostle in this epistle addresses himself chiefly to the Jews; but in this first chapter he deals with the Greeks and Gentiles, whom he charges with an inexcusable sinfulness. And the charge contains in this, and in the precedent and subsequent verses, I. The sin," that knowing God, they did not glorify him as God," (ver. 21,) idolatry; not that kind which worships that for God which is not God; but which worships the true God by the mediation II. The persons guilty of this sin, "such as pro- fessed themselves wise," (ver. 22,) not the gnostics, but the old heathen philosophers. III. The cause of that sin, " holding the truth in unrighteousness," (ver. 18,) that the truths which they were accountable for, - viz. 1. The being of a God; 2. That he is the maker and governor of the world; 3. That he is to be worshipped; 4. That he is to be worshipped by pious practices; 5. That every deviation from duty is to be repented of; 6. That every guilty person is obnoxious to punish- ment, were by them held in unrighteousness, (1.) By not acting up to what they knew; (2.) By not improving those known principles into proper con sequences; (3.) By concealing what they knew. IV. The judgment passed upon them, "that they were without excuse," (ver 20,) that they were unfit not only for a pardon, but even for a plea,- because, 1. The freedom of the will, which they generally asserted, excluded them from the plea of unwilling- ness; 2. The knowledge of their understanding ex- cluded them from the plea of ignorance. From all these we may consider, 1. The great "And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither, not having a wedding garment ?"— MATT. The design of this parable, under the circumstantial I. That the preparation be habitual. II. That it be also actual, of which the principal The author seems to have designed another dis- SERMON XXI.-P. 169. OF THE FATAL IMPOSTURE AND FORCE OF words. Same subject, Sermons LXI. LXII. LXIII. end of "Wo unto them that call evil good, and good evil." Here a wo is denounced against those, not only in particular, who judicially pronounce the guilty inno- cent, and the innocent guilty; but in general, who, by abusing men's minds with false notions, make evil pass for good, and good for evil. And in the examination of this vile practice it will be necessary, I. To examine the nature of good and evil, what they are, and upon what they are founded, viz., upon the conformity or unconformity to right reason. Not upon the opinion, or laws of men; because then, 1. The same action under the same circumstances might be both morally good and morally evil; 2. The laws could neither be morally good nor evil; the same action might be, in respect of the divine law com- manding it, morally good; and of a human, forbid- ding it, morally evil. But that the nature of good and evil is founded upon a jus naturale, antecedent to all jus positivum, may be exemplified in those two moral duties, towards God and towards one's neighbour. II. To shew the way how good and evil operate upon men's minds, viz. by their respective names or III. To shew the mischief arising from the mis- application of names. Since, 1. The generality of men are absolutely governed by words and names; and, 2. Chiefly in matters of good and evil, which are commonly taken upon trust, by reason of the fre- quent affinity between vice and virtue, and of most men's inability to judge exactly of things. Thence may be inferred the comprehensive mischief of this misapplication, by which man is either, 1. deceived, Lastly, To assign several instances, wherein those mischievous effects do actually shew themselves. I. In religion and church, - such as calling, 1. The religion of the church of England, popery, which II. In the civil government, (with an apology for The necessity of reflecting frequently upon the great III. In private interests of particular persons, such as calling, 1. Revenge, a sense of honour ; 2. Bodily abstinence, with a demure, affected counte- A general survey and recollection of all that has This is David's retractation of his revenge resolved I. Observe the greatness of sin-preventing mercy. II. Make several useful applications. As, 1. To It is of great moment and difficulty to be ration- even of a true religion. But a man's own heart and conscience, above all other things, is able to give him confidence towards God. In order to which we I. How the heart or conscience ought to be in- formed, namely, By right reason and scripture, and II. By what means we may get our heart thus informed, namely, 1. By a careful attention to the dictates of reason and natural morality; 2. By a tender regard to every pious motion of God's Spirit; 3. By a study of the revealed word of God; 4. By keeping a frequent and impartial account with our conscience. With this caution, lest either, on the one side, every doubting may overthrow our confi- dence, or, on the other, a bare silence of conscience III. Whence the testimony of conscience is so authentic, namely, 1. Because it is commissioned to this office by God himself. And there is examined the absurdity and impertinence, the impudence and impiety, of false pretences of conscience; such par- ticularly as those of schismatical dissenters, who oppose the solemn usages of our church, the neces- sity of which is founded upon sound reason. IV. Some particular instances, wherein this confi- dence suggested by conscience exerts itself, namely, 1. In our addresses to God by prayer; 2. At the time of some notable sharp trial, -as poverty, It is an impossible thing for man to merit of God. And although, I. Men are naturally prone to persuade them- II. Such a persuasion is false and absurd, because III. This persuasion hath been the foundation of great corruptions in religion, namely, Pelagianism, and Popery. But though we are not able to merit, IV. This ought not to discourage our obedience. Since, 1. A beggar may ask an alms, which he can- SERMON XXVI. - P. 214. The light within us, or right reason, is our con- science, whose duties are to inform and to oblige; which is capable of being turned into darkness, — a very considerable evil, and great danger of falling into it. The cause of this light's being darkened is, I. In general; every thing which either defiles the conscience, or weakens it by putting a bias upon II. In particular; every kind and degree of sin, considered, 1. In the act; and thus every commis- sion of any great sin darkens the conscience. 2. In the habit; and thus the repeated practice of sin puts out its light. 3. In the principle; and thus every vicious affection perverts the judging, and darkens the discerning power of conscience. Such as, (1.) Sensuality, by the false pleasures of lust, of intem- perance; (2.) Covetousness; (3.) Ambition, or Thence a man may learn what he is to avoid, The duty here enjoined by Christ is not opposed I. Negatively, is not meant, 1. A fair deportment But, II. Positively, is meant, 1. A discharging the III. This love of enemies may be enforced by Lastly, because this duty is so difficult, we ought SERMON XXVIII.- Page 233. FALSE FOUNDATIONS REMOVED, AND TRUE ONES LAID. "And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, Our Saviour teaches us not to build upon a de- ceitful bottom, in the great business of our eternal happiness, but only upon practice and obedience; I. That is the best and surest foundation, being, 1. The only thing that can mend our corrupt nature; 2. The highest perfection of our nature; 3. The main end of religion, as the designs of it in this world are the honour of God, and the advantage of II. All other foundations are false, such as, 1. A naked inoperative faith; 2. The goodness of the heart and honesty of intention; 3. Party and singularity, because the piety of no party can sanctify its proselytes, and such an adhesion to a party car- ries with it much of spiritual pride in men, who naturally have a desire of pre-eminence, and a spirit of opposition to such as are not of their own way. III. Such false foundations, upon trial, will be sure to fall, which is shewed from, 1. The Devil's force and opposition, which is sudden and unexpected, furious and impetuous, restless and importunate; IV. The fall will be very great, being scandalous and diffusive, hardly and very rarely recoverable. Therefore no man must venture to build his salva- tion upon false and sinking grounds, but only upon "But when ye sin so against the brethren, and wound their weak conscience, ye sin against The apostle treateth of a weak conscience in new from heathenism, (here,) in these words; towards I. What a weak conscience is; not that which is II. How such a weak conscience is wounded, son. III. We may thence infer, 1. That none having sons, but of the community. For the ill conse- quences would be, that there could be no limits assigned to this plea, nor any evidence of its sin- cerity, and this would absolutely bind the magis- trate's hands. Besides, such pleas are usually accompanied with partiality, and hypocrisy, such as The apostle's design here is to set forth the tran- I. That it is the wisdom of God, a wisdom respec- ting speculation, and here principally relating to practice, a wisdom as irresistibly powerful as it is II. That this wisdom is in a mystery, 1. In the nature of the things treated of in the Christian religion, which are of difficult apprehension for their greatness, spirituality, strangeness, as may be exem- plified in two principal articles of it, regeneration, and the resurrection; 2. In the ends of it: It is as much the design of religion to oblige men to believe the credenda as to practise the agenda; and there is as clear a reason for the belief of the one, as for the practice of the other. But their mysteriousness, (1.) Makes a greater impression of awe; (2.) Humbles the pride of men's reason; (3.) Engages us in a more diligent search; (4.) Will, when fully revealed, make Thence we may learn in such important points of |