Chriftians of all denominations whatfoe- SER M. VIII. ver; Confeffions of Sins; and profeffions of Repentance, made daily in our Prayers to God; if they be only formal and ineffectual, and produce not real Amendment of life; are altogether as vain and useless, as the Popish Confeffions made to Men. For to pray continually that our Life hereafter may be pure and holy, and yet at the fame time return daily to the commiffion of known Sins; is the highest hypocrify and mockery of God. Concerning thefe perfons it is, that our Saviour declares, Luke xiii. 24. Many, I fay unto you, will Seek to enter in, and shall not be able. They will Seek, not in the way of true virtue and righteoufnefs of life, but in ways which they hope may be fubftituted in its place. That is, in the expreffion of our Saviour, they will build their House upon the Sand, and not upon a Rock,

SERMON

SERMON IX.

The Excellency of Moral Quali fications.

A c T S xi. 24.

For he was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghoft.

T

HERE is nothing in nature SER M more amiable, than the cha- IX. racter of a truly Good man; a Man, whose principal Bufinefs and Pleafure is to make all Men eafy, with whom he has any Concern, in the prefent life; and to promote, as far as in Him lies, their Happinefs likewise in That which is to come. Other Qualifications, have their Value; and do in their proportion, merit a juft degree

of

SER M. of Esteem.

Great Knowledge and AbiIX. lities, every where neceffarily command Refpect. Great Actions never fail to fill Men with Admiration, and to procure Applaufe. But of all Characters, That of Goodness is the most lovely and approaches neareft to the Similitude of a Divine Perfection. God is the Fountain

of Goodness, from which flows all the Happiness in the whole Creation: And there is no one Perfection in the Divine Nature, which 'tis fo much our Duty and our Glory to imitate. He who most excells in This particular character, has the most of the Divine Likeness, that Man in this Mortal ftate can poffibly arrive at; And therefore in the defcription given of St Barnabas in my Text, the expreffions are used as Synonymous and of the fame Meaning, that he was a Good Man, and full of the Holy Ghost.

THE Occafion of the Character here given of Barnabas, was the Concern and Defire he fhowed, that the Benefit of True Religion might fpread far in the World that Men of all Nations might become partakers of the gracious Mercy

of

8

of God declared: in: the Gofpel, by being SER M brought to Repentance for the Remiffion IX. of Sins. Barnabas was the first perfon who ventured to introduced Paul among the Difciples at Ferufalem, immediately after his Converfion; when the reft of the Chriftians were all afraid of him, and believed not that he was a Difciple, Acts ix. 26. Afterwards, when upon occafion of the perfecution that arofe about Stephen, the Disciples which were scattered abroad from Jerufalem for fear of the Jews, did fome of them fpeak unto the Grecians, preaching the Lord Jefus, ch. xi, 19, 20. Barnabas was the perfon chofen to be fent forth from the Church in Jerufalem, that he should go as far as Antioch, ver. 22. Who when he came, and bad feen the grace of God, was glad, and exhorted them all, that with Purpose of Heart they would cleave unto the Lord, ver. 23. And then it follows, in the words of my Text; For be was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost.

'TIS plain this character given in the Text to Barnabas, was intended as a defcription of an excellent perfon; of a per

fon